インドネシアのコモドとう

I have got nothing much going on lately. I’m spending the summer break in my hometown in Indonesia. I usually learn German at this time every day. But today, the software didn’t work so I started to dig down the old documents in my room. And I found a passage that I wrote four years ago in Japanese. It was written as my final assignment. Apart from the writing, I also did a presentation about it. It’s about Komodo Island, the only place where Komodo (the biggest lizard in the world) live. I remember I was just trying to introduce Indonesia in a good way to my friends in Japan. I chose Komodo Island as the topic because it is very unique.

So now, I will practice typing in Japanese and see if I can still understand what I wrote. Enjoy it if you understand it!

インドネシアの南にはコモドとうがあります。このしまはとても暑くてかんそうしています。ひとが少ししかいません。このしまへ行くのもたいへんです。ふねで行けますが、時間がかかります。ヘリコプターでも行けますが、ねだんがとても高いです。行くのはとてもたいへんですが、コモドとうへ行けばとくべつな動物が見られます。それはコモドです。

コモドはワニのような動物です。コモドもワニのようにあぶないです。大人のコモドの長さは２メトルから３メートルぐらいです。おもさは７０キロぐらいです。せかいでいちばん大きいとかげ「ｌｉｚａｒｄ」です。コモドはインドネシアしかいないので、コモドはインドネシアのとくべつな動物です。

コモドとうにはたくさんコモドがいます。コモドが外にいるので、外をさんぽしてはいけません。さんぽしたければ、カイドといっしょに行かなくてはいけません。外では大きいコモドを見ることができます。時々ガイドはコモドに肉をあげます。でも、コモドの近くへいかないほうがいいです。コモドにかまれてしまいますから。コモドのはにはたくさんバクテリアがいますから、かまれるとあぶないです。

　コモドはウシやうまや鳥やサルをたべます。まずコモドはこの動物をかみます。かまれて、ｂａｃｔｅｒｉａでこの動物が死にます。しんだのはコモドに食べられます。

コモドとうで外に行くことがこわかったら、はくぶつかんに行くこともできます。このはくぶつかんにはコモドについてのいろいろな物が見られます。コモドの子供もいます。小さいコモドはこのはくぶつかんにいなくてはいけません。外にいれば、大きいコモドに食べられてしまいますから。今コモドは５０００びきしかいません。少ないですから、コモドはとてもたいせつにされています。

コモドとうにはホテルもあるので、お客様はこのホテルでゆっくり休むことができます。外はあぶないですが、ホテルの中はあぶなくないです。お客様はしんぱいがいりません。

さいごにコモドとうは海もきれいです。この海ではシュノーケリングもすいえいもできます。ビーチでバーベキューもできます。

ぼうけん（ａｄｖｅｎｔｕｒｅ）が好きな人には、コモドとうはとてもおもしろいと思います。きょうみがあれば、ぼうけんに行ってください。

Cheers!

Do You Want to Try MyCube?

Related to my previous post, I think MyCube is great new social network with great principles. You can read about it here http://jalanjalanyuk.wordpress.com/2011/06/02/mycube-%E2%80%93-the-new-social-network-with-right-principles/.

If you are curious about it, you can try MyCube yourself. Go to beta.mycube.com and register using this activation code: mcweslys. When you use this code, then you will get 1000 free cubes for transaction in MyCube.

Hope you can get great experiences using it. Please contact me if you have any question!

