The Japanese Robot Maker I Met

Gen Ito

I met him via Philippine Android Community online. He's an Android developer who happens to be on tour, and his first stop is Cebu, Philippines.

He also create robots for hobby. His robot is somewhere in the picture (sorry, I don't understand a thing from this Jap site http://jp.makezine.com/blog/2010/11/mtm06_announce.html). Ain't that cool! =)

He'll be here for 3 weeks in Cebu, Philippines. One thing I realized is that, I guess, Android enthusiast / developers is almost non-existent in Cebu. If you are interested to learn Android from him, you can check him out at http://twitter.com/itog_.

Insynchq.com is on Top Recently Installed Apps of 2010

Top Recently Installed Apps of 2010

1. Manymoon
2. Insightly
3. Zoho CRM
4. Aviary Design Suite
5. Mavenlink
6. Outright
7. MailChimp
8. RapidTask
9. Insync
10. myERP.com

via googleenterprise.blogspot.com

Insync, created by a team of Filipinos headed by Terence Pua, just launched last September 2010, and they are now in Top 10 Recently Installed Apps of 2010 in Google Apps Marketplace. This can be a signal of a great 2011 for the Philippines regarding technology and startup in general.

GroupsME -- collaborate via mobile phone

GroupsME's tagline is "Empowering people to collaborate as a group through mobile." So it's mainly a mobile application. They launched first the SMS-based version of it, and I believe they will be later on releasing a mobile web version, and probably a native client for different mobile OS.

The gist of it is that GroupsME will provide you and your group, organization, businesses or whatever association you have a one unique number. So you no longer need to get all your members / friends mobile number, and so the other members of your group just so you can update each other via text / sms. Every one in the group can just text that one number, and all members who are registered to that group number will receive the message.

Following is just a sample that it works. Sorry, it's such a crappy screenshot from a mobile phone. But anyhoo, you can check GroupsME at http://groupsme.nsparks.com/ and use it for your fan club, businesses, and movements.

You can also use it for marketing -- you can send updates to your clients in one go. Then, it can be also a branding to your business since you have that unique number. And, then develop / create a bond with your customers with quick personal updates.

It also has a corresponding web app. I'll just share the public view of it. You can simply sign up a Groupsme account, and you can see how it works.

GroupsME is developed by Next Sparks (NSparks), a software start-up based in Cebu, Philippines. The main guys are Ian Bert Tusil and Stephen Paul Suarez. 

Ian (yellow shirt) and Paul

Over a quick chat, I asked them how did they come up with GroupsME. And, the first answer they blurted out is that they just wanted to do something cool. They just develop their 'first' version for a month, so I believe they're that cool.

I've known Ian years back, and back then he was into e-commerce web apps so I'm kind of surprise as to why he's now doing mobile. Well, I guess some people just wanted to do cool stuff. I guess, without them knowing, they're on the track since, as the statistics God say, mobile is now the new black.

fan pic

UP Cebu-DOST TBI -- co-working space & support system for your ideas and start-ups

Last Thursday, I got a chance to visit the new Cebu Business Incubator for IT (CebuinIT), a UP Cebu-DOST TBI (Technology Business Incubator) project. I sat in the discussion of the incubator manager, a start-up enthusiast, and market entry guy -- they are all veterans. So I, somehow, was able to listen to 3 different point of views about ideas, innovation, team building, start-up, passion, culture and such. There are too many things I realized from that visit but let me keep this post to the facility first.

For spaces, UP Cebu-DOST TBI has cubicle spaces and room type. The cubicle type is already way spacious for a start-up (me thinkgs). They're located inside the campus of UP Cebu, Philippines.

Cubicle: 5 sq.m area per cubicle

boughtstuff.com -- track and share your stuff

The boughtstuff, as its name suggested, is a social site where you can post items you bought, then share it. It's a site where you will not feel bad flaunting your gadgets and stuff.

