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NBN from Spintel + TPG HG659 modem

Just a quick feedback on my recent experience with Spintel and TPG NBN setup.

I had account with TPG in the past, but had to cancel it due to my travel overseas. I was left with their HG659 modem hoping to get reconnected upon my return and use my device. Unfortunately, they do not provide this option and I would have to use a new one. Although they supply it free of charge (just shipping cost to be paid), I consider this as waste of resources and environmently unfriendly. My request to not received a new modem looked more like a hassle to organise, rather than a preferable choice of the sales person I negotiated with. So I decided to look elsewhere. 

I came across Spintel that seems to have competitive pricing and provide flexibility I was looking for. I suspect they renting out some infrastructure / equipment from larger companies, so the time will show how sustainable they are. Since they provide great deal of flexibility, I think they are worth of try. Here is what I like about them:

  1. They offer 25/5 NBN speed (good starter)
  2. They offer BYO gateway option and reasonably priced modems to buy
  3. Their plan pricing is highly competitive (have you found cheaper?)
  4. No lock-in contract option or 6 months with credit back
  5. Simple online portal, no paperwork

I reached to their customer support via e-mail to get few questions answered and was very happy with a prompt response and answers provided. I ordered the service and in 2,5 business days the service was active. No dramas and clear communication: sms/email updates.

I tried to reach phone call support to discuss device settings for my BYO HG659 modem, but the queue was about 25 people large and waiting time was cca 50 minutes. Certainly, something they should look into to improve. However, playing with the modem settings myself, I managed to set it up in the meantime anyway. So, yes – TPG’s modem HG659 is ok to be used on FTTP NBN with Spintel. Here is the setting overview:

 

image: WAN Connection settings from HG659 administration

If you are looking for new connection or wish to compare your internet connection cost with Spintel, I am happy to put you on my referral list and they will help you out. Simply send me your name + phone / email address. 

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Basic invoicing in Aus

Invoicing is a very boring job to do, at least for me. I want to have it as simple as posible and certainly do not want to use Word or Excel spreadsheet for it. Coming from Czech Republic, I was used to an excellent service called Fakturoid. Unfortunately, I have not found a similar product in Australia. Even today, eight years later, the products are still behind the Fakturiod’s capabilities and its price/value ratio in my opinion. 

So what’s there on offer?

Here is the list of the major players in Australia (not considering desktop-only applications): 

Outsourced accounting service:

  • https://ncscorp.com.au/

*SimpleInvoices – easy, online payments, but do not support bank feeds yet, no free plan but cheap

**WaveApps = best app I found for free, but they recently went through acquisition process and pulled out from Aus market (meaning they remove support for bank feeds). 

My personal experience:

Freshbook was great, but if you deal with more than 5 different clients it becomes relatively pricey ($25/month). 

WaveApps is great package, with Stripe integration, but the recent pull off from the market brings uncertainty. However, it’s FREE. Bank feeds are gone!  

Fakturoid is awesome tool but not for AUS market, unfortunately. 

QuickBooks is relatively price competitive ($10/month), provide wide range of features. Worth a try.

Rounded seems like a good product with nice features, but already double the price of QucikBooks ($20/month). 

SimpleInvoices might be too simple for the cost of $7.5/month. If they would include bank feeds, then it might be worth the $. 

Summary

For occasional invoicing, I would still recommend WaveApps being it free. If you want bank feeds, look into QuickBooks / Rounded. For more advanced stuff, probably Xero would be my preference over MYOB, Sage and Reckon. 

Overall, I still think there is a small gap in the market for a product like Fakturoid. Let’s see who is going to join the game. 

If you are using other software you want to share, please feel free to send me message via my LinkedIn profile or contact form. Thank you.

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Scam me? I’ll track you.

Believe it or not, there are people that have nothing better to do than scam other people. Whether they do it because of their financial needs or just for a bit of fun, I personally do not care and consider it wrong. Some of the scam I come across are 1:1 – interactive chats (phone/txt). 

Depending how sophisticated the scammer is, you might be able to uncover their identity, but generally the only thing you can do is to waste his/her time (option 1) to prevent them from scamming other people at the same time. Althought it sounds like a good idea, time is precious so consider that aspect too.

Option 2, get rid of the scammer as soon as possible. The quickest way seems to be to block the scammer, hang up the call, mark as spam, walk away etc. You can block users in most of the messaging apps, mobile phones, e-mails and other platforms. 

Then we have option 3, where you try to track the scammer. If it fails, you still pretend you are tracking him/her. He/she will leave usually very quickly. If you have their location, you can report or action further. 

Unless the users uses TOR or VPN, you can get their IP address and find approximately their location and internet service provider (ISP). You can then report it to ISP, national authorities and other scam reporting agencies. You could also go for a road trip if you like face to face contact, but that’s not usually recommended option, up to you:).

If you need to get someone’s IP address, the process is quite simple:

  1. think of a link they would click on, eg. mysite.com
  2. create a tracking URL for your link, via https://sniffip.com/en
  3. mask the url with short URL service (sniffip does it already, but you can use other services)
  4. share with a scammer and lure him/her into clicking on it (here you need to get creative)
  5. collect data, report scammer or work out other plan

Example of a tracking link looks like this:

Coinbase Exchange

This looks like link to Coinbase Exchange, but it goes to:

  1. shorten link http://tinyurl.com/y2ucfnhz
  2. then to tracking link https://sniffip.com/tracking/V82F8fQcKVA3vcgRf6Q1YgrzSAuwSMWFCTqldbex
  3. then finally to your original link https://coinbase.com/

There are automatic redirects between each link, so the user will see only the last destination upon loading the page. Note: a simple hover on a link will show the tinyurl.com link which should be already a first warning that something is not quite right and the scammer would probably walk away. Also, using web dev tools, you can see all three links as you get to your destination, so it’s not perfect way of tracking, but a simple one. 

Other options

There are many options available, depending on the scenario and communication channel you use. This is out of the scope for me now, but here is another example:

Tracking a scammer can be done also by allowing him/her to remote into your “computer” and use Wireshark to get their IP address. The “computer” in this case is an isolated* virtual machine where you can let them play while you are collecting the network data you want. Recommended for advanced users:). *isolated = ideally out of your private network

Another way to annoy a scammer, is by pointing messaging bot onto their profiles and hacking or scamming THEM instead. Some of their account profiles are easier to create, but some might require phone numbers, 2FAs etc, so the process of getting one might be a tiny bit more painful for them when they lose access to it.

Note: do not track your friends and family :). Use it only as protection against those who do the wrong. Thanks

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E-mails and DMARC, DKIM, SPF (basics)

E-mails, the “outdated” communication channel that still sticks around. If you wish to set up almost any account today (2019), you have to have an e-mail address or mobile number already in 99% of the cases. You would most likely have one already and there is a high a chance of it being from Google, Outlook.com or Yahoo. If you are from non-english speaking country, you will probably use a local provider in your own language, for example in Czech it would be Seznam, Centrum or Volny. Now these e-mails work ok, but are not the most suitable for running business. Why?

  1. it’s considered unprofessional to use “free” services for business and not having your own domain (eg. “frantaSysel@gmail.com” vs “franta@sysel.com”)
  2. you have very limited control of your data if any at all
  3. you are exposed to 3rd party advertisement
  4. you have no guarantee of the service and usually no backups in place
  5. you are dependend on sending e-mails only from the systems they support
  6. you cannot used advanced marketing tools (which requires .TLD name)
  7. you have no central management and ownership of multiple accounts

There is probably more reasons to fill the list, but you get the idea.

Now, seeing that you would have a domain name already (eg. myname.com), you might also have e-mail services enabled from your hosting provider.

