blogging it real

English Lessons for Miss Koreas Winners: Winners of the 2005 Miss Korea beauty pageant hold their certificates for six months of free lectures at the Korea Times Institute of International Education at the Hankook Ilbo Building in downtown Seoul, Tuesday. They are, from left, Yu Hye-ri, Miss Sports Hankook; Kim Eun-ji, Miss Seoul Economic Daily; Kim Jung-hyun, Miss Hankooki.com; Lee Kyung-eun, Miss Korea first runner-up; Kim Ju-hee, Miss Korea 2005; Oh Eun-young, Miss Korea first runner-up and Miss BBQ Olive; and Yu Hye-mi, Miss Hankook Ilbo.

My only 'claim to fame' in this regard is I taught the daughter of the Runner-up to Miss Korea in 1975 in my first year in Korea (2000). And she was quite clearly the daughter of a Miss Korea contestant.

Thought I still have a bit of a hard spot, I mean soft spot sorry, for Lexy here:


And let's not forget the lovely B.I.R. Column of Fame member Lee Hyo-ri:



Meanwhile, imagine this...
Ultra-Fast Internet to Revolutionize Daily Lives
By Kim Tae-gyu

Dacom Corp. CEO Jung Hong-shik, left, and Information-Communication Minister Chin Dae-je, second from left, try out high-speed Broadband convergence Network (BcN)-based video phone service at the Unpyong Culture and Art Center in northwestern Seoul, Thursday. Yonhap

People will be able to download a two-hour high-definition movie in a minute thanks to the super-fast Broadband convergence Network (BcN).
A BcN consortium, headed by the country’s third-largest fixed-line telecom operator Dacom, yesterday started a pilot run of the next-generation network in 350 households in Seoul, Ulsan and Puchon in Kyonggi Province.

The BcN integrates traditionally separated telecom, Internet and broadcasting pipelines into a converged network while seamlessly switching over to a wired or wireless connection.

It promises a speed of 100 megabits per second (Mbps), about 50 times faster than current broadband norm of 2 Mbps provided to 11 million of the country’s total 15.5 million homes.

``BcN subscribers will be able to download a two-hour HD movie in a minute, compared to about an hour needed under the current Internet connectivity,’’ Dacom director Lee Deuk-joo said.

Thanks to its ultra-fast data transmission speed, BcN is regarded as a harbinger heralding a host of futuristic features like voice over Internet protocol, T-commerce, IP-TV and video on demands.

Another attraction of BcN is its price competitiveness.

``Because BcN mixes all conventional lines into a single network, it will save subscribers substantial amounts of money in comparison to today’s users who have to pay charges for telephone, TV and the Internet separately,’’ Lee said.

In recognition of its huge potential, the country’s telecom juggernauts have launched all-out efforts to jump onto the BcN bandwagon.

In addition to the Dacom consortium, another three organizations led by KT, SK Telecom and cable TV operators, gained licenses for the test run of the BcN.

To help the early take-off of the BcN project, the government plans to spend 1.2 trillion won through 2010 while encouraging an 800 billion won investment from the private sector over the cited period.

The Ministry of Information and Communication expects the BcN will become a mainstream connection technology to the Internet by attracting 20 million customers in 2010.

The ministry also forecasts the homegrown scheme will be the goose that lays the golden egg by inducing 111 trillion won-worth equipment production and exports of $50.8 billion by 2010.

voc200@koreatimes.co.kr
07-07-2005 21:13

It would take me 3 days to download a high quality movie on my dialup connection. Or longer?

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And why the fuck have the All Blacks decided that Rodney So'oialo is a better open side flanker than Marty Holah and that first Leon MacDonald and second, Luke McAlister are better first fives than Nick Evans who has looked bloody good this year?

Absolutely ridiculous selections and I take back about what I said about Henry and co picking the right players in the right positions unlike Mitchell. It seems that no All Black coach can move away from fucking moronic selection decisions in their second year and beyond at the helm.

The worst thing is that if they are forced to put these players in there in crunch games at the WC it means we have to rejig the team even more which puts more players out of position and it becomes a cascading waterfall heading downstream to 'fuckup river bend'.

By moving MacDonald to first five it then means we have to play Muliaina at fullback when MacDonald is the better option there. By putting So'oialo at openside it means that somebody else needs to fill up his spot at number 8. I'm sure Lauaki will do OK but i still don't think he's up to a starting spot, although my father does consider him "his boy" since he helped him out at Waitemata RFC a lot. Does that make him my big Tongan brother I never had?

Where was I?

OK, even if MacDonald or McAlistar did play well at first five they will receive fuck all games in that position in either AB jerseys or provincial jerseys in the next couple of years so it won't do jackshit to enhance their ability at that spot. So come potential crisis time at the WC we have to throw these guys straight back in at the deep end do we?

If they simply straight swap Evans for Carter, and Holah for McCaw there is minimal disruption and the side doesn't have to worry about 3, 4, 5 etc changes.

there's just been this continual obsession with only trusting guys that are already in the squad to be able to play in any old fucking position. Hell, why not try out Ali Williams at first five with his locking partner Chris jack running off his shoulder at Second Five?

I've never played anywhere near rep level in rugger but there's lot to be said for playing on a team that has the same players in the same spots week after week. Before you know it you are as tight as a Ron Jeremy jockstrap.