沉默的革命

A Quiet Revolution

2008年3月8日，我国的大选成绩令许多人大跌眼镜。执政了50年的国阵首次丧失了国会三分二的优势，也丧失了五州的政权。

这里我们不谈政治，也不是要分析大选成绩，我想要探讨的是手机和互联网在大选所发挥的力量。

大选期间，在野党和人民利用互联网和短讯来突破主流媒体主观的资讯传播，大多数的人都会收到朋友传送的短讯，又或上网对照主流媒体的报道。

其中，互联网与主流的印刷或电子媒体所扮演的角色相仿，那就是有公信力的网站或部落客的浏览人数直线上升。在主流媒体的言论和资讯相比之下，互联网的资讯显得活泼生动。比主流媒体更优胜的是互联网提供了一个多向互动的言论空间，网站或部落客的浏览者可以自由的发表或回应言论级课题。对于许多人来说，互联网提供了脑力震荡的功能。浏览者或读者也可以同时是言论发表者。这是主流／传统媒体办不到，也尽量可免则免的功能。

一旦浏览者或读者发现他们可以在互联网畅所欲言，与其它素未谋面的浏览者分享心得，这与没有互联网时代，人们在咖啡店高谈政论的情形没有太大的分别，唯一不同的是谈论的对象已经不限于身边的人，对象可能在地球的另一端。

当人们习惯用互联网，并开始接受互联网的资讯时，而执政党不断的宣传互联网资讯不可靠只会引起人们更大的好奇心，并倾向认同处于弱势的互联网言论。

当然，马来西亚互联网的渗透率远远不如手机的渗透率。人们利用短讯将互联网的资讯转由手机发送，需要探讨的是，人们倾向于认同或相信由朋友发送的短讯，并自发的将所接收的短讯转发，就像雪球效应越滚越大。

简单的说，资讯的流通因为互联网和手机的普及，任何势力都不可能控制或左右。互联网的多向讯息流通，加上手机的渗透率，决定了我国的未来方向！

这是个Free World！

2008年是一个非常“有趣”的一年，先有部长性爱光碟开年，再有陈冠希淫照风波。巧得是两件事与性有关、与个人私隐有关、更与科技息息相关。

姑且不谈其它，就说科技。

科技的发展除了可以提升我们的生活水平和素质，从移动电话、短讯、无线上网、拍照、拍摄动画甚至可以进行视频通话。在10年前的我们简直不能想像这一切可以发生在我们身上，而且是这么的方便。

有了这一切的方便，科技的应用简直是无所不在，甚至在非常私隐的场合，我们都会有用它的冲动。比如情人相隔两地时可能会用视频来一解相思。从以前的“飞鸽传书”到现在的“七情上脸”，或甚至来一个“隔空挑逗”。总而言之，今天的科技将以前所不能的变得可能。

更有的是，两个人在一起的时候利用科技将快乐的点滴纪录下来，图文并茂的，希望能够天长地久的留个纪录。好了，问题来了：将这类的纪录存在手机或电脑，以为只有自己可以随时欣赏。但遇到手机或电脑需要维修时，却忘了曾经有过纪录、或来不及清除，一旦落在有心人的手中，将之挂上网替你免费打广告，你分分钟就会“盛名远播”、一举成名天下“指”、快过在电视或报章打广告，成为“陈冠希第二”！

陈冠希事件带来的启发是：科技可以提供方便，也可以杀人！

除了自拍自爽之外，某些人为了达到特定的目的去偷拍，也因为科技而成了非常方便和容易。科技的进步使得偷拍的器材更容易隐藏，成品的效果也越来越好。

部长性爱光碟如果没有今天的科技，恐怕也不能如此顺利的大量复制、以及利用互联网的优势大规模的散播。当事人不管权力、地位多高，也没有能力阻止。

当然，我们看到的只是发生在我国的偷拍事件。如果你上Google搜索“偷拍”这两个字时，你会找到至少1百30万条连接、搜索“偷拍”有关的图像时，可以找到21万4千张、视频则有7万8千左右。这只是冰山的一角，如果用其它语文搜索，得到的结果会让你“叹为观止”！

这两起事件的启发是：

如果自拍，千万记得看完后即刻洗掉，要一个不小心漏了处理，网民的眼睛就有福了，你可能不会像陈冠希一样把整个香港影圈翻转，可是带来的灾祸也会够你受！

如果被偷拍，你或许不需要像部长一样鞠躬下台，但你肯定会被人指指点点，”坦坦当当“做人！

为什么？因为这世界还有”免费的午餐”！

The Internet is as free and wild as you can ever imagine!