E-mail services from hosting providers can be cheap, but also quite limited. They usually provide between 1-5GB per mailbox, which is very little if you compare it to a free GMail account with 15GB and offers additional services like GDrive, Photos, Apps etc. Another limitation is the interface and features you will get (understand “less”). Most of the providers (from my experience) use free open-source software Roundcube, which is probably the “best” on the market but still miles behind GMail in my opinion. On top of that, having a professional domain name and e-mail services enabled, you might start attracting spammers and fradulent actors to use your name or e-mail address for malicious activity. To minimise these, you will have to implement additional technologies such as SPF, DKIM and DMARC. You do not worry about these with free e-mail providers as they handle it themselves and what hacker wants to use e-mail address like “mightyJack45@gmail.com”, right? 

So what are these technologies in a nutshell? (very simplistic overview, use links for full details)

SPF – is a framework that uses a txt type DNS record, which helps identifying which hosts / servers can (is authorised) to send e-mails from your domain. Anything coming outside of listed servers should be considered as a spam (but not always is and there are other scenarious to consider). 

DKIM – is encryption based technology,  used for preventing tampering with e-mails, e-mail spoofing. Basically, what you sent should be the same as what the recipient sees upon this e-mail delivery. Again, there could be exceptions to this. 

DMARC – is a solution to a situations, where SPF and DKIM fail. Such as, your legit e-mail gets altered by an antivirus program before it is sent, or e-mails are forwarded etc. 

All of these tools help to prevent spam, but their problem is adoption. Some e-mail service provider do not use/implement them in their solutions. That means even if you have them implemented at your end and someone maliciously sends an e-mail on your behalf to lets say Alice, her client might not be built to support these checks and she might end up thinking the fradulent e-mail is legit. Regardless, it is a good practice to implement these tools and help fighting the spam problem. I would say, essential. 

Now if you need to choose a professional e-mail service, I worked with O365/Outlook.com, G-Suite, Proton-Mail to name few, but would be very happy to hear what you use and if it can be improved. Leave me a message on my LinkedIn or use the contact form. 

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Google Drive and Debian integration on HyperV

I am helping one customer with their VPS and they use primarily Google Drive for data management. So the idea poped up in my head…

What if I could grab some files from the VPS server and push them straight into their G-Drive?

This could provide an opportunity for backing up required data from VPS but also push certain data back into VPS without a need for FTP. Hmm…

As an example: you could upload product images for the online shop, where user simply drops them into Google Drive and the rest of the work gets automated on the server with CRON and custom scripts. Same can be done for updating stock via XML files and more.

In this article, I will focus on getting the integration working and leave the rest for your imagination. However, if you would want to know more about the automation part on the server, have even better idea, just leave me a message on LinkedIn or e-mail me. Now let us dive into it.

Running Debian on HyperV 

Although my personal preference is Ubuntu, I decided to play with Debian on my local PC to test the Google Drive integration. I used Hyper-V and Debian-10.1.0-i386-netinst.ISO. My laptop specs: T440, 256GB SSD, 12GB RAM.

First problem, ISO is not booting – getting PXE Boot issue = I create new VM with GEN1 and we are ready to go. Here are more tips on how to run Linux on HyperV. 

Second problem, screen size/resolution of the VM. Hyper-V does not control this, instead the VM is in charge. Everyone probably knows how to change the resolution in Windows 10/7 using GUI, but since I have Debian with no GUI, CLI will become my friend for today. So for Debian, you need to edit grub file like this: 
sudo vi /etc/default/grub

In particular, this line:

GRUB_CMDLINE_LINUX_DEFAULT="quiet splash video=hyperv_fb:1024x768"

I am using laptop T440, so 768px vertical is just ok. If you have to update the grub, reboot and off you go. 

sudo update-grub

Note: If you are not familiar with VI editor (I use usually VIM), just follow the manual – VI basics. 

Third “problem”, quite annoying with Linux and HyperV is missing copy / paste feature. You certainly do not want to type all stuff and links manually. Forget about Hyper-V VMConnect then and connect to your VM via SSH (use Putty for example). That way you can copy paste, no drama. There are other options, but this one is by far the easiest, I reckon. 

To connect, you will need its IP address, so use a bridge mode (external switch). This will expose the VM to the internet too, so keep that in mind and put ideally a firewall in between. To connect:

ssh root@IP_OF_YOUR_VM

Fourth “problem”, you cannot connect. By default root has remote ssh turned off. To turn it on: connect as per usual using VMConnect, open:

vi /etc/ssh/sshd_config

Remove # symbol from the line below and change to “yes”, like this:

PermitRootLogin Yes

Don’t forget to restart the SSH:

/etc/init.d/ssh restart

Ok. We are ready for the next step. 

Installing Google Drive on Debian

Unfortunately, there is no offical Google Drive app for Linux. So, we will be using drive originally developed by Burcu Dogan, now maintained by Emmanuel T Odeke. It should do the basics. As usual, there are some pre-requisites.

Install GO

Drive is using GO, an open-source programming language, so we have to install it first.

To download GO, visti the official site and chose the right distribution for you and download it from your VM using wget:

wget https://dl.google.com/go/go1.13.3.linux-amd64.tar.gz

Then install/extract the package as per below (using the correct file name):

 tar -C /usr/local -xzf go1.13.3.linux-amd64.tar.gz

Add /usr/local/go/bin to the PATH environment variable, by editing  /etc/profile (system wide) with:

export PATH=$PATH:/usr/local/go/bin

Test it by running creating and building hello app. 

Note: if you cannot execute “go build” for your hello.go file, see if you downloaded the correct distro of GO.

Download Drive

We have GO, now we can download DRIVE from Github as per the manual.

 

First thing, however, we need to update the export PATHs for .bashrc. This is one way of doing it:

cat << ! >> ~/.bashrc
> export GOPATH=\$HOME/gopath
> export PATH=\$GOPATH:\$GOPATH/bin:\$PATH
> !
source ~/.bashrc # To reload the settings and get the newly set ones # Or open a fresh terminal

Then download the DRIVE, I used this option:

go get -u github.com/odeke-em/drive/drive

Problem? missing get? Install it first.

Try to get the DRIVE again:

go get -u github.com/odeke-em/drive/cmd/drive

In my case, this just got stuck, so I went for the other option:

go get -u github.com/odeke-em/drive/drive-google

Which also failed but at least told me that I have ggc missing. You could install it separately, but I used the bundle package to same me some time with other potential dependencies (not suggested in production!):

apt-get install build-essential

Re-try the Drive install again:

go get -u github.com/odeke-em/drive/drive-google

BINGO. You can check it by running its command:

drive-google

Finally, Connecting to my G-Drive

If you expect you click and authorise, then I will dissapoint you. You will have use GCP (Google Cloud Platform), create project, security account, keys, delegate access to G-Drive, download and push json file onto VM. Handy hint: using OAuth and service account;).

So once you have the GCP part done and ready, run the following (update the location of your json file):

drive init --service-account-file <gsa_json_file_path> ~/gdrive
cd ~/gdrive

There should be hiddne folder called “.gd” (find by “ls -a”) and within should be a file called credentials.json. 

Open and edit this file again with our VI:

vi credentials.json

Find and edit the Subject=”” with an e-mail address whose Google Drive you wish to use. For example: Subject=”it@mycompany.com”.

Important: if you skipped this steps, the actual projects’ Google Drive will be used instead, meaning none of your actual data will be displayed. It uses the service account’s drive by default. This might be handy for other automation and deployments but not when I want to see my files!

How to test it?

The best is to check the manual first, by typing:

drive-google

The handy commands are:

list, about, push, pull

Combine this solution with custom scripts to move/copy files around using CRON and you have a nice integration betwen Google Drive and your Debian / VPS. Also, be aware of the GCP requests limits, otherwise your integration might not work that well if you reach them. 

