Oops, Trillanes did it again
November 29, 2007
Update (7:30 p.m.): The show is now over. The standoff has ended with Sen. Trillanes and the rest of his cohorts arrested and sent back to jail. Better luck next time, Senator.
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Update (3:00 p.m.): Thirty soldiers led by elected Senator Antonio Trillanes IV walked out today of a Makati court and holed themselves up at a hotel in Makati, the Philippines’ central business district.
The scene is reminiscent of the Oakwood saga in 2003 where more than 300 soldiers also led by Trillanes took over the Oakwood Hotel demanding the resignation of President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo (GMA), except this time the hotel setting is The Manila Peninsula.
The 2003 mutiny ended unsuccessfully after it failed to rally support from the public and the Armed Forces. Will Trillanes be successful this time around?
I think the odds are still stacked against him. The walkout comes at definitely a less-than-expected time: the Philippine peso is surging against the dollar, the stock market is rallying, and OFW remittances are flowing in at all-time high. How can you convince the majority of Filipinos to join in destabilizing the government if the economy is on an upswing?
Oh, and the date was just plain wrong. Tomorrow’s a non-working holiday and a lot of people have already made plans. Rising up against the government surely was not one of them. Earlier today, people just wanted to unwind and go home — not be stuck in Ayala because of this Oakwood Mutiny Part 2.
Earn more money online with Google Adsense Referral ads
November 29, 2007
The enhanced Referrals 2.0 program of Google Adsense now gives publishers more flexibility in offering a variety of products and services that match a site’s niche, ranging from, say, Computers & Electronics to Cars & Automotive to Beauty & Personal Care.
But one particular thing that webmasters like the most about this program is the fact that they can actually endorse products and even direct site visitors to click on the ads and try the products.
That’s what we have been doing with Adsense’s Referral ads on this site. Last week, we optimized our referral ads and conspicuously placed them at the Top-Center portion of the page, also adding the come-on title “Google’s Freebies.”
The result? Today, our referral income alone has already fetched $71.00++, beating the $23-in -one-day record registered in October — and the day’s not over yet.
Here are some tips to optimize referral ads on your site to help you earn more money.
Beware of these scammers
November 28, 2007
For several months now, we have been receiving emails from people around the world reporting the scam activities of some Filipino scumbags. Unfortunately, there is nothing much we can do but to advise these victims to contact the Philippine National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) to file complaints.
Here’s the contact info of the NBI:
National Bureau of Investigation
NBI Building, Taft Avenue, Ermita,
Manila, Philippines 1000
Tel. Nos. (02) 523-8231 to 38 (Local); (+632) 523-8231 to 38 (International)
Fax Nos. (2) 526-1216, 523-7414 (Local); (+632) 526-1216, 523-7414 (International)
Email Address: director@nbi.gov.ph
We are reprinting below some of these emails in order to warn others against the modus operandi of these scammers.
Xoom to BPI money transfer now only takes hours
November 28, 2007
Money transfer Xoom.com recently announced that they partnered with one of the Philippines’ largest banking institutions to deliver fund transfers in just a few hours, as opposed to days which is the usual case.
In an email to all users, Xoom explained that:
Bank deposits to the Bank of the Phillipine Islands (BPI) will now be available in your recipient’s account in just hours — instead of the next day!
This direct partnership with BPI will make bank deposit money transfers to your recipient’s BPI account much faster than before.
I have personally used Xoom to transfer funds to my local bank accounts and it usually takes 2-3 days before transactions are completed. This change is definitely a nice Christmas gift to all Xoom and BPI account holders because they can get their money faster.
Now if only Xoom can address users’ common problems of cancelled transactions without explanation, rejected transfers, and sucky customer service…
Christmas Contest: Post a comment and win $25!
November 26, 2007
This contest has ended. The winners are here. Thanks to all who joined PMT’s $25 Christmas Contest!
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Hear, hear! Pinoy Money Talk’s Christmas give-away is here!
Simply complete the following sentence, post your reply below, and be one of two (2) lucky PMT commenters who will each win P1,000 or US$25!
Or link to this contest in your blog and you can win an additional P500 (US$12)!
#1 - Complete the Sentence and win $25
- Finish the following sentence and post your reply as a comment to this article.
If I had an extra P1,000 ($25) this Christmas, I would…
Be brief! But be unique, interesting, or funny! That’s what will make your post a winner!
- Comments must be made from November 26, Monday, until December 7, Friday to be eligible for the prize.
- Only one entry per email address. For multiple entries with the same email add, only the first entry will be valid. The 2 winners will be contacted via email so make sure you use a valid email address.
#2 - Earn an additional P500 ($12)
Blog about this contest and stand a chance to win an additional P500 or $12. Simply create a post in your blog, link to this article, and post its URL as a Comment below. The most interesting blog post that links to this contest wins.
