Just got back from a 2 month project in China - Glad to be home, I am very TIRED!

Their ISP (and other public) infrastructure bites (except that their mobile phone services are the best I've seen - even worked on the Great Wall). Internet services are a nightmare to implement because of lack of skilled personnel. Tons of script kiddies and even a few legitimate hackers.

They do seem to be about the nicest people I have met in a long time; helpful, kind and not too judgmental (except in their media).

Poverty and pollution levels were far worse than I expected or imagined! Everything I brought (clothes, bags, laptop...) smelled like a smoldering cigarette laced with oil and aluminum.

Traveling there anytime soon? Watch out for Bus drivers (a bit on the wild side), taxi drivers (driving there is like a free for all - you gotta see it to appreciate it), and the occasional street vendors (sometimes aggressive).

Working with construction or technology vendors is a challenge - the slightest change in a quote requires a complete rebuild of the entire quote...

All things considered, it was an excellent learning experience (cultural, and a real eye opener!). I will say that Microsoft has a very tough road ahead of them. You can get almost anything software or hardware related there in either a hack form, an original form, or a "cloned" form

I do look forward to going back - just not for a couple of months. My daughter (almost 2 yrs old) was sooooo happy to see me I wanted to cry. She has yet to let me out of her sight (after a week at home).

Enjoy Life. It only comes around once!

Regards,

Danny

Welcome back

Ever heard of Foxmail?

I got a copy while in China and I am impressed. It has a decent GUI and it is fast.

Let me know if you want a copy and I'll reply with a link. It supports several languages.

Danny

Hi Danny;

Sounds like you had some very interesting experiences there! A question (or two or three) related to your comment that...

...I've been thinking about that sort of thing lately, and wonder if there is much opportunity in the area of IT for those of us not in China? In other words, is there a sort of 'reverse outsourcing' that may take place, with those of us so inclined doing work for many clients from there, or do you think they'll quite rapidly develop the personnel from within? Do you think, in general, that industry there recognizes the need for a strong IT workforce?

The need for skilled IT personnel is high there; but the pay is not what you would expect...

But if the IT bods don't do it, then who will?

Students and rookies mainly. There are some skilled personnel there, but not like here...