Ironically after adding a few cosmetic touches to the weblog, Orkut goes down for surgery.
Perhaps they are redesigning Orkut. Perhaps they are adding user suggestions to the site. Perhaps we will just have to wait until it comes back up. ;)
More details tomorrow.
So if you see weird things fly by, don't freak out. ;)
Update: Testing, and weird stuff complete. Not much of an overhaul, (as the scrolling coding appears to be incompatible with Firefox 1.5).
But I am happy that the layout reflects the Orkut forums more. :)
...and that somebody happens to be Vladimir!
Today Vladimir turns 21! Vladimir is from Russia and speaks several languages ranging from English to German to Russian (of course).
Vladimir joined Orkut for all of the right reasons (or actually all of them as their are only four) and if you know this guy or have a heart, post on his scrapbook and wish him a happy birthday!
Update: Didn't want to spoil the surprise, so I edited the title name. Although the photo should give it away. ;)
I've stumbled across two dating sites while inside Orkut. There are more, but most of them are "pretty dark" and would not be appropriate for some people. Anyways, here are two that some people might consider visiting.
(Dating Point) Dating Point for the couples and those who are looking and want to share their feelings and find friends/partners/dates -online.
(Christian Singles) A gathering place for Christian singles who are looking for fellowship or wanting advice in the arena of relationships and dating.
Feel free to ask for advice, share experiences, or ask for prayer...We're here to help!
Over in the Free Mind forum, Danyal asks everybody what is their greatest fear. Here are some interesting responses:
Although I posted question on several communities, the "I'm on fire for Jesus" forum received the greatest response. Earlier, I asked community what made Jesus real to them, and here is what they had to say:
(Mauricio) Jesus started to be real to me with my conversion (new birth) experience. I was able to notice great changes occuring inside me. [...] But I begun to see changes around me. My brothers and sisters, some of them drug addicts, experienced the new birth (conversion) just like me. Their lives changed completely.
(Gessyka) Because I can feel this Great love Burning in my heart. Nothing compares to his Great love.
(Blesson) Believe me once you commit yourself in knowing Him and yearning for Him, trust me, He takes control over your situation and everything. That means total help from a dependable supernatural being. What else can we as sinners can ask for.
No human being could say what Jesus said, no human being could do what Jesus did. Therefore, either Jesus is a liar or he is what he claimed to be: God the Son.
Almost a month ago I asked communities of various faiths what their beliefs mean to them. Unfortunately I've only had two groups respond, Shia Muslims and Christians (which probably means I need to ask better questions).
I asked in the Shia Muslims forum what being Shia meant to them. Here is what some of them had to say:
(Tabish) Being a Shiah means to be a true and good muslim and NOT to be turn away from the righteous path of Islam and to reject the fabrications attached with the name of Islam after the demise of Prophet Muhammad [...] And to hate and condemn the wrong and wrong doers.
(Abbas) Shiasm is not about disagreement on historical events, its about belief in the complete teachings of Muhammad (saw) and his Ahl-e-bayt (as).
(Syed Ali on page two) Shia, as you know, literally means "follower." [...] The Shia Imamiyya group believes in the Ever-Existing Almighty Allah. He is One, in the sense of the absolute oneness of His essential existence. He is One, with none comparable to Him.
[B]asic differences arise between Shias and Sunnis because Sunnis believe in some prophetic sayings which are considered fabricated and concocted by the Shias, and Sunnis do not believe [...] those sayings [because they] condradict with those which are loved by the Sunnis.
[...] some respected and beloved personalities of sunnis are considered among some of the worst wrong doers and chief corruptors of Islam by the Shias.
This forum could be quite useful, especially if you are receiving the infamous "donut error."
(Description) until orkut has its own official bugbase, report bugs you encounter here. this includes both bugs you have discovered yourself and bugs you see reported elsewhere. please test other reports out before reporting them.
Tristan (who is quickly becoming my favorite person inside Orkut) is asking users how they deal with conflict at work.
Jessi (who likes to remain anonymous) replies with:
I normally listen to what the other person has to say..Reacting in a defensive way to the comments can stir more problems [...] I think how u speak, i mean your tone etc makes a big difference.. (sic)
Many people give a wrong direction to conflict when carried by their emotions they start attacking the person rrather than the idea itself. [...]
