Korea, I hardly know thee!

Having now been in Seoul for a whopping 5 days, I feel qualified to make overarching generalizations about the entire country.

My Korean experience is probably rather different than the average tourist's because I'm already conditioned  to a large amount of Asian culture. So, instead of temple hopping I have been taking advantage of the western aspects of soul.

About 30% of my meals have been Korean food, the remainder have included: burritos, pizza, buttered popcorn, burgers, and Indian food. This has been a welcome chance to enjoy some culinary diversity from my standard noodle/rice/duck head meal.

Yesterday I also had a chance to ride up one of the tallest buildings in China in an elevator. It is truly amazing the growth East Asia has produced during the past 60 years.

Korea

Two days in Korea have been amazing. First, the internet speed is exceptional. I am conditioned to consider 200 kb/s as a standard rate. Here, I can download mb/s.

Second, I feel that S. Korea is exceptionally clean, polite, and quiet. I look forward to a fuller update later in the week but so far, all positive reviews for the city and its peoples.

Shanghai and Jinan

Just two short videos I forgot to post.

The first is a shark tank housed in the center of Shanghai. I think it is on Nanjingdonglu but I honestly forget.

The second is fountain in Jinan that was broken and squirting water into the crowd. The children enjoyed it though.

Korea and Japan Maximization Plan

Two awesome events start tomorrow. First, Blackhat comes to an end and Defcon kicks-off in what is always an enjoyable two weeks for security professionals. Second, also arguably more important, is I depart for a little leisure time in South Korea and Japan. Listed here are some of the events I have planned for my East Asia Tour.

1. Maid Cafes - Japan

Japan has cafes full of girls dressed as maids. Some have strict Victorian themes. Others go for the cute aesthetics where girls chant over your drinks to make them taste better. Frankly, I can't imagine a more entertaining way to spend an afternoon.

2. Authentic Korean BBQ - South Korea

Korean BBQ is popular in China but I wonder if it is authentic. Soon enough I will find out. This combined with Kimchi and other delicious dishes will be a small part of the culinary adventure that awaits in both countries.

3. Vending Machine Tour - Japan

Though I found a claw machine in China that dispenses cigarettes and plush toys this week (eat your heart out underage US smokers). It is nowhere near as captivating as the tales of Japanese vending machines I have heard. Expect a photo montage of me next to all sorts of vending machines in Japan ^.^

4. Screaming fast internet - Both

Not much to say on this. Just a simple fact.

5. Tea Service - Japan

One of the sad changes in China over the past century has been the loss of culture that originated early in the country's history. While China still possess a deep reverence and love of tea, the ceremonies associated with it have become more of a Japanese specialty. Though, in China's defense, they have stolen other countries traditions quite effectively. For example, ping pong was invented by the British but is dominated by Chinese and their national sport.

6. Soju, Sake, Japanese Whiskey, local beers. 

I look forward to spicing up my alcohol choices. Baijiu has never earned a place in my heart but Soju and Sake can be quite enjoyable. I will try and document the local drinking cultures which will inevitably be encountered in Seoul and Japan.

Wow! Time Flies.

I'm preparing to do some travelling later this week in East Asia. It will be a blast and certainly produce some blog worth content as I explore two new countries!

During the past two months I have launched a new website : ForeignGlory.com. The site aggregates interesting news from China, Japan, Korea, and regional policy of the US. If you are interested in helping provide analysis or a feed for a country let me know. The goals is to help people interested in a the region stay up-to-date with current events.

Spring in Bloom

The last two weeks have been very beautiful with all the trees and flowers blooming. Currently, a layer of tree stuff (cotton) blankets the ground like a light spring snow. My apartment has also been quite pleasant with windows open 24/7 and a light breeze wandering about.

Street BBQ 

This is a street vendor who sells popcorn! I will get a video of the process and upload it. But basically they use the pressure gauge to tell when the corn is ready and they let it explode into this giant basket.  

Taxi Driver Chats

Did you know a car is sold in China every 2.3 seconds? Well, that is what I learned from Top Gear last season. I also learned that some people think Chinese made cars will dominate the market in 5 years.

