WilliamW's Comments

There are 3 different readers (identified by email address) with the same nickname WilliamW. They are represented by different colors.

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118 Picture in Shanghai

farawaypanda

Jianshuo has done a wonderful job - for no pay - in the past few years keeping many, many readers, in and outside China, informed and enlightened in a light-hearted manner about Shanghai-related (and other) matters.

He seems to be under stress from work these days. At the very least, any decent and civilized individual should pick another time to whip up antagonism... Fair comment, farawaypanda? :)


Posted by WilliamW at 2005-11-03 18:35:34. More

117 Do Chinese Move to Small Cities

Thanks to PC for raising this interesting topic and to Jian Shuo for sharing his insights with us.

Just one observation - please correct me if I'm mistaken. Suzhou (Wendy's favorite?), Jiangsu is mentioned in your post. Isn't this city doing very well economically and as a result the costs of living there are significantly higher than the other medium-sized city listed above?
Posted by WilliamW at 2005-02-02 10:20:13. More

116 On Ethic

Thanks, Desmon Chan.
Posted by WilliamW at 2005-01-24 22:16:42. More

115 On Ethic

Thanks, Desmon Chan.
Posted by WilliamW at 2005-01-24 22:16:35. More

114 On Ethic

Thanks Jianshuo and all commentators for shedding light on an important but rarely touched on (in English media) subject. Very thought-provoking...

Can anyone provide the Chinese characters for Wu Jiang Si Mei? Thanks.
Posted by WilliamW at 2005-01-24 11:40:47. More

113 Converting RMB to USD?

Would anyone care to comment on how safe it is to follow the huangniu example of Tee Lek D. Ying?
Posted by WilliamW at 2005-01-19 17:24:20. More

112 Vote Me as Bloggies Best Asian Blog

Just voted (with the correct "home" sub-domain)!
Posted by WilliamW at 2005-01-11 11:57:37. More

111 Shanghai Metro Line #1 - Part I

Very clear & helpful info indeed. Thanks, Jianshuo.
Posted by WilliamW at 2004-09-25 08:06:18. More

110 XGAO's RJRI Retired

Should 人见人爱 not be rjra? :)
Posted by WilliamW at 2004-09-23 20:13:12. More

109 Shanghai's Growth is Slowing Down

Hello, Shanghai Slim, it would be nice to see some of these "gong fang" or "bathroom tile" tower facelifts. Any chance of your posting a picture somewhere?
Posted by WilliamW at 2004-09-14 08:14:51. More

108 Font Changed to Bigger

A small suggestion. Ideally, on the home page, the WJS logo should not be linked to Home, applying the same reasoning.
Posted by WilliamW at 2004-09-11 21:40:35. More

107 Upcoming Change in Font Size

Definitely a welcome change. :)
Posted by WilliamW at 2004-09-11 08:57:21. More

106 Last Post in Year II

Happy Anniversary, Jian Shuo. Keep up the good work!
Posted by WilliamW at 2004-09-11 08:49:11. More

105 The Sea Ranch , Hong Kong

You've experienced something which many HK city dwellers haven't. That's cool! :)
Posted by WilliamW at 2004-09-06 07:48:49. More

104 Hong Kong - the Amazing City

Wow. How did you manage to do/experience so much in just a few days?

Impressive!
Posted by WilliamW at 2004-08-31 11:56:59. More

103 Why Shanghai's Taxi is Good

Jianshuo, when you can spare the time, two photos differentiating "France Red" and "Indian Red" taxis would be most welcome.
Posted by WilliamW at 2004-08-15 09:06:31. More

102 Pause for One Night

Please take care! I've the same habit as yours...
Posted by WilliamW at 2004-08-13 11:42:02. More

101 Why I Don't Have an English Name

bigbro, Japanese use kanji for some places & katakana for others. eg, 中国 is pronounced chuugoku. New York is in katakana.
Posted by WilliamW at 2004-08-10 08:47:56. More

100 Why I Don't Have an English Name

Just to clarify, Jianshuo, I meant to suggest that you may encourage your (non-Chinese) friends & colleagues to address you as JS in conversations ("call me JS"), thus avoiding the pronunciation hurdle. In writing & other formal situations, your full, legal name should of course be used.