Conclusion

Although, not a straightforward solution, but as you can see – it is do-able and fun to play with. Keep in mind however, that if you provide this solution to a third part, you need to maintain it and keep it functional (consider updates, security, etc). I see a fit for this, where a custom solutions are required, but would rather opt-out for CMS-plugins or host-provider’s paid service to facilitate for example a backup solution. If you have ideas to share or discuss with me, please get in touch with me on LinkedIn or contact me. 

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HRV (heart rate variability)

While re-watching my favourite video on “Being brilliant every single day” from Dr. Alan Watkins, I realised I completely missed the information about HRV last time I watched it. So I did a quick research into it and I am very curious whether or not working with HRV data can bring improvements into my life and performance. HRV stands for heart rate variability and it represents the gaps between each heart beat. Almost everyone is usually familiar with HR (heart rate) but research suggest that HRV provides a better understanding of what is going on with out body/system. 

Generally speaking, this data is widely used for sportsmen/sportswomen but technically speaking it should be beneficial even for mental performance as it colerates with the whole ANS (autonomous nervous system). The higher variability suggest the healthier system, the lower variability suggests the opposite. I list few articles below that are worth looking at and I will update this page with further details as I collect the resources and experience. 

  1. Being brilliant every single day – part 1 (talks about HRV)
    Being brilliant every single day – part 2
  2. Article from my friend Miro Mayro Sekula – BreakingNutritionist:
    Heart rate variability and orthostatic test 
  3. CorSense and Elite HRV app
  4. Insights into Apple Watch HRV

So far it seems that chest strap (closest to the heart) provides more accurate results and measuring HRV first thing in the morning supposed to be the prefered method. Although the Apple watch could be providing relatively similar, there are reason why other prefer to use Garmin solutions, Polar and other tools / devices. Generally the investment looks to be several hundred dollars so it is better to spend some time researching to make this investment worthwhile. 

If you have tips and tricks to share, let me know via my LinkedIn profile or contact form. 

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Newsletter systems in Czech for SMB

When it comes to newsletters, the first word I hear is MailChimp. It is quite powerfull application that helps you to manage e-mail marketing effectively.

There are other alternatives like Aweber, Constant Contact, Drip, GetResponse, Benchmark, SendinBlue, iContact and many more. None of them, however, are customised specifically for the Czech market. Unless your team speaks and operates in English, you might have to look into a Czech solution instead. So are there any?

Yes, however, the e-mail marketing in Czech still seems to be in early stage and the market is not flooded with many solutions. One of the project supporting the growth is Mailing 2020, yearly conference since 2016. If you are super serious about e-mail marketing, I suggest you look through the list of speakers and follow their works. 

In terms of market share (only percieved value), there are two major players: Ecomail and SmartMailing. Other solutions exists too such as Mailkit (CZ) and then Sendy (using AWS SES, EN), Mautic (EN) which require a bit more work to set up. You can find some tutorials in Czech for Sendy/Mautic from Petr Novák. It seems that newsletters (“odběr novinek”) is a tools used in Czech by rather medium or large businesses, but with expansion of those tools, small businesses are or will be catching up shortly. 

I had an opportunity to assist a small business in Czech with their e-mail marketing strategy refresh. I was shocked how cumbersome some processes were and lacked any automation. These include: e-mail addresses managed and stored in Word documents, duplicated data, out-dated design, no reports or visibility over the past campaigns, manual subscription management and more. 

Afterter reviewing the setup, I looked into the market for a system that would bring more efficiency and transparency. The first choice would have been MailChimp, but due to the language barrier of the customer, this was not an option. Ecomail and SmartMailling looked promissing and ticked the language box. Based on the needs of business, the Ecomail was chosen. It provided simple interface with template editor, easy contacts manager, lower pricing and had good reviews. Due to the nature of business and its irregularity when it comes to contacting potential customers, I suggested to use the credit system rather than subscription model. The customer support was excelent, though the documentation could cover more content to start with.

Along the way, there were some surprises in regards to GDPR and how the newsletters supposed to be used without violation of law. Any contacts loaded to the system have to be already subscribed to your newsletter, which means you have to use other channels to faciliate the subscription process. Very common solution is to get the subscribers from your website, but what if you collected (legally) hundreds of contacts you wish to approach? You have to contact them somehow in order to gain their permission for receiving your offers. Individual call, e-mail, letter, IM message is the correct way but not necesarily efficient. How would you automate it? Leave me a message on LinkedIn or e-mail. 

So, to set up the system properly is one thing, but to teach the customer how to use it is another. I would suggest to create visual workflow, which customer can come back to (screen recordings). Also, Ecomail has automation section which I highly recommend to play with. Unfortunately, forget about bulk managing your contacts in Ecomail. These features are not there and you have to use import process to overwrite certain data. You should be using custom fields, rather than labels, because these cannot be removed (only by Ecomail admin through customer care request). Do not forget also to refresh/review your contact database regularly, ideally by creating a campaign to confirm the interest of your recipients. You can automate this process too, but we leave this for some other time. 

If you want to learn more about e-mail marketing, I suggest you to read E-mail marketing: Velký test doručitelnosti (CZ) from Daniel Nytra. Another short comparison is at Včeliště. Alternatively, you can always contact me with your queries, ideas and tips. 

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Choosing a domain name xyz.CZ vs xyz.COM

There is already plenty of resources online, providing a guide on how to choose a domain name. In this post, I will just leave few links for a quick reference and tips and tricks from my personal experience. 

Firstly, it is quite important to note, that selecting a domain whose customers are non-english speakers is quite different than for example dealing with Aussies as the target audience. Not only the customers are used to their national domain suffix, but also the local search engines can be excluding .COM sites from indexing or prioritising results that have the local suffix (in this case .CZ for Czech Republic). 

I have been dealing with domains and websites since the year 1999 and learned the hard way that it is better to chose less attractive domain name but with .CZ suffix rahter than aim for czech version with .COM. As an example: instead of choosing kvetiny.cz, you might want kvetiny.com, beacause only the .COM is availabel. I would suggest to find an alternative domain name available with .CZ suffix instead. The example of that could be: cerstvekvetiny.cz, kvetinyodAleny.cz or kvetinyBrno.cz. People are used to search their native domain suffix (.CZ) rather than .COM. If you wish to be more specific and deal with roses only, go for ruzezbrna.cz but keep in mind that you might extend your business in future and will have to buy other domains and/or change the marketing if you start selling orchids and other type of flowers.

Another important aspect is to avoid numbers, symbols and problematic words, especially because Czech is hard language and people often cannot spell the words properly. Examples include “i/y, s/z, mne/me” and more. Suffix .COM can be pronouced in Czech as “kom” or “com”, which complicates any audio-relating marketing plans. 

Think also about your business and project that this domain will serve. You want the domain name to represent it in the best possible way. It should fit into your marketing trategy. You also want to avoid any lawsuits and conflicts with competitors, so check trade marks / registered businesses upfront. 

Do not worry too much where you buy the domain name. Chose one provider you like or have been recommended by a trusted source and deal with that one only. The few Czech Korunas you will save buy purchasing one domain here and another there (because they are currently on special), might cost you extra time and money in the long run. 

Secure alternative versions of the domain name, because there is always someone that wants to make money on your business easily. Domain names are cheap, so if you plan on expanding to other countries, think about it in advance. 

Lastly, you can use generator to boost your creativity, but make sure it corresponds with your business and plans. If the domain is taken, put offer together and buy it off from current owner (if the price is reasonable).

