People and Technology

January 6, 2009

Irish Economy – Can us rats save the sinking ship?

Filed under: Government, economics, economy, jobs, newry, public sector — Paul Browne @ 8:38 pm

On the recent twelve pubs of Christmas event I had a discussion with the distinguished ex-president of the chamber of commerce (you know who you are – Graham!). Given this event involves 12 pubs , in one night, the following has been translated back into English. The main thread of the conversation is that only us rats can save the sinking ship. Calling every person in Ireland a ‘rat’ perhaps isn’t good PR on my part, but it’s a good analogy for the current state of the Irish economy.

Ship Sinking

Now, I’ve been known to follow previous Government advice and ‘shop around’ for the best value (including at the Quays in Newry). However, if everybody follows this ‘me first’ approach we’ll be quickly in a race to be first to leave the sinking ship. But what if, instead of cutting and running, we stayed to plug the leaks in the Irish economy and kept it afloat?

The trouble in staying to plug the leaks is that this requires consensus that everybody helps out– and consensus is in short supply at the moment. All groups in Irish society are fighting to shift the inevitable pain of the recession on to somebody else. The lack of consensus is worsened by the fact that those who did well in the boom, and those seen to be responsible for the bust, are not necessarily those that are feeling the most pain right now. Without consensus, you’ll be left alone with your bailer as the water closes over your head.

Consensus is not necessarily the same as partnership – it’s a broad understanding within Irish society of the way forward, accepting the pain that the steps to recovery will take. The cause for gloom is that in the 1980’s it took 7 years (until 1987) to get a similar understanding , and even then the pain wasn’t evenly felt. Some cause for optimism is that because Ireland is a small country, once consensus is reached, it can very effective (Exhibit B is the Celtic tiger years that followed before it morphed into a bubble around 2002-3).

So , what’s it going to be – stay and float, or all sink on our own?

November 29, 2008

Irish Voting meets the X-Factor

Filed under: Government, Ireland — Paul Browne @ 11:20 pm

Just watching the X-Factor (long story) and it hit me - the solution for Irish Democracy (or at least getting people to vote) is to merge it with the TV Show.

  • Even if the vote doesn’t go the way of the experts, the Judges get to save one option for the next week.
  • We get to vote every week on more or less the same topic.
  • People pay to cast their vote by premium text line, SMS or Website. 

The X-Factor is incredibly popular in the UK , so there must be something to it. What do you think - Is fact stranger than fiction?

October 8, 2007

Ten Predictions for Post Tiger Ireland

Filed under: Government, Health, Ireland, Irish, economy, prediction — Paul Browne @ 11:42 am

If David McWilliams can take credit for the phrase ‘Celtic Tiger’, can I be first to use the phrase ‘Post Tiger Ireland‘? Looking 5 years out, whether or not the Irish property market has a hard or soft landing, Ireland is going to be a very different place.

We were looking at buying a car in Smiths Ford Garage in Drogheda. The Sales guy (very personable but old school salesman) knew that we were coming in. The car we looked at had a flat tire. In Tiger Ireland , this wouldn’t have mattered - he could shift his quota of cars in the first week of the month. In Post Tiger Ireland (TM), cars are still going to sell , but the salesman is going to have to work for his money - doing the basics like fix the tires and clean the car properly.

So, anybody want to put money on the following not happening over the next 5 years?

