Sugarleaf Brings Us "Let Food Be Your Medicine"

Healthy Choices by Sugarleaf opened in Greenhills Sugarleaf… Foods That Nourish to expand its mission to provide Filipinos and expatriates better living and eating with Healthy Choices, a showcase of all things related to health and wellness. It is a more consistent supply of certified organic produce at more reasonable prices! It is showcasing products for health and wellness from organic super probiotics from Japan to open-sea raised bangus from Mindanao to bee products from New Zealand to organic raw chocolate bars from Ecuador.

Now, Sugarleaf…Foods That Nourish and Healthy Choices in the MEDICard Lifestyle Center in Makati are delighted to welcome back raw food chef and health advocate Aileen de Guzman for another exciting and informative five-part themed raw food workshop series.

Christmas in Miami : Putting Up the Decorations and Admiring the Skyline

 

Putting Christmas decorations up, making me feel sad for not having holiday spirit yet.....2012, wish my niece and nephew will be here in Miami for the Holidays..

Christmas is a Christian holiday that celebrates Jesus' birth on December 25. It is both a sacred religious holiday and a worldwide cultural and commercial phenomenon. For two millennia, people around the world have been observing it with traditions and practices that are both religious and secular in nature. Christians celebrate Christmas Day as the anniversary of the birth of Jesus of Nazareth, a spiritual leader whose teachings form the basis of their religion. Popular customs include exchanging gifts, decorating Christmas trees, attending church, sharing meals with family and friends and, of course, waiting for Santa Claus to arrive. December 25–Christmas Day–has been a federal holiday in the United States since 1870.

Torque Mobile Phones and Tablets Offers the Best of Technology at Impressive Pricing

Torque Mobile Phones and Tablets has just announced the release of several new mobile phone and tablet models during its grand launch held at the Le Pavilion in Manila.


The company which has an all Filipino team of engineers and designers initially made concepts for the phone and tablet design with the help of foreign consultants but are now specialized themselves to become independent of the succeeding concept and design requirements after an extensive working relationship with the said foreign consultants.

Customers can also rest assured that there are several existing service centers located nationwide to service their phones in case there would be technical problems or would require servicing or maintenance.

The CEO of Torque himself, Christopher Uyco, was the one who proudly discussed infront of the media and blogger groups their new products which are scheduled to be released sometime at the end of the year and some at the beginning of next year.

I was actually surprised when CEO Chris dropped the mobile phone on the floor with only the back casing detaching from the phone. The "drop test" was not necessary but made an impression to the media and proved that the Torque line of model phones are tough and durable enough even though its "cheap"....let's say very much affordable instead.

Pinoy brand TORQUE, aims to level up the mobile phone landscape for Filipino users with its new Torque MEDIA Technology. With this technology applied across its entire product line-up including entry-level models, every Juan can now enjoy “MUSIC-ALL-U-CAN, MOVIES-ALL-U-CAN” features at its finest for as low as P688 only. How? Each Torque MEDIA series phone can have expandable external memory upto 32GB as compared to a mere 2GB of its rivaling foreign brand competitors. To boot, a 3.5mm Headset Jack is at bay for audio enthusiasts who wants nothing but the best of sound quality as they can now plug in their preferred pair of headphones. Another function improved here is Customization. End users can personalize not only their wallpapers or ringtones, but also their message tones & SIM names (since it is dual SIM, it is confusing to just see SIM1 or SIM2) set to each specific operator names. SMS Sent items folder and Video Recording will now be a standard for Torque MEDIA series alongside the camera as this feature is normally not present in other brands’ low tier devices. Torque MEDIA is surely a hit with all Pinoy Audio/Video Enthusiasts. Thus, making communications more affordable and convenient for consumers; and makes it exciting that every Juan will want to have it.

Torque Now

At present, Torque offers its D5, D9, DQ10 TV, DTV20, i18 Fad, 177 Click, and Droidz Flash. All products (Except for DROIDZ Flash) are with dual SIM capability with features that are consumer-focused, plus sold at very affordable price points. As part of the Torque MEDIA lineup, all mobile handsets include an FM radio capability, camera with video recorder, multimedia player, expandable memory up to 32GB and 3.5mm headset included.

D5 and D9 models, dubbed as ‘TRUE MUSIC/MOVIES PHONE’, feature a large 1.8” 65k color display, VGA camera, sent items folder, torchlight, and easy music keys for music/movies lovers’ convenience.