移动整合的时代终于来到！您准备好了吗？

The Integrated Mobile era is coming, are you ready?

2007年的科技发展，让我觉得2008年对移动科技来说，将会是一个热闹的年份：

苹果发布的iPhone；
谷歌宣布Android开放手机平台联盟；
亚马逊Kindle电子书，使用手机网络下载内容，而不在需要通过电脑；
诺基亚宣布在德国成功测试新的手机网络（4G），速度达173Mbps！

以上的宣布对我们来说会有怎样的影响？

iPhone／Android
苹果的iPhone和谷歌的Android开放手机平台联盟逼使手机营运商不得不正视用户的需求，手机生产商、手机软体和内容供应商的创意。iPhone 和 Android 翻转了手机业的生态，在一定的程度上重新设定了游戏规则。iPhone和Android对电脑的依赖减至最底，用户基本上不需要依赖电脑，这与Windows Mobile的概念大有分别。

亚马逊Kindle
虽说亚马逊在2007年底推出的Kindle电子书是否成功，现在来说可能太早。不过Kindle展示了一个可以摈弃电脑的环境。从另一个角度看来，Kindle解决了非电脑用户使用亚马逊的服务，并可用Kindle下载新闻和其它资讯。


iPhone、Android及Kindle展示了后电脑时代的来临，或者可以说是移动整合时代的来临。

有了超眩的移动器材，还必须有足够的频宽来实现移动整合时代的来临。诺基亚成功演示了高频宽的无线网络，加上移动器材的发展方向，我们有理由相信一个新的时代已经来临。它会比电脑时代所带来的改变更大，而且更有可能会影响更多的人，毕竟使用手机／移动器材的人口远比使用电脑的人更多。

我们也看到日本与韩国的电脑、甚至电子相机的销售量逐渐下降，而移动器材（包括手机）的销售量逐渐上涨。

在移动器材可以取代电脑或相机功能的领域，如通讯、游戏、文书处理、拍照等，整合的功能日新月异。

到时候，写作的不能够说因为不能上网而不交稿；搞市场的不能对客户说因为没有上网设备而接收不到客户的文件等。

这一切都在发生，而且它的步伐越来越快，您还有理由告诉自己您不会被影响吗？

DONG, Rest in peace

For many years, Dong has been always by our side.

Dong came to our house some 11 years ago, he was around 4 month's old, when we stayed in the 5th floor of an apartment, in the City.

He knocked our door, climbed our grill so that my wife open the door to see why there's noise outside.

Then he came into the house, go straight to where the food is, and he stayed, until he left us on 4th December 2007.

We shifted to a new house, a semi-d house with garden that allows our cats and dogs a playground. Dong is happy when he first reached the new house.

Awaiting him is green field, and nice cooling weather that he enjoyed the most.

He is one of the rare who knows how to turn on air-cond when weather is hot.

The only one who knows what his mother is expecting and always be there when his mother needs him.

We went through hardship during the past years, and Dong is always there to keep us going.

There was one occasion when my wife and me was quarreling, he chose to comfort my wife, and boycott me for months!

When he was young, my wife use to pick me from the office late at night. During the journey from home to the office, Dong was the one accompanied her.

Sometime his mother sing alone in the car, while driving, he don't quite like her singing tune, and what he did is use his palm to cover her mouth, asking her to shut up.

He is one of the rare cat having one eye in blue, the other in yellow. This pix taken when he was sitting on his mother's desk, around 3 years ago.

When we first brought him to the vets, everyone is amazed by the way he interacted with us.

My wife went to Bangkok years ago with his photograph in her wallet. Her tour guide was shocked when he saw Dong's photo.

The tour guide told her that Dong is the breed only for the Royal Thai, they call this breed ThaiMiao. He was wondering where we got Dong, and was even shocked when he heard that Dong came by himself.

