Text-to-speech Podcast!?
Posted on by Jason Li
Write a blog post. Have the computer speak for you. Blog becomes blog + podcast.
It is essentially a good idea, but the technology is not up to it.
Source: PostShow
Category: Virtual China
collectively written online Chinese gangster story
Posted on by Lyn Jeffery
Cultural artifact: Chinese Barbie
Posted on by Jason Li
From Toys365, a China production: 可儿娃娃, a Chinese Barbie-like doll:
Here’s the official Mattel one, circa 1994 (courtesy of Barbie Collector Showcase):
Hong Kong Wins
Posted on by Jason Li
Hong Kong has won the bid to host the annual Chinese Wikipedia conference (see Wikipedia article).
Source: PostShow
Can you say public sphere?
Posted on by Jason Li
51xxU! (numeric for 我要谢谢你！= I want to thank you!) is a Google-interfaced site for what is essentially public text-based greeting cards. You have a choice of sending your (registered-with-51xxU) friend a 感谢 Thank You, 祝福 Blessing, 道歉 Apology, 期望 Wish, and 建议 Suggestion.
FYI: 51xxU’s precedent is the popular use of SMS for holiday-greetings, especially during Chinese New Year when…
Continue readingCan you say public sphere?
from e-waste to young acrobats: natalie’s photos
Posted on by Lyn Jeffery
I recently came upon the amazing work of Natalie Behring, a professional photographer living in Beijing whose work has appeared in The New York Times, The Globe and Mail, and the Chicago Tribune among many other forums. In addition to the two series above, “Beijing Prepares for 2008” is also well-worth spending a bit of time with.
Continue readingfrom e-waste to young acrobats: natalie’s photos
leave revolutionary heroes out of games
Posted on by Lyn Jeffery
Danwei has a post on Chinese gaming giant Shanda Entertainment’s recent educational online game, “Learning from Comrade Lei Feng.” Lei Feng was a model of self-sacrificing youth, held up by the Chinese Communist Party as an inspiration to millions during China’s Cultural Revolution.
Rather than beating bosses, players prevent crowds from wrong acts such as spitting, littering, and…
Continue readingleave revolutionary heroes out of games
kitten crusher confesses
Posted on by Lyn Jeffery
girls mm girls
Posted on by Lyn Jeffery
MM/mm stands for meimei (妹妹, literally, “little sister”) stands for girls, chicks, hotties, or whatever term you choose. Mainstream sites in virtual China are rife with sexualized pictures and videos of women. It would be like having Playboy cover shots and links to porn videos on AOL, MSN, or Yahoo.
The photo above comes from the #4 most…
Continue readinggirls mm girls
Q&A sites
Posted on by iftf