 

For Text Addicts, who opt to use QWERTY instead of keypad, Torque offers the DQ10 TV. With its Mobile TV, 1.3 megapixel camera, large 2.4” TFT display, plus a 3.5mm headset jack, DQ10 TV suits your entertainment-all-you-want mode. DQ10 TV also features WAP 2.0/ GPRS/ MMS/ STK.

 

Love a bigger screen for TV viewing? One can check out Torque’s DTV20, which has a large & clear 2.4” 262K QVGA LCD, and 2-megapixel camera. Connectivity is also not a problem with its Bluetooth capability and WAP 2.0/ GPRS/ SMS/ MMS feature. 

 

Touch & Feel. There’s i18 Fad that has 2.8” full touchscreen and i77 Click with 3.2” full touchscreen. Both have dual mode text input, which means users can select between using its virtual QWERTY and virtual 4x3 keypad, Bluetooth, Wireless FM radio, and Mobile TV. Camera is a plus here as i18 Fad sports a 1.3-megapixel camera while i77 Click boasts a 3-megapixel camera. Connectivity features include WAP 2.0/ GPRS/ SMS/ MMS/ STK for i18 Fad while JAVA/ WAP 2.0/ GPRS/ SMS/ MMS/ STK for i77 Click.

 

Surf, Social Networks, Games? Torque offers the very sought-after Droidz Flash. 7.0” WVGA 800x480 Capacitive Touchscreen, Multi-touch Zoom, Slim form factor, 3-Axis Gyro/Accelerometer matched with Android 4.0 (Ice Cream Sandwich) OS for a refined interface and easy access that is more engaging and interesting. Running at 1.2 GHz CPU with 4GB ROM and 512 MB RAM, Droidz Flash is your best mate when it comes to functions, power, and connectivity. It is also equipped with dual cameras with 2-megapixel rear camera and VGA front camera. With your Favorite Movies accessible via mini-USB or Micro-SD, plug in your 3.5mm Stereo Headset and enjoy Full-HD 1080p video experience, all movies are now ready for your enjoyment. Connect via Wi-Fi or your preferred 3G USB stick allows you true internet freedom on-the-go.



Torque Next

Full understanding of the market always needs something fresh – design and functionality-wise, so Torque proudly embraces Pinoy Pride to the Next! It showcases 2 new models under Torque MEDIA Technology…the Most Affordable E2 & the All-In-1 Capacitive Touch i78 Stream.

E2 fits the consumer who simply wants to enjoy his/her dual roles in life – dual SIM. Its features a large 1.8” 65K color display, multimedia player, FM radio, loud speaker, FM radio with headset, Sent items folder, and Micro-SD up to 32GB. Bluetooth is a plus for those who want to transfer data. All this for just P688!

The All-In-1 i78 Stream comes with a large 4.0” HVGA display, capacitive touchscreen, 320X480 Widget-based UI, and a dual mode text input of QWERTY and keypad. You can use surf the net using the Wi-Fi and be connected using its WAP 2.0/ GPRS/ MMS/ STK. The i78 Stream also includes Mobile TV, Bluetooth, FM radio, and a multimedia player.


Torque’s New DROIDZ Flex Technology for Android now ushers in to provide Faster, More Powerful Yet Affordable Android devices for the demanding Filipino users who wants more out of Android. Such technology will now be implemented on Torque’s new DROIDZ Series such as DROIDZ Sport, DROIDZ Force, DROIDZ Atom, DROIDZ Blast, DROIDZ Motion, DROIDZ Life, DROIDZ Portal & DROIDZ Ultimate

 

For the budget-conscious Dual SIM Android lovers, Torque offers the compact DROIDZ Sport and 9.5mm-slim DROIDZ Force with Android 2.3 (Gingerbread) and runs at 1GHZ CPU. So remarkable here are the screen sizes as DROIDZ Sport features an efficient 3.5” HVGA 480x320 Capacitive Touch Display while DROIDZ Force features a bigger 4.0” WVGA 800x480 Capacitive Touch Display. DROIDZ Sport having 512MB ROM and 256 RAM while Droidz Force using 512 MB ROM and 512 MB RAM. These two models are Dual SIM, 3MP camera, goes with 3.5mm stereo headset, FM radio, multimedia player, Wi-Fi/Bluetooth, G-sensor and internet connection via JAVA/EDGE.