Boughtstuff is created by Sinefunc, a team of Filipino developers, designers, and marketing professionals. Some of its co-founders are mostly Ruby developers -- Tim Medina, Joseph Michael Galero, Marco Palinar (UX Designer).

Boughstuff is still in alpha version so there is more yet to come from that social site. For now, after you sign up to boughtstuff, go check my stuff here http://boughtstuff.com/owrange. =)

Cyberpress Awards 2010 Recipient -- the Who's Who of 2010 Philippine Tech

IT Company of the Year -- Cherry Mobile
IT Executive of the Year -- Vicky Agorilla
IT Startup of the Year -- Giro Apps
IT Story of the Year -- 2010 Automated Elections
IT Product of the Year -- iPad
IT Lifetime Achievement Award  -- Augusto 'Gus' C. Lagman

(Source: Newsbytes.ph
----------------------------------------

Cherry Mobile has been bold this year by releasing Windows-OS based unit 2nd quarter of the year 2010, and then an Android OS powered mobile phone and tablet.

Giro Apps is founded by 2 lawyers, Yves Gonzales and Laura Noel. Yves Gonzales is also the head of MMDA Communications Group and Technology Head.

Augusto 'Gus' C. Lagman is one of the people behind The Movement for Good Governance.

I just want to comment as to why they chose to give the IT Product of the Year award to iPad. I mean no question about how wonderful iPad is, but wouldn't it be more fitting to give it to Cherry Mobile's Android tablet since they chose it to be the Company of the Year, and it's also a Filipino brand.

Start of Start-up Community in Cebu?

There are formal / non-formal software developers group in Cebu (Philippines). But as to 'active' software start-up community, we can say that it is almost non-existent. I'll call it 'software start-up' because some people would say that technology involves more scientific research and all the hoopla.

Last week, there was a 'start-up meetup' which was facilitated by Tina Amper and others. Alvin Gendrano, Director for SQL Server Business Management at Microsoft, was then the guest speaker. Then, this week there was a repeat meet-up, then this time it's Brian Tan Seng of 98Labs was the guest speaker. I was not there, but some friends were. One of them gave me the above video.

I have nothing much to say since I was not there, but this is just to give us an idea that start-up community in Cebu will be activated -- maybe soon or in years.

You might say you're not techy so why get involved. When we say start-up community, it involves more than the tech / developer people -- marketing, idea people, and other sorts of personalities are needed from idea brainstorming to getting a product out to the world. So, yes, it is something we should be watching out, and get involve with even if as an audience. =)

A Groupon Clone is Coming to Cebu

And, they will raffle an Apple iPad once they reached 2,011 members by January 17, 2011.

"We're kicking off an exciting 2011 with our Grand Buyanihan Cebu Launch!


We're automatically raffling off a brand new Apple iPad WiFi 16GB once


we reach 2,011 members on or before January 17, 2011!

DETAILS:
• Contest runs from December 10, 2010 - January 17, 2011 and is open to
  
  all residents of Cebu (Region VII) ages 18 years old and above.
• A minimum number of 2,011 (two thousand and eleven) member sign-ups is required for
  
  Buyanihan to automatically raffle of the Brand New Apple iPad 16gb WiFi as prize.
• Raffle date will be on January 17, 2011 and the winner will be announced on January 18, 2011."

via buyanihan.com

As I mentioned in one of my tweets before, I'm not really a big fan of the groupon concept. As a consumer, I cannot help but feel that it's just another way of 'extorting' money from me. It's just another way of luring me to empty my pockets. Yes, I may save from the big discounts but they're not something I cannot live without. It does not mean that I will not purchase deals from them, but I wish they can offer products that are really valuable to the general population of the Philippines -- like bugas, tuition fees, medicines, healthcare services, or how about training programs.

But I cannot argue that this kind of business provides a new way (maybe affordable) of marketing for the local businesses. And, if this groupon clones businesses, like Buyanihan, will be a hit (or I think they're a hit already), they can certainly provide employments and a new breed of 'jobs' to the Filipinos.