Yesterday, I had the pleasure to enjoy a taxi ride with a driver who loved cars. We spent the entire trip chatting about prices in China vs. America and what countries made the best cars. We both agreed Germany was pretty stellar.

When I told him that some people believed China would be making most of the cars in 5 years he just laughed. I'm sure one day, it will be the case but the country has such a short history with cars, it is a bit presumptuous to imagine they would possess the experience and expertise to dominate the market at this time.

Though the history of cars in China deserves a full report (it really is quite fascinating) I will simply leave you with one more tidbit: Initially, the lanes were arranged in the fashion  of Britain/ Japan where you drove on the left side of the road. However, that changed during WWII when under American persuasion the driving side was switched with the expectation that it would aid American Drivers and reduce accident rates in the war effort. Though, if I recall correctly, the change didn't occur until after completion of the war.

Lei Feng

Yesterday was Remembering Lei Feng day so the campus was littered with signs like those pictured below. For those unfamiliar with Lei Feng, here is a brief synopsis.

He was a soldier who was heralded by Chairman Mao as a model citizen. Not only was Lei Feng a member of the army,  he was also a diligent student and selfless individual. How did the country become so enamored with Lei Feng? Being the modest fellow he was, Lei Feng was not well known during his short 21 years of life. Luckily, he happened to conveniently leave behind a dictionary with over 200,00 words about his deeds, thoughts, and motivations.

Now, every March 5, is a day marked to commemorate Lei Feng and to encourage citizens to follow the path he set.

Saving Petrol

I thought readers may enjoy a glimpse into the China approach. In this video, the taxi drivers are pushing their vehicles to save fuel while they wait for a fare.

As an aside, I sat down and made my 2012 goal list. Similar to my distaste for Valentines being "the" day. I also don't believe NYE is "the" day for goal making. If you had goals for the year but feel you need to revise them, it isn't too late. Get on it.

All Aboard! (Part 2)

Not my favorite part.

At the conclusion of part 1, we had finally arrived at our quarters for the evening. Six hours later we awoke to our alarms to kick off a day that has marked dramatic history. Breakfast consisted of two baozi and a hard-boiled egg. After the jump you can read about the exciting 20 hours that followed.

Assorted Photos with Commentary

Nearly everyday I get to see something that raises an eyebrow. here are four recent enjoyable sights. 

1. Mr. Pizza, a Korean pizza company, employs the slogan "Love for Women". Why? Who knows, but at least he is friendly.

All Aboard! (Part 1)

Beautiful Downtown China

To top off what has been a lackluster set of two weeks (which yesterday had the addition of a destroyed teapot), I have finally gotten around to posting an update. Also, I will immediately (and finally) be returning to two-a-week updates (with another mix posted today to help make up for Tuesday) so that is something you can look forward to if you enjoy the Hacking Asia Radio. Enough of that, let's get to it.

Train Time!


I recently had the excellent fortune to be invited to be an extra on a Chinese drama. The drama was filmed a few hours away by train so the adventure kicked off by going to the casting agency and picking up train tickets. I actually have somewhat extensive live blogging notes of the entire trip (find out more about those notes after the jump!).

Working the Angles

Quick mix for mid February. A new full length post will be up within 18 hours about my trip to be an extra on a Chinese drama so check back tomorrow!

Working the Angles by Hacking Asia on Mixcloud

Groovy Bears and Electronics Mix

Groovy Bears and Electronics by Hacking Asia on Mixcloud

How to Maximize Your Schooling Experience

Schooling methodologies are frequent topics for heated debates. Teacher quality, funding, curriculum, and teaching styles have all come under fire at one time or another from politicians, parents, and students. If only "there were better testing tools", "more money", "better facilities", etc. To be honest, I am extremely biased in most of these discussions having had the good fortune to almost always be surrounded by amazing teachers. Many made a meaningful impact on my life for the better (even if some lessons took longer to sink in).

Half of these dead un-refrigerated
chickens must be below average.