 

Seeking for More Powerful & Faster Processing DROIDZ? Torque answers this market demand with 4 new Dual SIM-Dual Core DROIDZ Smartphones. All the series models run at 1GHz Dual Core CPU with 4GB ROM and 512MB RAM. Its superior interface uses the advanced Android 4.1 (Jelly Bean) OS, has Multi-Touch Zoom, 3.5mm stereo headset, FM radio, Micro-USB port, Light/Proximity/Gravity Sensors. Enjoy Global Roaming & Faster Connectivity as the series models support 3.5G HSDPA 850/900/1900/2100MHz at DL 7.2Mbps/UL 5.76Mbps, Quadband GSM/EDGE 850/900/1800/1900MHz. All models support Dual cameras with 8-megapixel rear with LED Flash and VGA front camera. Other features include Wi-Fi/Bluetooth, Wi-Fi Tethering, GPS and AGPS Support. 

 

Choose among the newest Large Display Pinoy DROIDZ series: the affordable DROIDZ Atom with 4.0” WVGA 800x480 Capacitive Touch, or the corporate DROIDZ Blast with 4.7” qHD 960x540 Capacitive Touch, or the Note-like DROIDZ Motion with 5.3” qHD 960x540 Capacitive Touch, or the massive DROIDZ Life with 6.0” FWVGA 854x480 Capacitive Touch. 

What Torque is more excited to launch is its DROIDZ Portal and DROIDZ Ultimate Tablets. These two models have Call and Text features, JAVA/SMS/MMS capabilities, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, Wi-Fi Tethering, GPS and AGPS Support, 3.5mm stereo headset jack, Micro-USB port, and Light/Proximity/Gravity Sensors.

DROIDZ Portal runs at 1GHZ Dual Core CPU with 4GB ROM and 512 RAM. With its 7.0” WSVGA 1024x600 Capacitive Touchscreen, and a multi-touch zoom, users will sure to enjoy Droidz Portal’s interface that uses Android 4.1 (Jelly Bean). Users will also be delighted with its speed and bandwidth as it uses HSDPA 7.2Mbps/HSUPA 5.76 Mbps and 3.5G HSDPA 850/900/2100MHZ. Droidz Portal also features dual cameras with its rear camera using 8-megapixel with LED Flash while its front uses VGA camera.

 

 DROIDZ Ultimate powered by 1GHZ Dual Core CPU with 8GB ROM, and 1GB RAM, It also uses HSDPA 7.2Mbps/HSUPA 5.76 Mbps and 3.5G HSDPA 850/900/1900/2100MHZ. Enjoy Droidz Ultimate with its Android 4.1 (Jelly Bean), 9.7” XGA 1024x768 capacitive Touchscreen, multi-touch zoom, dual cameras with 8-megapixel rear camera and 2-megapixel for the front camera, plus it has HDMI capability.

Even with these exemplary products, Torque will not stop here and continue its commitment of delivering quality and value for money products for the Filipino consumers. Soon, Torque will introduce its limited edition line dubbed as ‘Inspire’ series. Coming soon!

For the complete price list and information about Torque, visit www.torque.ph.

Pacquiao Loss : For Filipinos He's Still A Winner!

"We were with him when he was up, we're even more with him when he's down. We support you Manny!" ~ @VinceGolangco

"Now more than ever, we should rally behind Pacquiao and show him what he means to all Filipinos. Whatever he chooses to do, we should support his decision. For years, Pacquiao has been the symbol of Pinoy pride. That is something not even a loss to Marquez will ever take away. We are blessed that in our lifetime, a Manny Pacquiao came along and brought honor to our country in a way that nobody ever did before. Whether he is Catholic or a born-again Christian, Pacquiao will be immortalized as a legend in his own time".....THE DEAN

Justine Bieber Makes Fun of Manny Pacquiao's Defeat on Instagram

Justin Bieber posted photos on his official Instagram account, makes fun of Pacquiao

The 1st photo (Left), had a little animated lion that seemed to be waking Pacquiao up pasted on it. Bieber captioned the photo with the words “Dad wake up.”

He also posted another edited photo (Right) of a knocked out Pacquiao, pasted on a photo of the late Michael Jackson while dancing. He captioned it with “Pacquiao doing the lean with MJ .. Classic moment.”

"The problem with his posts on his Instagram is that they don't make a valid opinion but shows a lot of insensitivity. But let us NOT bully Justin, anyways he is just a baby, baby ohh." - PhotoWorld Manila

"A little dose of his own medicine will do no harm.. but I agree NO to bullying, be creative in the words you tweet to Justine. Anyways, he is a baby, baby oh!:)" - Nap Beltran

READ: http://theultimatefan.blogspot.com/2012/12/justin-bieber-makes-fun-of-pacquiao.html

Psy Gangnam Style Concert on the 20th of December

Worldwide phenomenon and the South Korean pop star PSY, will be staging a concert here in Manila at the SM Mall of Asia Concert Grounds on December 20, 2012 at 9 pm ! PSY who rose to fame through his YouTube record-breaking video "Gangnam Style," will also be bringing his own dancers. - Myrns Geronimo Roman

OFFICIAL STATEMENT:

The organizers of the Gangnam Style event on December 20, 2012 at MOA Arena have collectively agreed to postpone the event to February 2013 due to logistical issues. 