And certainly not on BBS... :)
Posted by WilliamW at 2004-08-10 08:35:45. More

99 Why I Don't Have an English Name

This is an August 9 article from asahi.com.
http://www.asahi.com/international/update/0809/012.html

chen, you'll see that the Chinese name of 呂秀蓮 is given together with its katakana version, not on its own. :)
Posted by WilliamW at 2004-08-09 21:11:21. More

98 Why I Don't Have an English Name

bigbro, Japanese generally use katakana for Chinese names. Sometimes, they put the original Chinese name side by side with the katakana version, but never the Chinese name alone.
Posted by WilliamW at 2004-08-09 14:58:24. More

97 Why I Don't Have an English Name

Perhaps we're missing an important point here. By way of illustration, Akio Morita, Sony's co-founder, was probably the most westernized Japanese industrialist of his generation, & actually moved his whole family to New York to learn more about American society. He never used an English first name.

The choice of one's given name has more significance than as an identification badge.

Posted by WilliamW at 2004-08-09 09:27:19. More

96 Why I Don't Have an English Name

Have you considered using the initials J S? It's memorable.

The practice is also quite widespread amongst people the world over who don't want a Christian name (eg, K S Li), or who have first & middle names but prefer to be addressed by their initials.
Posted by WilliamW at 2004-08-08 00:32:06. More

95 Busy Life Started Again

"make sure it does happen as I described"

Tough, since there must be many variables outside your control, or even unforeseeable. Your perseverance is admirable.

Presumably, the client's expectations have to be managed, too?
Posted by WilliamW at 2004-08-04 06:50:36. More

94 Micropayment with Mobile SMS in China

Daniel, you can use the following Sina SMS service from the US:
http://home.sina.com/sms/
Posted by WilliamW at 2004-08-01 17:29:37. More

93 MTBlackList is Better than IP Banning

Way to go, Jianshuo!
Posted by WilliamW at 2004-07-28 07:08:50. More

92 Three on the Bund

Excellent night shot. There's a special ambience about the Bund with the lights on the buildings off.
Posted by WilliamW at 2004-07-25 20:24:06. More

91 HP Pavilion a610cl - My New Home PC

FYR: Stop Comment Spam
http://forums.hostmatters.com/showthread.php?p=61407#post61407
Posted by WilliamW at 2004-07-20 12:49:36. More

90 HP Pavilion a610cl - My New Home PC

Congrats - very nice box indeed. It seems that you use Windows XP English, not Simplified Chinese. Any specific reason?

Your Lenovo comments are as pertinent as they're a little sad. Ever since their computers first became available outside the mainland, I had wanted to buy one to do my "Buy Chinese goods" bit. Yet, to this day, their PCs remain unattractive compared to the major brands, just as you described. I sincerely hope that they get their act together well before the 2008 Olympics - otherwise all that sponsorship money will be wasted. :(

"The reseller offered to install any version of Windows system for me after my purchase free of charge. " Using an "unofficial" Windows XP copy!?
Posted by WilliamW at 2004-07-20 11:14:36. More

89 Exciting Shanghai Night Life

Very nice account. You'll make a wonderful ambassador for Shanghai, Jianshuo. :) I bet many of your readers who have never seen the city will get a sudden urge to visit the place upon reading your article. Hehe...
Posted by WilliamW at 2004-07-18 16:40:19. More

88 Group Drive to Yang Cheng Lake

Very interesting & well-written article. Thanks for posting it, Jianshuo.

Presumably, the A30 is only an incomplete ring. Since the outer ring road is A20, is there a number equivalent for the inner ring road?
Posted by WilliamW at 2004-07-11 09:53:26. More

87 Hospitals and Hotlines for SARS in Shanghai

Sumit, you might want to try calling the Daily Telegraph in London to obtain the contact details for Adam Luck (in Hong Kong), who wrote the following article about the gene theraphy you mentioned.
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2004/07/04/wgene04.xml&sSheet=/news/2004/07/04/ixworld.html

Daily Telegraph (in London)
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/pressoffice/main.jhtml?menuId=2520&menuItemId=-1&view=DISPLAYCONTENT&grid=P8&targetRule=0
TEL: 020 7538 5000

