My (training) mission is complete

Well almost ... I still have to sit in on a certification tomorrow and have some other meetings, but the main job for me here in Manila is now done. Today I completed the FL 1.1 course - spending 2 days to conduct what was really 3 days worth of course. The guys from Forum Nokia are running some additional days now for developers to learn what's happening in the technical space from Nokia's point of view, so we had to kind of fit in with the schedule of the overall program for the week. Cramming it into 2 days was a little full on for everyone, but I had a group of very enthusiastic and keen students who really wanted to learn as much as they could.

Tonight I went out for dinner with guys from Adobe and Globe (one of the carriers here in the Phillipines) - to a Brazillian BBQ place! I'm not sure what I was expecting, being in Manila and eating in a Brazillian resturant, but hey when in the Phillipines, do as the Brazillians do! It was really good fun ... when they brought around the BBQ'd bananas, followed by ckicken, then corn, then pineapple, then more meat ... well yeah ... I guess it was good fun :) Good local beer here to :)

So I have a couple more days in Manila, some work but mostly trying to find presents now to take home to my daughters!

Aussie 80's rock makes the world go round

Forgot to post this last night when I got in ... When I arrived in Seoul in January, I got in the taxi from the airport and the first song I heard on the radio was INXS "Listen Like Thieves" - a classic from the era. I think later on in the trip I also heard Midnight Oil ...

So last night I get in the hotel car at the airport, and the first song I hear on his radio is from one of the pin-up just-about-one-hit-wonder bands from the 80's in Oz ... Southern Sons "Hold Me In Your Arms". What a spin-out!

80's Aussie rock never dies ... it just gets more airplay in south-east Asia.

Thriller in Manila - Travel Diary of an Adobe Trainer

Arrived on the ground last night in the Philipines for a week of Flash Lite training and meetings with mobile and Flash developers from around the region. From my previous posts, you'll no doubt remember that 2006 has seen my first overseas travel, so right now I only have Seoul to compare this place to. Well .... it's very different!

First interesting encounter was with the body temprature scan done at the arrivals gate at the airport, checking to see if passengers have a fever, and therefore a suspect for bird flu. You just walk along a corridor and they have these screens that show up the camera feed of the people walking through - looking something like the heat-vision of the alien Predator back in the jungle kicking Arnie's butt. OK, no worries Dale ... just don't eat any chicken.

Then took the taxi ride of my life from the airport to the hotel, which I thought might have been the LAST ride of my life at various points. And this was in what was deemed to be "average" traffic at 9pm at night - traffic that would have been considered gridlock back home. At one point, another taxi (that looked like it had been in a few conference calls with other vehicles) overtook us and the name of the taxi company put me in the right frame of mind - Heavenly Father Taxis. Well, I guess if you're going to go, then at least you had a head start on the passengers from the other car!

The next big difference I noticed (and this may be again due to my lack of international travel experience at all, let alone post 9-11) was the bomb detection squad checking out the taxi as it approached the hotel grounds (barracaded off some distance away from the hotel entrance). It was a little unnerving having a dude with a machine gun put his special under-carriage mirror under the car and walk around before letting you through. Then the body-frisking, sniffer dogs and metal detectors at the hotel door itself was just the icing on the cake. But to be honest, in the end it made me feel quite safe.

So today is a public holiday here, which gives me a chance to relax a bit before work starts tomorrow. Plus I'm meeting up with a colleague from Nokia later on this afternoon to discuss some of the strategies for the training this week. Should be fun!

Oh and yeah, I'm adding in a trip now to the UK for a Flash Lite readiness event in early September. If you're in that part of the world, you may have already gotten an email about it (and I know some of you have already registered so that's cool). Looking forward to meeting many Euro-Flash Liters that I have emailed and chatted online with :)

More passport stamps for me - hello MAX 2006

This is turning into quite a year for travel for me. After never having used my passport previous to 2006, it's getting a good flogging now, and for the remainder of the year. There's been a break at least from the first trip in January to Seoul. In a couple of weeks I'll be off to Manila (Philipines) for a week with Adobe Flash Lite Training and taking in whatever sights I can. There may be something else in September, but then I'll be off to MAX 2006 in Las Vegas giving a hands-on workshop for creating Flash Lite games for the Nokia Series 60 phones. I'm really looking forward to meeting a whole bunch of you guys who I have only known through email, Skype and Breeze, and getting hang out with some of the local Adobe-dudes. It'll be my first MAX conference also, so hoping for great time all round.

Pixel Drips - Artist Signature Mobile Content

This week Moket released some information on a new brand of Flash Lite content it has been working on lately. It's called "Pixel Drips" - Flash Lite content designed around the artistic stylings of world-renowned artists. Guys like Jon Burgerman (UK) and Jeremyville (AUS) have contributed so far, with more to come. We wanted to create some fresh visual experiences for mobile customers, and use art that has already proven itself as world-class. We've done 2 games so far but are hoping to provide some other types of content as well under the Pixel Drips brand.

Pixel Drips is a partnership between Moket and UK art studio and exhibitor - TDP Studios. Tom at TDP has been responsible for developing the relationships between PIxel Drips and the artists, and also the taking of the raw art we're sent and developing initial Flash elements for use by Moket in development later on.

So keep your eyes peeled for more on the Pixel Drips front.

http://www.moket.com.au/pixeldrips