Microsoft Windows - Pinoy Version?

August 30, 2005

Have you seen a Windows interface displaying system messages in Tagalog? ;-P

I’ll share with you an article about the possibility of a Tagalog-language version of Microsoft Windows.

By the way, even before Microsoft thought of this idea, a Tagalog-language version had been already existing in certain distributions of Linux, particularly Mandrake/Mandriva Linux. (GNU/Linux is the strongest competitor operating system of MS Windows. It’s also one of the operating systems installed in my computer at home. )

Here’s the article:

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Microsoft readies ‘Pinoy Windows’

(Aug. 22, 2005, Manila Standard)

By Chin Wong

Marking 10 years in the Philippines this month, software giant Microsoft is eyeing the launch of a low-priced Filipino version of Windows XP as another milestone in its efforts to make computing more accessible.

In an interview with Standard Today, Microsoft Phils. general manager Antonio “TJ” Javier said a product team in Redmond is working on a localized version of Windows that they hope will be completed before the year is out.

The localized version builds on the Filipino glossary of computing terms put together earlier this year by a third-party software developer and national artist and poet Virgilio Almario, dean of the College of Arts and Letters at the University of the Philippines in Diliman.

Starter Edition?

Javier did not say which version of the Windows XP operating system would be localized, but in countries like Indonesia, Malaysia and Thailand that have such programs, Microsoft uses a limited-function version that it calls the Starter Edition.

Windows XP Starter Edition is not sold separately but bundled with low-cost PCs that use Intel Celeron or AMD Duron processors. It doesn’t support networking and limits users to running only three programs at a time.

Microsoft last month said it has sold 100,000 Starter Edition copies, after expanding the number of countries in which it bundles the operating system with new PCs to Brazil, India, Mexico and other Latin American countries.

Starter Edition costs about $30, as opposed to Windows XP Home Edition, which sells for $80.

“A cheaper, localized version of Windows will be good because it will convince people in the low end of the market to go from Linux to Windows,” said Hans Dee, president of Microsoft reseller Mannasoft Technology Corp., who said a number of small companies, caught between the high price of Windows and the crackdown on pirated software, opt for free alternatives such as Linux.

Other companies, he added, have taken to running Windows and Linux machines in parallel to save on costs.

On the other hand, some observers say if the low-cost version turns out to be the Starter Edition, it won’t make much of a dent among small- and medium-sized enterprises because of the lack of networking support.

Decade of changes

Reviewing Microsoft’s history in the Philippines, Javier said the local office has grown from two people to 72.

In that time, he said, the company has also expanded by offering enterprise products under the Microsoft Business Solutions Suite that enable corporate customers to automate their sales, manufacturing, distribution, accounting and financials, and even human resources department.

“We now have folks in the enterprise group that walk the walk and talk the talk of the industries they cover, and who are able to talk about the benefits of what Microsoft technology can offer to specific industries and specific accounts. We never had that before, so that’s a major thing for us,” Javier said.

The company has also gone from just Windows and MS Office, to a wide range of products, including the Xbox entertainment system, the MSN portal, the enterprise suite and services.

Next year, he said, the company will be gearing to introduce Windows Vista, the next major upgrade to its flagship operating system. It will also launch Office 12, which will emphasize group rather than personal productivity.

Commitment

In terms of corporate directions, Javier said Microsoft had two major commitments.

The first, he said, is to help the local economy become globally competitive.

“If you are serious about having a long-term relationship with any country, you have to make sure that your products and company benefit that country’s economy. That’s our approach to the market. We’re here to make sure the software industry is supported.”

Javier said part of these efforts is the appointment of almost 250 partners who are trained and certified to sell, use and support Microsoft products.

Just recently, too, the company commissioned a study on the Philippine software industry and plotted a map of where it should be and how the country can get there.

The Software Economic Development Plan, Javier said, was presented to President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo last June.

A second commitment, Javier said, focuses on community activities that respond to the needs of the financially challenged sectors. In this respect, he said, Microsoft has consistently carried out programs aimed at helping teachers and overseas workers — two groups that are major contributors to the economy but who need support.

To support overseas Filipino workers, Javier said, Microsoft has set up IT training centers in Taiwan, Hong Kong, Malaysia and Singapore, and two local centers, in Manila and Cebu.

“We want to make sure the OFWs that fly out or come back have more skills than what they had when they left the country,” Javier said.

Source: Digital Life

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Lyrics and Chords: “I Think I” by Byul

August 28, 2005

Here’s the lyrics plus guitar chords for the song I Think I by Byul. It’s one of the songs in the Full House OST.

In the lyrics, I did not put the standard romanizations (”spellings”) of the Korean words. Instead, I simply spelled out their pronunciations, because it’s difficult to imply their pronunciations from their corresponding romanizations. I did it to make the lyrics easier to sing.

Here’s the pronunciation guide:

The pronunciation of the letters is similar to Tagalog (or Spanish but do not “trill” the “r” too much), except for the following:

u - Pronounced “OU” as in the English word “young”.

uh - Also pronounced “OU” as in “young”.

oo - Pronounced “U” as in the English word “put”.

eu - Japanese “u”; pronounced somewhat like “EW” in the English word “new”.