However, while I don't believe the public school system is inherently broken, I do believe it could be significantly improved. I often ponder the merits of homeschooling/no-schooling/and public schooling. One problem of teaching most classes is the diverse range of ability. Any teacher can tell you that some students exceed expectations while others struggle with material. With testing initiatives like "No Child Left Behind", the incentive is to focus on the laggards and attempt to bring them up to speed (or more cynically, to teach the actual test materials...some places do this and it is a detriment to their students).

By definition, half the class must be above average. For top performers, classes are inefficient places for learning because they are anchored by the lower half.

However, this unsurprisingly creates a dangerous trap for the students that consistently perform above average. While they may learn some new material, the majority of their brain cycles are instead placed into less valuable activities/emotions. Other students will perceive the material as challenging, while top performers will be bored, possibly disruptive, or (from a teachers perspective) at best daydreaming.

Many top performers will never struggle to integrate knowledge in these classes. They are "smart" and therefore simply understand (or already know) the information and techniques taught in class.For them, a "challenge" might be defined as having to review a concept twice (not struggling for days or weeks on end). This leads to the second problem created in our school system. While some of the students struggle with the class, top performers are never introduced to real challenges.

Classes targeted for the middle and lower half of students means for most of their childhood and teens, students will never truly know an academic challenge.

The unfortunate result, is that when ultimately faced with such a challenge. Strong students find it all to easy to justify avoiding these "walls". Perhaps they dismiss a particular academic area as "trivial" and choose not pursue it. Or, they may very well conclude they are not "smart enough" to understand the topic; after all, if they were smart, they would simply grok the lessons moments after reading the material. This second response clearly can lead to additional struggles of self-worth and identity.

The solution could not be simpler ...

The best way to maximize your formal schooling experience is to take responsibility for your own education. Instead of relying on teachers and the system, begin to rely on yourself. Instead of viewing teachers as the means, view them as one of many resources.

Maximizing your formal education could not be simpler: If you feel a topic is easy, pick up a related book that is challenging and work through it. Understand the concepts and try to utilize them. As a student, you should never feel comfort. If you are comfortable, it means you aren't being challenged and aren't improving.

So, stop waiting! Pick up that new book. But, also remember the second half. If you want to be truly awesome you must also do. Interested in programming? Stop reading blogs about why C++ kicks Scala's ass and actually program something (a compiler, an app, a dynamic website, etc.). Interested in political history? Choose something in the world and try to reason how we arrived at this current state of affairs. Interested in writing? Then write a book and try and promote and sell it using an E-book platform. Want to be an entrepreneur? Start a company and track your earnings.

Stop waiting for the permsission of a piece of paper from your high school, college, or certification program and start learning and doing now. Maximizing your potential rests on your shoulders. No one else's.






What are you doing to improve yourself? What goals do you have for the term? What about the year? Leave a comment and then get back to work!
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When writing this entry I came across an awesome post by an MIT grad about the personal growth he and countless others experienced at the school. A primary lesson learned by many seems to parallel the idea that understanding requires time, study, and practice. I wish I could find it again to link for you but for now, it is lost to the wilds of the internet.

How to hardsub East Asian Subtitles to Movies.

Before continuing this little tutorial. I think it is important to mention that today is a semi-official SOPA/PIPA protest day around the web. SOPA/PIPA are nothing more than excuses for the U.S. Government to regulate more of our everyday lives. The excuse is that movie/music/brand piracy must be thwarted. The legislative result is a chilling amount of censorship potential.

 For example, this post could (big emphasis on 'could' even though I assume you own all products involved including the movie) be construed as a guide to thwart copyright. With that interpretation, the site would essentially be scrubbed from the Internet. To learn more, check out this well written summary at Reddit. You can also learn more by visiting the EFF website.

Alright, that said, here is how to hardsub a movie with East Asian Languages.

For this tutorial, I will be using a blue-ray source. However if you are using an AVI source feel free to skip to step 2.