So please try to listen care fully what the other person is saying interpret it correctly and counter the idea rather then person.
(Hat Tip: TeTrAgRaMmAtOn. on Orkut Design)
If so, it may come in green, with a little bit of red too (see images links below).
If this is true, it will make Orkut look more professional, although I will miss the baby blue color that I've grown use to.
For full length images check out the photos below (and please upload them to your own servers or Photobucket.com if you are blogging about this as this to save TeTrAgRaMmAtOn. bandwidth).
Via Google's Blog Search that is.
Ironically, this was one of my goals when I started this blog. Now the only thing I need to make this site really take off is some extra contributors.
These ladies think so! In an age where short hair is the norm (that being shoulder length or less), these girls think having Rapunzel-like hair is a sign of beauty.
Although some are having doubts and are thinking about cutting their hair:
(Rafia) i used to have very long hair but it was difficult to manage them and i wanted a change so i got my hair cut in feathers but that wrecked my hair completely [...] so now ive grown my hair long again and its straight and equal this time but the prob is that i cant make many hair styles with my hair cause of its long length
either i can open them or make a pony tail and this gets very monotonous
so wat do u guys suggest should i get my hair cut again or not (sic)
An anonymous user is asking for advice on how to win over a girl who is giving him the cold shoulder. I think Dating Point would probably be of good use over here.
Over in the Middle East Conflict forum, Sergio makes an observation:
Tourism to Israel increased 26 percent in 2005.
If they allowed Palestine to exist, make Jerusalem, the holy place for both, protected by International laws, can you imagine the increase of revenue caused by tourism??? [...]
"Every 1 million tourists bring about $1.5 billion to Israel and support almost 40,000 jobs, tourism officials say." (Haaretz)
If you are the "cat lovin' type" (I'm more of a dog person myself) then you may be interested in this offer by Carolina:
NEW HIMALAYANS KITTENS AVAILABLE
Ayla x Gemini
3 males and 2 females (cream point
PKD FREE
No, this is weblog is not going to be one of those dead, dying blogs that you may encounter while surfing blogspot.
I've just been busy with life, other blogs (yeah, I own more than one), and background coding on this blog site (email subscriptions seem to be back up and I finally conquered the mysterious "goobly gunk" that was causing soooo many errors).
Well, I have a bunch to post tonight (back logged) so without further ado I shall proceed. :)
Today Michael turns 48 and seems to be still kicking as one will notice by his passions listed on his profile (tennis, sailing, raquetball, etc.).
Michael's choice of books is also interesting, as it appears he is an avid reader of Popular Science magazine, and also enjoys Saturday Night Live as well (I wonder if he has seen this video?).
Anyways, happy birthday Michael, and I hope to see you turn 49! ;)
Andre posts his belief on how human life began in the Alien Ancestry forum:
The rich mythologies come from memories of a scientifically advanced Extra-terrestrial civilization who lived with Humans for a while, as they were mistaken for Gods by our ancient ancestors.
They left traces like this in many ancient civilizations around the earth, mythologies like :Greek , Shinto, Celt, Scandinavian, Mayas, Incas, Sumerian, etc... and old monuments too they built such as the Macchu Picchu, Stonehenge, Maya temples, Great Pyramid, etc...and ancient religious scriptures
there is so many evidence why for example egyptian piramids are not made by ET and his friends. There are a few ways known how a piramid could have been constructed.
Also; there are examples known of failed piramids. well, i guess that's human. (sic)
Apparently (out of disgust I think) John created a community called Too many Brazilians on orkut:
(Description) Why are Brazilians are so over-represented on orkut? Almost all new communities being created are in Portuguese, and existing communities are being inundated with Portuguese messages.
Is this decreasing orkut's usability?
Today is the day that Srihari turns 21 years old. Srihari is from India and here is a description below:
(About Me) Puzzles and Calvin have always been the most entertaining things on earth for me..and then of course whats better than sitting with your friends over a cup of Irish Coffee and talk about how much lazier we can get.. This is my world..everything else is secondary.. Live life to the fullest.. this is me and i would leave it at that.