The above info has also been emailed to you.
Posted by WilliamW at 2004-07-10 19:10:28. More

86 Hospitals and Hotlines for SARS in Shanghai

Hi Sumit

Tong Ren Hospital in Beijing
http://www.tongrenhospital.com (site down at time of writing)

You may want to write to CCTV (China's BBC) program "Chinese Medicine" which has a good section dealing with viewers' queries. Often combined Chinese-Western methods are used as case studies on the program.
http://www.cctv.com/program/zhyy/01/index.shtml (Chinese)

The email adress of their presenter, Miss Hongtao ZHAO. She seems like a helpful person. She & her colleagues may be able to put you in touch with Dr Niu Qi.
hongtao@mail.cctv.com

If you can post the link to an article in Chinese referring to Niu Qi here, I'll have a go at looking for his email adress. A Chinese transliterated name is virtually impossible to locate or identify precisely.

It's probably worth contacting the newspaper publishing the article you mentioned.

The above info has also been emailed to you.

Hope things work out alright...
Posted by WilliamW at 2004-07-10 18:54:15. More

85 Transferred to Microsoft Consulting Service

All the Best!

Please be a little circumspect about posting stuff related to the internal operations of Microsoft and especially customers on this blog. Your loyal fans won't want you to get yourself into any kind of trouble!
Posted by WilliamW at 2004-07-07 08:43:48. More

84 Volunteers Wanted

JS, given your interest in PHP, perhaps one should've realized that you're more enlightened than one expects. :)

Don't get me wrong, I'm all for Open Source. Without getting into a religious debate, there must be a limit as to how much de facto freedom an MS employee has in deploying Open Source tools for extracurricular activities. For example, it's hard to imagine a LAMP platform being used.
Posted by WilliamW at 2004-06-17 19:10:53. More

83 Volunteers Wanted

Message for Michael Yuan

Since JSW works for MS, he may not think that your Open Source comment is politically corect. :o)
Posted by WilliamW at 2004-06-17 06:55:50. More

82 ATMs as WiFi Hotspots

JS, care to try these broadband "solutions"?
http://www.pbs.org/cringely/pulpit/pulpit20010628.html
http://www.pbs.org/cringely/pulpit/pulpit20020207.html
Posted by WilliamW at 2004-06-15 09:16:00. More

81 Visited Chong Ming Island for the Second Time

Thanks for taking the trouble to write out the figures. Chongming Island must be quite popular with visitors. :)
Posted by WilliamW at 2004-06-15 09:06:40. More

80 I am a Tough Customer

You're tough, JS! :o)

"In the phone calls, I referenced the Consumer Protection Laws and evidence. I know the details because I often call the legal assistance hotline 12348 to learn legal knowledge." Smart. Being well-informed is a pre-requisite to solving problems. Toughness alone can backfire...
Posted by WilliamW at 2004-06-14 21:32:18. More

79 Visited Chong Ming Island for the Second Time

Seems like you had a really enjoyable Sunday. :) Can you tell us how long the round-trip journey was, & how much the ferry crossing cost?

Rather surprised to learn that there's no gate or any barrier at the edge... ^_^
Posted by WilliamW at 2004-06-14 21:26:38. More

78 Shanghai Morning in A Car

Very nice article providing a glimpse into driving in Shanghai. Hope to see more on other daily life subjects.
Posted by WilliamW at 2004-05-27 17:41:45. More

77 Nanyang Trip Report

Nice! When you've a spare moment in Shanghai, would it be possible to post the exposure setting for "The Tianxin Cave" photo?
Posted by WilliamW at 2004-05-08 13:04:52. More

76 Sony Ericsson GC75 in Shanghai

Cool! Thanks for the writeup. I'm gonna check this out on May 1.

Glad to hear you can now update your blog in the comfort of your home. :)
Posted by WilliamW at 2004-04-28 20:48:09. More

75 First Week in Pudong

Nicely written blog entry. Where were you when you posted it (11:07pm on a Sat)? :)

Enjoy your new life in Pudong!
Posted by WilliamW at 2004-04-11 09:29:49. More

74 Digitally and Physically Move

All the Best!

