Things happening around me
I'm a writer, editor, Mac geek, and dad. This is my personal journal. I am also a contributor for Macworld and the Jakarta Globe.
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Mobile refueling trailers for Transjakarta buses?
"A mobile refueling system and “lane sterilization” were projects that could feasibly be implemented within 100 days, according to discussions after the two-day Sustainable Jakarta Convention.
Taufik Widianto, Transjakarta’s Busway Management Body (BLU) operation manager for equipment and infrastructure, said the mobile refueling system was urgently needed to make operations more efficient."
Experts Suggest Plans to Improve Jakarta Busway - The Jakarta Globe
I immediately imagined something like the mid-flight refueling system for fighter planes with the massive fuel plane hovering above the smaller aircraft and a hose floating in between.
I wonder how it's going to be implemented. It's fun to imagine but if it turns out to be a removable refueling unit on selected bus shelters, there's going to be some seriously disappointed people.
Posted by Aulia Masna
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Yahoo Meme Mobile
There's no post by email yet either. On another note, I wonder how much space Yahoo gives to meme users.
Posted by Aulia Masna
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People before cars
"[Former Coordinating Minister for Economic Affairs] Dorodjatun [Kuntjoro Jakti] said it was yet not too late for large cities such as Jakarta to move toward urban sustainability, but the city’s development planning should no longer be based on the “road” model, where spatial planning hinges on cars and road networks, but should rather focus on social and environmental aspects."
Jakarta GlobeNo doubt Jakarta is a complicated city to deal with. There are no clear zoning profiles, everything is everywhere. People flock to malls instead of public open spaces. Pollution is high thanks to more than five million cars, motorbikes, trucks, and buses stuck in traffic jams all over the city.
Traffic management is almost nonexistent despite the efforts of the Traffic Management Control agency which is run by the police department. Roads are built, rebuilt, rerouted, and maintained to the whims of not the city authority but those who have the loudest voice and the most money. Potholes and road qualities not maintained according to regulations, responsibilities being tossed back and forth between real estate developers and the public office.
There are office spaces inside residential areas and vice versa, so called "central" business districts spawn uncontrollably all over Jakarta, there is a distinct lack of open space for the public to spend their free time at. Mayoral offices seemingly pointless or powerless with city authorities under control of the governor. Real estate areas pop up on what used to be natural reserves, apartments grow, marketed, and sold only to the haves, malls sprout up on nearly every other corner.
Center of government, trade, business, culture, and entertainment, that's what Jakarta is. Some of its functions need to be jettisoned yet none wish to be away from Jakarta due to lack of infrastructure and opportunities in other areas.
Jakarta is a time bomb waiting to explode. Stress levels are high. Traffic jams are predicted to gridlock the city by 2014, some say by 2011. Right now, localized gridlocks are the norm. Try driving through jalan Sudirman from Senayan to Semanggi during daytime, or check out Karang Tengah in Cinere with one dead traffic light and no traffic police. Metro Pondok Indah any day of the week, especially Saturday.
And I haven't even mentioned the lack of green public space although things are moving along albeit rather slowly, with Taman Menteng and that other park near Mahakam having been built.
Everybody flocks to Jakarta looking for opportunities, from the very poor to the very rich. Population control and distribution is one other difficult thing for the city to deal with. Unequal development across the Java island and indeed across the country helps worsen the issue.
Jakarta is not a healthy place to live in. It needs a coordinated effort from all of its municipalities, the different government departments, various city authorities, the business sector including real estate, transport, and construction, central government, and most importantly, its residents to fix everything that's wrong with it.
Posted by Aulia Masna
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Scam of the Century?
What is CenturyGate?
In 2008, Bank Century, a relatively small bank with a small profile went bust. Apparently some of their clientele were not small fry at all that the government agreed to pour Rp 1.3 trillion (USD 1 = IDR 9500) to keep it afloat although the bank remains effectively closed to public. One year later, the government has spent an astonishing Rp 6.7 trillion (more than USD 700 million) seemingly with little effect for no apparent reason.
You can read more here: Chronology, Media Indonesia, Liputan 6. All in Indonesian though
So, how much is 6.7 trillion rupiahs? Noted filmmaker and activist Joko Anwar asked the question earlier today. More precisely, what can you do with that amount of money. Here are answers from twitter, in Indonesian.
maddypertiwi: Bisa nyekolahin anak2 miskin sampe kuliah se-Indonesia tuh
sirohit: 837,500 iPhone 3G kapasitas 16GB
jokoanwar: Bisa beli Toyota Avanza sebanyak 55,880 biji. Kalo dijejerin lebih dari 100 km
jokoanwar: Bisa bikin 670 sekolah seharga Rp 10 milyar
jokoanwar: Bisa bikin 67 sekolah film seharga 100 milyar. Biar filmmaker Indonesia nggak bodoh-bodoh
sirohit: 1.116.666.666 Kg beras super
risantokilala: bisa beli 2,233,333 BlackBerry Gemini
maddypertiwi: Bisa nyekolahin anak2 miskin sampe kuliah se-Indonesia
anakcerdas: setiap orang di Indonesia bisa makan 2 piring nasi goreng kambing Kebon Sirih
ftnanda: Gak bakal ada yang namanya anak jalanan lagi di indonesia karena udah dibiayain sekolah
madegrazia: 67x bantuan gempa Sumbar dari pemerintah
Wow. 670 well funded schools. There are existing schools with no funding, unpaid teachers, insufficient facilities, some can't even be called a school if not for students, teachers, and books since they have no building.
1.1 billion Kilograms of rice. There are some unbelievably malnourished and underfed people in Indonesia. This would go a long way towards helping them
800 thousand iPhone 3Gs. Telkomsel would be ecstatic with that number. They can barely sell 20 thousand.
67 times the aid given to the West Sumatra earthquake recovery and rebuilding effort. That is astounding.
You’ll find more on Twitter search.
Posted by Aulia Masna
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Ever wonder why the heck it's spelled lede?
It's not in any dictionary you would normally refer to. It's an insider's word used initially for technical purposes.
Posted by Aulia Masna
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Formal dining
So it's outside then in then top?
Sent from my iPhone
Posted by Aulia Masna
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Twitter as news reader?
Smoking Apple's Milind Alvares on using Twitter for news feed instead of RSS:
"with the new ‘lists’ feature in Twitter (and especially so when major clients support it), you can pretty much have an RSS client right inside your twitter client."Goobi's Soggy Tumblr : About RSS, Twitter RSS, and 'the personal touch'
Posted by Aulia Masna
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