Either way, Kudos to the Buyanihan team for pulling it off in just months since they launched. Welcome to Cebu! =)

Following pics and text lifted from Buyanihan's blog post.

The group picture taken in mid July shows us in peak condition, despite the many sleepless nights – two months – we spent perfecting the payments options, the front and back-office operations and speaking to countless of commercial giants who can be relied on to offer consumers the best deals at less prices. Three chaps on the group pic are no longer with us.  They’ve been replaced by four fair young ladies, one of them is in the photo below.

To be more specific, it was Faith, our Koala bear, who singlehandedly put up the website in two months, what with her knowledge of html tags and codes (not Morse), generators (not the diesel-powered ones), encrypters, payments integration, dev server and other complex functions that make sense only to developers. What-the-heck! 

Oh and yes Kay, the lanky web designer, who created 10 logo studies and five webpage designs. Her English is superb, she can explain the rationale behind her proposals. They call her Ms Magnifique. I secretly call her Ms Beanstalk. 

We’re a 20-strong group made up of  business development officers, web developers and designers, digital media and SEO specialists, back-office and customer support professionals, writers. 

We’re all committed to making Buyanihan a top 500 company in the next three years. To make every 94 million Filipinos experience the Philippines in many fun ways.
Want to know what Jonapot, Kaye and Faith look like? They’re in the group photo.
The founder?  He prefers to remain in the background.

via buyanihan.com

Social Network Movie -- Luis Buenaventura (Part 2.5)

To read the previous part of the story, please check Part 1 and Part 2.

With Luis Buenaventura now having a new company brand, Syndeo Media, was he done building social network web apps?

SM Investments

Ohmy, did Luis went back to working boring static corporate websites? It looked not. SM Investment was just probably to pass his time, and that he mentioned that it would probably be his last corporate website.

Odysseylive.net 

After changing their company's name -- from PandoraSquared to Syndeo Media, changing brand names became a trend for Luis. Their recently launched (Sept. 2006) social network and music site, MobiusLive.net also underwent a name-lift to Odysseylive.net by Feb. 2007. 

I'm quoting Luis' comment to explain why MobiusLive.net became Odysseylive.net:

"I should clarify that MobiusLive was a project that we built for Digital Media Exchange, the company that owned Mobius Games, an MMORPG distributor. It wasn't a project that was owned (or for that matter, maintained) by PandoraSquared. 

The software itself was later sold by DME to Odyssey Music, and the whole thing was renamed "OdysseyLive." The website is still operational as I write this, and although I still see hints of the original work when I browse thru its pages, I no longer have visibility into either of the companies that were involved in its creation."

3eep

Luis Buenaventura's factory may have changed names but the social network DNA was quite intact, unwavering. The same time they launched Odysseylive.net, the evil genius and his development team with a population of 2.5 also released 3eep.

Since he had conquered the hackers via highfiber.org, the link-sharing via oks.ph, the gamers via gibbity.com, the film industry via filmcrowd.com, the filthy rich music scene via Mobiuslive.net/Oddysseylive.net, it's time he moved on to sports. Yes, sports! I cannot point out though which part of him is into sports.

The 3eep was a sports-based social networking app for Australia. Yes, Australia.  Pinoys are hooked to malls, not sports, so Luis Buenaventura had to target the Australians for his sports-oriented online community.

Moomai


Just a few months after releasing a sports-oriented social network app, Luis then again started talking about another social network site which he likened to Yahoo! Mash, which was named Moomai. This was the first in-house social network site released by Syndeo Media. But unlike his previous social network sites that were based on his mood and whims and likes, Moomai was where Luis showed his deeper philosophical side.

"But what makes it different, according to Luis, is the rating system based on an old sociological theory called the Looking Glass - that states our sense of self is a composite of what our friends’ opinions of us are, and that we constantly reorient our identity based on the feedback that we receive. 