Only one entry per blog, ok?
Just a few reminders
- Winners will be announced on December 8 during the PMT Christmas Party and EB and the results will be posted here right after the event.
- Winners have the option to receive their prizes via PayPal, deposit to a Philippine bank account, or Smart/Globe/Sun prepaid load credit.
- Recap of prizes: P1,000 ($25) for two commenters of this article and P500 ($12) for the most interesting blog post that links to this contest.
Join now!
What are you waiting for? Simply complete the sentence “If I had an extra P1,000 ($25) this Christmas, I would…” and post a comment below in order to earn an extra P1,000 for Christmas!
Or share this contest in your blog to win an additional P500 ($12)!
Happy Holidays!
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You don’t have to be a writer to become a famous blogger
November 26, 2007
Whoever said that you need to be a good writer in order to be a terrific blogger is mistaken. Even if you do not know how to write, as long as you can shoot pictures well, make movies well or, as in the case of the following blogs, create artworks well, you’re on your way to becoming a prominent blogger.
The Cartoon Blog
Take the case of Dave Walker and his The Cartoon Blog. Dave’s blog is a popular source of cartoons and comic strips about the internet, blogging, Church, and a variety of other things.
Among his works, my personal favorite is his “How to Become a Famous Blogger” cartoon (shown below) which briefly but amusingly explains how one blogger can become, well, a famous blogger.
PinoyBlogero
In the Philippines, several bloggers are utilizing cartoons as additional ingredients to spice up their blogs. Karlo of PinoyBlogero has been using funny cartoon sketches to emphasize his points on how to make better blogs.
Earn money when you refer people to Paypal
November 24, 2007
Do you know that you can earn as much as $1,000 per person you refer to PayPal? Under PayPal’s Merchant Referral Bonus Program, you are eligible to receive a portion of the transaction amounts of people you referred to PayPal.
Once your Referred Merchant has used PayPal to receive a total of $200.00, you immediately receive an initial bonus of $1.00.
In addition, you will get 0.5% of the total amount of their payments for 12 months, up to $1,000.
In order to receive the Bonus, your Referred Merchant must: (1) sign up for a PayPal Business or Premier Account through your link; (2) become a verified user; and (3) not already have a PayPal Personal, Business, or Premier account at the time of the referral.
Tell your friends to open a PayPal account now so you can be entitled for Merchant Referral Bonuses just like below.
How do you start referring new users to PayPal?
PayPal discourages phone calls to get Expanded Use Number
November 23, 2007
The Expanded Use or EXPUSE Number is a requirement to lift the $100 sending limit in PayPal.
Those who paid the $1.95 Expanded Use fee via credit card can normally get the EXPUSE Number on their billing statement the next month.
Those who used debit cards, however, need to call their card issuer to get the EXPUSE Number, as in the case of UnionBank EON CyberAccount or eWallet users.
But PayPal “strongly discourages” this policy of contacting card companies to get the Number, as seen in the following note from the PayPal website.
PayPal’s note reads:
PayPal strongly discourages customers from calling their credit card companies in order to obtain PayPal Expanded Use Numbers. If PayPal receives a complaint from Visa, MasterCard, or your card issuer about a phone call made to obtain PayPal Expanded Use Numbers, the complaint will be investigated. As a result, your PayPal account may be closed. Please check for your Expanded Use Number on your online credit card statement (monthly transaction history) or when you receive it in the mail. It may take up to 3-4 business days for the number to appear on your statement.
If PayPal already explicitly announced its dislike of the method, why do card issuers like UnionBank still do this?
Peso may rise to P38 in 2008
November 22, 2007
To those earning in or holding US dollars, brace yourself because the Philippine Peso might appreciate some more and even increase to P38 by next year.
That’s according to a BusinessWorld article published today:
The peso may appreciate towards P41.50 per dollar by year end and to as much as P38 by early 2008 as dollar remittances from overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) and inflows from the asset sale of local firms surge.
“The surge of dollars gives support to the thought that the peso will be stronger than what it is today… It’s a more sustainable trend right now,” Michael G. Manuel, chief investment officer of Sun Life of Canada (Philippines), Inc. told reporters yesterday.
Mr. Manuel attributes the possible appreciation of the Philippine currency to the sale of assets by local companies, increased remittances of Overseas Filipino Workers (OFW), and expected interest rate cut of the US Federal Reserve.
LTO website hacked by Turkish hacker
November 21, 2007
A friend working at the Land Transportation Office (LTO) of the Philippines buzzed me at Yahoo! Messenger to inform me that the LTO website (www.lto.gov.ph) has been hacked and defaced by a Turkish hacker.
I went to the site a few minutes ago and, true enough, the site was hacked. As of this writing, this what appears in the front page of www.lto.gov.ph.