1. Pazera Free MP4 to AVI Converter
Step 1 is to download the Pazera Free MP4 to AVI Converter. As of this writing, version 1.6 is the current release.  Go ahead and install that bad boy. Once it is ready, open it up and load in your MP4 to convert to AVI.

The program is relatively simple to use but offers a nice array of encoding options. I personally chose to keep the original audio and simply use an Xvid encapsulation for this run. In the future I might be more discerning but because it took so long for me to get a working method together (due to a number of issues) I kept it simple. Feel free to be adventurous or use one of the many other options available in the software but when you are ready you need only hit convert and return in about an hour.

2. Prepare your subtitles!

For preparing my new subtitles, I chose to use AegiSub. As of the writing version 2.1.8 was current. So, hop over and download AegiSub. I like this program for two reasons. You can easily set a number of options for how your subs will be displayed when you hardburn them. So, if you like purple subs with green borders, no problem. You like them in the middle of the screen? No problem. The easiest way to make these changes is to alter the default styling scheme. However, if you are ambitious, you can actually go through and apply different styles to different speakers. Pretty cool!

The second reason I like AegiSub is it allows you to use regular expressions (regex) to select lines. This was critical for me because my subtitles had English littered in with Chinese which was very messy and not what I needed. I was able to use regex to erase all the English lines in less than a minute of dabbling. For a quick tutorial on Regex I urge you to take a look at Regular-Expressions.info which is a well written source.

I don't want to reveal the movie so no screenshots of this step. However, trust me when I assure you that it is quick and easy to clean up your subs in AegiSub.

3. Convert your subs to the proper encoding.

This may already have been a problem for some people in step 2. If so, here is the solution. Download NJstar Communicator. Unfortunately this software only has a thirty day trial, so you may have to purchase it eventually or locate an alternative for this step. Next, open the program and click on the left side of the box on the character. That should open a menu and allow you to select " universal code converter.

                                              

Click to add text from file.

At this step, the choices you make will depend upon your source and your language. It may take some trial and error but you will choose an encoding format so that the software in the next step properly displays your subtitles. For Korean I believe it should be Johab encoding for the output. For Chinese, Big5. However, if those don't work, come back and try again.

4. AVI ReComp (the final step)

This is the final step. Albeit, relatively simple since you have already completed the preparation. Once you install AVI ReComp. You can open it up and take a look. This program is a sort of ringmaster for a crew of other programs. That said, it is relatively straightforward and simple to use. Make sure you preview your subtitles once you add them on the second page. If they don't appear properly, you must alter the encoding or change the font. 

In fact, the font is so important I feel I need to repeat this. If you see no subtitles appear in the preview, this is likely because you have chosen an incompatible font. For Korean, you will choose Batang or Batang Che. However, if you see garbled nonsense, that is an encoding issue and you must return to step three and try a different encoding method. 

Once you have a preview that looks satisfactory. Jump to the tab labled queue and click add to queue. Then, sit back and enjoy some Coffee. In a few hours, you will have a copy of your movie with burned in subs!

--------------------------------------------------------------

I wrote this tutorial because it took me three days for a task I thought should be achievable in an afternoon. Despite this being what I would consider a solved problem, the solutions were all rather piecemeal and inadequate. Many of the blogs pointed to programs not updated in 4 years. Others suggested programs that were unable to properly handle non-Anglo languages. Further, the formats of both subtitles and videos seemed to be a recurring roadblock not to mention weird codec issues. 

That said, this solution should work and after the first time, it is a piece of cake to run through. 

That is all great but why hardburn subs in the first place?

Soft subs are great but they can be difficult to use if you are playing media off a digital storage device. Be it an IPOD or a thumbdrive plugged into a dvd/tv. Any number of encoding problems can arise. So,  sometimes hardcoded subs are the only applicable solution. 

/rant about the ridiculous inadequacies of current subtitle solutions.

Subtitle Saga

Living in China often necessitates the use of subtitles if watching a movie with friends. Whether English, Japanese, Korean, or Chinese we typically need to add some form of subtitles to make the show or movie comprehensible. Thanks to the way Asian languages are coded, it can make the whole affair rather messy. I plan to do a full post but for now consider the fact that after 3 evenings I'm still unable to solve the current Korean subtitle issue. I mean, how hard can it be for subtitle softwares to remember that there will probably be people trying to subtitle languages aside from English.