It looks like we have some new faces inside Orkut! And best of all they have managed to get inside for free (down with the Ebay offers!). This post may be long (okay, it is really long) but if you finish reading it, you'll amaze even me.
Our first featured person is Christian from Shanghai who seems to be pretty fluent in German. Christian may want to check out the Germans in Orkut forum as well as the China Business Network.
Next comes Japie from the Netherlands who doesn't seem too active within Orkut. Japie does seem to have a sarcastic sense of humor though, and lo and behold their are communities just for that.
Jo from Belgium seems to be a little bit more active, as she has joined the Italy forum which unfortunately for me speaks, well Italion. There is also an "Orkut Italy" group, and if she really loves the culture, a simple Orkut search will reveal many more forums regarding her favorite nation.
Never thought I would see this but it seems I am discovering the Middle East is just as diverse culturally as the west. Here is some brief info about the Pakistani Fashion World forum:
(Description) Whats the latest Fashion ?!? Where Pakistan is goin ?!? Do you think u're up to date in fashion ?!? Be a part of the latest Fashion, know about the latest outlets in Pakistan. Let us and everyone know about new places and ideas of Fashion. (sic)
Prem has started a new forum for Indian Amateur Writers.
(Description) For long I have been looking for community where the amateur and professional Indian writers can share information and learn from each other.
Anyone who is interested in writing, or dreams that some day you will be able to write can also join. You would not have written before, but who knows this might be the beginning...
SuMeeT posts in the Community Owners forum that his M SeNsItIvE community is up for sale--sortof. He is willing to exchange it for another forum (as well as nine others).
Here is a brief description of the one he mentioned:
iF u ThiNK uR SeNsItIvE .... dEn Ur weLcUm To jOIn ThIs CoMmUNiTy !!!!!!!!
Brent, over at American Politics, asks whether blogs can be considered a credible source.
Weblogs are becoming a big part of our internet world, but I still don't trust them at all for references.
There is no standard of journalistic honesty of credibility with blogs, much like early newspapers in the first days of the newspaper industry.
Blogs usually carry rumor and slander, and at best, a link to the actual story. At worst, plain lies.
Although this topic might bore some to death, I find it thrilling that more and more people are using Orkut for business networking as opposed to dating as (of this post) it is the second most popular reason people join Orkut in the first place (friendship is first).
The name of the community is Pakistani Business Forum and here is a description below:
All indiviuals engaged in doing business from to Pakistan. Regardless be it as a manufacturer/exporter/importers/industrialists/small or large business concerns owners may join. Even those who wish to do business with Pakistani business community from other countries are invited to join.
Discuss possible ventures and projects. Advertise your products etc. But all this business proposals and talk must be within the most sincere and honest and legal ways.
A new forum started by Tristan has sprung up entitled Practical Peace:
(Description) This community is for anyone who wants to learn and share ideas on how to reduce conflict and promote better peace within their own lives with others.
All topics related to peace, conflict resolution, negotiation, mediation, relationships, and workplace communication will be discussed here.
Props to Tristan who seems to have mediated a racial dispute and gives his feedback over in the Conflict Management forum:
I just mediated a lengthy dispute between city residents, city officials, and the Mexican-American community over tough immigration policies....I say "mediated" but it was more like "policed" because it was getting pretty ugly.
Race has been and will probably continue to be the most difficult types of conflict for me to resolve because it is so difficult to get people to stop attaching labels onto each other. [...]
How would you mediate such a dispute and get them to reach an agreement for mutual respect?
Over in the Bush is Cool forum, Ehsan (an Iranian) wonders if people support President Bush attacking Iran:
hey guys, its quit nice to find a bush support group, i just wanted to see how many of you support bush attacking Iran,
well just for the record Im an Iranian guy in London, i love bush and i support his policies, i think he is one of the greatest politicians of our time and i wish we had a president like him in my country, anyway my point is that i supprot him in attacking Iran, just wanted to see who else supprts this idea, (sic)
iran at the moment is being ruled by what i san describe as a taliban regime, imagin you live in a country that your leader is the pope, imagin some people who come from a village and know nothing about politics or science decide on all aspects of that country,
imagin pope had to decide what you have to wear, what you have to do, how you have to behave, what you should read, what you should listen to, what you have to believe in, how you should think, with what you have to agree, what you have to hate, what religion you should choose, how you should drive, how you should build your house, how you should treat your friends and it is a very long list which consist of almost everything,
and imagin he would take all the ******* oil money from your country to western banks, kill members of your family for what they believe in, torture you for what you said and **** everyone who disagrees with himself, imagin there he believes in no morals and doesnt give a **** **** about human rights, imagin he hangs people for their belief and ston women if they act "un islamic". (censored sic)
For those who have a burning story they want to tell...
