ORIENTED is the name that refers to both ORIENTED.ORG and ORIENTED.COM.

This section has been updated. Please click here for a detailed explanation and chronology
of events.

Chop chop!

"Gus" is from the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (Manila) and is my earthquake indicator. He sits on my computer monitor at the office and keeps me company when I am working late. Click on the very tip of his beak to find out how we met. Alternatively, check my officecam to see what we are doing today.

The EBs are the ORIENTED Email Bulletins that we publish every Monday morning, summarizing weekly postings made to the site. They are one of several different pilot programs we rolled out that has proven to be both useful for our site visitors and effective for us in raising awareness of ORIENTED.

Visit the EB Archives and sign-up for our mailing list if you haven't already. You'll get to experience the more conservative side of my writing style. Believe me, it is very hard to refrain from adding my twisted sense of humor to the EBs, but after all, we are professional (cough cough)... Plus, if I did, Gus would have a cow.

Please note: We do not want Gus to have cows.

IPO-Taiwan was an informal professional network that I co-founded in October 1999 with Neil Hickey. We met at Cady and Fred's wedding, shot the breeze about how nice it would be to have a casual networking forum for Internet professionals, and overnight, created IPO-Taiwan. Not too long after its inception, Neil up and left for the States - hey thanks Neil! - and I was left to run the show.

Gus graciously provided backup support with the site, and Ginny and Richard pitched in when I needed help. All that we offered were monthly happy hours and yet people were signing up for the IPO mailing list left and right and why? Because it's a darn good name. Membership grew to the hundreds with a zero marketing budget, and by month six, I knew from experience that I either had to grow the organization or kill it, as all things must grow or they will not sustain.

Many people encouraged me to put "O" aside and take IPO to the next level, but the truth was that I just wasn't interested. My heart was and still is in "O". I had to choose between them and focus on one, or both were going to fail. Thus, with Neil's consent, I terminated IPO in May 2000, which was a very difficult decision for me personally, and for my reputation in the Internet community. Nonetheless, it was a one-step backwards, two-steps forward kind-of-thing. I have no regrets.

CAPT is a not-for-profit, voluntary organization in Taipei that holds monthly social hours and special events around town for its members. Obviously, I'm a huge fan. Founded by Larry Wang in 1993, the organization was suspended in 1995 but was re-established two and a half years later at the initiative of Vivian Tsai. Vivian wanted to make a final contribution to Taipei just before moving back to the U.S., and that she certainly did. Since I used to work for Wang & Li, I was naturally recruited to help, but I resisted taking on the role of Chairperson for the longest time until Vivian finally kicked me in the BUTT and demanded that I step up to the plate. OUCH.

CAPT was to quickly become my reason to be for the next year and a half, as it provides an incredibly valuable service both to its members and to the community at large. As Chair, I was 110% committed to taking this group forward, and I gave it all that I had within me. Andrea took over in '99 when I left to focus on "O", Jennifer stepped in after Andrea, and now Herman -- by far the best looking of us all (wink wink) -- runs the show. It's a great organization to be a part of and is one that I hope sticks around for a long time to come.

My spycam is the digital camera that I have on me at ALL times. It costs less than US$100 and is lighter than a t.v. remote control. Most of the photos in my photo album were taken using this camera. It doesn't come with a flash and sometimes it has a "fish eye" effect if the object is too far away, but for the price I paid, IT ROCKS, regardless of its limitations. It's a must have!

      

Opium Den was for the longest time the most popular night club in Taipei until it shut down at the end of 2000. Though I didn't frequent the joint (pun intended), a lot of my friends in Taipei used to, and in general I am impressed with its overall theme. The interiors were designed by a famous architect in Taiwan in such a way that it gives the feeling of being in an opium den, particularly with its long, dark red velvet curtains. If you abbreviate the name, you get "OD", which could not be any more relevant.

And I'm ALL OVER THAT. The name I mean. It's all in the name...