Ok, that’s it from me. Below is the list with other resources if you wish to know more. Alternatively, you can get in touch with me via LinkedIn or e-mail and discuss this further. 

https://wpnavod.cz/jak-vybrat-domenu/

https://jecas.cz/domena

https://www.cesky-hosting.cz/domeny/jak-vybrat-domenu/

https://domeny.cz/jak-na-to/jak-vybrat-spravnou-domenu-33/

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vCard (.vcf) projects

First, what is vCard or VCF?

Well, it is a file format standard for electronic business cards. The latest standard is vCard 4.0 defined in RFC 6350. “VCF’ (virtual contact file) is extension used to identified this file format. 

You can create one in Outlook app, online website, in your text editor or export it from your ERP solution (if they follow standards). You can also send vCards via e-mail, MMS, instant messeger or put them on your website and even better your mobile website version. Also, you can turn them into QR code.

Basically, they can contain name and address information, telephone numbers, e-mail addresses, URLs, logos, photographs, and audio clips. 

List of projects to generate vCard

MS Outlook
Outlook supports vCard and helps you to store contacts in exchangeable format. It is generated locally so no privacy issues. I don’t use it, but here is a tutorial for you: https://www.lifewire.com/create-vcard-outlook-1173507

Text editor (Notepad/PSPad/TextEdit)
Follow the standard RFC 6350 and crunch it yourself. Not practical, unless you want to be VCF master or code some apps or addons with it. No privacy issues. 

http://bvcard.com/vCard-vcf-generator
Project from bbros.us (two web developers), that provides QR/hcard option on top of classic vCard, easy to use but no privacy page / information about what is happening to your data. 

https://vcard.com/
Moreso a project to centralise and simplify vCard management around the globe. It’s more like a movement. Aiming high, looks promising but I am not sure if people’s motivation will be strong enough to gian the needed adoption globally. Certainly, worth trying. Privacy policy looks reasonable too, storing only your photo. 

https://vcardmaker.com/ 
Most user friendly generator, but based on their privacy-policy, they do collect data – in particular in Jordan. No info about 3rd parties. I leave that one with you. 

http://www.moongate.ro/en/products/qr_code-vcard/
This one covers vCard, QR and Matrix + they provide a bulk generation upon request (as a service). The site scares with lots of text, but it gives you better understanding of how to use it in return. No info about privacy.  

https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/p/vcard-generator/9wzdncrdr3wl?activetab=pivot:overviewtab
If you dare to use Microsoft Store, then give this one a try. I assume it would be locally generated with no data collection in the backend. The negative review is not relevant, so it might do the job. I have not test it it.

https://github.com/joonhocho/vcard-generator
The most safest generator, but also very painful for non-tech person. To generate it, you need to learn how to run Node.JS with NPM. The source-code is public and you will generate it locally, so no issue with privacy. More suitable for developers.

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G-mail vs G-suite

This is a quick recap why I chose to use G-Suite instead of free G-Mail account or other e-mail services.

First, I had to ask myself if I want to have professional e-mail address or not. Sure, I can setup G-Mail, Yahoo, Seznam e-mail in no time, but how does it look when the e-mail comes from free services that provide zero guarantee? Yes, you can lose any e-mail any time, nothing guaranteed. After all, it’s free right? So, having my own domain and proper e-mail address was a choice number one.

Once I had a domain name registered, I could opt-out for e-mail services from domain registrator (sometime host provider), but these usually run on Roundcube (PHP) web app using IMAP protocol. Although this app is using AJAX and can be reasonably user friendly, sometimes it lags a lot and still does not compare to G-Mail or Outlook experience. So I thought, I would be better off using my desktop client or mobile app, but I looked further. 

I looked at ProtonMail, which I helped translated in the past, a great service from Switzerland that provides built-in end-to-end encryption. (they provide VPN too). The pricing for e-mail services is however nearly the same as a complete G-Suite that provides additional services / apps. So, if I have to pay, I want to get as much as possible for my money and I looked furhter again.

I also considered Office 365, but since I work with it at most of the businesses, I decided to give Google a chance. Plus, it is nice to refresh the knowledge from the Google world too and stay up to date. 

When I first used G-Suite (in the past), it was branded Google Apps and it was free for business. However, these times are gone and they offer only paid opition. So, I knew I will go for the paid version (named G-Suite) unless there is a way to use Google services for free. 

Sure there is, but read before you try. To keep using only my personal free G-Mail account, I would setup all incoming e-mail redirect from my domain’s mailserver (@company.com) to my personal G-Mail address (@gmail.com). I would then add “send-mail-as” into my personal G-Mail account to allow me sending e-mails from my domain but directly from my personal G-Mail interface. This way I could use free G-Mail and Google Apps like I normally do, for free and with my professional e-mail address.

However, there is a catch. Since I send e-mails from my G-Mail account, the e-mail does not go back to my company domain mailserver (servered by Roundcube app), but it is sent directly from my personal G-Mail account (@gmail.com address) to the recipient. That creates two problems:

  1. My customers might see my personal G-Mail address instead of my professional one with the correct domain (this happens when they use Outlook clients, when you set OutOfOffice and other instances). Basically there is no guarantee they will see the correct e-mail address in the “from” section. They could see something like this:
    ‘From yourname@gmail.com on behalf of othername@otherdomain.com’.
    In other cases, these e-mails can easily fall into their spam folder. Gmail servers won’t be in DNS records as authorised sender and forget about newsletters and other e-mail marketing. 
  2. The sent e-mails are held only in my personal G-Mail account, but you won’t find them in the original mail server from where I redirected my mail address to my G-Mail. Roundcube web app will show only incoming (if I ticked “keep copy when redirect”) but not outgoing. This can become a problem if I need to share access to those e-mails, sell the business and also in case of ownership disputes. 

But, that’s not all. If I deside to use personal G-Mail accounts for my business and take advantage of other apps like Drive / Docs / Sheets, they all essentially reside in this personal account and any access has to be shared “publicly” with other users. This means that the ownership of data is not held in my business, but is distributed to other users/owners of those free G-Mail accounts. Getting access to those e-mails/files is left with their merci.

Not to mention the migration/permission mess when I would have multiple users with personal accounts and wanted to migrate them into one G-Suite. Each account has to be migrated manually/separately and permissions recreated. 

Therefore, it is better to “measure twice and cut once” and pay few dollars for G-Suite right from the beginning. 

What services do you like to use? Get in touch with me via LinkedIn or leave me a mail.

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E-commerce in Czech

A brief extract from Business Leaders magazine (03/2019) about e-commerce in Czech Republic and other online resources I came across while doing the research. 

  • e-shop/person ratio is the highest out of EU (around 42,167 e-commerce solutions currently running in Czech, yearly +3.5%)
  • estimated turnover for 2019 – 165miliard CZK (currently 122,215,343,123 Kč)
  • expected growth in small-business market = 13%
  • e-commerce brings around 10.2% of total turnover for small businesses
  • 60% of e-commerce solutions cost around 300,000 Kč (out of box solution, often labeled as custom but it core+addon/edits)
  • full custom e-commerce solution sells around 1milion Kč (limited supply)
  • full price range is 80,000 – 10,000,000 Kč (b2c / b2b)
  • majority of agencies are located in Prage (78), South Moravia/Brno (28), Selesia / Ostrava (33)

Available solutions / options on the market:

  • template – open source or subscription based – shopify, webnode, wix, simply to launch but limited in functionality / customisation 
  • out of box – usually based on core system provided by agency extended by add-ons, custom design, some add-ons already built but changes are driven by the main market target of the agency, otherwise custom development can become pricy or not allowed by agency
  • custom solution – custom coded, most expensive 
  • in-house development  – several employees working on e-commerce, usually used where e-commerce is primary  business activity

!Note! Out of box is sometimes sold as “custom solution” to customers surprise. 

source: https://exec.shopsys.cz/vyzkum#
Note: e-commerce solution delivery time (excludes negotiation)
Czech e-commerce is primarily driven by custom solutions provided by agencies!
New functions (dark purple) vs corrections (light purple)