Quick Mix

Greedy Study Mix by Hacking Asia on Mixcloud

我喜欢吃蝎子！

I want to eat Scorpions! So, yesterday was a field trip in an attempt to eat Scorpions. Unfortunately, with Spring Festival approaching, China is increasing unpredictable and erratic. Everyone is traveling to be with their families.

How erratic? Well, you can read about the online system receiving more than 1bn clicks daily (and crashing, though the article fails to mention that '_^ ).  You can also get a sense of the problem of resale/scalpers in China by reading this short entry about the implementation of a real ID requirement for tickets. Or you can take the anecdotal account of my friend who waited in line for over two hours to buy one ticket. Let's just say, travelling at this time of the year... sucks. Nobody denies this. In the news, there was even a story about police escorting motorcyclists to help ensure their safety due to the crazy traffic.

But I digress, I want to eat scorpions and drink scorpion vodka at the same time! However, in China, the scorpion vodka probably requires a prescription so I am willing to settle for just eating a scorpion. With that in mind, I ventured to one of the more vibrant markets in the city.

Being well aware of the axiom : "Buy today, for tomorrow it may be gone forever." I took time to consider some alternative purchases. First up was an adorable cat that could possibly accent my home and make it feel more welcoming.

Lovely isn't she? Truly she captures the essence of tranquility. I imagine she lived a life of comfort given her full coat. Most likely, she enjoyed scampering about the city on adventures with her friends 'sweater dog' and 'bilingual bird'. Her full knowing eyes, suggest she lived a long healthy life which ended one peaceful night when she finally welcomed Death.

As much as I wanted to buy this wonderful piece, I ultimately felt it would be wrong to keep her from other's so I demurred from asking for a price and continued on my quest.

Next up, I came across three packs of notecards pre-printed with Hanzi, English, and Pinyin. A brilliant find! In true China fashion, these three dusty boxes were only 18 RMB. So, I scooped them up and enjoyed sorting them last night.

Observe that the first photo is the combined stack of all the cards. The second photo shows the sorted stacks as more or less being equal. I certainly could make excuses, like the first stack contains about thirty cards for animals or random objects, but they are both important. So, I look forward to having it dwindle to a single stack soon.


What of the Scorpion eating? Well, unfortunately, they were nowhere to be found yesterday. I will certainly return another day. But, in the meantime, it is back to studying.

Heylookitsa(n) awesome blog!

Hacking Asia is happy to welcome Heylookitsa into the extended family of blogs detailing life, culture shock, and Asian values. If initial posts are any guide, you can expect H! to fill the episodic - narrative hole in your life. Let's be honest, Hacking Asia is terse and secretive. Its admirers glance from afar afraid to come to close to the violent panda. Meanwhile, H! awes the ladies with its flowing use of ornate syllables strung together into a aurally pleasing, metaphorically indulgent, logically cogent symphony for the brain.

But, we don't blame H! How could you when it is so much fun to read.

Check it out. 

Now... stop waiting...

http://www.haylookitsa.blogspot.com/

The Korean Alphabet Rocks ^.^

The Korean language may have complex syntax, formality rules, and no semblance to English; but, it does have an awesome logical alphabet! Want to impress your friends and expand you skillset? Check out this awesome site to learn the basics: Learn To Read, Write,and Pronounce Korean!

Fluent in Mandarin in 3 Months?

"Able to speak or write a particular foreign 

language easily and accurately"

-Oxford English Dictionary

Different environments set the tone for popular topics. SOPA has been a hot topic among techies, free, speech advocates, and internet lovers. The ongoing Republican train wreck has been quite popular for Americans and politicos. For language learners (especially those studying Mandarin), recent bold claims by a Mr. Benny Lewis have ignited a firestorm of discussion around the web. Many have already taken sides in this debate, some proselytize complete failure, others wishing him luck, and still others look forward to him proving how easy his task really is.