In order to make it easier for you to have me publish what is happening in your corner of the Orkut universe, I've created this community as a place where you can submit viewpoints you would like to see on the main site Inside Orkut.
If you are quoting someone, please provide source links and make sure you edit your submissions for grammar (as I will post them "as is" with a 'sic' at the end).
I don't get it. These community forums have forums of their own outside of Orkut. But none-the-less they exist inside Orkut.
Mission
1) To gather people around the world with Skype to CHAT, Learn a new Language, or do some business!
2) To become the biggest Skype Community in Orkut
Welcome to the most useful and friendly community on Orkut :-) Our mission: bring people together in the real world!
Post your travel plans in here, if you would like to meet other Orkut folks or stay with them for free. If you are lucky, someone will offer you a place to crash or meet you for a beer or coffee. At the very least you will get some help planning your trip.
Canada Jobs is a forum for Canadians who are looking for work, looking for employees or for outsiders migrating to the "Great White North."
(Description) Can't wait to gab about this week's "hush hush" new job opening in your department? Please 1) post a brief job description in the forums; 2) reply to elaborate on details to those curious; 3) hook up your company with interested applicants who have replied to your post or have messaged you.
(Note: I would have posted this sooner, but blogger died on me)
Feminism is probably something you would expect to hear from American or European shores, and perhaps a few islands in the pacific. But a community called the Women of Pakistan has sprung up, and it seems as if it is pretty lively in there.
(Description) This community is about the women of Pakistan--the victims as well as the achievers--and those who are trying to live their lives with dignity and courage.
You could be living in any part of the world, but if you feel empathy and affinity to us, come and join us.
With the war on terror being conducted around the world, a community has been formed to help break down walls between the worlds largest faiths.
(Description) Welcome to the Christian Muslim Dialogue Community. Here we will discuss Islam and Christianity and the topics dealing with Islam and Christianity. I hope this Community to be both a blessing to all in the sharing of our faiths. Debating is welcome as well as dialogue.
Dialogue, in itself, is the solution to the theological and political issues between Christians and Muslims. Dialogue may clarify the real issues and remove some imagined issues. It may enable Christians and Muslims to work together more readily on matters where cooperation is possible.
Apparently a new community entitled Laugh at Orkut Losers Here has sprung up whose purpose is to allow members to make fun of other members (how nice).
(Description) Just want to have a good laugh and make fun of some people and their profiles? This community is just for that. Please post orkut profiles that we can all make fun of.
Over in the UN forum on Orkut, Dave asks a question to his fellow forum buddies:
I'm talking about AUTHORITY. Do you think the UN is "authorized" by states and individuals as a legitimate political actor of today international relations?
Indeed, the UN has not more authority in the world stage today because the major powers can never agree on some basic issues.
In my opinion, only the formation of a robust, military strong UN Army is going to give the UN the authority it needs.
It is urgent that this be done, because it could more reasonably deal with world issues such as Terrorism and ethnic wars.
Some people have been experiencing the "donut errors," lately, although from what I am seeing this has affected several communities and in some places, only certain posts.
I am sure that the Orkut team is working on the problem, however, one way to check whether Orkut is experiencing problems is to check your Community and friends lists.
If you can see all your Orkut buddies as well as the the forums below then Orkut is running at "All Systems Go" mode (a phrase we used in IT when everything was working). If not, then you may see something like this:
In that case, either the entire community forums are down, or part of them are (and the team is working on it). After all, tens of millions (if not hundreds) probably use the service and instead of panicking, just simply give them time to resolve the problem. And stay beautiful!