  1. Not a national disater:
    We’ll have a hard / soft / gentle as a feather (delete as appropriate) landing in the housing market. This will be talked about as a ‘national disaster’. It won’t be - the non construction 73% of the economy will continue along, maybe a little bit more cautiously, but it will carry on.
    -
  2. We’ll find a way to ‘blame the Brits’
    (and everybody else) but unlike the last 800 years, we messed this one upselves. Don’t expect this to stop an unwanted increase in nastiness towards anybody looking non-Irish. The majority of the bullies will be those who left education early to take advantage of the construction boom and are now left high and dry. Sales of Harp Lager to increase?
    -
  3. There will be an increase in the politics of envy.
    Before we were living the Irish Dream - everybody could make it big. Now, expect punative (an ineffectual) tax proposals on property developers , complaints (but nothing done) about high public sector wages and pensions and demands from the ‘losers’ to be compensated (reform of stamp duty anyone?).
    -
  4. Ireland will become (even) more like Britain
    A mature but growing , first world economy. Yes, they’re our closest neighbour (geographically and culturally) , we support their football clubs and spend money in their chain stores. Expect the politics to become more similar - the key debate will be around improving the quality of public services (Health, Roads, Schools, Policing).
    -
  5. At least one major multinational will pull out with job losses in the thousands.
    There will be demands for government to ‘do something’ (the time for action will be 5 years too late). Away from the headlines, Irish Startups (in knowledge sectors such as IT , Financial Services and Pharmaceuticals) will create jobs, but in smaller companies.
    -
  6. Ireland will grow older.
    The average age of the Irish population will grow older as the baby boom passes. It’s possible that we could have too many schools in 15 years time - at least until the current babies have kids of their own. Another Irish Property Bubble in 2027?
    -
  7. The ‘New Irish’ will draw more talent into the Irish Economy.
    Many ‘New Irish’ (choose this weeks PC term) are here to stay for the same reason that many Irish people still live in England and the US. Would you take your 5 year old daughter back to school in Poland if she only spoke English? ; Migrants tend to follow where friends and family have gone before. This will give the Ireland a boost as we get the cream of overseas talent, even when other EU desinations become available. Expect more Paul McGraths on the Irish Football team.
    -
  8. Suburbs are the new Ghettos.
    Carbon taxes and higher fuel costs are here to stay. Traffic jams in Dublin are going to get even worse (think pre-congestion charge London). Doing an expensive 2 hr commute will become less and less attractive, especially when house prices fall. Poorly built boomtime housing will decay quickly when not maintained leading to a vicious circle of decline when those that can afford to get out, will.
    -
  9. IT will be the major growth factor in the Irish Economy.
    Despite all the buzz around Green, Space and Nano technologies, few of these are ready for widespread commercialisiation. Not only will IT be the direct engine of growth, but it will enable growth in other industries (e.g. Irish Business using Skype videoconferences to offer Financial Services to the City of London).
    -
  10. Something will happen that we can’t predict.
    In the 60’s , few foresaw the viciousness of the troubles. In the early 90’s , few predicted the robustness of the Celtic Tiger. What does this decade hold? A 9-11 with Irish linked perpetrator’s? Large scale social unrest caused by the Euro-straightjacket? Miracle cures for obesity, cancer and smoking? I have no idea.
    -

There are some of these predictions (especially number 2) that I don’t like. What do you think?`]

More Blog Posts from Paul

May 3, 2007

Wexford Programmer needed - Enviromental Protection Agency

Filed under: Government, jobs — Paul Browne @ 1:07 am

If you’re not interested in the Database Admin job with OSi, maybe you’d fancy a programming job with the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). This one is from the Irish Government e-tenders site, but doesn’t say what language they need , without applying for more information.

epa-logo

April 27, 2007

PublicJobs.ie - Database Administrator for Ordnance Survey Ireland

Filed under: Government, jobs, public, public sector, publicjobs — Paul Browne @ 1:11 am

We’ve written before about how PublicJobs.ie isn’t the easiest to use to find technical jobs.

Public Jobs Logo

So , you may have missed this job advert if you’re in the database end of things. Just give us 10% commission when you get the job.

OSi has developed new spatial databases running on a Windows 2000 platform with Oracle9i / 10g Enterprise Spatial edition. This gives OSi a single integrated data source, holding record set information and spatial data. The spatially integrated data store allows for the abstraction of data for spatial viewing and manipulation tools.

OSi is also running additional corporate databases on Oracle 9.2, Oracle 10g and Microsoft SQL platforms. As a result, OSi has a requirement for a Database Administrator to join the DB team.

This post is at Senior Technical Officer level in OSi’s structure. Reporting directly to a Team Leader in the Database Administration/Web/Backups area within IT, you will be responsible for the management and support of databases, primarily Oracle databases.

Application Information:
For further information please see Database Administrator (3 year contract) for Candidates Information booklet and Official Application form. Please note that only applications made on the official application form will be accepted.

Send completed application forms only to hrvacancies@osi.ie

January 4, 2007

Free Money

Filed under: Business, Finance, Government, Ireland, US — Paul Browne @ 7:32 am

Imagine writing an ‘I owe you’ note that people would accept them for whatever you wanted - in pubs , as payment for your car , or even as a downpayment on a property in Dublin 4. In your dreams , imagine that people trusted you enough that they would then use your IOU’s in shops as payment. This is even better, as people now want more of your IOU’s, so you can write even more of them and get even more free stuff.

