The Four-eyed Journal

Probloggers say that you can take a new blog from relatively nothing to one of the best blogs out there in less than a year once you do the right things a successful blogger does. Staying focused on the topic or niche the blogger has chosen, providing useful and creative content, dressing up one’s blog with a nice theme, providing the right tools and blog bling and finally creating a community around his blog.

All these has been hit right on the mark by Jaypee and that is why JaypeeOnline is one of the Finalists in the Technology blog category of the Philippine Blog Awards. I remember the first time I stumbled upon his blog, back when he was still using a .tk domain, both of us were still relatively new to blogging and so were really having to get the hang of it. Over time, Jaypee stayed on and just continued to improve his blog and blogging.

It started out as a personal blog where he talked about events and stuff about his life. He then started to talk about things that interest him like new gadgets, sports, Wordpress, Firefox, tips and tricks, interesting stuff from the Internet, and many tech-related stuff. To date, his articles are some of the most cleverly written ones about technology, blogging and the internet. There is hardly a post on his blog that gets no positive feedback which has made readers come back for more and subscribe to his feed. Being a finalist in the Philippine Blog Award is the fitting highlight for his blogging career to date. With this said, I believe that more recognitions about his blogging will come in the near future.

1. How does it feel to be nominated for the PBA?

Jaypee: It feels great! I was surprised to know that my blog was nominated and then I was astounded to find out that I made it to the finals. I’m pretty excited because it’s the first time for my blog to be recognized by any blog award giving body. It’s a great honor to be one of the finalists in the Technology category.

2. Do you know who nominated you?

Jaypee: No idea. I posted about it and tried asking who nominated my blog, but no one has come forward until now. I guess that person prefers to remain anonymous. Thanks anyways!

3. Why do you think your blog was nominated?

Jaypee: From what my readers have mentioned, my blog provides them with useful information, helps them fix problems on their Wordpress-powered blogs and that it’s visitor-friendly and interactive.

4. Who do you think will win in your category?

Jaypee: I’m no psychic, so there’s no way of telling. Each blog has it’s own strengths and weaknesses.

5. Why do you think you should win?

Jaypee: I guess #3 could answer that question.

6. What would you do if you win?

Jaypee: First, I’d be in a state of shock..Hehe After that, I’d thank God and everyone who have supported my blog. Then I’d go on with my blogging and continue providing assistance and useful information to my readers and visitors.

7. What do you think of the Philippine blog awards?

Jaypee: It’s a great way of promoting and recognizing Filipino bloggers, and showcasing their writing skills, talents and creativity. Personally, I’ve found new interesting blogs because of the Philippine Blog Awards which I probably wouldn’t have come across by myself.

8. Is there a blog that’s not nominated but deserves to be nominated in the PBA?

Jaypee: With so many blogs out there, I’m sure there are some that are qualified and deserving to be in one of the main categories. Unfortunately for these blogs, no one took the time to nominate them.

9. Would you join the next Philippine blog awards?

Jaypee: I would, but someone has to nominate me again. Hehe

10. Any messages to your fellow nominees?

Jaypee: Congratulations and best of luck to all of us!

Congratulations to you Jaypee! Wonderful job!

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If there’s a blog in the Finalists for the Philippine Blog Awards that really stands out from the rest, regardless of the category they are in, that blog has got to be The Man-Blog.

Why so? Who else would like to be on the number one spot for the Google search results for “Banana gangbang”? The Man-Blog

Who else would organize Alcohol Celebraganzas? The Man-Blog!

Where else can we find bloggers who prowl social network sites, digging up some of those most mind-boggling genetic anomalies in human evolution? The Man-Blog!

Who else appreciates the music of 6cyclemind in the most special way? The Man-Blog editors!

There’s more, unbelievably so, there’s more to The Man-Blog than just titties and beer. It helps one in mastering the male and female anatomies, avoiding that alien race called ‘emos’, having braingasms and maintaining a tittie farm. Reading The Man-Blog will lead you to places you’ve never been, never imagined it existed and would never want to be in. It introduces, nay, opens your eyes to some of the harshest truths of life like the music of 6cyclemind and man-boobs.

Mentally disturbing but utterly entertaining, it would be a big mystery as to why The Man-Blog would not be included in the Finalists for the Philippine Blog Awards. You do not agree? Just refer to their answer in the first question of my interview for The Road to the Philippine Blog Awards: Finalists’s Spotlight (which is a very long title for a linkbait project ).

1. How does it feel to be nominated for the PBA?

TMB: You see, we’ve been sending out emails to everyone that they should
nominate TMB or else Mike Villar will post pictures of his nipples all
over the blogophere. And we basically scared the shit out of everyone.
So I guess the effort was worth it, but we’ll still post Mike’s nipple
pics.