One Orkut community seriously taking advantage of the networking people for business would be the F-1 students looking for jobs. Started by Harsh Kumar, this community now boasts over 600 members with job seekers and those offering jobs posting their resumes or qualifications, respectively.
Abacus Software Technologies (under the profile of Abacus) has posted recently in the forum and is looking for job seekers inside Orkut:
We are fast growing Software Consulting and
development Corporation engaged nationally and Internationally in
providing professional IT and IT Enabled Services(ITES). We offer
technology solutions from small data conversion projects to the
development of custom software solutions using the latest technologies.
We have offices in Atlanta,GA, Detroit,MI andSilicon Valley, CA and we
currently have hot requirements in C++, Java and .Net Technologies.
Here are some of Orkut's newest members!
Ole from Denmark enjoys watching sports (not playing them) and just like me enjoys Star Trek. While he is there he may also want to check out the Klingons and the Vulcans. After all, Resistance is futile!
Two new communities have sprung up, one fun the other weird. The fun one is called Friends Zone whose description is:
This Community is for everyone.
So Feel Free To Join This Community and Have Fun Inside.
The Dude!!! asks anyone if they have any blond jokes to contribute. Femke doesn't look happy with the request, although Tuba is more than happy to share a collection of her own the LOL forum:
Q: Why are blondes like cornflakes ?
A: Because they're simple, easy and they taste good.
One great thing about Orkut is that it is filled with many great people who are more than willing to give you a helping hand, even if it is learning another language.
Hi,
I'm looking for a german native speaker to help me practicing *my* german. In return, I can help teaching brazilian portuguese. If anyone is interested, please leave me a scrap.
Danke sehr. [Gabi]
Baba has started a discussion on the reports that Iran has acquired nuclear weapons.
Would it be reasonable to believe the US Secret Service in their recent assessment that Iran was on the verge of assembling a nuclear missile. Should be believe them or is this another Iraq like WMD goose chase creating a fait accompli for the US led allies to attack Iran?
Tawfigur asks a question over in the United Nations forum.
Recently there has been lot of reaction coming from USA, japan and other countries which express their sense of uneasiness to the rapid economic and militry growth of China. What is your comment on China's rapid growth?
Priyanka, over in the Free Mind forum asks:
what makes ur mind free??? is it being free of problems...or havin no horizon for ur thoughts to soar as far as they wanna go (sic)
The only time you can be free of problems is when you are dead, so freedom in your mind is a state of freedom from worrying about problems and the ability to focus on something grander than yourself.
People who spend their lives worrying about problems, most of which they can have no effect upon, is a waste of time. Imagination is the realm of the carefree.
Don't worry, most of them are good! I think. A description about Nasir World:
A community of tips and tricks related to computers, software cracks & cool likns. And yes we have room for other stuff too so the members don't get bore. (sic)
Although fairly young, the Love Songs community (started by Ali Kazmi) may become very popular in the future.
This community is for people who love, love songs. Or songs about things that have something to do with love, like rock and roll, heartbreak, loneliness, jealousy and all. Tell us about your favourite love songs, and the things you associate with them, share your lyrics, look for band mates and have a good time.
These forums have just sprouted up inside Orkut and they range from the normal, to the strange to the borderline scary.
Great Lakes Kids, started by Frank Harr is a forum for all those who, well grew up on the Great lakes.
Are you from the Great Lakes? Did you move to the Great Lakes? Do you understand the difference between the Great Lakes and the Crummy Lakes? If so, post here, and we can be Great Lakes Kids, together.
Its a community for all those People born on 5 , 14, 23 of any month
you can ask the information for yourself
number 5 people are versatile , restless and mentally very highly strung (sic)
I like to thank all the beautiful faces out there who have generously donated their time and energy to increase the size of Orkut, instead of selling them on Ebay.
Now that I am off of my soap box, I like to introduce these new Orkut citizens to the rest of the world.
Dick Bolderman from the Netherlands has recently joined Orkut and is into Rock 'n Roll as well as enjoys my favorite television series, LOST.
Dragon ---- (note: picture may offend) from Texas has stumbled into Orkut as well and seems to be obsessed with a game called "Outwar." And yes, there is a community for Outwar lovers here too.