This is fantastic - you’ve got a massive free loan. Best of all many of these IOUs will get lost behind the sofa or eaten by the cat so you’ll never have to pay them back. Free money. The situation is not so absurd as it seems : The 50 Euro note in your pocket is an IOU from the Irish (and other European) governments. Technically we can reclaim payment, but what would be paid in?

FT Logo

What has sparked this ‘free money’ post is the news from the Financial times is that the Euro has edged out the US Dollar as the international IOU of choice. Given that the Irish Government is allowed to issue a fixed percentage of the Euro in circulation, the Irish Government now has even more money in it’s coffers ahead of the next election.

December 3, 2006

RegisterToVote.ie

Filed under: Drogheda, Government, Louth, Web, local government — Paul Browne @ 9:15 am

RegisterToVote.ie Good idea, shame about the implementation. To check if you’re registered , you have to go the individual County Council website - that’s about 30 different chances of error.

Did Local Government really pay web designers to do the same work 30 times?

Louth County Council

Anyway, try checking your ability to vote on the Louth website and you get the following error:

Electoral Registerindex.aspx?deptid=4&dpageid=0Register of ElectorsIndex.aspx?deptid=4&dpageid=0../XML/EREG/cntEreg0.xml
../XSLT/MainContent.xslt_parentOnline RegistrationeRegApp.aspx..
/XSLT/GenContent.xslt_parentOnline Enquiriesindex.aspx?deptid=4&dpageid=3_urlereg_parentFormsIndex.aspx
?deptid=4&dpageid=4_forms&secid=4../XSLT/FormDownloads.xslt_parent

June 20, 2006

Irish Government looking for Podcasters

Filed under: Belfast, Business, Consulting, Drogheda, Dublin, Dundalk, Entrepreneur, Government, Irish, People, blog, podcast, radio — Paul Browne @ 8:07 am
The Irish Government are looking for Podcasters. More information is on the E-Tenders site (registration may be required). I wonder if any of the poster boys of the Irish Podcasting movement will take up on this?I’ll take back what I said in my earlier (slightly cynical post): Web 2.0 meets the government.E-Tenders Logo

Summary of invitation for bids:

Crossborder Visitor Podcasting Pilot for East Border Region

Abstract:

The BCDEN project has set up a series of thematic working groups in each of the three Crossborder sub regions and has conducted a consultation and needs analysis exercise with each of those groups. The objective of this process was to ascertain, based on the region’s current ICT needs, what pilots would help the participant local authority areas to adapt to, innovate and compete within the Information Society.

Resulting from the aforementioned consultation exercise, the Tourism working group in the East Border Region (EBR) have selected Visitor Podcasting as one of the pilots they want to see implemented.

The aim of this pilot is to explore the use of new media opportunities, namely Podcasting, to reach a wider and more mobile target audience to sell EBR as an exciting and vibrant destination.

The objectives of the pilot will be to:

  • To deliver quality content to tourists through many different channels to increase the reach of communications
  • To promote the use of ICT in tourism within the wider Crossborder economy by using podcasting to attract more visitors to the EBR.
  • To increase the usage of ICT services by tourists
  • To enable cross advertising of other tourist attractions within EBR
  • To promote and facilitate Crossborder tourism

Requirements
ERNACT is now inviting tenders from suitably qualified application providers to successfully deliver this pilot by:

1. Supplying audio, picture and where required video, to enable EBR to run a Crossborder Visitor Podcasting pilot to help them achieve the aim and objectives described in section 3.1
2. Guaranteeing integration with mobile devices.
3. Ensuring involvement in the pilot of at least 1 tourist attraction in each of the eight EBR council areas.
4. Ensuring the crossborder theme is echoed throughout the pilot.
5. Liaising with the necessary project stakeholders in order to ensure smooth delivery of the project.
6. Imparting the necessary training to the relevant staff.
7. Facilitating ongoing support to tourism staff over the lifetime of the pilot
8. Project managing the entire roll out of the pilot

Links to Irish Podcasters:

Update (1) Tom Raftery is now looking for a partner to handle the paperwork. Best bet for Tom is to go for a medium sized IT company that’s already winning Government Business in other areas (as that is something the Government buyers look for). What you bring to the table is the podcasting expertise. I can give you the contact details of one if you’re interested - drop me a line here.

June 19, 2006

Can I give my TV Licence fee to An tImeall?