Psy remains extremely excited about visiting the Philippines and looks forward to performing for his fans in early 2013.

-- Joed Serrano (of That's Ntertainment) and Renen de Guia (of Ovation) 

Cybercriminal @ Work : All About that Ridiculous Philippine Cybercrime Law

“We add our voices to the many citizens and online users who were shocked and outraged to find in the new Cybercrime Law excessive penalties for online libel and enormous powers given to authorities to monitor online activity and block access to web sites.” -GMA News Online

President Benigno S. Aquino III once said:

“I do not agree that the provision on online libel should be removed. Whatever the format is, if it is libelous, then there should be some form of redress available to the victims,” President Noynoy Aquino

WTF! Does he know that:

“The United Nations Human Rights Committee has called for the repeal of the libel law, saying it violates article 19 on the right to freedom of expression and opinion of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, to which the Philippines is a signatory.”

Who benefits from this law?

No matter how much I like civility and consideration in the Internet, I do not like the law because it was created to benefit specifically the powerful people who created this.

Tayong mga ordinary people have limited means to express our opinions because the traditional media – print and broadcast, is controlled by ACDC practitioners, politicians, gov’t officials, big businessmen and taipans. Internet has proven to be the great equalizer for us and these powerful people have seen what will happen to them when they commit abuses just like the Carabuena incident.

Yung kay Sotto hindi malalaman yun kung walang internet, si Congressman Villafuerte na spite of decades being in power, yung kanyang Camarines Sur remains one of the most impoverished, that he blocked Robredo’s appointment. That MVP is using laundered money from the late ex-dictator Suharto to play with.
Yung mga ganyang balita that we don’t normally read in newspapers. Yung politicians natin wanted to suppress information and opinions na makakasama sa kanilang hold in power.

To the Great Hackers – Anonymous Philippines:

I have my utmost salute on your capabilities as far as the the highest forms of hardcore applications in the field of Information Technology. It is my humble request however for you and your group to kindly please spare and refrain from dismantling the Websites of our struggling government entities especially our Local Government Units who have nothing to do with the cause of your outrage which I personally understand. As we go forward towards establishing the stability for our nation, PLEASE… HELP US BECOME THE PEOPLE AND THE NATION THAT EACH OF OUR SPIRITS HAVE BEEN LONGING FOR: PEACE AND PROSPERITY!

PLEASE DON’T BECOME TERRORISTS TO YOUR OWN PEOPLE!

My personal Respects to you and your cause.

- Miguel Leon Magdalo

Here are my suggestions on how to go around the said Cybercrime Prevention Act of 2012 bill:

1. Beki-speak.
Ex: “Kalukis itechiwa Gobyerlalu, Wititit na pwede humanash ng kung anik anik. Kundi Kulongbels na. Ano ve? puro mga eklavu. Tegiboom boom na Karapatsina!” – Kung beki ang pulitiko, mage-get pa rin nila pero good luck sa hearing na puro beki speak ang libelo us quotes hahaha

2. Jeje-speak.
Ex: Ta3na nhman pohwz ang mHayOwr nm!n d2, WLa PakinaBangz AMP! Ghow to Hellz mHayOwr!

3. Pauso ng Codes
Fuguck Thigis Puguliguticus
pwede din gamitin ang FLAMES, HOPE, JAPAN and LOVE
Number codes, pati na rin morse code lol

4. Gumamit ng Sarcasm
Ex: Wow, the best talaga si Tito Sotto at lahat ng nagpasa ng cybercrime bill. I love them so so so much!! Wooo idol!

On a more serious note:

Republic Act 10175 – Cybercrime Prevention Act was signed into law last September 12, 2012. It is a law considered to be 12 years in the making as various groups, organizations, and personalities lobbied for its passage. It took awhile for the law to be passed as legislators and various stakeholders need to understand the magnitude of cybercrime and whether the penalty provisions indicated in the E-Commerce Law – Republic Act 8792 is sufficient or not.

"Now that the massive public outcry against Republic Act 10175, otherwise known as the Cybercrime Law, has died down a bit--by virtue of a TRO (temporary restraining order) issued by the Supreme Court--I'd like to make a few comments on the controversial legislation which I've followed over the course of its decade-long journey.