Supervising building contractors is far from a pleasant task. Hope things go smoothly for you.
Posted by WilliamW at 2004-04-08 11:58:25. More

73 Service Pause Site Migrating

Congrats! Moving physical & virtual homes at the same time is no mean feat. :)

Have you managed to sell your Puxi flat already?
Posted by WilliamW at 2004-04-03 10:17:19. More

72 Puxi is not Car Friendly

Hope you'll settle down in Pudong soon...

Wonder how much a monthly parking permit costs at Metro City?
Posted by WilliamW at 2004-03-28 10:15:00. More

71 FIAT Siena 1.5 HL Pictures

Just look at that smile, like a little boy with a big toy... ^_^
Posted by WilliamW at 2004-03-17 08:47:30. More

70 Jian Shuo Got His Car

Did you get a Shanghai car license?
Posted by WilliamW at 2004-03-16 08:59:36. More

69 Jian Shuo Got His Car

Way to go, Jian Shuo. Congrats!
Posted by WilliamW at 2004-03-16 08:56:21. More

68 Old Houses in Shanghai - Part II

Very nice. :)

How did you find out that these houses were built nearly a century ago, Jian Shuo?
Posted by WilliamW at 2004-03-08 21:00:39. More

67 Just Few Steps Away from My New Car

I echo Li Jingyi's viewpoint. If VW's reliability is demonstrably better than Fiat's (which is quite likely), then buying a slightly more costly VW now will save money in terms of maintenance & other running costs in the long run. Also, VWs may have a higher resale value.
Posted by WilliamW at 2004-03-08 13:52:40. More

66 Continue to Seek for an Apartment

JH raised an interesting issue about property ownership & valuation. A roughly comparable situation is Belgravia, which has the most expensive residential real estate in England. A large proportion of land in that area is owned by the Dule of Westminster estate, & people can only acquire leases of houses & apartments. These leases are usually quite short, sometimes less than 50 years. What happens in practice is that a premium will be negotiated well before a lease's expiry to extend the "ownership" period.

Given the nascent laws & regulations relating to property ownership in modern China, let's hope a viable & reliable system evolves soon!
Posted by WilliamW at 2004-03-03 19:23:43. More

65 Continue to Seek for an Apartment

Thanks for sharing your experience with us, Jian Shuo.

Claire's interesting comments about Shang Zhi Jiao led me to this article (in Chinese), posted in Unicode here for anyone who might be interested:
"上只角与徐家汇案名点?
http://www.ehomeday.com/talk/talkanswer.asp?id=7008
Posted by WilliamW at 2004-03-03 11:32:26. More

64 Bye Bye, Pudong

Very sensible decision!

Jian Shuo, if you can spare the time in future to document your property-hunting adventures in HuaShanLu, XinHuaLu & ChangNingQu, it's likely many people will be interested.
Posted by WilliamW at 2004-03-01 12:27:37. More

63 The Devil's in the Details

Michael's observation in the last paragraph is clearly on the mark. Companies like HuaLian have improved a great deal in the last few years, & look likely to do even better going forward.

Do you & your close friends buy shares in listed Chinese companies as a long-term investment (as opposed to trading or speculation), Jian Shuo? Well-managed companies may be relatively few, but if they can be identified, this will be an area worth looking into.
Posted by WilliamW at 2004-02-25 10:29:33. More

62 About Jian Shuo Wang

Please seriously consider making your last item the first one!
Posted by WilliamW at 2004-02-19 09:00:14. More

61 Wifi Hotspot Competion Becomes Hot

Thanks for sharing your experience, Jianshuo.

Found the URL for China Mobile's e for the benefit of other visitors to this site.
http://www.chinamobile.com/YDYW/hyyw.asp?classid=1&ClassChild_ID=14&Array_ID=124

Would you happen to know whether China Mobile pre-paid SIM card users can use this service too?

Please note "there is subscription fee" should read "there is no subscription fee".

Would you be interested in starting a WiFi section, Jianshuo? WLAN Internet access is very useful for business travellers (who are part of your blog's audience) & it's most likely they'll find related, user experience info beneficial.
Posted by WilliamW at 2004-02-18 10:07:23. More

60 China Internet Market Analysis

Jianshuo, have you come across any articles analysing the profit margins of the portals' SMS-related businesses (eg, how much do they make on every message sent or ringtone downloaded)?