"Moomai is simply a digitization of this phenomenon, wrapped in candy-colored interfaces and humorous prose."

via philippineinternetreview.blogspot.com

It was in Moomai where Luis redefined privacy to intimacy.

"The Intimacy idea allows you to define the degrees by which all of these random friends can actually involve themselves in your online life, so you could continue friending everyone you like, but they’d all still just be acquaintances."

via guttervomit.com

And, so a stuff of various artsy fartsy features, following are a few:

Moomai quilt

Mood timeline

Mood blaster

Compared to year 2007 and previous years, year 2006 was a lean period for Luis' social network factory with only MobiusLive.net as being produced (this is just based from the accounts on his blog). It can be that, Luis was adjusting with his new team and 'office' environment in 2006. But year 2007, he picked up again. I guess he with the Syndeo Media was able to adjust and had learned how to blend well and get the most out of each other.

So what year 2008 was like for Luis factory? Yes, this story is not yet done. I have already run out of words to storytell Luis social network footprints, but there are still more. And, I secretly pray that no more new from him before I'm done with this Luis Buenaventura's Chronicle of Networknia.

So before you go enjoy your Christmas and Holiday vacation, remember that Luis made some of his social network apps by skipping holidays.

Social Network Tetris (for those asking)

In the next part, final part, based on the previous parts, the trend is that Luis Buenaventura is still making social network apps. But we'll try to see a little bit of him being a social specie.


(Note: This is Part 2.5 because I no longer want have a Part 4. Let's leave the part 4 and 5 and to infinity and beyond to Mother Lily's Shake, Rattle, and Roll.)

Niel Dagondon's Anino Games -- Philippine-based Game Makers

PH game maker lives out boyhood fantasy

Tuesday, 07 December 2010 00:48

By Cecil Morella
Agence France-Presse
First Posted 11:54:00 12/06/2010

 

MANILA, Philippines - Inside a brightly painted red and green building in the Philippines' financial hub work is more like play for a young team making funky electronic games.

Niel Dagondon may be the boss, but the 30-year-old is living out his boyhood dream running a company that creates games for iPods and iPads, smartphones and websites such as Facebook, as well as game consoles and personal computers.

"I've always wanted to make computer games for a living," Dagondon told AFP in his office that looks more like a children's play centre.

Yet in his playpen, Anino Games, designs and tests game concepts using some of the most expensive three-dimensional graphics software in the business and is packed with brilliant young minds.

Anino, the Filipino word for "shadow", has been crafting games since 2003 for many of the world's biggest entertainment firms such as Walt Disney, Namco, Atari, and Electronic Arts.

The company is growing up fast and has 45 developers with an average age of only 25 -- a team weaned on all-night computer combat games such as "Counterstrike", "Warcraft" and "Ragnarok".

Anino's roots can be traced back to 2001, when Dagondon was a 21-year-old college student trying to turn a game project from his computer science studies into a commercial product.

Dagondon eventually burned through about P5 million ($115,000) of his own money over the next 2 years as he and 7 developers brought the first-ever Philippine-made commercial game to hit the market.

He said the product, a role-playing game set in 16th century Philippines when Spanish colonisers first arrived, was not a major success but it crucially gave his small team experience and contacts to sell internationally.

via aninogames.com

With Wheedly Boys

This is with Paolo Lim & Jimbo Cortes & Wheedly app before they become celebrity hackers & 'unreachable.' =)

Wheedly.com -- want to borrow my stuff?

Wheee, wheedly.com is up. For 2 people who both have full-time jobs and other various projects on the side, it's quite a feat for them to still be able to put up their own web app.

Wheedly is a place where you can find what you are looking for, and where you can share what you already found.

Following are my stuff which are up for grabs in wheedly.com, and there are more from others.

Wheedly is created with love by Paolo Lim and Jimbo Cortes. They skip love and social life for this web app. So let's share and lend them some love, and cash will not be that bad.

You can find me at http://wheedly.com/users/11. I have some exciting love items to share. Sign up, and I'll share them with you.