“Beyond contact centers, the Philippines is also making waves in IT, particularly software development. In recent years, the tech sector has embraced a more robust IT consulting, which includes implementation, deployment, and administration of IT systems.
“Analysts project that the total size of the Philippines’ ICT sector will increase from US$1.2 billion in 2005 to US$2.3 billion by the end of the decade. The Philippine government recently unveiled a five-year program, which it hopes to generate up to US$12.8 billion, from the combined contact center and IT services sectors. Out of the projected worth, it is not known how much software development will contribute. But with satellite development centers for leading technology firms opening on these shores, it is safe to say that the application development outsourcing industry is on a growth path.” More at Ideyatech.
“I blame Pride and Prejudice for the fact that the hero of every romance novel is rotten to the heroine the first time he meets her. In my heart, I also blame it for our persistent and anachronistic tendency to regard a man as an embodiment of personal destiny. Well, not Pride and Prejudice alone. But we carry stories around in our bones, and among novels about the sexes, it’s the best there is: Elizabeth snagging Mr. Darcy is romantic heroin for the discriminating reader.”
“The sensation that defines the search is the sweet, painful feeling that you get when you can’t think of a word that feels as if it’s right on the tip of your tongue. For most people, the relief they experience upon finding it is almost physical. They sink back in their chairs and try not to stumble upon any more difficult words. The person who makes his living searching for the new new thing is not like most people, however. He does not seriously want to sink back into any chair. He needs to keep on groping. He chooses to live perpetually with that sweet tingling discomfort of not quite knowing what it is he wants to say.”
Roger Federer won his fifth consecutive US Open Men’s Singles–and 13th Grand Slam–title by beating Andy Murray 6-2, 7-5, 6-2. Ironically, of all his matches in the last slam of the year, this one looked the easiest. Even the second set did not feel like a cliffhanger at all. He is back and order is restored in the universe, which also means I can now return to a saner sleeping pattern.
Update:
What in God’s name is that ball boy gesturing and who is he gesturing at? Bad, bad, baaad!
The old Roger Federer is obviously reappearing, and it looks like he’s now beating mono for good. Traces of mono virus can still linger in a patient’s organs and parts of the brain (according to the truthiness of Wikipedia), causing lethargy or mental fatigue even if tests show 100% recovery. That applied to The Fed in the earlier months, and now it’s fairly easy to believe that the funk he was in was not mental at all in the psychological sense. It was physiological.
I still don’t think that he’s playing with all gears yet, but this is so much better than all the game everyone had seen from him in the previous 8 weeks. Last night (or yesterday if you are in that part of the world), Roger defeated Novak Djokovic 6-3 5-7 7-5 6-2. He had a solid first set, lost a shaky 2nd, barely scraped through the 3rd, and then closed the deal in the 4th. Towards the end of the fourth set, it was as if Djokovic had given up as The Fed racked point after point with the powerful forehand. Flashes of Fed’s brilliance resulted in one of the highlights of the match, which was the overhead lob that only a guy like him could produce.
This match looked easier than the 4th round five-setter with Igor Andreev. And perhaps part of the win/loss factor was the NY crowd’s support for the current world no. 2. Djokovic was booed during the post-match interview by the Arthur Ashe stadium crowd when he made references to Andy Roddick’s jokes about his frequent calls for trainers.
Most fans are hoping for a Murray-Federer championships, and commentators agree. But it’s TMF himself who thinks otherwise. If his wish is granted, I’d better stock up on antacid and avoid coffee before the match.
“Who do I prefer to play? I prefer the trophy, that’s what I prefer,” said Roger, who was deposed as world number one last month. “But I guess I would have to say Rafa because we’ve had such great battles over the year. Wimbledon was unbelievable so I hope we can have another one.”
“We consume books, movies, music, and visual art primarily to fulfill the internal emotional needs that are fundamental to our personalities. But we also make choices about art based on a desire to carve out identities for ourselves—to articulate the stories of our lives. By the same token, we look for those stories in others. We also feel intuitively that we can judge others by their tastes. …
“People high in neuroticism—less emotionally stable people who are anxious, sensitive, and easily upset—tend to be artistically creative and gravitate toward emotionally turbulent art, including films, songs, and literature often seen as romantic, according to Burt’s research. They decorate their living spaces with inspirational posters bearing messages like, “Attitude is a little thing that makes a big difference,” or, “Until you spread your wings, you’ll never know how far you can fly.” These self-affirmations help neurotic people manage their tendency to worry and become blue, explains Gosling. “The posters are a visual form of self-medication.”
…at least for the time being. With the way things turned out in the previous tourneys this year, it’s better to set expectations at a more realistic level. However, today’s match still blew Fed fans away with awesome display of athleticism and genius, enough to make us hope that the old Roger is back. And we want him back.
“Roger won his 30th consecutive US Open match today, defeating Radek Stepanek 6-3, 6-3, 6-2 to reach the fourth round of the year’s last Grand Slam event.
“To win his first Grand Slam of the season, Roger is aiming for his fifth straight title at Flushing Meadows. He has not lost a set in three matches, and raised his right fist after zinging a final, winning forehand down the line. “I guess it’s just nice to play well. Pretty simple,” our champ said. “No complaints.”
More at RF.com. Screw CBS (via Balls) for depriving us of the third set and saving just the last few seconds leading to matchpoint for delayed telecast. With the American network giving its airtime to the Muller-Almagro match (qualifier Muller won 7-6, 6-3, 6-7, 6-7, 5-7), it was a double-bummer when live scores on the official site went on a fritz. Couldn’t handle traffic, perhaps? That surely looked like a scaling issue.
I don’t know if he reads or listens to what his fans say about his outfit, but he didn’t wear the “UPS uniform” anymore after his 1st round match.
Tennis, with all its drama, is great company when you’re pulling in an all-nighter, no matter how ulcer-inducing it gets sometimes.