Yahyaberk, from Turkey loves pets, hates books and is into the movie Mr. And Mrs. Smith.
Jose Arnaud from Brazil is into reading, writing and arithmetic. He may want to check out these communities.
Deb Duh Teacher from Chicago may also enjoy the above forums. If Deb is an English teacher she may want to join this group. But if not...sigh.
Last but not least, Funny Smirk has a funny profile image and is from Taiwan. Or is it this Taiwan?
Well, Orkut is down for me right now, and the only thing I can access inside Orkut is my Orkut inbox (yes, you get one when you sign up, but I generally have it set to redirect all messages to Gmail.
I could close down for the night, but instead of complaining because the engineers are fixing/making Orkut's servers to the benefit of all, I am going to post ten ways (can I think of ten?) the Orkut Team could make Orkut even better.
And I think I will count backwards to make it more interesting.
10) Enable Communities to have RSS feeds: I know Orkut is constantly concerned with privacy so this could be done via Google Reader, which is connected to a users Google account anyways.
This would make it easier to know when the latest heckler person has posted a response towards your serious question.
I never knew there were so many famous faces inside Orkut. Glenn Reynolds, who blogs over at Instapundit.com has a profile on it.
So does Stacey Tabb, who some may recognize as the owner of Sekimori Design, which designs fascinating web layouts for blogs and businesses alike.
The next list of people may come as a shocker, but should not surprise you. Everyone loves Orkut, and there should be no reason why these people should be left out of the fun as well.
It seems that former President Clinton uses Orkut, along with his wife Hillary. The ever lovable George Bush does as well, and even Laura is getting a kick "snorkuting" through the deep blue forums.
Condoleeza Rice is practicing her french on her profile while Kofi Annan is enjoying his presence inside Orkut as well. After all, he has to keep tabs on what is going on in the United Nations forum.
Ariel Sharon has never looked so good inside Orkut, although Mahmoud Abbas (aka Abu Mazen) is no where to be found, which may have to do with the situation happening in Gaza.
Unfortunately Orkut's networking abilities have attracted various undesirables, and profiles of Abu Al-Zarqawi and Osama Bin Laden (what's with the hat?) have popped up recently. Scary.
After his movie success, (or flop, depending on your view) Lord Darth Vader has appeared inside Orkut, and seems to have discarded his Jedi profile for the current Sith one.
Master Yoda along with the surviving Jedi knight Obi-Wan Kenobi are hiding here as well, perhaps intent upon training Luke Skywalker as a Jedi master.
With all of these famous faces active inside Orkut, (or at least apart of it) why wouldn't you want to join? :)
Oh what shall I do! Well, it won't prevent me on welcoming our newest member to the Orkut family, Jakub from Poland!
In the meantime I guess I can always browse Orkut via the profile search (as I've barely touched it since being in here).
Today Francois turns 28! Francois is from South Africa and joined Orkut for friends, activity partners, business networking and dating (uh oh!).
Francois sounds like a cool guy so if you want to connect with him you can start by wishing him a happy birthday in his scrap book.
John Carney posts a semi-interesting testimony on his blog site about his experiences with using Orkut.
At that point, instead of meeting someone new, Eric found out something about me he hadn't previously known: I make soap. This interested him, and so I've sent him several messages today passing him links and suggestions. After hearing my description of cold process soapmaking, Eric decided that he's more interested in making some melt-and-pour soap with his preferred ingredients. [...]
I don't know that I'll actually try to network with anyone using Orkut, but it's something interesting with which to play.
(Hat Tip: Surreal Penguin)
I do not know if this video is ancient or current, but it seems that UOL (a Portuguese site) has an orkut commercial making fun of the "donut error" that use to be common when the entire world was logging onto the server.
The video can be downloaded here (I would upload it to Google Video, but they might retaliate by deleting this weblog).
Orkut has become a lot more stable recently which is either due towards the team resolving most of the errors on the site or because Orkut is biased towards Firefox. I'll let you decide.
(Great, now I am sounding like Fox News)
Update (9.22.08): Here is the video, to save people the time "googling for it."
Today Alex, from Russia turns 28. Alex seems to be making some new friends lately, and you can compliment him on surviving another year on planet by posting in his Scrapbook.
Cheers!
