Showing 1 - 10 of 10
A capitalist nightmare
Life, Thana Boonlert, Published on 25/07/2025
» Thump thump bump. Netflix's psychological thriller Wall To Wall envisions a dystopian contemporary South Korea. It is a cautionary tale of late-stage capitalist society fraught with economic volatility, mental breakdowns and class divide.
Microsoft stock booming on AI run
Life, James Hein, Published on 07/06/2023
» It's not a good time to be working for Microsoft, but it is a good time to be a shareholder or executive. Stock is up over 30%, net income is up and the CEO Satya Nadella got a nice 10% raise. Regular workers received no pay rise, or effectively a 5% pay cut due to inflation. Microsoft has rationalised it as pat and generic reasons like a "competitive environment" and the "global macroeconomic uncertainties". In reality, Microsoft is using the money to jump into the AI wave through a multibillion-dollar partnership with OpenAI.
Got them new phone blues
Life, James Hein, Published on 30/03/2022
» It has been 3 years and I have a new phone. Thanks to a very generous rebate from Vodaphone I have the latest flagship in my hands. It feels nice and solid but I immediately put it in a Spigen Neo case, rated as one of the best by some reviewers. I have been happy with the Spigen range over the years. I watched some drop tests and prefer the phone to stay in good shape so I'm also considering a decent screen protector.
Bitkub to launch metaverse platform
Life, Thana Boonlert, Published on 23/03/2022
» Bitkub Blockchain Technology is joining hands with The Monk Studios to build Bitkub Metaverse, a virtual world where avatars can trade items and join many other activities, due to be released in August.
Beware of TikTok snooping on your phone's data
Life, James Hein, Published on 02/03/2022
» If you didn't already know, TikTok is potentially dangerous. The app bypasses both Apple and Google protections and is controlled by the Chinese Communist Party. According to reports, the app passes all your data back to servers in China, including unposted information and the contents of your phone. The app also has many security vulnerabilities allowing hackers to take over your phone. This is in addition to the expansion of your digital footprint across the planet. In China, people are rewarded for posting serious videos like those showing them using a chemistry set. Those outside China are rewarded for the dumbest presentations. I'll let the readers work this last one out for themselves.
Catering to the crypto craze
Life, Suwitcha Chaiyong, Published on 16/02/2022
» Last April, Bitcoin soared to its highest record of 2 million baht per unit. The weakening baht against the US dollar was one of the reasons the cryptocurrency set the new record. This high water mark showed that many Thai investors were interested in the crypto market. Due to the growth of the market, two cafes -- Hip Coffee & Restaurant and The Moon: Crypto & NFT Café -- aim to be gathering spaces for the crypto communities in Thailand.
Prediction hits and misses for 2021
Life, James Hein, Published on 22/12/2021
» It is time once again to look back at 2021 to see what happened and how my predictions panned out.
The blockchain disruption
Life, Suwitcha Chaiyong, Published on 21/07/2021
» Last March, Christie's organised an auction of a collage of 5,000 digital images titled Everydays: The First 5000 Days by digital artist Mike Winkelmann, aka Beeple. The digital art piece sold for US$69 million (2.2 billion baht).
The problem with censoring social media
Life, James Hein, Published on 27/03/2019
» In the aftermath of a recent violent event, there are calls to apply greater censorship to commentary on all social-media platforms. Those living in some Asian nations and elsewhere will already be used to the concept of censorship. That does not mean that others should follow this trend but instead should actively resist, as the ability to freely debate and exchange ideas was the original reason the internet was brought into being. The biggest problem with censorship is perspective. Consider two nation states with completely different cultures and perspectives. Which one and who gets to decide what is a valid opinion when the two are so different? This is the danger that now faces a number of Western nations, and apart from the US, where rights are enshrined in the Constitution, there is little protection. If you live in such a nation, let others know that freedom of speech and debate is a much better option than the alternatives.
True cost of mining Bitcoin
Life, James Hein, Published on 28/03/2018
» Should you Bitcoin? Short answer in the past yes, now not so much. I've mentioned Bitcoins in previous articles and modern mining, which is how you get them, has driven up the price of graphics processors in recent times. Can you make any money using your spare GPU cycles on your PC? Answering that question is not as simple you might think, despite what a mining application may tell you. It depends on how powerful your GPU is, what the price of Bitcoin is that week and things like how much you pay for your power because you will be using more. The process works by maximising the power of your GPU, using more electricity than for regular use and keeping your PC hotter than usual 24/7. Mining works by solving complex maths equations for the blockchain which over time takes longer and longer and more processing power.