Extract from shoptet e-commerce feedback (common problems):

  1. welcome banner with discount = not welcomed, should be used for regular customers (new customers has not developed trust yet and wants to know the site/products better), potentially slowing down page load, should be used elsewhere
  2. registration process, if possible allow no registration and get the details later
  3. company info = business address, if missing the trust lowers customers interest, similarly contact section having only a form with no info of the recipient or who do you deal with can become a problem = loss of business
  4. too many categories with a few products = too many clicks
  5. returns of product = customer comes always first, even if they don’t read the condition of sale, find a way to make them happy = negative review means loss of business; be upfront with conditions and do not hide them in terms and condition section made by lawyer 
  6. Products in stock = must be in stock, be carefull with marketing where you state you have it in stock. If not in stock, offer alternative product. Try to provide as accurate data as possible. “Unknown” = not good. 
  7. Late delivery = customers not picking up products, negative review
  8. Communication = late reply means no business, no feedback means no possitive reviews too, Order updates must be sent regularly and checked – otherwise again = loss of business. Be available where you are mostly active, customers automatically expect your presence there. Feedback from multiple sources / heureka, product review, and make sure you respond to most of the customers (most importantly those with negative feedback). Build on relationship with those that give positive feedback – little perks, bonuses etc.
Payment types: customers preference for the payment method in Czech Rep?
Pay on delivery = 34% | Pay in person/pickup = 22%
Bank Transfer = 34% | Online payment = 10%
Delivery method – usage in % by e-commerce businesses.

Price comparison sites and their popularity/usage (source):

  • heureka.cz 53%
  • zbozi.cz 42%
  • glami.cz 30% (only in fashion)
  • srovname.cz 2%
  • hledejceny.cz 3%

source: https://www.ceska-ecommerce.cz/

Reasons for shopping online (source):

  • 47% easy goods comparision
  • 18% comfort shopping (home, no queues)
  • 11% broader selection
  • 10% time savings
  • 8% lower price
  • 6% re-order option

Reasons customers fear the most (source):

  • 43% product is not suitable (cannot touch or test)
  • 21% return issues
  • 17% nothing / no reason
  • 8% misuse of payment details
  • 6% misuse of personal details
  • 5% no help from seller

Devices used for shopping online (source):

  • mobile phones 42% (up)
  • notebook 65% (down)
  • desktop 53% 
  • tablets 17%
  • read more about DPD report (cz) and market share info

2018 e-commerce market dominance in Czech (source):

  • 1. fashion (43 %)
  • 2. leisure goods (37 %) 
  • 3. health and beauty (35 %)
  • 4. electronics (33 %)
  • 5. books (29 %)

Helpful links for understanding the process and comparing solutions:

  • https://www.vybrat-eshop.cz
  • https://www.mujprvnieshop.cz/ (sponsored by shoptet)

Common obstacles: 

  • wrong product (23% returns) = extra delivery costs
  • delays in delivery = loss of customer
  • peak seasons (christmas period) = logistic issues

Case study (BIOOO.cz)

  1. promoting healthy lifestyle
  2. supporting sustainability by making clear choices 
  3. openness – product content is exposed – open discussion and testing
  4. branding – creating community “#BiOOOcz” – “O” is pushed everywhere and clearly stands 
  5. multi-channel strategy (see comparison omni vs multi) – real people behind the business, community driven engagements
  6. target audience varies – not strict to vegan/vegetarians but open to other healthy conscious people

Blog relevance

  • keywords selection is a priority and blog should be integrated in e-commerce
  • extend the content to various searched phases (search, evaluate, select, specify) = mobile phones / smartphones / iPhones / iPhone XS 16GB
  • voice search optimisation = extends keywords into phrases
  • take advantage of business’ location or related social activity (health products + events, fashion + beauty…)
  • seasonal trends = stay ahead with content creation in advance (give time to SE to index your content), example GDPR was announced in advance – marketing advantage 
  • be active / responsive = react to news / GFA – Google Fresh Algorithm

E-mail marketing 

  • declining but open rate can be still held 30-40% and 80% with personalised campaigns 
  • common issues
    • general emails / non personalised e-mails = collect data and use it for targeting (left shopping cart, favourite product/colour etc, create engagement with customers to know their preference)
    • no recipients = collection of subscribers is not effective, can result in 50% loss of sales, a product selector can collect data necessary for future sale
    • pop-up to be used only on new customers
    • 80% e-commerce solutions lacks protection for spam bots (online forms missing reCaptcha) or typos (e-mail address) = 13% e-mail addresses fail (seynam.cy) => autocomplete fixes it 
    • form positioning = not visible, commonly “thank you” page is not used well = advise about “promotion” or “bulk” category in e-mail clients
    • double opt-in is a must (Seznam.cz claims no delivery upon being caught in the spam trap), servers as a proof 
    • expecting 100% delivery = 76% might not be delivered
    • usage of same domain for marketing and transactions
    • missing relevant domain records (SPF, DKMI, TXT)
    • outdated database = must stay relevant, otherwise remove from database
    • ignorance of mobile devices = optimise for mobile viewing, avoid full size pictures and allow clearly “unsubscribe” option otherwise there is 43% changes of getting marked as spam
    • open rate < 10% => check DNS
    • open rate < 20% => check segmentation, e-mail template, remove inactive contacts
    • open rate < 30% => improve e-mail marketing = A/B testing 

Future forecast:

  • personalisation
  • bots automation
  • drove delivery
  • instant payments (crypto)
  • virtual dressing rooms
  • cost prediction (AI) 
  • voice search optimisation

Other resources:

  • samba.io – artificial intelligence used for marketing and personalisation
  • ecommerceday.cz – conference in Brno, education source
  • eshopiste.cz – eshop marketplace, investment opportunities
  • smartlook.com – insights into visitors behaviour (extends GoogleAnalytics)
  • Besteto.cz – meetup and outsourcing e-commerce activity / marketing
  • onlinePeople.cz – headhunting agency focused on e-commerce

If you want to share your thoughts, ideas, project or simply want to get connected, follow me on LinkedIn or leave me an e-mail with your favourite platform you use for networking.

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Messaging apps and privacy

While reading about Edward Snowden, I came across his app for android devices called Haven. Haven app uses Singal app for sending data it collects and as you would expect, Signal uses end-to-end encryption. More importantly, it uses The Singal Protocol which is open source and although the app is not the market leader in terms of a number of users, it certainly tops when it comes to your security. This made me re-think about what apps are available, which apps do I uses, what data I share and what is actually available today on the market? What type of security do the apps offer to end-users and are they sharing users data?

With governments “blindly” pushing their thoughts into breaking encryption and creating backdoors for surveillance, the topic of our privacy and security gains importance in my eyes. I believe in free choice, free market and when it comes to privacy, I re-phrase my friend: “if you don’t value your privacy, you don’t deserve it”.

While researching about messaging apps that are available today, I came across a website SECURE MESSAGING APPS COMPARISON which brings a nice overview of the security aspects that might help you decide which app is right for you. The methodology of rating is also documented there. Wikipedia lists even more apps to compare if you wish to look further, but I am satisfied with this list for now.

As you can see in this report, WhatsApp is definitely the number one app in terms of users base. However, its connection with Facebook (that really does not have a good history when dealing with users’ private data), plus the fact that it collects user data and is closed sourced makes me want to run away. Telegram had its own boom too with the heavy marketing of end-to-end encryption (and ICO projects), but it too collects user data and worse it stores the data with decryption keys on servers. This to allow easy restore as Pavel Durov argues, but with its custom-built encryption as another weakness, I moving away from it.