As for the guitar chords, here are the intermediate chords used in the song:

Notation:

Chords:

   

   

   

   

   

And now for the song itself:

I Think I
By Byul
OST, Full House

(Piano Intro)D  A/C#  Bm  A  G (hold)  GD  A/C#  Bm  A  G (hold)  G

(Stanza)    D      A/C#  Bm       A        G (hold)   Gkeuruhli ubdago anilguhrago  midutjyo,       hmmm…

   D        A/C#      Bm         A        G (hold)  Gnega  geude      sarangandan imaldo andwejyo,      hmmm…

   Em         D      A/C#kwenan  jitoo-iguhrago

  Em         D     A/C#nega weroon-gabodago

              D       Emjashineul sokyuhbatjiman

  D          Emije duhneun nan

     G                  Akamchoolsooga unneungulyo

(Chorus)           DM7I think I love you

   GM7keurun-gabayo

         DM7Cause  I miss you

   GM7keudeman ubseumyun

      Bmnan ‘mook’to  mochago

   D/Ajagoo  seng-gangnago

  Em7                 Airun-gul  bomyuh am’redo

            DM7I’m falling for you

     GM7nan  molatjiman

       DM7Now I need you

 GM7uneusen-ga ne mam
   Em7kipeun-gose ajoo

   F#mkeuge  jarijap’

    G                Akeudeye moseubeul ijen

     D  A/C#  Bm  A      Gpo-ayo…              hmmm…

(Stanza)      D          A/C#      Bm     A        Goorin anuh -oolindago chin-goo keuge tak jodago, hmmm…

   D       A/C#    Bm                G
hanabootuh yulge dodeche mo han-gerado manneun-ge unneunde

    Em        D        A/C#utuhgesagwil soo-innyago

   Em       D         A/C#maldoandweneun  yegirago

               D        Emmalhamyuh doolruh detjiman

  D          Emijeduhneun nan

    G                 Akeuruhgigashireun-gulyo
(Chorus with chord variation)           DM7I think I love you

    GM7keurun-gabayo

         DM7Cause I miss you

   GM7keudeman  ubseumyun

      Bmnan ‘mook’to mochago

   D/Ajagoo  seng- gangnago

  Em7                 Airun-gul bomyuh am’redo

             DM7I’m falling for you

    GM7nan molatjiman

       DM7Now I  need you

 GM7uneusen-ga ne mam

   Em7kipeun-gose ajoo

   F#mkeuge  jarijap’

    G               Akeudeye moseubeul ijen

     GM7po-ayo…

(Bridge)   GM7              F#mwe molatjyo  keuderaneungul, hooh, yeah…

GM7                        F#m    we motbatjyo baro  apinde, hooh yeah…

GM7                      Daug/F#              B    keu dongan  iruhge baro      negyuhte isunneunde

    Em7 (pause)  F#m (pause)       Bb7   Awe   ijesuh-ya sarangi bo-ineun-guhji, hooh…

      Bhoo-hooh…

(Chorus with chord variation)B (pause)          EM7I         think I love you
   AM7keurun-gabayo

         EM7Cause I miss you

   AM7
keudeman ubseumyun

      C#mnan ‘mook’to mochago

   E/Bjagoo  seng-gangnago

 F#m                  Birun-gul bomyuh am’redo

             EM7I’m falling for you

    AM7nan molatjiman

       EM7Now I  need you

  AM7uneusen-ga ne mam

   F#mkipeun-gose ajoo

    G#mkeuge jarijap’

    A               Bkeudeye moseubeul ijen

      E   B/D#  C#m  B   A (hold)  Apo-ayo…

EM7Oh…

Jun Ji Hyun - Korea’s Sassy Girl

August 24, 2005

This stylish, sexy and pretty gal from the movie My Sassy Girl and Windstruck is truly a force to reckon with.

She is Jun Ji Hyun (alternate spelling: Jeon Ji Hyeon), a popular Korean model and actress.

She was born Wang Ji Hyun on October 30, 1981 in Seoul, South Korea. She studied in the Department of Theater and Film at Dongguk University. She started her career as a model and she first appeared in a 1997 magazine. Later on, she appeared in comedy sitcoms, and then she made her debut movie White Valentine (1999). She started to become famous in her later film Il Mare (2000), and later on her fame culminated in the romantic comedy blockbuster My Sassy Girl (2001). In 2004 a follow-up to My Sassy Girl entitled Windstruck was released. It has a different story but with a plot strikingly similar to My Sassy Girl, it can be thought of as a sort of “My Sassy Girl Episode Zero”. (Yup, many reviewers said that Windstruck has a “prequel-like” flavor.) Recently, she’s filming Daisy (2005).

Speaking of My Sassy Girl, it’s the film where Ji Hyun played the role of a random unnamed drunken and angry girl who got rescued by a hapless male student (played by Cha Tae Hyun) after nearly falling off the edge and getting killed by an oncoming train in a subway. The guy took the responsibility of looking after her and later on falls in love. The film became Korea’s all-time highest grossing comedy film. So popular is this film that it spawned an American remake (remake rights purchased by DreamWorks) which will be released in 2006! Rachael Leigh Cook was rumored to play the leading role.

