With apologies for using the blog as a job board, my four-month contract in Beijing has just ended and I'm looking for work again. There are three things I can do fairly well:

I'm legal to work in the United States, United Kingdom, Poland and (for unfathomable reasons) Sweden. I can work full-time starting in mid-November, and I'm available for freelance jobs starting now. My full resume is here and any email inquiries are welcome.

I've put up Chapter 7 of the Golden Calf translation, 'The Sweet Yoke Of Fame', in which the protagonists buy some sharp new clothes, meet a pair of Chicago gangsters, and enjoy the best night of their lives while plundering their way south through the Soviet countryside.

I've said it before, but once again I have to commend the customer support from JaguarPC, my hosting company. They're a hosting provider that seems focused on more technical customers, but that works for me.

The best thing is that whenever I use their online support request system—even late on a Sunday night—I always get a quick reply and action, sometimes in as little as 15 minutes and almost never in more than half an hour. The hosting service has been quite reliable too, and the prices are cheap. Thumbs up.

The first reaction of mine on this piece of news is 'impossible', the second is also 'impossible', and the third is again 'impossible'. Such jokes are spreading over the Internet very often. However when I see it on China Daily, when I was in Jinjiang Tower attending the announcement of Delphi 2005, it turns out to be the truth. Almost in a sudden many members in my MSN friend list started to change their nick to the related topic. So great this world! Impossible is nothing.
Lenovo never leaves me any good impression from the very beginning. It prones scorn on the technical workers and only wants to make short-term money. I have to admit it has been very rich now. But the tax it contributes to the government is very limited. Being the so-called largest computer manufacturer, it is very strange that the only thing that Lenovo benefit the society is represented in term of money. How about the technology? Here is what I saw: The software it provides is obviously not passing any kind of testing process. I can assure that such kind of software will be rejected by the first cycle of testing engineers, if in India. Concerning the hardware, one of my best friends, who is very experienced in this field mentioned to me, 'Lenovo is purchasing the hardware from those manufacturers which we never heard of and binding them into a shape of computer, then labeling each of the computers with its own brand, that is all the story'. And here is what I experienced: 2004 Jul. 8th, I took two Lenovo laptop to the school and neither of them was willing to work, one of them simply refused to boot up, and the other gave up with a blue-screen when the PowerPoint was being launched. If it was not a classmate of mine was bringing an IBM laptop with him, my presentation on my graduation thesis will be a complete failure. What a dramatic scenario! Or can we say it is a total tragedy. Sir Thomas Gresham argues that good notes are driven out of circulation by bad notes, here is another evidence.
After all we have to rethink on the issue again. Of course many Chinese will blindly celebrate this and consider it a victory of 'the great Chinese people', but I never think in that foolish nationalism way. IBM is never making decisions without analysis. It sells its hard disk department to HITACHI. It now sells its whole PC department. In my point of view, it probably means that PC will no longer be a very profitable area. Even IBM thinks that it will be non-profitable when concerning the cost of factory, sales, support services between the all the profits, can Lenovo be cleverer than IBM? I do not think so. Although the leaders of both side claimed that it is a win-win deal, I think it is most possible that it is only another win of IBM.
Lenovo must devote more not on sales and marketing, but on research and development; not on the sponsor project of Olympic game, but on testing and qualification project to ensure the quality of its products; not on the bribing of the officials who is responsible for the purchasing, but on improving the salary of the technical workers. Only by carrying all that out, can it achieve the objects it sets for themselves, which is not a bit possible, at least at present.

Microsoft’s Architecture Journal is a quarterly magazine, providing a world-class forum for the publication of unique articles on how good architecture can help create great implementations. Microsoft’s Architecture Journal is available as a printed subscription (you can order your own here) and also online here

Now that TechEd is out of the way, I'm looking for abstracts and ideas for Issue #9, the theme of which is Software Factories (think modeling, DSLs, development approaches etc.). Writing for the Architecture Journal gives you the opportunity to get your thoughts and ideas in the hands of enterprise, solution and infrastructure architects around the world – that’s a growing number of over 41,000 subscribers! In addition, your article will be localized into multiple languages and distributed at major events and conferences worldwide.

The cut off date for abstracts for the next issue is July 21st.  If you are interested in making a submission, here are the details:

How do I make a submission?

To submit an idea for a paper, you are asked to send the following:

-          A 2 – 4 paragraph abstract explaining how your paper fits the theme of the magazine

-          A 1 – 2 paragraph bio

-          A list of previously published articles

Submissions should be made via Email to editors@architecturejournal.net

Each issue of the Architecture Journal follows a theme (for example; integration, workflow, data).  80% of the issue is dedicated to this theme.  20% is reserved for articles that we wish to print, but do not follow the theme. 

We receive many submissions for each issue, so we encourage you to put time and thought into the submission.

After the call for papers has ended, everyone that submits an idea will be notified via Email as to whether their submission was successful or not. 

What happens if my submission is accepted?

If accepted, you’ll have between 4 and 6 weeks to submit two drafts and a final version of your paper.  These dates will be clearly communicated.  Your first draft will be reviewed by an editorial board to ensure it is on message for the magazine.   Your second draft and final version will be subject to both technical and content editing.  You’ll be asked to be available to work with our editors via Email during this process. 

The magazine is generally available in print and online 4 weeks after final drafts are submitted.

What are the guidelines for papers printed in the Architecture Journal?

We recommend that papers are between 3,500 and 4,500 words in length – although we have accepted shorter and longer papers in the past.  The article should be submitted using Microsoft Word.  Diagrams should be submitted in either Microsoft Visio or Microsoft PowerPoint.

Do I still own the work?

Yes.  We ask you to sign a release form that gives Microsoft permission to reprint the article, but ownership of the paper remains with you, the author.

Will I get paid for writing?

We do not currently pay authors for contributing to the Architecture Journal. 

Will I get copies of the magazine as an author?

After printing you’ll be sent 10 copies of the Journal for your own use.  Additional copies can be requested.