Singal seems to top the list. It’s open-source (both server and client) so it provides higher trust. It might not have many users yet and advanced features as other apps might offer, but if you look for the privacy of your communication, Signal might be a good choice and even Snowden suggests it ;).

Lastly, do your research and choose what suits best your own needs, everyone is different.

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Malware WeKnow on Mac

I spent some time cleaning friends Macbook from weKnow malware and wanted to share this handy tips with you, should you need it.

Basically, it hijacks local Chrome policy and you need to remove/edit them via terminal/cmd line.

  1. cmd + spacebar (search for “terminal” app)
  2. use following commands:
    1. defaults delete com.google.Chrome <nameOfThePolicy>
    2. defaults write com.google.Chrome <naemOfThePolicy> -string “https://www.google.com/”
    3. example:
      defaults write com.google.Chrome HomepageLocation -string “https://www.google.com/”

Do not install “mac cleaners” or similar. If anything, just use MalwareBytes. Check all extensions and default search engines (Safari,Chrome,Firefox) and remove unknown/unwanted extensions and apps from Mac. There should not be any extra profiles, admin accounts or login items, so clear that too.

additional resources:
https://discussions.apple.com/thread/8501039

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Internet of Money vol.2

I have finished listening to an audiobook – Internet of Money vol.2 by Andreas Antonopoulos. It uses a different structure as opposed to the volume one and I consider it to flow better and be less disruptive. There are great examples, some of which have been discussed in version one but I still encourage people to take it off the shelf and get familiar with this technology. Great listening. Thank you, Andreas.

Here is a link to The Internet of Money vol.2 audiobook on Amazon

 

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Internet of Money by Andreas Antonopoulos

I finished listening to an audio version of the book called “The Internet of Money” by Andreas Antonopoulos. This book is structured into very short, numbered talks which are quite handy when you need to navigate elsewhere and also if you need a refresher. Each chapter starts with a title that makes it really easy to remind yourself whether you’ve listened to it or not. Great for a distanced driving.

In regards to the content of the book, as you would assume, it relates to Bitcoin technology and refers to it all throughout the book. There are quite good examples and is easy to understand. Here are a few points that stood in my mind after finishing this book (version 1).

  • bitcoin as a platform, language, currency
  • telephone system examples and complex network with dumb device vs a simple network with a complex device (smartphone)
  • net neutrality and related issues
  • lego and building blocks as a reference to Bitcoin
  • a freedom we fight for (a reminder of William Wallace-Braveheart)
  • UX problems with wallets
  • focus on technology, not the price
  • one person, one bank
  • joe’s coin and a new era of banking
  • …more…

Now I can jump on the second edition and will update this post after finishing it.

 

Also, I would like to thank Andreas and other people that spend their valuable time working on this piece. I provide a link here, so this book can reach a wider audience. I hope you will enjoy it as I did.

https://www.audible.com.au/pd/The-Internet-of-Money-Audiobook/B071RPBKL1

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CRYPTO: Ledger Nano S

If you have some crypto coins, secure them in hardware wallet! I can recommend Ledger Nano S as shown below. I used it for about 3 months, pretty straightforward to use, portable and reasonably priced. If you have any questions, leave me a message.

Ledger Nano S - The secure hardware wallet

 

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Wave Apps – online invoicing switch

As of 1st May 2018, I will be utilising WaveApps.com and moving away from FreshBooks for invoicing and accounting purposes. They both provide similar features and Credit Cards integration with Stripe payment platform, but WaveApps takes it to the next level with zero monthly cost. This package is, however, designed for small businesses and there can be issues with GST calculations on invoices as this product primarily targets the US market. For non-GST-registered individuals, it is a great and free tool. Tools like MYOB Essentials, XERO, Quickbooks have been taken into consideration, but I do not see a value for money (with respect to my current needs). Let me know your experience with this or similar product.

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WimHof in Australia and his method

Wim Hof was in Australia and I took my chance to get a workshop with him. It was a great experience and I’ve been practising it daily since then, but let’s cover some basics first. Note: this is just for my future reference and brings somewhat limited information value.

Who is WIMHOF?

He is the ICEMAN! Amazing guy, breaking world records (I think he holds 26 or so), he ran a marathon under polar circle in nothing but shorts, Continue reading WimHof in Australia and his method

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SECURITY: TPG modem admin bypass to enable DSL

Problem:

you have Huawei HG659 that came from TPG pre-configured, but it doesn’t work on ADSL. You set up bridge mode to 3rd party ADSL modem and still no success. Reason being – it’s preconfigured for VDSL and you cannot change it without root admin access. On top, TPG won’t give you the password for root.

Solution:

Forget about root admin Continue reading SECURITY: TPG modem admin bypass to enable DSL

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CRYPTO: Bitcoin is not always Bitcoin!

Bitcoin is not always Bitcoin!

Warning! Before you invest in Bitcoin, please do a proper research and/or ask people you trust for advice in this field. There is a very nasty marketing approach circling Bitcoin and has been for a while, as everyone wants to cut their piece and profit. Don’t let them profit on you.

You might come across websites, social network profiles or forum campaigns, which claim that they sell or offer services of Bitcoin, but they are actually selling a forked version of Bitcoin. Continue reading CRYPTO: Bitcoin is not always Bitcoin!

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WEB: webserver sizing and testing

Here are few links I recommend to start with for a web server design, load testing and performance.

  1. Web server sizing – network, processor, memory, HDD
    http://www.dell.com/content/topics/global.aspx/power/en/ps3q01_graham?c=us&l=en&cs=04
  2. Load testing – load impact – nice tool to put a web under (test)load 🙂
    https://loadimpact.com
    http://support.loadimpact.com/knowledgebase/articles/174121-how-do-i-interpret-test-results
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CRYPTO: handy BTC tools for TXs and fees

Below is a list of tools you might need for checking a transaction fee or its details. Handy for cutting some TXs cost and troubleshooting crypto transactions (mostly BTC).

  1. Unconfirmed transaction and fees estimator; shows price per byte and eta for confirmation
    https://bitcoinfees.earn.com
  2. Unconfirmed transactions in mem-pool, variation of #1
    https://dedi.jochen-hoenicke.de/queue/
  3. Bitcoin Fee calculator, calculate size and fee estimation
    https://coinb.in/#fees
  4. Accelerators – for stuck transactions
    ConfirmTX – free below 300bytes, larger $5
    ViaBTC’s accelerator – free, 100 txs, starts every hour, FIFO
    Coolwave accelerator – forum, register first (bitcoinTalk forum)
  5. Block explorer – review transaction details and info about network
    Blockchain.info – info + wallet (BTC)
    Blockr.io – BTC/LTC info
    Blockexplorer.com – grandpa explorer
    Insight.is  – API tool for data
    Chain.so – multi-currency block explorer
    Blocktrail – explorer and wallet
    BitcoinChain – explorer and other info
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SECURITY: two factor authentication (2FA)

authy vs google auth

2FA – optional for now, a must in near future

We live and operate in a digital world where security should be our priority number one, but let’s be honest, it rarely is. How many of you have really strong passwords that do not repeat and are changed frequently? I know! It is a painful, boring and time-consuming process. Well, luckily there are services like LastPass and other password management tools that help us simplify it and use our time better, liking chilling at the beach for example:).
Note: to get a premium membership for 1 year free, use this link for LastPass (not guaranteed) Continue reading SECURITY: two factor authentication (2FA)

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CRYPTO: GDAX – CoinBase security flaw

Let’s assume you enabled 2FA on your GDAX/Coinbase account. Currently, you cannot withdraw funds from GDAX to outside address or bank account without two-factor authentication (2FA).

However, you can move the funds from GDAX to Coinbase account and from there you can then send them to outside address without 2FA! I consider this a security flaw and will demonstrate the issue in the example below.