2. Do you know who nominated you?

TMB: No friggin’ idea. All we know is that whoever did that is scared of
Mike’s nipples.

3. Why do you think your blog was nominated?

TMB: Because we’re awesome! And horny!

4. Who do you think will win in your category?

TMB: Us! Because we’re awesome! And horny!

5. Why do you think you should win?

TMB: Because if we don’t win, Steel will go into a drunken rage and kill
everyone within a twelve-mile radius.

6. What would you do if you win?

TMB: We’d throw a big party and invite evryone. And ask the girls to show
us their titties! Because titties rock! Yay!

7. What do you think of the Philippine blog awards?

TMB: It’s awesome, but not as awesome as TMB. I mean, is PBA mandated by
Chuck Norris? And does PBA hold mass open-field wanking sessions,
where we circle jerk and do reach-arounds?

No, wait…

8. Is there a blog that’s not nominated but deserves to be nominated in the PBA?

TMB: We do know of a lot:

- Diary of a Homesick Pinay (aprilzara.i.ph)
- In My Pocket (noelle.scrufus.net)
- Rising Internet Star (mikey.i.ph)

So, why didn’t you guys nominate them? Hmph.

9. Would you join the next Philippine blog awards?

TMB: Of course. We will be famous! And we’ll get laid! And get tittie pics!
And we’ll be rokkstarzZzZzZzZ l0z \m/

10. Any messages to your fellow nominees?

TMB: Show us your titties, and we’ll give you the award. Lolz.

Watch out world, here comes the The Man-Blog and their line-up of editors, first the Philippine Blog Awards, next a banana hammock.

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Five days to go and the Awards night for the Philippine Blog Awards will be soon upon us all. The excitement continues to build up along with the tension and perhaps pressure on the Finalists as the night of reckoning is at hand.

Do you want to go to the awards night? The organizers has something, a small favor or task that they want you to do if you do want to attend the awards night.

First, you must blog about it. Write anything you want as long as you make it clear to your readers when, where and at what time the awards night would be. Like so…

Philippine Blog Awards
Awarding Night
March 31, 2007
6PM - 8PM
Podium 4, RCBC Theater
RCBC Building, Ayala cor. Buendia Ave., Makati City
Attire: Semi-formal to formal

Next, put a link back to the post on the Philippine Blog Awards official site announcing the details of the Awards night and instructions on how to get e-Tickets which would be you pass to the Awards night.

Next, put your e-mail address so that the organizers would know where to send your e-Tickets to. My e-mail add is jhay AT jrocas DOT com DOT ph. (You know how this works to prevent spam, and here’s another set of tips to stop spam in your blog)

Just wait for their e-mail, while doing so, head on to that post and leave a comment behind for them to know which blogs to check out.

These are the simple steps to get a chance at attending the Awards night. It may not as be open to everyone, but we have to consider that the venue does have limited seating capacity.

Now, all we have to do is to wait and hope that an e-Ticket would be sent our way.

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Backpacking, cultural heritage and advocacies; what do these terms have in common? They can all be found in one corner of the Philippine blogosphere; Ivan About Town. Another Travel blog that has been selected to become one of the Finalists for the Philippine Blog Awards and the focus of this edition of The Road to the Philippine Blog Awards: Finalists’ Spotlight, a blog series here on The Four-eyed Journal.

Who is Ivan?

Ivan is a travel freak, frustrated historian and heritage activist. A member of the Board of Trustees of the Heritage Conservation Society, he is a feisty advocate for the preservation of Philippine architectural heritage. The heritage conservation and cultural revival program he spearheaded in the City of San Fernando, Pampanga was among the Top Ten Best Practices of the League of Cities of the Philippines and a Trailblazing Project of the Gawad Galing Pook in 2004.

He also serves as a trustee of the San Fernando, Pampanga Heritage Foundation and director of the Ateneo Alumni Association.

What does Ivan do?

Ivan backpacks his way around the exotic places in Asia and focuses more on the Philippine heritage sites with driven by an advocacy; for backpacking and heritage conservation. He clearly explains this in an earlier interview of him by Manila Bulletin’s Annalyn S. Jusay:

People often think that to travel, you need a lot of money. Yes, you need funds to go places but it need not be a hefty amount. And backpacking is one way for you to see the sights without creating a big hole in your pockets. Once people know how cheap travelling can be, backpacking will definitely take off.

On heritage, we have to fight to preserve our heritage primarily for future generations of Filipinos. We must preserve our national identity for our children and their children. Second, for crying out loud, cultural and natural heritage is what foreign tourists come here to see! And when we destroy our heritage, we are bringing down our market value in the multi-billion dollar tourism industry.