We had many offered good price for Dong. No, we are not selling cats, none of our cats and dogs are for sale, unless you can prove that you can take care of them properly, and allow us to inspect randomly.

And we had the highest offer so far when he was around 3 years old: RM200,000!

NO! Dong is one of our family!

This one taken around the same time, he suffered from kidney problem, in which we thought was mouth cancer, and he has difficulty eating dry food. We fed him with soft food since he was 5 year old

This is in the new house where he was posting when his mother took my mobile to shoot his pix. He knows and likes to be photographed.

Dong has never leave us except for 2 occasions:

1. When we had disease spread at home, some died, and we need to send the remainder to a clinic to have them clean up, and for us to clean the house. Thus, ONE day he was not with us.

2. during his last 3 months, he was not eating for days, we decided to send him to the vets to have it checked, and hope he will recover. He stayed in the clinic for 3 nights, dripping, and the blood test confirmed that his kidney was failing....

Dong is always beside his mother when she worked at home, watching TV, and at night, he always wanted to sleep on her arm, just like a baby, but quiet, until his mother waked up the next day.

He is the king in the house, he brought up most of the cats, and the 2 dogs we are having, thought them how to behave.

He wasn't the biggest in size, he was around 8Kg at his peak.

He is the rare one who dare to slap the dogs, if they are too noisy. The dogs did not fight back when he slapped them, since he brought them up.

He love small creatures, kittens, puppies, etc. I have never see him chasing insects, lizards, while other cats love doing this.

He never kill, and he is kind hearted enough to win our love to him.

I really hope we will unite, sometime, somewhere. Dong is someone that I can never forget.

A teenage girl's mother

I met a mother, was standing outside the sundry shop near my house.

It was 1:17am today.

The mother was waiting for her daughter, whom supposed to be home before 11:45pm.

I was wondering why the mother was there standing, while the sundry shop was about to close for the day, and I asked her.

She said her daughter, form 2 girl, hasn't been home early for the past months. The house rule is to go back by 12am, which the daughter's usual hang-out place, a cyber cafe next to the sundry shop, close by 11:45pm.

However, today, the daughter is not home, and she walked 1Km, thru dark and steep slope, from her house to the cyber cafe, hoping to bring her daughter back.

She waited for 45 minutes, no luck. Not seeing the daughter, not able to call her mobile.

I called the security guards for help, see if they can do something.

And I have decided to send the heart-torn mother back her house, since it is useless to keep waiting.

Then the mother told me:

the father is a container truck driver, only home once or twice a week, and income is not stable.

the mother is a house wife, taking care of children.

She seems lost, keep saying that she does not want her daughter to follow their footsteps, with no future and no security.

I can only comfort her that the daughter should be safe, probably forgotten time to go home.

After sending the mother back, I started thinking:

Why this happened? Why this seems common nowadays?

WHY?

I have no answer, perhaps someone, someday may be able to answer.

Hindraf Rally and What's Next?

Witnessed the call, loud and clear from our Indian brothers and sisters seeking for fair treatments. Isn't it the rights of every citizen in the country to enjoy such rights? Why should the Indian resort to street demonstration?

Personally, the disparity among the rich and the poor is greater since Independence. We have long been told that the Government is treating everyone equally, regardless of ethnic groups, with special attention to Bumiputera, so called "Ketuanan Melayu".

However, if what is claimed by the Government is true, Malaysia should be far better than it is now.

The truth is:

we are still being fooled of "May 13" incident by the Government to fear us from asking for our rights;


We are stilled being fooled that the Malay, or Bumiputera is still far away from other ethnic groups like Chinese and Indian, whom thus need further assistance in the form of New Economic Policy, or alike, in order to maintain Malay domination.

And what we see, feel, heard, are different from the propaganda from the Government, controlled media, and even to the extend to suppress indifferent voices.

It is true that a big portion of Malay is still struggling for their daily needs, where have all the wealth and resources gone?

We witnessed the unheard crying, what are we going to do to next? Where is our "Wakil Rakyat" or the Representative of People? What are you going to do next?

Do we want to be like them one day?

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