If for example, you have a device (PC/MAC/Mobile, etc.) where you have activated “remember me for 30 days” feature to avoid providing 2FA everytime you log in, this device becomes a target for potential theft. Once someone will get an access to this device and steal your login credentials, they can then move the funds from GDAX to Coinbase and from there move it to an outside address to which you no longer have access. GDAX and Coinbase share the security settings (including login details), so attacker needs just your login details to access both platforms to action it.

Vulnerability above assumes that attacker will gain access to login credentials and to the device with active “remember me for 30 days”, so please make sure you have both secured very well if you happen to have this kind of set up.

@COINBASE: kindly fix it pls!

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How to back up iPhone to external HDD on iMac

iTunes is storing backups by default on local (system) hard drive. That takes heaps of space, so the external HHD would be better choise.

To prevent this from happening, a symbolic link has be to created and point onto a folder in external hdd.

Following command in a terminal will do the trick.

ln -s /Volumes/1TB/Backup ~/Library/Application\ Support/MobileSync/

Just note the following:

1TB = name of external hdd (if it has spaces, then use “1TB”)

Backup = folder on external HDD

MobileSync = does not have folder “Backup” prior running the command

 

PS: this is general procedure, which might differ based on version of iOS, especially location of backup files on local hdd. Tested on macOs Sierra 10.12.4.

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How to make public facebook posts private (the quicker way)

I randomly came across a problem related to Facebook privacy and public posts. If you have ever posted something on Facebook, you might also know that there are some privacy options available for each post. While you might have your default visibility set up to “friends” only, there still might be some older posts on your timeline with privacy set to “public“.

That essentially means that anyone who googles your profile can see your public posts, such as links, photos, videos, notes etc. Remember those pictures with your awesome hairstyle from the 80’s? Your dance creations on New Year’s Eve? Or maybe those links about political affairs? Whatever is the case, you might feel like you want to hide them all. Continue reading How to make public facebook posts private (the quicker way)

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$100 for free aka Banks are craving for your money

As much as I am not a fan of centralised banks and would love to see crypto in place, I still get paid the traditional way – via EFT. So since having a bank account is a must, why not to get some benefits.

I joined ING Direct through invitation, got $50 cash into my account as a bonus, 3% interest rate on my saving account, visa card and free withdrawals from ANY ATM for FREE in Australia. I don’t mention running fees, because first there are none and second I would not join a bank where I have to pay for letting someone using my money for investment (that’s what banks do). So where is the catch? Continue reading $100 for free aka Banks are craving for your money

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My friend as personal assistant (VA)

So here is the idea. I’ve read that in near future we might see personal assistant using our own voice. Now that’s cool and weird a the same time. Wouldn’t we much rather hear some voice we love to hear? Why our own then? What about someone from our closest family, friend or love?

Disclaimer: I don’t take responsibility for any word listed in this video

There are endless opportunities and solutions available. Just to start and do it:).

Continue reading My friend as personal assistant (VA)

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Freedom & Responsibility

“With freedom comes responsibility.”

From early childhood we want to be independent, we want to do whatever we want, whenever we want. We don’t like other people telling us what to do and when to do it. A classic example is parents calling us for dinner, cleaning our room, doing our homework, etc. Now the reason why they tells us is, that they think or see reasons behind doing these things at the time. They might also see consequences of not doing these things based on what they experienced or saw during their own lifetime. Quite often they believe, Continue reading Freedom & Responsibility

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Kupovani letenek = rychly souhrn

Vyhledávače letenek používám na srovnání cen. Skyscanner je jedním z nich, další třeba Momondo, Adioso.

Ceny letenek pak zkontroluji přímo přes stránky letecké společnosti, u nízko rozpočtových to většinou vyjde lépe u nich. (Ne vždy!)

Vždy používám soukromý / incognito profil v prohlížeči a ceny porovnám i s mobilní aplikaci a z jiné ip adresy.

Letenky hledám v rozmezí: úterý až čtvrtek pro odlety i přílety a pak kontroluji kombinaci +- 3dny všemi směry.

Do ČR teď letím přes Peking a Budapešť – dvě samostatné rezervace. Cena $600 jednosměrná – považuji za drahé, ale tak je to sezóna.

V minulosti, jsem koupil zpáteční ČR – Austrálie nejlevněji za $780 zpáteční, standardně však okolo $1000-1200.

Pro lety z ČR doporučuji Pelikán.cz a sledovat jejich akce. Dá se sehnat ČR-Austrálie za 15tis Kč (je potřeba sledovat Newsletter).

Pokud mozno vyhnout se sezóně anebo létat na okraji (do půlky června či dříve směr ČR, konec listopadu začátek června směr Austrálie).

Upozornění: ceny na vyhledávačích nejsou vždy 100% aktuální. Mnohdy se mi stane ze dva servery ukazuji cenu levnou zatímco všichni ostatní dráž. Problém muže být oběma směry, tak či tak – zkouším booknout za levnější, někdy vyjde, někdy ne.

PS: referuji lety CZ queensland. Do Sydney a Melbourne se lítá často levněji.

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20 tips for wealthy life

Hi everyone,

some time ago I came accross youtube video that inspired me to write down tips for wealthy life. Unfortunately, the video is down, so credits can’t be given but here are those 20 tips for us all to try :). Have fun with it!

1. save first, then spend what you can truly afford
2. study wealthy people / study role models
3. ask for help
4. do regular visualizations
5. make a joy list – treat yourself
6. stretch yourself – push your limits
7. get comfortable with money (have cash on hand)
8. give more than you pay for (constant improve)
9. attitude of gratitude (small things you have)
10. poverty is challenge not a problem, slowly but surely
11. old patterns of poverty (stealing paperclip, bills delayed)
12. stop wasting time on unimportant things
13. good ideas write down
14. practise positivity techniques
15. pay yourself (write yourself a check)
16. know your weaknesses
17. get in touch with your passion EVERY day
18. take the fear out of making money
19. charge what you’re worth (one screw for $300)
20. keep going (re-evaluate)

true wealth consist of whatever you value

 

source: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KG4MBZTDBo0 (link broken)

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Short forecast of computing era in relation to AI

AI = artificial intelligence, has been on rapid growth during the millennium age and we are shifting into cognitive era of computing, where computer software can listen, learn and analyse unstructured data. Cognitive thinking is natural to humans but it’s been a great challenge for digital world. These limitations however, are falling apart and the future we envision and sometimes dream about, might be closer than we think. Scary and exciting at the same time. Continue reading Short forecast of computing era in relation to AI

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Inspiration from Danny Trejo

I came across this video and could not hold myself to listen to it several times and take a time to write down some notes. In my own unique way, I can relate to what he is saying from my own experience and I would love to share pitch points with others. Below the video are some important facts from this short clip I want to comment on.

Everything good that has happened to me, has happened as a direct result of helping someone else.

Continue reading Inspiration from Danny Trejo

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Success judged by results

We measure success by results.

We tend to be driven by results rather than a journey. But once we shift our focus from the future (result stage) into present moment, not only we are far more efficient and successful in what we do, we also grow and become wealthier than ever before, regardless of the result.

Experience, knowledge and growth is our ultimate wealth.

PaCh

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lemon juice and apple cider vinegar challenge

I love challenges. They help me grow. Several studies confirmed that it takes 21 days to develop a habit. So if I can stick to one-month challenges, I will be very happy and continue to grow.

So here is another one I would like to undertake. I’ll call it:

30 JUICY MORNINGS.

Q: What is the challenge about?
A: Start a day with half a lemon, two spoons of Bragg’s apple cider vinegar and 1 spoon of honey mixed in half a litre cup.