Many of our local officials and priests destroy heritage in the name of modernization and progress. Heritage creates local identity. Local identity is a very strong rallying point towards progress. Little do our local officials know that they are actually lowering the standard of living in their area by converting it into an ordinary, nondescript place. As the Filipino proverb goes, “Ang hindi lumingon sa pinaggalingan ay hindi makakarating sa paroroonan.” You actually think that salawikain would survive this long if it weren’t true?

You’d find it extremely difficult to disagree with him on the points and observations he has raised, blogged and continues to blog about in Ivan About Town. A blog that’s well deserving to be included in the Finalists for the Travel Blog category in the Philippine Blog Awards. A blog that speaks for itself, would take you places and see things in a new perspective. Heck, it would even motivate you to pack up and head on out to visit the places he’s been to or the places you’ve been meaning to go to. He even encourages others to blog about their adventures, thoughts and opinions on the things they see and the places they visit.

The interview that follows sheds light on his thoughts about being a finalist for the Philippine Blog Awards.

1. How does it feel to be nominated for the PBA?

Ivan Henares: I’m honored. Being selected a finalist is recognition enough. My appreciation goes to the panel for considering this blog.

2. Do you know who nominated you?

Ivan Henares: Yes, I think I have an idea.

3. Why do you think your blog was nominated?

Ivan Henares: Maybe because I’m meticulous about the details of the places I visit so they say the blog is informative. Add to the fact that I’ve covered a lot of ground. I’ve visited 40 out of the 81 provinces in the Philippines to date and several countries around Asia which are very accessible to Filipinos.

4. Who do you think will win in your category?

Ivan Henares: It’s hard to tell since all the blogs have their own strengths.

5. Why do you think you should win?

Ivan Henares: I put my heart into the blog. I try to update it regularly even though traveling on my own funds can exhaust my resources at times. It’s part of my advocacy, to promote traveling around the country and increase the appreciation of Filipinos to the richness of our cultural and natural heritage and the need to preserve and protect it.

6. What would you do if you win?

Ivan Henares: I’d endeavor to give my readers even better and more exciting travel accounts especially since I’ll be put in the spotlight. But even now that I’m a finalist, more people will be reading what I have to say about our country and its attractions.

7. What do you think of the Philippine blog awards?

Ivan Henares: It’s a great way to recognize Philippine bloggers who more often than not, volunteer their time and even resources to maintain them. Many do it just for fun and not really to earn money. Which is why awards like these give the needed pat on the back to outstanding bloggers.

8. Is there a blog that’s not nominated but deserves to be nominated in the PBA?

Ivan Henares: I’m sure there are a lot of deserving blogs who were not nominated. The list would be endless.

9. Would you join the next Philippine blog awards?

Ivan Henares: If I’m nominated again, why not.

10. Any messages to your fellow nominees?

Ivan Henares: Good luck to all of us. I’d be happy if any of us win. Let’s continue to keep our readers happy and have fun in the process too.

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Welcome to another edition of The Road to the Philippine Blog Awards: Finalists’ Spotlight. A blog series here on the Four-eyed Journal wherein Finalists for Philippine Blog Awards are put on the center stage, for us to get to know their blogs and the bloggers behind them particularly their thoughts on being one of the Finalists and the Blog Awards in general.

In this chapter, we focus our browsers on a well-known travel blog by Enrico Dee, Byahilo.com. It started out way back in November 2004, Byahilo.com chronicles his passions for photography and traveling to different places in the country. Born in the city of Bacolod, Negros Occidental, he took up BS Computer Science at the University of St. La Salle. He then moved to Makati City in 2003 and landed a job as a Technical Support Representative at SYKES Asia, Inc.

Enrico has traveled to a lot of different places in the country, enjoying the scenes, food, local culture, their colorful and rich signature festivals and of course taking photos of every adventure. Sagada, Banaue, Cebu, Iloilo, Guimaras, Subic, Clark, Vigan, Baguio, Dumaguete, Boracay, as just some of the places he has has visited throughout the Philippines. It’s not just the cities and places, Enrico has also seen some of the country’s most colorful and famous festivals, namely Bacolod’s Masskara Festival, La Carlota City’s Pasalamat Festival, Iloilo’s Dinagyang, Tultugan, and Pintados de Pasi Festivals, Cebu’s Sinulog, Dumanjug’s Sinanggiyaw, Sibulan’s yagyag Festival, San Carlos City’s PintaFlores, bayawan’s Panagbenga, and Laoag City’s Pamulinawen Festival.

With such travel experience and passion for capturing moments on film, Enrico has certainly lived up to the name of Byahilo, wherein every photo has a story, and every story is an adventure in itself. Being a Finalist in Travel Blog category shouldn’t surprise him that much, after all his blog has been a finalist and a winner in the 2005 Blog Awards for the honor of PhotoBlog of the Year. Would history repeat itself?