Let me state at the outset that I'm in favor of the Cybercrime Law, but not in its current form. I think this is the same position taken by most local ICT stakeholders.

Despite the fact that the Business Processing Association of the Philippines (BPAP) led the lobbying for the passage of the law, the trade group was nonetheless pleased that the measure was suspended pending the final determination of its constitutionality.

BPAP was also quite surprised that the version approved by Congress was not the same law which they had supported during the early stages of its drafting.


PH-CERT, the organization of Internet security professionals in the country, also put out a press statement that basically said the same thing. It was a different version of Cybercrime Law, they said. Both groups said the provision on Internet libel shouldn't have been included in the final version of the law.

If I remember it right, online libel was not at all mentioned when the proposed legislation was first broached about 10 years ago. It only cropped up in the House of Representatives when the chamber approved this year its version of the bill containing the contentious provision, as I still recall Kabataan Party-list representative Raymond Palatino raising a howl about this.

Thus, contrary to most news and blog accounts, it was not the bicameral conference which inserted the provision in the reconciled version of the bill. What the panel did was to increase the penalty for online libel a degree higher compared to traditional libel. The bicam adopted this on the urgings of Sen. Edgardo Angara, who argued that a heavier punishment should be meted out on Internet libel because of its global nature.

What's also interesting in this controversy is that the ICTO (Information and Communications Technology Office), despite being the government's main ICT agency, has questions, too, on the law.

They were also wondering about the designation of the ICTO as the lead agency in the Cybercrime Investigation and Coordinating Center (CICC), as provided in the law.

The officials pointed out that the ICTO is a policy-making body concerned about only cybersecurity and not on cybercrime, which is basically investigative and enforcement work. Therefore, ICTO has no place in the CICC as it practically involves police duties.

The original agency proposed in the early draft of the bill was the National Cybersecurity Coordinating Council (NCCC). It was, however, strangely changed into the CICC during the bicam meeting. 

No doubt, we need a law on cybercrime to address the new breed of crimes spawned by the Internet such as online pornography and cyber prostitution.We need law and order in cyberspace. However, it must not be used to stifle freedom of expression and to harass people. We should, and must, always fight any attempt of the State to abuse its immense powers against hapless citizens.



* credits to Melvin Calimag of Pinoy Post for some excerpts taken from:

http://www.zdnet.com/ph/philippine-cybercrime-law-must-protect-not-harass-citizens-7000006874/

Help Me Create A New Bloggers Group!

A few of my blogger friends has asked me to create our own group or network of bloggers that will be very different from the existing blogger groups which we believe are just too damn "complicated" and "inconvenient" for having too many restricting rules or requirements, and just existing primarily to become a means to get more hits or higher page ranks.

I understand the necessity for "law and order",and the need to promote our blogs to stardom, but many are complaining its making blogging less fun and ...well...a bit taxing for us who are just blogging for fun, as a past time, as a hobby, as a part-time productive means to spend.... or waste time, etc., and "not entirely" for profit, page rank, number of page views or hits, or even fame and recognition. We just want to blog and be happy with it, not deal with the complexities of comments exchange (and the likes) and learn to "police" or "discipline" ourselves to become professional and dependable bloggers.

Diana Stalder Offers Effective Skin Care Products

Have you ever heard of Diana Stalder?

Diana Stalder is a beauty line that promotes skincare, hair care and personal care products, as well as scents and fragrances. This brand was named after its creator and founder, and has been on the market since 1996. According to the company website, every product in this line was developed through careful scientific research and study, and the company also claims that all of their products contain high-quality ingredients.

Diana Stalder develops and manufactures the most powerful, strongest and effective skin whitening products. Not only the formula meant to be effective, but also safe for everyday use. Though the idea was simple enough, the research and development to create such products is a very extensive process. Every possible factors and expectations of our customers were considered when creating the Diana Stalder products. After a few years worth of research, the company has finally created a full line of effective and affordable skin care line that consists of skin whitening, bleaching and lightening products.

Manny O Wines : A Taste of Wine with Elegance and Sophistication

We got to sample a taste of Manny O Wines similar to the ones given to us by the people from Manny O Wines during our Filipino Bloggers Worldwide First Grand Eyeball last Friday, December 7, 2012. I'm not really a lover of wine, but the taste got me to think twice.

The taste of Manny O Wines was very distinguishable, compared with other wines that I've tasted so far, it was heavenly inspring to learn that a good local wine maker has this here in the Philippines.

For a brief history of Manny O Wines, I got this information from a Philippine Daily Inquirer article. Read on: