Showing posts with label Meta Blogging. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Meta Blogging. Show all posts
Thursday, November 19, 2015
Monday, October 26, 2015
Night Studies in Shaoguan
Posted by
Brian Glucroft
at
11:49 PM
There was a time not long ago when I thought I would have two posts ready for today. I suppose the previous sentence already implies that I likely will not. It could also imply I may have three or more posts for today. I definitely didn't intend the latter interpretation.
Instead of either of the two posts I had initially planned, which need just a little more work that is not going to happen at this moment, here is a photo of a girl focusing on her own work tonight.
Abstract flamingos and a colorful (heavy on the red) place on Shaoguan's Wuya Alley shall appear shortly.
Instead of either of the two posts I had initially planned, which need just a little more work that is not going to happen at this moment, here is a photo of a girl focusing on her own work tonight.
Abstract flamingos and a colorful (heavy on the red) place on Shaoguan's Wuya Alley shall appear shortly.
Tuesday, October 13, 2015
A Change of Room Views in Guangdong
Posted by
Brian Glucroft
at
9:04 PM
A view outside the window where until yesterday I recently stayed in Zhongshan, Guangdong:
A view outside the window where I am staying now in Shaoguan, Guangdong:
I wouldn't characterize the differences between the cities using these two photos, but I appreciate the change of scenery afforded by my new room nonetheless.
While I have had an easy time viewing many scenes since arriving in a city I have never visited before, I have not had an easy time viewing my own blog due to significant challenges connecting to my VPN, which I need to access a variety of blocked-in-China services. Although some potential fixes did not offer a lasting solution, things may have returned to normal, my normal at least. As usual, I can't be sure why, but in many ways much of life is like that.
A view outside the window where I am staying now in Shaoguan, Guangdong:
I wouldn't characterize the differences between the cities using these two photos, but I appreciate the change of scenery afforded by my new room nonetheless.
While I have had an easy time viewing many scenes since arriving in a city I have never visited before, I have not had an easy time viewing my own blog due to significant challenges connecting to my VPN, which I need to access a variety of blocked-in-China services. Although some potential fixes did not offer a lasting solution, things may have returned to normal, my normal at least. As usual, I can't be sure why, but in many ways much of life is like that.
Wednesday, May 27, 2015
Xtepiration in Changsha
Posted by
Brian Glucroft
at
11:57 PM
I planned to post something I had expected to be delightfully simple before moving onto more delightfully complex matters. But the post turned into something also delightfully complex and took me down several unexpected paths. Since it clearly won't be finished today, I will now share a photo which tangentially relates to it. As a bonus, it includes a message which may inspire some people.
The space under renovation along Changsha's South Huangxing Commercial Pedestrian Street was covered by the upper portion of marketing material for the Chinese sportswear company Xtep. Since I don't know what appeared below the cut, I will refrain from commenting on its possible intended message. You are welcome to seek a deeper meaning in the scene though.
For an extra bonus, while I stood there with my camera out, a person walked by and enthusiastically posed for a photograph. I accepted his gracious offer.
And now I feel inspired to continue work on the other post.
The space under renovation along Changsha's South Huangxing Commercial Pedestrian Street was covered by the upper portion of marketing material for the Chinese sportswear company Xtep. Since I don't know what appeared below the cut, I will refrain from commenting on its possible intended message. You are welcome to seek a deeper meaning in the scene though.
For an extra bonus, while I stood there with my camera out, a person walked by and enthusiastically posed for a photograph. I accepted his gracious offer.
And now I feel inspired to continue work on the other post.
Tuesday, May 19, 2015
From Hengyang to Changsha With a Few Stops In Between
Posted by
Brian Glucroft
at
12:00 AM
Over a month ago I arrived in Hengyang, Hunan.
And almost exactly a month ago I left Hengyang and went to neighboring Shaoyang.
From Shaoyang I went to neighboring Loudi.
From Loudi I went to neighboring Xiangtan.
From Xiantan I went to neighboring Zhuzhou.
From Zhuzhou I went to neighboring Changsha — the capital of Hunan province and where I am now.
Both Hengyang and Changsha were return visits. The other prefecture-level cities in Hunan were first-time visits, and by design, with one minor exception, I have not previously mentioned them here. After flipping through all of my photos from the past month to prepare this post, I am reminded I have more than enough to process and share.
The frequent travel and amount of time I spent immersing myself a diverse set of cities meant I was not able to blog as much as I would have liked. In the near future, I will share some of what I have experienced and learned in Hunan. I plan to also touch on some topics related to two cities elsewhere in China where I spent a significant amount of time earlier this year — Chongqing and Zhongshan.
So as usual, more soon . . .
Intersection of Chuanshan Avenue and Zhengyang North Road in Hengyang |
And almost exactly a month ago I left Hengyang and went to neighboring Shaoyang.
Intersection of Wuyi Road and Dongfeng Road in Shaoyang |
From Shaoyang I went to neighboring Loudi.
Meeting point of Dixing Road and Yuetang Street in Loudi |
From Loudi I went to neighboring Xiangtan.
Intersection of Chezhan Road and Jianshe North Road in Xiangtan |
From Xiantan I went to neighboring Zhuzhou.
Tiantai Road in Zhuzhou |
From Zhuzhou I went to neighboring Changsha — the capital of Hunan province and where I am now.
Intersection of Chengnan West Road and Baisha Road in Changsha |
Both Hengyang and Changsha were return visits. The other prefecture-level cities in Hunan were first-time visits, and by design, with one minor exception, I have not previously mentioned them here. After flipping through all of my photos from the past month to prepare this post, I am reminded I have more than enough to process and share.
The frequent travel and amount of time I spent immersing myself a diverse set of cities meant I was not able to blog as much as I would have liked. In the near future, I will share some of what I have experienced and learned in Hunan. I plan to also touch on some topics related to two cities elsewhere in China where I spent a significant amount of time earlier this year — Chongqing and Zhongshan.
So as usual, more soon . . .
Saturday, January 3, 2015
A Night Train Meal
Posted by
Brian Glucroft
at
11:25 AM
On a recent overnight train from Hong Kong to Shanghai, this was my dinner:
Bought for 25 RMB (about US $4) from a train crew member pushing around a cart filled with dinner trays like this one—the only option available—the meal was pricey compared to similar options available at some convenience store chains. I can't say it was one of my finer culinary experiences in China, but it did help me pass some time.
During the past few weeks I have been in Shanghai, Zhangzhou, Hong Kong, and back in Shanghai. Due to travel, holidays, visitors, a cold, etc. I haven't posted much lately. I have much I want to catch up on, particularly related to my time in Zhangzhou & Hong Kong, so upcoming posts, like the meal above, will include a mix items.
Bought for 25 RMB (about US $4) from a train crew member pushing around a cart filled with dinner trays like this one—the only option available—the meal was pricey compared to similar options available at some convenience store chains. I can't say it was one of my finer culinary experiences in China, but it did help me pass some time.
During the past few weeks I have been in Shanghai, Zhangzhou, Hong Kong, and back in Shanghai. Due to travel, holidays, visitors, a cold, etc. I haven't posted much lately. I have much I want to catch up on, particularly related to my time in Zhangzhou & Hong Kong, so upcoming posts, like the meal above, will include a mix items.
Wednesday, October 29, 2014
The Three Towers
Posted by
Brian Glucroft
at
7:17 PM
In one of these buildings today, I enjoyed some rather tasty fish with garlic sauce, and I wasn't even at a restaurant.
When I first came to Shanghai almost a decade ago, only the Jin Mao Tower, the shortest of the three, in the middle existed. Next year, the Shanghai Tower, the second tallest skyscraper in the world, on the right will be open for all the things one puts inside a 121 story building, including food. I find they present a rather impressive sight. At least equally striking to me, though, is the number of tall buildings continuing to sprout up elsewhere in Shanghai as well.
In addition to providing a view of China greatly differing from the usual scenes I share, this is also my way of saying that I am yet again in Shanghai. It won't be long until I head to less well-known Chinese lands, but I hope to make the most of my time here by doing a series of brief posts, some of which will tie in what I have found in parts of China with far fewer skyscrapers.
When I first came to Shanghai almost a decade ago, only the Jin Mao Tower, the shortest of the three, in the middle existed. Next year, the Shanghai Tower, the second tallest skyscraper in the world, on the right will be open for all the things one puts inside a 121 story building, including food. I find they present a rather impressive sight. At least equally striking to me, though, is the number of tall buildings continuing to sprout up elsewhere in Shanghai as well.
In addition to providing a view of China greatly differing from the usual scenes I share, this is also my way of saying that I am yet again in Shanghai. It won't be long until I head to less well-known Chinese lands, but I hope to make the most of my time here by doing a series of brief posts, some of which will tie in what I have found in parts of China with far fewer skyscrapers.
Saturday, October 18, 2014
A Nanchang Scene
Posted by
Brian Glucroft
at
10:31 AM
My trip to the US has pulled me away from blogging more than I had expected. I hope to have things back up to speed in the near future. Nanchang, the capital of China's Jiangxi province, was briefly on my mind today, so for now here is an everyday street scene from when I visited the city almost three years ago.
Wednesday, August 27, 2014
Wassup Hengyang Style
Posted by
Brian Glucroft
at
11:59 PM
In Hengyang, Hunan province |
If you are wondering "wassup", despite the content of my most recent posts, I am not now in either Yangjiang or Hengyang, although I did briefly stop by Shanghai last month. More substantial and regular posting is on the way, including a mix of old and new topics and of course some highlights from my current location.
Monday, April 28, 2014
A Return With an Outdoor Cafe Scene
Posted by
Brian Glucroft
at
11:08 PM
Here are two people sitting at an outdoor cafe in the middle of a pedestrian shopping street in Zhanjiang's Xiashan district:
On an unrelated note, I finally have usable Internet access once more and expect to be returning to a relatively normal state. So of course that means posts about a big boat, mud worms, and mobile phones are all on the way.
On an unrelated note, I finally have usable Internet access once more and expect to be returning to a relatively normal state. So of course that means posts about a big boat, mud worms, and mobile phones are all on the way.
Tuesday, February 25, 2014
A Longer Than Planned Note About Embedded Tweets
Posted by
Brian Glucroft
at
9:16 PM
A timeout for blog-related technical issues:
For some readers, embedded tweets from Twitter may not appear as intended and lose some of their effect. "Selfless Selfies" is an example of a post with an embedded tweet. If you didn't see a photo in that post, then you didn't see a fully rendered embedded tweet which should look like this:
Instead, you probably saw a stripped-down tweet with links to relevant material, such as images and the original tweet on Twitter, like this:
The experience isn't entirely broken when the embedded tweets aren't fully rendered, and it's not very different from simply quoting a tweet. So I use them even though I realize many readers won't see them in their full glory. Writing this, though, makes me wonder if in the future I should "pull out" images from tweets so more people can easily see them, which I think is how I did it long ago. Embedded tweets are great when they fully render but ... reality and all that.
While I'm taking this timeout, I'll mention a somewhat related topic: I've noticed that in some RSS readers the formatting of my blog posts does not appear as intended, especially in regards to captions for images, and odd spacings appear. I'm not sure whether it's an issue with the RSS readers, Blogger, me, or something else. Like with embedded tweets, one possible "fix" is to view the posts at the blog website. If you know of a fix from my side, though, please let me know.
Anyway, if you didn't know before, hopefully now you understand a bit more. If the above has entirely confused you and you weren't aware of any problems, fear not, this post is nearly finished. But seriously, feel free to contact me if you have questions. It's possible I have answers***.
Enjoy ...
* Some RSS readers, such as NewsBlur, offer a view where embedded tweets can appear as intended.
** My blog as a whole is partially blocked in China due to being hosted on Blogger.
*** Or more questions.
For some readers, embedded tweets from Twitter may not appear as intended and lose some of their effect. "Selfless Selfies" is an example of a post with an embedded tweet. If you didn't see a photo in that post, then you didn't see a fully rendered embedded tweet which should look like this:
A non-functional image of a fully rendered embedded tweet |
Instead, you probably saw a stripped-down tweet with links to relevant material, such as images and the original tweet on Twitter, like this:
What do you call a selfie taken by someone dedicated to overcoming selfhood? http://t.co/h039cHyZ79 pic.twitter.com/1W4WoKo92tSeeing the stripped-down version is often due to viewing the post through an RSS reader*, viewing the post on a mobile device, having JavaScript disabled, or being blocked to Twitter's content by China's Great Firewall**.
— Chris Buckley 储百亮 (@ChuBailiang) February 24, 2014
The experience isn't entirely broken when the embedded tweets aren't fully rendered, and it's not very different from simply quoting a tweet. So I use them even though I realize many readers won't see them in their full glory. Writing this, though, makes me wonder if in the future I should "pull out" images from tweets so more people can easily see them, which I think is how I did it long ago. Embedded tweets are great when they fully render but ... reality and all that.
While I'm taking this timeout, I'll mention a somewhat related topic: I've noticed that in some RSS readers the formatting of my blog posts does not appear as intended, especially in regards to captions for images, and odd spacings appear. I'm not sure whether it's an issue with the RSS readers, Blogger, me, or something else. Like with embedded tweets, one possible "fix" is to view the posts at the blog website. If you know of a fix from my side, though, please let me know.
Anyway, if you didn't know before, hopefully now you understand a bit more. If the above has entirely confused you and you weren't aware of any problems, fear not, this post is nearly finished. But seriously, feel free to contact me if you have questions. It's possible I have answers***.
Enjoy ...
* Some RSS readers, such as NewsBlur, offer a view where embedded tweets can appear as intended.
** My blog as a whole is partially blocked in China due to being hosted on Blogger.
*** Or more questions.
Monday, November 11, 2013
China's Great Firewall Says Hello
Posted by
Brian Glucroft
at
1:35 AM
I have not be able to post here for a few days due to significant problems in using my VPN. Without a properly functioning VPN, I am at the mercy of China's Great Firewall. This means a variety of sites are blocked, including Blogger which I use to publish this blog. For reasons I am unable to completely explain, there are occasionally periods of time when I can still reach blocked-in-China sites. If this post publishes, it means I was able to take advantage of one. This actually represents an improvement from yesterday.
My VPN provider is trying to solve the problem, which at least in part appears to be the result of some crafty strategies being used by the Great Firewall, although there are other issues which also concern me. It is almost as fascinating as it is frustrating. I don't know how many others are affected by what I'm experiencing. I also don't know if it is specific to me, Zhuhai, or Guangdong province. For now, I will just add that it was a year ago when I last had so many problems with the Great Firewall.
Hopefully an effective solution can soon be found. Perhaps more on this topic later.
My VPN provider is trying to solve the problem, which at least in part appears to be the result of some crafty strategies being used by the Great Firewall, although there are other issues which also concern me. It is almost as fascinating as it is frustrating. I don't know how many others are affected by what I'm experiencing. I also don't know if it is specific to me, Zhuhai, or Guangdong province. For now, I will just add that it was a year ago when I last had so many problems with the Great Firewall.
Hopefully an effective solution can soon be found. Perhaps more on this topic later.
Friday, September 13, 2013
Thursday, June 27, 2013
Tuesday, May 7, 2013
Reconnecting With Another Unexpected Connection
Posted by
Brian Glucroft
at
9:14 AM
Yesterday, I made another unexpected connection when I was at Seoul Plaza in Seoul, South Korea.
While there I was reminded of my visit to Klyde Warren Park in Dallas, US.
And in case you're wondering, yes, this post ends my longest non-posting period since starting this blog. The pause was partly due to having plenty on my plate* during my first visit to the US in several years. Another reason was that when my plate appeared empty, it seemed like a good time to keep it that way.
But now I'm back, both in terms of blogging and being in Asia. Although I am eager to return to the usual themes, while they are still fresh in my mind I will share some assorted thoughts about my several weeks in the US.
More soon. Really.
*This was meant figuratively, but the literal interpretation also holds true.
While there I was reminded of my visit to Klyde Warren Park in Dallas, US.
And in case you're wondering, yes, this post ends my longest non-posting period since starting this blog. The pause was partly due to having plenty on my plate* during my first visit to the US in several years. Another reason was that when my plate appeared empty, it seemed like a good time to keep it that way.
But now I'm back, both in terms of blogging and being in Asia. Although I am eager to return to the usual themes, while they are still fresh in my mind I will share some assorted thoughts about my several weeks in the US.
More soon. Really.
*This was meant figuratively, but the literal interpretation also holds true.
Saturday, March 16, 2013
An Even More Edacious and Potatory Post
Posted by
Brian Glucroft
at
11:50 PM
Some readers may feel most of my posts including "edacious and potatory views" are missing a key detail: the food or drink that accompanied the view. I'm not sure if I have suitable photos for all of the examples. I'll leave sorting that out for another day (maybe). Instead, I will start afresh and share the view from where I had a late lunch today in Ho Chi Minh City:
And here is what I ate and drank:
I hope this was sufficiently edacious and potatory.
And now for a few notes:
1. Not only was the previous post a chance to revisit some old scenes, but it proved to be a learning experience as well. I find it curious that the words "edacious" and "potatory" capture such seemingly common and useful concepts, yet neither were familiar to me (and I suspect to most readers) and I couldn't find any other suitable single-word options. My use of the word "edacious" is even considered "archaic". I would appreciate hearing any insights readers may have about these two wonderful words.
2. Readers who follow this blog through an RSS reader may have been puzzled by a post titled "Riverside View in Kampot, Cambodia". While working on the previous post, Blogger provided a strange error message when I tried adding a location tag. After I recovered, I discovered the post had been prematurely published. I'll avoid getting into all the technical details, but when recovering from an accidental publishing, simply deleting a post doesn't necessarily remove it from RSS readers. I think this is something which could be better addressed by blogging platforms (and possibly RSS readers as well), but that's another issue. Anyways, the easiest thing for me to do was to "update" the post with an empty content area and then delete it from my blog.
So if you saw a blank post titled "Riverside View in Kampot, Cambodia", no worries. If you saw that post and it included some content, congratulations--you probably had an inside look at the early stages of a post's creation. Now please feel free to discard it at the nearest incinerator.
"Finally..."
3. Returning to the word-usage theme, I can say with no small pride that I was recently offered compensation for a pun I wrote. Especially with the recent online debate about people being asked to write for free, I found it a most encouraging sign. I eagerly look forward to my next trip to Beijing so I can collect my beer from Anthony Tao. Maybe Señor Tao can offer me some tips on how to drink it while wearing a face mask. With his experience in Beijing, he should have a leg up on me.
And here is what I ate and drank:
I hope this was sufficiently edacious and potatory.
And now for a few notes:
1. Not only was the previous post a chance to revisit some old scenes, but it proved to be a learning experience as well. I find it curious that the words "edacious" and "potatory" capture such seemingly common and useful concepts, yet neither were familiar to me (and I suspect to most readers) and I couldn't find any other suitable single-word options. My use of the word "edacious" is even considered "archaic". I would appreciate hearing any insights readers may have about these two wonderful words.
2. Readers who follow this blog through an RSS reader may have been puzzled by a post titled "Riverside View in Kampot, Cambodia". While working on the previous post, Blogger provided a strange error message when I tried adding a location tag. After I recovered, I discovered the post had been prematurely published. I'll avoid getting into all the technical details, but when recovering from an accidental publishing, simply deleting a post doesn't necessarily remove it from RSS readers. I think this is something which could be better addressed by blogging platforms (and possibly RSS readers as well), but that's another issue. Anyways, the easiest thing for me to do was to "update" the post with an empty content area and then delete it from my blog.
So if you saw a blank post titled "Riverside View in Kampot, Cambodia", no worries. If you saw that post and it included some content, congratulations--you probably had an inside look at the early stages of a post's creation. Now please feel free to discard it at the nearest incinerator.
"Finally..."
3. Returning to the word-usage theme, I can say with no small pride that I was recently offered compensation for a pun I wrote. Especially with the recent online debate about people being asked to write for free, I found it a most encouraging sign. I eagerly look forward to my next trip to Beijing so I can collect my beer from Anthony Tao. Maybe Señor Tao can offer me some tips on how to drink it while wearing a face mask. With his experience in Beijing, he should have a leg up on me.
Wednesday, January 23, 2013
Another Refresher Post
Posted by
Brian Glucroft
at
11:28 PM
As I did once before, I will share a variety of older posts that are now buried by many others but may be of interest to newer readers.
1. A Most Amazing Payday in Shanghai & A Most Delicious Lunch Without Meat -- These are two stories about a young woman I met who moved to Shanghai to pursue some of her dreams. She could only marvel at how her life has improved since she was a child in southwest China.
2. Discoveries Leading to Questions: "Sansumg" Computers and Bilingual Notes in Nanning -- Here I provided a light glimpse of one of the research methods I have used for companies such as Microsoft in China. It emphasizes a key point: research is not only about finding answers. It is also about finding the right questions. I followed up this topic in the next post -- A Computer at a Hair Salon in Liuzhou, Guangxi.
3. Facebook, Taiwan, and a Waitress's Comments on Censorship in China -- This post shares an example of how knowledge about what is permissible in Taiwan can impact a Chinese person's views on censorship. Later when I was in Taiwan, I had an experience that further highlighted how Taiwan differs from the other side of the Taiwan Strait. -- Facebook Contrasts: Students in Taiwan and Mainland China.
That's all for now. For more you can find the previous "refresher post" here.
1. A Most Amazing Payday in Shanghai & A Most Delicious Lunch Without Meat -- These are two stories about a young woman I met who moved to Shanghai to pursue some of her dreams. She could only marvel at how her life has improved since she was a child in southwest China.
2. Discoveries Leading to Questions: "Sansumg" Computers and Bilingual Notes in Nanning -- Here I provided a light glimpse of one of the research methods I have used for companies such as Microsoft in China. It emphasizes a key point: research is not only about finding answers. It is also about finding the right questions. I followed up this topic in the next post -- A Computer at a Hair Salon in Liuzhou, Guangxi.
3. Facebook, Taiwan, and a Waitress's Comments on Censorship in China -- This post shares an example of how knowledge about what is permissible in Taiwan can impact a Chinese person's views on censorship. Later when I was in Taiwan, I had an experience that further highlighted how Taiwan differs from the other side of the Taiwan Strait. -- Facebook Contrasts: Students in Taiwan and Mainland China.
That's all for now. For more you can find the previous "refresher post" here.
Saturday, January 19, 2013
A Woman and Baby in Changsha
Posted by
Brian Glucroft
at
2:11 AM
A couple of months ago while taking a closer look at a street market in Changsha, Hunan province, I briefly met a woman and a baby.
Other than it being a pleasant experience, I don't have much more to say. But I do have plenty more to say about what I learned in Changsha that I have not yet covered here. Someday I will "return" to Changsha and many other places I have visited in China. But first I plan to finish some half-written posts on other topics--including a fascinating discussion I had today with Malaysian woman. She said she doesn't plan to revisit her son in the US because of her bad knee. But it sounded like she had other concerns.
More soon...
Other than it being a pleasant experience, I don't have much more to say. But I do have plenty more to say about what I learned in Changsha that I have not yet covered here. Someday I will "return" to Changsha and many other places I have visited in China. But first I plan to finish some half-written posts on other topics--including a fascinating discussion I had today with Malaysian woman. She said she doesn't plan to revisit her son in the US because of her bad knee. But it sounded like she had other concerns.