What does Mr. Lewis plan to accomplish in three months? Well, he plans to acquire Fluency in Mandarin Chinese within 3 months.

According to his blog, Mr. Lewis is an Irishman who has spent the last nine years travelling the world learning languages. At the age of 21 he only spoke English, and now, according to his site, he speaks 8 languages. These include the following ( numbers represent FSI difficulty ranking with 3 being the hardest):

1. English- 0 because it is the native language.
2. French - 1
3. Italian - 1
4. Esperanto - The source I looked through lacked a classification but many cited it as a stepping stone to learning other languages. So, I will be completely fair and call it a 1 (even though I feel it should be a 1-)
5. Spanish - 1
6. Portuguese - 1
7. German - 1+
8. Irish - 2

Note that with the exception of Irish, these are all level one languages. According to the Foreign Service Institute (FSI), level 1 languages can all be learned within about 24 intensive weeks of study (level 2 take approximately 44 weeks). Nonetheless, it is impressive that he has gained some level of fluency in each of these.

However, as many of you know, Mandarin is no level one or two language. If Spanish, French, and German are common street thugs, Mandarin, Japanese, Korean, Arabic, and Cantonese are the trained professionals. These languages have been mutilating peoples hopes and dreams of being fluent for so long that they are like mysterious master ninjas able to effortlessly end your ambitions with only a moments notice for you to honorably acknowledge your defeat. 

According to the FSI, level 3 languages take approximately 88 weeks to reach general proficiency. To be clear, that is 88 weeks of what amounts to full time studying of the language. What makes Mandarin such a nasty beast? First, it lacks commonality with English. Words for different items share only coincidental resemblance to English counterparts. Second, there are four tones in Mandarin. This has two results, first, words change meaning when said in the incorrect tone. Second, the language is littered with homophones so listening comprehension is greatly challenged. Third, and this is a biggie, the writing system lacks an alphabet.  You don't learn letters in Mandarin. Instead you learn hanzi. Hanzi are characters that possess independent meaning but can also be combined into compound words.

For example, the character 流means "to flow" and is pronounced liu with a rising tone. 利 means "benefit“ and is pronounced li with a falling tone. If you put the two together, do you know what it means? 流利 means fluent! It is really cool but very difficult to get a handle on characters. The difficulty of characters is further amplified by learning a multitude of similar but different characters. Take a look at the following to see what I mean:

报服，我找，或成，去丢，话活，玉主。。。The list goes on and on.

So, what is Mr. Benny's strategy? From what I can gather, it is a straightforward and solid approach. He plans to only speak Putonghua, read vociferously, and employ his other tricks he has learned over the past nine years.

However, one gets the impression that these tricks will not be enough as he has already adapted the standard definition of fluency.  His definition reduces reading literacy to 500 characters and the ability to navigate headlines and menus. Unfortunately for the unsuspecting Mr. Lewis, these are two extremely difficult things to do with the headlines often being the most difficult part of an article and menus containing cryptic cultural descriptions of dishes.

Speaking fluency is also reduced to conversational fluency (don't get me wrong, still a lofty and impressive challenge). If he manages this. it will be interesting to see. Given his high profile, I expect we will get to see something...

Despite my heavy skepticism of any chance of Mr. Lewis succeeding in this particular attempt. I certainly wish him luck. However, I feel it is irresponsible to mislead potential students of difficult languages and cause them to set unattainable goals. It smacks of "get rich quick", "lose 80 pounds in 20 days", and "attract any woman you desire" self-help claims. When they are unable to reach levels that you claimed are possible in a certain timeframe, they are more likely to burn out and give up rather than dig deeper and be patient.

The fact is some things take work, time, and dedication. Need proof? Go sit in on a Intro Mandarin class and return one year later. The students didn't quit coming because Chinese was too easy and they got bored...

Below you can watch one of the response videos to Mr. Lewis' claim. 

A note about the Chinese Language

In Chinese, there is no word for logical - only a transliteration (逻辑-luo2ji). That is all.