Ji Hyun seemed to be very much into commercial modeling, even today. She has made endorsements in many popular products including KFC, Giordano, Samsung, and Olympus. Nowadays, she’s conquering the world of mobile phones and iPod.

Speaking of Giordano, she and fellow actor/model Jung Woo Sung were cast into a sexy hot Giordano Summer 2004 TV ad. (But to me, it looks like Spring Break 2004! Hehe… ) In that ad, Ji Hyun was in the midst of the other wet n’ wild girls dancing and gyrating in a club. She looked like a goddess there! Unfortunately for her, Korea’s advertising media censor board, the Korea Advertising Review Board (KARB), thought the TV ad’s sassiness had gone a bit overboard and deemed it “too sexy for broadcast TV”. The TV ad got banned from Korean TV in the process. (But you can still view the ad in the Giordano Korea’s front store. There are lots of other ads in there, too. By the way, Jang Dong Gun (”Kenneth/Hyong-Chul” of All About Eve) joined the Giordano fold, too.)

(But personally, I still find the Giordano ad tolerable, and I find Ji Hyun absolutely gorgeous there. If the TV ad were to be aired here in the Philippines, I think it would pass the MTRCB (at least barely) and it would be a success. I think the ad is way more tolerable than some of our local liquor and fashion ads. The “Nakatikim ka na ba ng kinse anyos?” liquor billboard ad comes to mind. (Literally, the Tagalog sentence means “Have you tasted a fifteen-year-old before?”. Unfortunately, it unintentionally carried an unwanted second meaning. In its original Tagalog context, the word “tasted” can also mean “had sexual relations”, and the term “fifteen-year-old” can refer to either “an aged whiskey” or “a teenage girl”.))

Ji Hyun’s butt became a central issue too. Last year (2004), a survey colloquially termed “Clash of the Keisters” and “Battle of the Butts” was made to identify “Which entertainer has the sexiest rear-end?”. In that survey, Jun Ji Hyun beat local singer Lee Hyo Lee on the women’s side. Consequently, some women flocked to plastic surgeons to make their butts like Ji Hyun’s or Hyo Lee’s. Interestingly, on the men’s side, superstar Kwon Sang Woo beat singer/actor Rain. (Kwon Sang Woo is “Cholo/Song-Joo” of Stairway To Heaven, and Rain is “Justin/Young-Jae” of Full House.)

Finally, Time Asia caught sight of Ji Hyun and acknowledged that she is “a force to reckon with”. She “has earned the adoration of Asian audiences by acting tough”, and “became Asia’s favorite South Korean actress by shattering stereotypes”. (Which also reminds me of Hong Kong’s martial arts superstar and James Bond’s female rival Michelle Yeoh.) Given enough time, Ji Hyun would become “the world’s favorite girlfriend”.

Here are some other facts about Jung Ji Hyun:

Height: 5′ 7 3/4″ (172 cm)
Weight: 105 lbs (48 kg)
Bloodtype: B
Religion: Christian
Hobbies: Watching movies, listening to music
Nickname: Food Girl, Queen Ji-hyun
Civil Status: Single
Career Highlights: Best Actress (2002), Daejong Film Festival

Filmography:
* White Valentine (”Hwaiteu ballenta-in”) - 1999
* Il Mare (”Siworae”) - 2000
* My Sassy Girl (”Yeopgijeogin geunyeo”) - 2001
* Uninvited (”4 Inyong siktak”) - 2003
* Windstruck (”Nae yeojachingureul sogaehamnida”) - 2004
* Daisy - 2005

Dramas:
* Happy Together - 1999
* Fascinate My Heart - 1998
* The Season of Puberty - 1997

Update: You can view Jun Ji Hyun’s pictures in my gallery.

Song uploading temporarily stopped

August 22, 2005

Hi guys.

I will not be uploading (”sharing”) any new song files this month because of bandwidth-related problems. Instead, I’ll upload them in September.

Sorry for the inconvenience.

My long absence

August 15, 2005

Hi guys.

Sorry for my long absence. I got sick practically the whole week. My head ached for days, and my body became weak. Probably because of sinusitis and lack of sleep.

But as soon as I got well, I’ve got myself busy improving the English subtitle of Initial D The Movie, starring Taiwanese heartthrob and RN’B artist Jay Chou. The English subtitle in my DVD is faulty; fortunately I’ve downloaded a better subtitle file from the Net. And I’m currently improving the accuracy of this subtitle’s translation. I’m going to share the subtitle file to you soon, together with an article about the movie, because I’m a fan of Initial D, especially the anime. I’m going to explain, among others, the fact about the changes in the characters’ names, i.e., from Takumi to “Tuo Hai” (Mandarin) and Natsuki to “Xia Shu” (again, in Mandarin).

By the way, My Sassy Girl is still yet to be shown in local theaters, although it’s coming soon.