More soon...
Thursday, November 15, 2012
China's Great Firewall Raised Higher for a Party
Posted by
Brian Glucroft
at
1:12 AM
As Paul Mozur noted last week:
I too have had growing problems using my VPN during the past several weeks and have needed customer support from the U.S. on several occasions to resolve them. My impression is that some of the methods being used by the Great Firewall are more sophisticated than what I have experienced before.
At this moment, I can only maintain brief connections to my VPN before being disconnected. However, unlike previous times I can't rule out that there isn't a more general problem with my Internet connection. So I will apply a method that seems apt for this hour: I will go to sleep. My recent experience is that things will be either be much better or much worse when I wake up.
FYI -- without a functional VPN I am not able to post here since Blogger remains blocked in China. This and the fact that I have spent much time trying to better understand the blocking are some of the reasons I have not gotten around to several posts I had planned for this week. They're still in the pipeline though.
I will only be able to publish this post by waiting for a brief window during which I am connected to the VPN--assuming one opens again.
So far this is not working. Hopefully this can slip through on one of the tries...
More later.
...in recent weeks concern about the Internet has taken primacy as access to websites – especially foreign websites and virtual private networks, or VPNs, which allow users to circumvent Chinese Internet filters – has deteriorated.See the article here for more details.
The likely reason is the weeklong 18th Party Congress, a highly scripted but nevertheless critical political event scheduled to culminate with the unveiling of Communist Party’s next generation of leaders.
Chinese authorities routinely move to exert more control over the Internet around big meetings and politically sensitive dates, including by disrupting traffic to foreign websites outside the country’s censorship system, commonly referred to as the Great Firewall. But a number of users have complained of unusually frequent disruptions in the run-up to the 18th Party Congress...
I too have had growing problems using my VPN during the past several weeks and have needed customer support from the U.S. on several occasions to resolve them. My impression is that some of the methods being used by the Great Firewall are more sophisticated than what I have experienced before.
At this moment, I can only maintain brief connections to my VPN before being disconnected. However, unlike previous times I can't rule out that there isn't a more general problem with my Internet connection. So I will apply a method that seems apt for this hour: I will go to sleep. My recent experience is that things will be either be much better or much worse when I wake up.
FYI -- without a functional VPN I am not able to post here since Blogger remains blocked in China. This and the fact that I have spent much time trying to better understand the blocking are some of the reasons I have not gotten around to several posts I had planned for this week. They're still in the pipeline though.
I will only be able to publish this post by waiting for a brief window during which I am connected to the VPN--assuming one opens again.
So far this is not working. Hopefully this can slip through on one of the tries...
More later.
Tuesday, November 6, 2012
Pundits and Teepees
Posted by
Brian Glucroft
at
8:02 AM
I typically only post about U.S. politics here if it relates to China or one of my other "big" interests. Like many other people, the topic has attracted an unusually large amount of my online attention over the past few days due to the upcoming presidential election. My mind has been flooded with news reports, analyses, polls, pundits, polls of pundits, pundits on polls, pundits on pundits, and so on. I have also been occasionally distracted by other topics friends send my way such as $88 cat teepees. Although I have no plans to buy a cat teepee, it made me more aware of the benefits brief diversions can have in the midst of an information overload.
So in that spirit, during the next day or two I will do a series of very brief but more frequent China-related posts. They can serve as moments for some readers to flex their eyes on something different while allowing me to share with everyone more of what I have seen in China.
Soon, I will return to earlier themes here, such as college dormitories, and also reply to some readers' questions. In the meantime, though, I will keep things relatively simple.
More soon.
So in that spirit, during the next day or two I will do a series of very brief but more frequent China-related posts. They can serve as moments for some readers to flex their eyes on something different while allowing me to share with everyone more of what I have seen in China.
Soon, I will return to earlier themes here, such as college dormitories, and also reply to some readers' questions. In the meantime, though, I will keep things relatively simple.
More soon.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)