lowtech

On my last trip to Bangkok I was in the equivalent of a Dollar Store at the IT Mall in Pran Tip Plaza, but I guess it was called the Forty Baht Store although I can't read those signs so I'm not real sure, and I stumbled across a little gizmo that I love - and only cost a dollar! It's the Asaki 9000 SD/MMr/RS-MMC USB 2.0 card reader. Short form: usb flash drive, with removable storage. It was only a buck, or 40 baht, depending on the state of the Thai economy, and came in cute colors, so I bought a half-dozen. (Memory chip not included.)



I load them up with all the free SD chips that Adore-a-rama and camera mfgs give away with digital cameras these days, as it accepts anything from 32 megs to 16 gigs. I leave them lying around and whenever I need to transfer a file to a non-net computer, I just grab one of those. It's great for folks who want to borrow a flash drive but you know they are never going to return it. They get the 32 meg version.



But what I like the most about this gizmo is that it's useful, comes in bright colors so my aging eyeballs can find it in dim light (btw, it actually lights up when reading/writing), reminds me of those plastic easter eggs filled with candy, and did I mention, it only costs a dollar! Now that's my kinda gizmo for the global depression.

Ps. If I get back to BKK in time for Easter, I plan on buying baskets full of these and giving away as gifts, and using in the annual Nepali Easter Egg Hunt.

Greetings from Kathmandu Nepal! As most of you already know, Nepal is home to the great Himals (think Mt. Everest), dried-Yak Jerky, and Heli-Skiing - and Nepal is also home to some of the most creative "Creatives" I have ever met, with many of them still using powdered rock as paint and rolls of film instead of chips in cameras. But what many folks don't know is that within the bustling capital of Kathmandu, you can buy an unlocked iPhone or even a new unibody Macbook Pro at the local Apple Shop. (We don't call them Apple Stores 'cause to the Nepali on the street, an Apple Store is where you would buy fruit.) Kathmandu is really an Asian hub for filmmakers, artists, and photographers - and not just a hangout for deadbeat hippy backpackers of yesteryear (although I qualify on all counts).

So this is what I thought I would blog about on the COW, which in this nation is about as holy as it gets. Cows are gods and they roam free on the traffic-clogged roads, and in fact, there is big cow under my SOHO hut right now, bellowing like it's somehow caught it's foot inside of motorbike spokes. – Oh, it has. Ouch. So when I told my home office mate (my wife), that I would be having a "Cow Blog," she though I said "Cow Bog," as it is the start of monsoon season, and things are getting really soggy on the ground floor.

Let's see if what I post in the coming monsoon months is of general interest; I plan on highlighting how we use high-technology without lights, and how creative work can get done on say, truck batteries, and where complex technical problems need not expensive and complex solutions - but perhaps instead - some common sense and elbow grease, with an umbrella on hand if its raining. If this sounds interesting: technology work on a broken shoestring - let me know. I am also writing some tutorials that Tim says he will post here on the COW, and these will hopefully be easy to understand and useful in your everyday work. He says that I am smart and hilarious; I just see myself as pragmatic and patient. But perhaps we can be all things…
Cheers,
JiggyG