MyCube – The New Social Network with Right Principles

I have been using MyCube beta version for the last week and have got more understanding about it. I find that this is a totally different social network to what most social networks have been. Its principles are unique and I totally agree with its emphasis on privacy, ownership, and control. Other than that, I find that the interest grid and nano-payment features are innovative and very useful.
I always believe that we must have enough privacy in using social networks. As privacy matters in the real life, it should also be the same way in the digital life because our digital life is the reflection of our real life. Therefore, we should be able to control what we are sharing, who we are sharing with, when, and under what conditions.
A social network should allow its users to control their privacy EASILY and I find it this way in MyCube. To begin with, the default setting within MyCube is private, not public. So, nothing more than basic public information will be displayed, unless we choose to. When we add a contact, we can categorise that person into a certain group. As defaults, there are three main groups: friends, family, and others. We can add more groups easily as we like and customise them accordingly. This way, we can put our contacts in the suitable groups, so we can share anything more comfortably and easily to the right people. It also works the same way when we post status, articles, photos, or videos.
One thing that is new in MyCube is the interest grid. We can choose a number of interests. If other users post something under the interests that we choose and would like us to see it, then that post will appear on our home page. This way, we can control not only the information we share, but also the information that we receive. Other than to build networks with people who have similar interests, I think this also gives us value by getting timely information of the things we are interested in.
One very important value that I find in MyCube is that users own their data and contents. MyCube will not use, share, or claim users’ contents. I find this a bit different to Facebook’s terms. In Facebook, users are said to own their contents, BUT actually Facebook gets the permission to use any contents that we post until those contents are deleted. However, if we have shared the contents to other users and those users still keep those contents, Facebook still has the permission to use those contents.
To emphasise the importance of intellectual property, MyCube introduces ‘Cube’, a similar concept to money in real life. When we post something that has intellectual property, we can give a price to it in cube units. People who want to get or use those items can purchase them using their cubes. I think this is a very important new concept in social network. As it is very easy to grab anything online, people tend to forget who has the ownership of certain things, and usually the value goes to the services. The use of cube will help to clarify this and give value to the creators as well.
In conclusion, MyCube is a fresh new social network that brings different principles, the principles that bring us closer to the real values in real life. I believe that our digital life can become more enjoyable and safer when it is conducted as close as possible to the real life. As people get more understanding of how digital life should be, instead of just accepting what the social networks give to us, I am sure more people will choose to use MyCube.

What’s Different with Water Taps in UK?

These three pictures show the taps I have in my flat in Glasgow. Can you see what is different with them?

A Social Network that Gives Control over Our Own Digital Life – Past, Present, and Future

Image: jscreationzs / FreeDigitalPhotos.net

Friendster was the first social network that I joined. A friend of mine invited me to that social network and then I signed up. I found it very interesting that I could make contact with friends, including the ones I did not often see physically. But, if it is only about making contacts, then why not using emails or phone texting? There is something different. And I believe it is the exposure. I like my friends to know what I do, what I think, who my friends are, what my other friends think about me, and so on. On the other way around, I like to find out things about other people, too. But, is that worth it?

My Europe Winter Trip

Image: dan / FreeDigitalPhotos.net

I have been planning for a trip during winter break to Barcelona, Milan, Venice, and Paris. I’ll be heading to Newcastle tomorrow evening because my first flight is from Newcastle to Barcelona. I’ll spend 4 days and 3 nights in Barcelona with some of my friends who will come from Switzerland and France. My Christmas Eve will be in Barcelona. I hope it will be a unique one. Then, I will travel to Milan and spend 2 nights there before going to Venice to catch a flight to Paris. In Milan, I will meet a friend who I have known since university time. Finally, I’ll spend 3 nights in Paris, including the New Year Eve with my friends who are living there.

Hope this trip will be fun! The weather has been so bad lately. Some airports were closed and many flights were cancelled. But, from the forecast, the upcoming week will be better. I hope so! Can’t wait for warmer days in Barcelona… Happy holiday all, merry Christmas and happy new year!

Lucky Music Video

The best “lucky” music video ever…

Snow in Glasgow

I was so bored today, so I went for a walk around Glasgow with my camera. I went to Glasgow Green, a park close to my flat. Here are some pictures that I took.

This year the snow comes a bit early in Glasgow. It’s been snowing for a week now. Glasgow Green which is supposed to be green is now white. Fortunately, I could see a hint of its greenness..

Today it’s not really cold though. My PC tells me it’s only 4 degC outside. Not so bad… (even though my hands were frozen when I took these pictures) But the sun shines, so how can it be a better day?

I will!

I have been sooo lazy (again). But I promise I will try my best to update my blog again. So many stories to tell since I came to Glasgow. So many things I have done here. So many people I have met. And so much snow has fallen this past week .

So, this is me a couple weeks ago. I am doing great!

It's me in Glasgow Green, when the weather was still good..

Food Checklist

Image: healingdream / FreeDigitalPhotos.net

Well, as advised by some of my seniors and some friends who are/were studying in Europe, I better start learning how to cook. Hm, not really “learning” as if I don’t know how to cook. I survived living in Tokyo for one year by eating the food that I made by myself. The fact that I’m still alive until now proves that I know how to cook! Haha… I can make pasta (spaghetti with instant topping on top of it), steak (cooked meat with any seasoning that I could grab), fried fish (easy, just put the fish on hot oil in a pan, wait for several seconds, ding!), omelette (mix eggs with anyting: vegetables, tomatoes, onion, the leftover pasta, the leftover steak, or the leftover fried fish, then put the mixture on hot oil in a pan, wait for several seconds, ding!), etc, etc, etc. Hahaha….