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For quite some time now, i am using SE’s P1i. Performance wise, I am content with it’s QWERTY keypad and I’d say going back to a mobile phone that doesn’t have a QWERTY keypad is something I wont do. But ever since my brother brought an iPhone and spent a lot of time to play with it, my views shifted.

When i first tried it, it really took me quite some time to used to it. I made plenty of errors with the iPhone and is largely due to its predictive text input. The touchscreen pad is very small and it is very hard to hit it compared to the physical keypad of my P1i. The good thing about it though is you can fix it with just a software upgrade versus replacing hardware for the physical keypad.

The virtual keyboards advantage is that it disappears when you don’t need it, thus giving you more leeway to use iPhone screen. In most cases, if it conks out, upgrading the software always fixes the bugs.

On the other hand, physical keypad’s advantage is its perceptive feedback. You can feel the keys even without looking. Of course, its very useful when you are driving. You can actually type and send a message without looking at my P1i and that is something I can’t do with the iPhone.

I guess everyone agrees with me that the iPhone needs improvement especially wioth its tochscreen keypad. In hindsight, I think that virtual keys are the way of the future but somehow an iPhone with real keypads could be interesting too.

Interested in a quick checklist for testing a web application? The following 10 steps cover the most critical items that I have found important in making sure a web application is ready to be deployed. Depending on size, complexity, and corporate policies, modify the following steps to meet your specific testing needs.

Step 1 - Objectives
Make sure to establish your testing objectives up front and make sure they are measurable. It will make your life a lot easier by having written objectives that your whole team can understand and rally around. In addition to documenting your objectives, make sure your objectives are prioritized. Ask yourself questions like “What is most important: minimal defects or time-to-market?”

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As a foreigner residing in Siargao, I am quite happy with Smart Bro, despite all the complaints I read on forums and blogs. Perhaps I have a different opinion about it because Siargao, being far from the city with extensive communications equipment has always been my partner in browsing the net and uploading my pictures of my surf sessions. This is largely due to the presence of a Smart cellsite on the island.

Now, we cannot deny that Smart Bro truly expanded Internet access to the common Filipino, even offering broadband access at fees previously unmatched by other Internet Access Providers.

Just a couple of months back, Smart Bro launched another service that will further expand internet connectivity here in the Philippines. The service allows the subscriber to get a USB Modem with a SIM card inside and could be connected to any computer and access the Internet remotely.

In comparison to previous Smart Bro plans that are dependent to Smart Bro antennas, the Smart Bro USB Modem allows the subscriber the mobility and geographic convenience to use Smart Bro anywhere, all for just P799/month.
Unbelievable? Well, believe it.

To further confirm this development, I went to Butuan (Capital city of the Philippines’ CARAGA region) so i could do some groceries and treat my friends
there. I went to a Smart Wireless Center and heres what i found out about
the new product:

- For 24 months or 2 Years, you will be under the service agreement

- USB Modem can access the Net anywhere provided that there is a Smart signal

- USB Modem can access the net using 2G, 3G and “3.5G” or HSDPA signal, depending on the signal available in a particular area.

After I heard this revelations, I was ecstatic and I want to sign up with the new service. However, I’m still tied with my previous Smart connection so i would have to wait. At least, I still have time to evaluate it.

By: MJ

To help developers track down and find potential security holes, there are a host of tools available called Web application vulnerability scanners. Their aim is to automate and speed up a process that, when performed manually, is a long and painstaking one. By crawling through a Web site and injecting various attack scenarios, scanners compare an application’s responses against a database of security vulnerability signatures.

Despite their usefulness, Web application vulnerability scanners have not become a must-have for every development team, largely because of cost. Yet there are several good open source scanners available for free. In this tip, we’ll examine a few other reasons for the holdup in Web application vulnerability scanner adoption.

By: MJ

Web applications are usually used for business purposes. Knowing this, hackers find loopholes in the online applications and take advantage of the benefits. Fortunately, there are web applications that doesn’t easily allow the hackers to find loopholes in them because of their complex features. With the help of applications such as Web 2.0 features, including blogs, wikis, RSS and other advanced Internet technologies, there had been known remedies for this dilemma.

Up until recently, my mobile internet connection here in the Philippines have disappointed me miserably. I signed up for it because I marveled at the fact that i can bring my internet connection anywhere I go ( being a blogger, an internet connection is quite essential to your craft and a fast connection is a must).

It all started in March 2007 when i signed up for Globe Visibility after being launched a month back. At first it was awesome because there were probably a few of us at that time. The Connection was so fast, i downloaded every content i could think of and eventually forced me to buy 3 new external hard drives to store all of those files. Plus, the added convenience that you can log on to any Wiz Spot further added to my decision to avail of it.

But just like a marriage or courtship period, it has its honeymoon and stormy period. My connection problems started and gave me a head ache. They still billed me every month even if i cannot use their service. Every time i call a customer service rep, the replies are all the same. Number 1 is they are fixing something to improve the service. Man, it took them a very long time and i mean a very long time to figure it out. My guess is they did not anticipate that many people will avail of this product and the bandwidth allocation for this service diminished every time a new subscriber comes in.
I was getting hopeless. My projects and blogs were delayed.If not for the Unlimited WIZ access that comes with Visibility, i would have probably lost my mind. My expatriate friends have the same problems. we even joked about its name. Instead of being called Visibility, it should rather be Invisibility.

Moving on, in those agonizing months where i could not have a decent net connection, something happened. My connection was back to its usual speed and it was a welcome development. My sources told me that one of the reasons the problem persisted was due to the 3G signal and the cellular signals being bundled together. Because of this, both signals are stretched too thin because Makati ( the Philippines’ Central Business District) probably has one of the largest concentration of cellphone usage. My source further added that the turnaround that happened in February 2008 was due to the separation of those signals. Meaning 3G signals for internet connection got its own bandwidth while 3G signals for calls, text and value added services were also given their own.

After hearing her explanation, i felt relieved. But i could not figure out though why it took them 3/4 of a year to address this problem. Many precious hours wasted because of this. Well, I hope this wont happen again because i have plenty of stuff to write about. Globe’s mobile internet connection getting back on its feet and becoming visible again is truly a welcome development for us bloggers here in Philippines.

Asus currently offers one of the smallest laptop computer in the market today but a new player is coming out to challenge its hold on this niche. Introducing The Neo Explore, the ASUS eee killer. Reports coming our way indicates that it is currently priced for P16,998 in the Philippines.

The Neo, as it is fondly called, targets children which was apparent from the invitations to the media to bring their kids along so they can “explore” and “discover” its funky facade. Now, everyone is wondering why ASUS, the makers of eee didnt see this?

Moving on, the initial welcome of the Neo explorer is not that great because it runs on Linux, which is “foreign” to kids who are used to seeing a Microsoft Windows boot up. It is in my opinion that the public will show some cynicism with regards to its user friendliness, not to mention the shock that comes from observers when you are not running a Windows operating system.

In conclusion, I really do not know yet. I’m just guessing these reasons, but you have to admit that there is they are precipitating a sustained commercial attack with Linux to bring the house down, or should i say prices down.