Q: What is the desired outcome?
A: lower expectations and avoid disappointment. Feeling good every day would be a good start. Continue reading lemon juice and apple cider vinegar challenge

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iPhone wifi issue solved by hair dryer

Ok. So this has happened to me already 4 times and technique below is not guaranteed at any circumstances. However, it worked for me all the time. So what is the issue? iPhone 4s simply stop providing me wifi feature since I updated the iOS to newer version. It has happened with any major iOS update 7.x, 8.x. Wifi was working perfectly fine, then I updated iOS and boom – wifi button grayed out. Soft reset, hard reset, factory restore, nothing helps. Apple support claiming it as a hardware fault. Continue reading iPhone wifi issue solved by hair dryer

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Shawn Achor – Happiness in practise

I call this happiness in practise and its a technique based on various studies which?prove that application of several techniques can provide higher level of happiness and shifting mind perception into more positive state of functioning. This practise is inspired by TED talk from Shawn Achor and requires repetition of following tasks for 21 days:

  • 3 gratitudes
  • regular journaling (1 article or note per day)
  • exercise
  • meditation (I would add “past dreaming”)
  • random acts of kindness

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Parallel realities inspired by Bentinho Massaro

As Bentinho would say, I just shifted myself into a different projection of my consciousness timelessly. I did it without any effort and with thousands and millions activities or assumptions at the same time, although there is no time as such.

I am a consciousness that’s listing through the pictures of parallel universes. Endless projections of all possibilities that have been already created. Anything I can think of or imagine, already exists. Every movement, every motion, every state of my mind, already exists. All I am doing is swapping the pictures on the projector of what we call reality, that is projected by our consciousness. Continue reading Parallel realities inspired by Bentinho Massaro

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Singapore – Radikal Forze Jam 2015

Alright, it’s been a week I landed in Singapore with my friends and australian dance family. Three crews (Common Ground, Team Cream, Skill@Will) were ready to represent Australia in bboying on this international comp in Singapore and pumped to get new exps, share their?unique dance, expression and passion.

Radikal Forze Jam 2015100+ registered set up a thought in my mind, there’s gonna be a few hungry dancers around. My thoughts came real. Asia, Malaysia, Europe, USA, Oceania. Crews from all around the world were ready to battle and fight for nothing else than RESPECT.?Welcoming smiles, friendly people, no cops and crime anywhere nearby. Just positive vibes, thousands of people and music waiting to be heard. Continue reading Singapore – Radikal Forze Jam 2015

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Breaking workouts and exercises

There are plenty of techniques, tips, tricks and stuff you can do to improve your fitness, body form and inner strength. However, none of that is actually working, when it does not relate to you. Many people use the gym, weightlifting to build up muscles, hoping the performance in dancing will increase. I am not saying it won’t, there are certainly similarities that can be applied across multiple disciplines, however, it looks to me as if you were asking sprinter how to prepare for gymnastics rings. Continue reading Breaking workouts and exercises

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Exercise: shoulder tears

shoulder tears

I just came up with new way of practising handstands and handstand pull ups. When doing standard handstand with wall support or without, muscles are used only until full straight position is reached, where body frame kicks in and all weight is pushed against joints only.

Following exercise eliminates this thanks to hands positioned in front of the body and not under, while whole back is supported by wall. The lower the legs you let go, the more pressure on your shoulders is going to be created. Picture above?will demonstrate this cool way how to build up some strength and body control. Give it a go and you will soon realise, why I call it “shoulder tears”. 🙂

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1000 hours of breakin in 2015

My day has 8 workings hours, 6 sleeping hours, 1 hour of transport, 1 hour eating..and another 6 hours free for whatever I want to do.

That’s a lot and I have decided to invest those hours to self development and breaking. I bought checked lino for my living room so I can practise, which I have always dreamed about, however once I bought it I realised I don’t practise actually. I was missing motivation or purpose.

Now my mind is clear and I know what I am doing. Continue reading 1000 hours of breakin in 2015

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Workshop with Poe One

Gold Coast – 1/03/2013
organised by Team Cream

Legendary Poe One sharing his knowledge, views, passion and love…again and again… :))

Key points:

  • 30 seconds of death concept
    4 dancers, 7 rounds each dance, each round 30sec, limited to certain moves (sweeps/go downs/etc..)
    5 dancers, 9 rounds…60 seconds:)
  • 5 in / out practise
    focused on particular move that repeats, but in and out movement is different
    example: baby freeze, back rock, etc
  • music?diversity practise
    different pace of music, tones, instruments, dancer has to adopt at all times
    no rush, slow down and go with a floor, feel it
  • floor control
    toprock control in all directions, same concept applies to footworks, powermoves etc
    include spins both directions
  • pretzel + knee step drop spin both directions
    use concept of infinite 8 by Ken Swift

 

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My first real book: The Priest, The Surfer and The CEO

This is my first book, I have willingly read on my own. It’s 50% reflection of my life and another 50% is inspiration for my better tomorrows. It teaches you three different concepts on how to approach your life, get a better experience and grow. It helps you find your own meaning of being alive.

I highly recommend everyone to read this book, even if you have difficulties with reading like me. I used to have difficulties with dysorthography, dyslexia and dysorthographia. ?However, where is a will, there’s a way and those are past for me. This blog is major tool that helped me overcome my difficulties related to writing and reading.

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Meeting bboy Kareem

Here I am now, in Australia, having dance workshop with american bboy Kareem, whom I was watching on VHS recordings from French competition called Total Session 4, while practising my silly moves in living room in Czech Republic 13 years ago. ?Almost looks like I am bringing these people into my life, slowly but surely, hey.

Main points:

  • believe is the strongest power you can support your decisions with
  • you create your own reality by your beliefs (he’s been surrounded by the best bboys)
  • everyone has the same story but different language (my translation of his thoughts)
  • being recognised from this guy made me feel warm 🙂

Video footage:

Rock Force Crew vs Vagabonds.?One of the most influential battle I have ever seen in my life.?So much energy, passion and emotions put on the dance floor. So inspiring.

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Go with a flow to Byron Bay

I decided to take a bit of holiday and explore more of my surrounding. Lots of my friends told me how beautiful Byron Bay is and such a good vibes this area has. Well, I’ve been there once for short visit, ticking off my list Lighthouse’s visit and the most easterly point of Australia in 2012. This was on my road trip through East Coast of Australia and I did not really have that super awesome feeling, that people are constantly referring to. So I decided to go there again, plan as little as possible and go with a flow.

I was amazed.

Firstly, I visited Nimbin, where I really enjoyed Continue reading Go with a flow to Byron Bay

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Password security

I am currently working on revision of my password management. Recently, I’ve been a victim of a scam e-mail from pretending to be from Gumtree and my password was exposed. Rookie mistake in a rush. I immediately took actions, however I realised, I don’t have a clear idea, where else have I used that password and hence those services is under potential threat. Continue reading Password security

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Rethink about life, change

rethink

“Disgusted by the world we live in, disgusted by people’s behaviour all around the world,
I am questioning myself, how long will we survive, how long before I’ll write my last line.

Before that happens, I am asking more, both myself and all of you, how can we change this little time for better,
how to get rid of prejudice, hate and fear, all that bother us turn into dust.

How to find peace, love, happiness and serenity, the true meaning of all things around us,
how to bypass the unwritten rule of a system, that controls our time.

It’s not easy to find the answer, since simple there’s many ways,
but start with yourself first seems to be the way, after all the wise is the one, who always asks.”

-PaCh

 

This little piece was written after eight months me living in Australia, when my mind went through different stages of self realisation and development. It is the reaction to conflict between two cultural experiences (Czech and Australian) I was facing at that time. I came to realisation, that all we have around us is created us and only us. We have a choice what we wish to see and if we want to see the change, we have start with our own. Change brings actions and actions bring opportunities.