Bloglet Update

I would like to apologize for a lapse in the email
reminders that go out when I write a new story. A couple of weeks ago I changed
the blogging tool that I use to post
the stories to my website. I did not realize that this required that I also
make some changes at bloglet.com which
is the service I use to notify my subscribers of new stories. Thanks to a
number of you for telling me you had not received any updates for awhile and
wondering if I had stopped writing. I don’t see that day coming anytime soon.
I really enjoy writing and I have a long queue of things that I want to write
about. Most of my stories fall into one of sixteen
categories.  (read
more)

Bocho Update

On Thursday, July 3, 2003 The
Times showed a picture of the 21,529,464th "Beetle" built worldwide.
It rolled off the production line in Puebla,
Mexico and will be shipped to a car
museum in Volkswagen’s headquarters in Wolfsburg,
Germany. (read
more)

Not As Easy As It Looks

I have been looking for a long time to find a motorcycle
trailor that is really easy to use. On occasion it would be really nice to be
able to tow a motorcycle somewhere and then ride it back home or visa versa
or to tow it to a destination and then take a local motorcycle trip. I have
a flat trailor made by Haulin
which I bought at Home Depot. It was
inexpensive and seemed like just the right thing. I made sides for the trailor
from 2 x 6 planks with the idea that one of them would then serve as a ramp
to drive a motorcycle onto the trailor. I found a bracket somewhere on the Web
that mounted to the trailor bed which was designed to hold the front wheel of
the bike in place. The final step in preparing this home made bike trailor was
to have tie-down rings welded to the sides of the trailor. All set — ready
to use. What a disaster! (read
more)

Flying The Flag

Shortly
after September 21st, 2001, more Americans
flags began to appear than ever –it was obviously a good idea. It always
feels good to ride through the small towns of America on a motorcycle and see
an American flag on every house and telephone pole. I decided to attach flags
to my motorcycles
and found some nice ones at a local hardware store. They lasted for quite a
while, but eventually the poor stitching and meager attachment to a wooden stick
were bound to fail. One day, I got off the bike and there was a flagpole, but
no flag. 
(read
more)

Adios, bocho!

The
New York Times ran a story
by Phil Patton this morning about the demise of the Volkswagen
Beetle. This is a nostalgic moment
for many people — myself included. I first became acquainted with the Beetle
in engineering school, when a good friend of mine had one that he used as a
"transport service" for many of his fraternity brothers. On a recent
trip to Mexico City,
I was surprised to see brand new "1967" Volkswagen Beetles. In Mexico,
they call them the Bocho.
I saw them in every imaginable color. Here is a
collection of the ones I saw — from the photo
gallery.  (read
more)

Around The World

It
was not my original plan but after learning about the British
Airways labor problems, I decided to come back from Singapore
through Tokyo instead of London. I didn’t realize until thinking about it just
now that I had traveled around the world this week. Here
is a view of the path and distances (thanks to Great
Circle Mapper). It is amazing that you could go more than 20,000 miles in
about 40 hours (not counting ground time). In spite of occasional delays and
aggravations, the travel system is a marvel that I greatly appreciate and do
not take for granted. (read
more)

Singapore – Back to America

My original return flights were Singapore to London and
then to JFK. However, when I heard about the British Airways labor actions,
I decided to change routes and come back via Tokyo. The United
Airlines 777
left Singapore on time for the seven hour flight. We headed northeast, south
of Vietnam and over Manila in the Philippine Islands — that was the first 1,600
miles. From there we continued northeastward south of Shanghai, and on to Tokyo.
Just another 1,800 miles from the Philippines. Then it will be another 6,700
miles to New York. This is a big world, and Singapore is very far from home.
I was anxious to get a WiFi connection at Narita
Airport — but it was not to be. (read
more)

Singapore – Day 5

The last day in Singapore started very early in order
to get a 6:55 a.m. flight to Tokyo. Check-in was smooth and efficient as most
things in Singapore are. The SATS lounge offered a strong WiFi signal provided
by StarHub and the most selections for payment I have ever seen. They accepted
roaming arrnagements of various kinds, membership with several WiFi providers
and a "walk-in" plan with a credit card. The price was $$6.00 which
is approximately $3.50 in U.S. dollars. There is no reason to expect WiFi to
be free and I think we will see many different pricing models evolve.

Singapore – Day 4: part 2

I first met Alonso Carral telecommunications industry
converence in Mexico City in early 2002. He has now moved to Singapore. We met
for dinner at the Mexican
embassy where his brother is ambassador to Singapore.

CIO Insight
hosted a Roundtable conversation on Youth, IT and the Future of the Workplace
at 10 a.m. EST in New York. I participated from Singapore where it was 10 p.m.
This made for a very long day but I am glad I could be part of the roundtable.

Singapore – Day 4: part 1

The IBM Forum
2003 is over now but I am continuing to meet with IBM customers to discuss
Internet technology directions including WiFi,
web
services, blogging
and e-business
on demand. My first visit today was at Singapore
Airlines. The airline industry is a difficult one but Singapore Airlines
has claimed a very distinctive place in terms of both their level of service
and their business performance. Their senior IT management is impressive also.
We discussed many dimensions of Internet technology in which they had a keen
interest. The next stop was at the Monetary
Authority of Singapre (MAS). The lobby of the building was typical of a
large office building but the new experience for me was to get my temperature
taken by the security guard. It was 36 degrees. (read
more)