In the meantime, let’s hear from Enrico about his thoughts on this thrilling opportunity.

1. How does it feel to be nominated for the PBA?

Enrico Dee: Being nominated in the PBA is a big honor for me. I did not even expect my blog to be listed as one of the finalist.

2. Do you know who nominated you?

Enrico Dee: An officemate

3. Why do you think your blog was nominated?

Enrico Dee: Maybe because of my love for my country. I love the Philippines so much. That’s why I don’t get tired travelling.

4. Who do you think will win in your category?

Enrico Dee: Ivan Henares

5. Why do you think you should win?

Enrico Dee: I really do not know. I’m still overwhelmed by the fact that I’m one of the finalist!

6. What would you do if you win?

No answers here

7. What do you think of the Philippine blog awards?

Enrico Dee: This is a great way in recognizing Filipino bloggers. I hope that sooner or later more bloggers will be recognized in our society.

8. Is there a blog that’s not nominated but deserves to be nominated in the PBA?

Enrico Dee: I think so.

9. Would you join the next Philippine blog awards?

Enrico Dee: Yes

10. Any messages to your fellow nominees?

Enrico Dee: Congratulations folks! Keep on bloggin!

Keep on bloggin indeed, and for Enrico, keep on sharing to us your travels and adventures. Thank you for doing this interview with me, the best of luck and hopefully see you in the Awards night!

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How’s the new design so far? Thanks again to BloggingPro for making this theme public and available to the masses.

The change in design of this blog coincides with this edition of the Road to the Philippine Blog Awards: Finalist’ Spotlight, because today we shift our attention to Sophia, web designer and blogger behind Stellify.net, one of the 5 finalists for the Technology Category in the Philippine Blog Awards which will take place exactly six days from now. Guys, malapit na!

Prefers to be called Ia, Sophia is a tech blogger and web designer who graduated from UP Diliman. She has worked on extensive projects and has an impressive portfolio under her belt or rather in her blog. Stellify.net started out in September of 2006 so making it to the Finalists for the Phil. Blog Awards at just 6 months of being online is a testament to the blog and the blogger behind it. What’s striking about Stellify is that it’s one of the very few blogs among the Finalists that is rendered or designed to be monochromatic; back all throughout. Others may find it gloomy, sad, evil at most, but for Ia she sees it differently, she sees there is more to black that few have realized. Ia expounds on this when she wrote…

I still do not understand dark layouts. The ones you’d find on websites that revolved around stereotypically masculine affairs: games, cars, gadgets, porn, fantasy (oh, wait, I already mentioned porn). Perhaps because in these sites, black has been the slave of blinding neons, dripping blood, frozen death, slimy toxicities, and the underground—in an angst-claims-to-be-cool-not-bratty way.

Poor B. If it’s any consolation, here’s a little something for the zero-ridden hex value: a study in monochrome. See, this time, I think I understand black.

Who ever said you were a lesser hue? You don’t just influence the overall mood. You are the mood.

You are not the void. Only you can reveal where we are allowed to trespass.

You make the rules. It’s all up to you.

Such insight, thoughts that have grappled technologies - old and emerging - and bringing it to such contrasts that will enlighten readers whether they are geeks or not. It is because of this that one should not doubt why Stellify.net has been included to be one of the Finalists in the Technology blog category. In the following interview below, Ia shares more of her thoughts…

1. How does it feel to be nominated for the PBA?

Ia: It’s a surprise, actually. I only found out after the nominations had closed and I saw incoming traffic from bloggers that copy-pasted the list.

2. Do you know who nominated you?

Ia: I might have an idea, but I’m not sure.

3. Why do you think your blog was nominated?

Ia: I wish I could find out why!

4. Who do you think will win in your category?

Ia: I think it’ll be the blogger who best (i.e., fully, broadly, consistently) covers the category we’re in.

5. Why do you think you should win?

Ia: I bring something else to the table. Technology is a tough category to be in. I just write about things that interest me. And try to avoid the echo chamber.

6. What would you do if you win?

Ia: I’d be amazed.

7. What do you think of the Philippine blog awards?

Ia: I think it’s a good idea. I’m sure many Filipinos have waited for this. I do hope it lives up to its hype, maintains its reputation, and matures even more. I also think new categories should be created next time. ^_^

8. Is there a blog that’s not nominated but deserves to be nominated in the PBA?

Ia: Yes, I can think of several, though I’m not sure their identities would want to be disclosed!

9. Would you join the next Philippine blog awards?

Ia: We shall see!

10. Any messages to your fellow nominees?

Ia: You’re all awesome. Good luck! Keep bloggin’!

There you have it folks, straight from Ia herself. Watch out for the upcoming announcement from the Philippine Blog Awards as to the opening of the public voting for the Finalists. ‘Till next time, congratulations again to all the finalists.

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