Filed under: Dublin, Government, Irish, Irish Times, People, podcast, radio, rte, tv — Paul Browne @ 8:10 am
The Irish Times has a story that ‘technically’ you need a TV Licence to have a 3G phone. Doesn’t matter if you never watch TV on it , the fact that you could watch TV is what matters.

rte logo

If that’s the way it’s going to be, can I give my TV Licence fee to An tImeall? In the last 18 months Conn Ó Muíneacháin has done more for the Irish language via Podcasting than the entire team at RTE, so I’d like him to get my 150 Euro. If you haven’t yet figured out how to recieve podcasts yet, Flirt FM are rerunning them on a weekly basis.

May 6, 2006

Architecture? One size fits all

No matter what your system does , be it insurance , banking , online travel booking or telecoms, the chances are it does the following things:

  • Gets information from users over the web
  • Does some business processing on that information
  • Saves the information in a database.

At a conservative estimate , about 99% of Enterprise systems would fall into this category.

If so, why do you need an architect , when you can use our ‘one size fits all’ architecture diagram (below)?! Most non-trivial systems, regardless of the language they are written in (be it Java, .Net , or your language of choice) follow the pattern seen in this diagram.

3 Tier Enterprise Diagram

There are 3 Pieces to the Solution:

  • Web Browser (for the user / client).
  • Web and Application Server - carry out business logic.
  • Database Back End - to store data and ensure data integrity.

Within the Application Server (the middle bit above, which as Java Architects is the bit we are interested in), there are a further 3 tiers

  • A Presentation tier (or layer), which is mainly about talking to the user (it gets and sends requests to the web browser).
  • A Service layer , which is mainly about talking to back end such as databases, legacy systems (such as mainframes) and XML-Web services that we may use.
  • A Business layer, the ‘meat’ of the sandwich, where the ‘Value add’ is in terms of business processing and validation.

For each of these layers , your priority in building them are slightly different.

  • The Presentation layer is the bit the user sees. You want it to be fast and give a good impression to the client. Underneath, use a standard framework (link: pick your framework here) and then customize the look and feel.
  • The Service layer you want to work fast and well (e.g. no data faults), but then then forget about. Unless things go wrong, no user is going to complement you on the quality of database persistence! Use standard libraries for the entire layer.
  • Unless your company is a clone or franchise, the business layer in the system is going to be completely different. Aside from the user-interface , concentrate most of your project effort here as this is the core of what system does. We’ve written quite a bit about how to increase the value-add of the business layer (link to O’Reilly Technical Articles)

By the way , we’re only half-joking about the ‘why do you need an architect’ bit. We can be contacted here.

March 14, 2006

Richard Stallman Speaking in Belfast

Filed under: Belfast, Business, Events, Government, Ireland — Paul Browne @ 1:24 pm

The FOSS Means Business conference will take place in Belfast on Thursday the 16th March 2006. This all-island event will focus on the adoption and use of Free Software/Open Source Software (FOSS), with particular emphasis on the economic and competitive benefits for both the public and private sector.

They’ve also got Bruce Perens.

More details here.

Spires Belfast

February 3, 2006

How to avoid losing 150m Euro

Filed under: Agile, Architect, Articles, Business, CRM, Dublin, ERP, Finance, Government, Health, Ireland, Open Source, Process, Project — Paul Browne @ 5:52 am

It now seems obvious that the Healthcare Payroll system was destined to fail. If you were working on the project, I’m sure it felt very differently at the time. How can your projects avoid a similar fate? While IT may sometimes seem disconnected from reality, the following guidelines show that ‘Real World’ lessons still apply.

  1. Know what you want and stick to it. If you’re building a house and change the plans several times the builder is going to fleece you, no matter how low the initial quote was. The same goes for IT Projects - if you change your mind after the price is agreed, you’re going to pay more.
  2. If you don’t know what you’re doing , find a friend who does. I know very little about houses, so when I was buying my own I got a friendly surveyor to check it out. With IT projects, this ‘friend’ should be genuinely on your side, and have something to lose (e.g. financial or reputation) if things go wrong.
  3. Little and often is better. Like exercise, smaller projects that deliver results little but early are best. If the results are good, try a second (and third) round to add more functionality based on the feedback from users.
  4. It’s been all done before. Tailored suits cost a lot more than ready-made ones - and most people are happy with a ‘Good enough’ instead of ‘Perfect fit’. There are literally thousands of ‘off-the-peg’ computer systems out there ready for final alteration to what you need.
  5. If you don’t understand the answer, ask more questions. Thankfully the days we sat and nodded at the Doctor’s Latin words are long gone. IT Consultants may sometimes speak a different language, but if they can’t explain what they’re talking about in English that you understand, the chances are they’re trying to hide something.
  6. Don’t build on sand. Like houses , projects need good foundations. For IT Projects , the good foundations are sound knowledge of the Business Processes being coded into the system. Changing processes and changing IT systems at the same time is like building on sand.
  7. Sometimes the tortoise wins the race. Unless your entire business model is built around being the very first to market, then being a tortoise and letting others race ahead has very big advantages. Not only can you learn from other people’s mistakes, but the chances are you’ll get it at a much reduced cost - For example websites now cost a fraction of what they did during the dot.com boom.
  8. Use a safety net. When building houses, often the first thing to go up is scaffolding, for safety reasons. The equivalent safety net in IT is called ‘Unit Tests’. Not only do they help you get there faster, but they let you know if you’ve broken something you’ve already built.
  9. Be a good poker player. Good poker players never give away valuable cards. For IT projects, owning all cards mean just that - make sure that you have full rights to the solution so that you can still move tables and use a different supplier. Even if you never make the move, knowing that you can is an effective bargaining chip.

And finally …

When you are in a hole, stop digging. The decision to call a halt to the projects was no doubt a difficult one, and is to be applauded. Too often, the temptation is to keep on going and hope things will turn out right. Recognising problems at an early stage means there is more chance of being able to fix them.

January 23, 2006

Checklist for IT Contracts

Filed under: Business, Consulting, Dublin, Government, Ireland, Process, Project, Supply Chain — Paul Browne @ 3:51 am

The Irish Computer Society (ICS) has a useful checklist for Irish companies of things to watch out for when setting up an IT contracts.

These items include:

  1. Take a look at your ’standard’ contract in the light of recent developments in IT
  2. Review how you can make your supplier selection process even better.
  3. Use competitive procurement if possible
  4. Keep electronic copies of contracts
  5. Have formal contracts in place
  6. Watch out for IPR and use source code escrow if necessary

December 17, 2005

Innovation Relay Center - Enterprise Ireland

Filed under: Business, Dublin, Government, Ireland, Knowledge Management, Training — Paul Browne @ 12:30 pm

If you are working in IT , then you are probably part of the knowledge economy. It is probably work your while checking out the Innovation Relay Centre Website, supported by Enterprise Ireland.

The centre acts as a clearing house, matching people how have patents and technology available for licence, and those that are looking to use it. As such is a good snapshot of the technologies that are up and coming in the medium term 12-36 months out).

November 18, 2005

Your Software - Unsafe at any Speed?

Filed under: Dublin, Government, Ireland, Technology, Training, Web — Paul Browne @ 1:28 am

In the 60’s, the Auto industry used to say ’safety doesn’t sell’ - the thinking was that buyers were more interested in new features like whitewall tyres or the latest radio. That begun to change with Ralph Naders Unsafe at any speed and manufacturers became liable for their safety defects. Now any car that doesn’t do well in the Safety rankings won’t do well in the salesroom.

When it comes to Security, are your business applications still stuck in the 60’s? Until recently it was thought that ‘Security doesn’t sell’. That has begun to change as buyers become aware of the possible threats that are out there. One such initive aimed at end users is Make It Secure (it’s run by the Irish Government, so excuse the photo’s). Once users are aware of the risks they are going to demand that providers of software solutions , do much much better.

Phishing Security Image Hook

April 11, 2003

All the Links from the BBC Click Online Program

Filed under: Government — Paul Browne @ 6:41 am

All the Links from the BBC Click Online Program.

These links are some very interesting corners of the web , that you wouldn’t otherwise explore. Unfortuately, the links are stored on the BBC page in a ‘drop down’ format. You may find the normal web page links (below) easier to use. Like they say on the main site ‘the BBC is not responsible for the content of outbound links’

I must see if there is a script to all all of these to Del.icio.us. I should also go through and highlight the ones I find particularly good.

Creative
Graphic Design Forum
Flickr explore
Creative Commons
Mr Picassohead
Bonsai site
Zewall: online painting
Colour in motion
Industrious clock
Digital Blasphemy
The picture of everything
Creative park
Paperdoll heaven
Zeljko Djurovic
Free Photoshop
Access Art
Pinhole photography

Education
Investopedia
Avert (Aids)
fffbi.com
Energy Chest
Tolerance.org
BrainPOP
Knowing Poe
Starfall (for children)
Michelangelo
Make Movies
24 Hour Museum
Function X tutorials
Learning Curve
Philosophy
Computing history
Obsolete Computers
Computers in History
Online Chinese tools
Wikipedia
Free typing course
History World
ibiblio public library
Nation Master
Interactive Mathematics
Grammar Book
Word Spy

Film
Movie Physics
Lastindependent.tv
Camcorderinfo.com
Bollywood World
Movie-a-Minute
Asian Film Connections
Digital FAQ

Fun and games
Puzzle Pirates
Scrabble Word Finder
Noggin
Wizards
Bejewelled 2
La Pate a Son
Braingle
Virtual bartender
Su Doku fun
box7box
Infinite Wheel
Guess the Google
No Limits Rollercoaster
Just Letters Flash game
Chicken and Eggs
Fetch Fido
Prior-Art-O-Matic
Homestartrunner
Bowling Index
Sliding Puzzle
ICQ friendship cards
Howstrange.com
Bob the Builder
Personality tests
Fly Guy
Seussville
Cool Optical Illusions
Morph a face
Netives
Internet similies
Online Gaming Hub
Cyberscore
Create Bands
Chess World
Artificial intelligence
Fun Trivia
The End of the Internet
Orisinal games
ESP game
Shakespearean insults
Fun with words

Lifestyle
Cheese.com
We Are What We Do
iSerenity
Metacritic.com
Italian Food Forever
A Hamburger Today
Digital Home DIY
Fashion net
Cooking by numbers
Local Exchange
Carbon Gym
Cooking for Engineers
Alphadynamics
Self sufficient-ish
84 Charing Cross Road
e-How.com
Met check
Net mums
iParenting
Birthday alarm
Consumer complaints
We are the voters
Human body
Uniquely woman
UN online volunteering
Creativity assessment
Open heart
Virtual Hospital
Healthy Eating
Growing Well
Alt. Health News
Paranormal Research
Aqua Pets UK
Medline Plus
Disaster Help
TV-cards
Aqua pets UK
Community Connect
Electric minds

Maps
Cambridge
Standing stones/crosses
North York moors
Space Imaging

Misc
It’s a Wonderful Internet
Nice cup of tea…
Essortment (tips)
Podcast bunker
ID theft
SkyscraperPage
Postcard Crossing
My bit of the planet
Rate car pictures
Bobby Baker’s daily life
Watergate.info
Skeptic’s dictionary
WHO
Electron microscope
Turtlekiss.com
Serbian school
Subservient chicken
Met check

Music
Cookie Dough Records
ilikemusic.com
Opus Classical
Ministry of Sound
Khavi Collective
liveplasma music
DVD Fever
SampleSwap
CMP Radio
Todo Tango
Essentials of music

Science
What’s That Bug
NatureWatch
Nasa’s Chandra X-ray Observatory
Sounds Amazing
Biology in Motion
Physics.org
Rat Lab
Artificial Intelligence

Bubble Games

European Youth Portal

Space Imaging

Underwater Times

Prongo games

BioTech

MarineBio.org

Modern World

Web Host Coach

Earth Impact Effects

DNA Interactive

Galaxy Evolution

Becoming Human

History conversations

Try Science

Noise
Explore Mars now

Search engines
Rollyo
Dogpile
Search.com
Ask Jeeves
The Scannery
Search Engine Showdown

Sport
Fantasy Premier League
Martial Arts Trickz
Stick Cricket
Uefa
Wimbledon
PongWorld Table Tennis
Tennis4you
Football community
Istanbul Table Tennis
Planet Rugby

Travel
Couch Surfing
Words Without Borders

Sleeping in Airports

Seat Guru

Hong Kong Antiquities

Discover Hong Kong

Hong Kong Fringe Club

The Man in Seat 61

Louvre Museum

natureandco.com

Finland

Virtual Finland

eFinland

Helsinki news

Finnish travel info
High Tech Finland
Wildland Tours
Survive Outdoors
Camp Recipes
Time Outdoors
Saltwater Fishing

Utilities/tools
Pixelgirl Presents
Computer companion
Internet Frog
VLC Media Player
MisterPrivacy
Maporama

Spy vs Spyware

YouSendIt

SnipURL

Vazu - free SMS

Stumble Upon Reviews

IncrediMail

theWebMachine

sodaplay

C++ Language Tutorial

WebFerret

ieSpell

Wiki Wiki Web

mail2web.com

Onesite.info

Sygate Online Services

3DTextMaker

Paper CD Case

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