A little hard question? :o)
Posted by WilliamW at 2004-02-18 10:24:07. More

59 Beijing Impression

Thanks, Jianshuo. Mr Pan is clearly on a roll...
Posted by WilliamW at 2004-02-17 18:24:55. More

58 Beijing Impression

Jianshuo, very informative article & nice photos!

Can you please add the Simplified Chinese characters for JianWai Soho? Would you happen to know if it's for pure commercial or mixed residential-commercial use?
Posted by WilliamW at 2004-02-17 09:53:28. More

57 First Class On MU5106

Flying first class on Valentine's Day? The thought fills yor readers with envy...
Posted by WilliamW at 2004-02-14 22:14:57. More

56 Voted as Top 10 Blogs in China

Congrats!
Posted by WilliamW at 2004-02-13 10:08:13. More

55 Cross Bank Money Transfer Now Possible

About your mortgage payments, is it not possible to have a direct debit or standing order arrangement so that the right amount is automatically deducted from your bank account?
Posted by WilliamW at 2004-02-05 09:14:53. More

54 Service Quality of Banks in China (Shanghai)

The newly announced inter-bank transfer system amongst eight non state-owned banks will hopefully make mortgage payments easier, Jian Shuo. :)
Posted by WilliamW at 2004-03-23 18:14:51. More

53 Shanghai Map Viewer

Excellent tool! Thanks.
Posted by WilliamW at 2004-02-03 10:25:31. More

52 Service Shock in Shanghai

Indeed. Mainland bank branches being opened on Sundays is a great convenience!
Posted by WilliamW at 2004-02-03 17:14:01. More

51 Service Shock in Shanghai

Interesting article. However, allow me to put forward a slightly different viewpoint.

In Japan, even nowadays, including in Toyko, most people are still not good communicating in spoken English. Nonetheless, the above incident will almost certainly never happen in a Japanese bank. First, bank branches in cities will more than likely have at least one employee who can handle simple conversations in English. Second, more importantly, Japanese bank staff will find a way to accommodate the customer's not unreasonable expectations, which is the case in the above incident.

Many years ago, I spent a few months in a Japanese retail bank, & managed to witness how Japanese bank staff treat their customers.

Language is clearly a factor, but it's the service mentality which makes a difference in customer experience. One's hopeful that the state-owned banks will raise their service level, but this takes time. Jianshuo, perhaps you can shed some light on whether the smaller banks like Chinese Merchants, Pudong Development or Minsheng are starting to differentiate themselves through better service?
Posted by WilliamW at 2004-02-02 23:35:04. More

50 Abandon of One Entry Per Day Rule

Billy: how about accepting blog suggestions from your visitors?
Posted by WilliamW at 2004-02-03 12:58:40. More

49 Xiangyang Market - the Shopping Paradise

Thanks, Wang Jianshuo! You clearly have your eye on the property investment ball. :)
Posted by WilliamW at 2004-02-01 14:04:35. More

48 Xiangyang Market - the Shopping Paradise

Where is Qipu Road? Can someone write it out in Simplified Chinese for easy location in a SH map index? Thanks.
Posted by WilliamW at 2004-02-01 13:11:33. More

47 Wireless (WiFi) Hot Spots in Shanghai

It's Hongkou, not Hongkong. :)
Posted by WilliamW at 2004-01-30 20:55:07. More

46 Webcam+Windows Media+GPRS+SmartPhone=?

Noted with Thanks!
Posted by WilliamW at 2004-01-26 13:22:45. More

45 Webcam+Windows Media+GPRS+SmartPhone=?

"Moreover, I used my credit (points) I get from telephone bill to pay the 200 RMB so GPRS is free for me - I don't pay a penny for it."

Cool! Can you give a rough idea of how large a telephone bill one has to run up with China Telecom to get free GPRS effectively?
Posted by WilliamW at 2004-01-25 23:19:22. More

44 Wow. Shanghai is Snowing

I wish I were in Shanghai today...

If possible, can you please take as many photos as you can to record this "event"? Hope to see them published on your blog!
Posted by WilliamW at 2004-01-18 12:59:02. More

43 Any Advice for Smiling Library

Jianshuo, you're clearly keeping yourself occupied! Good work. :)

A charity in the US or UK typically has a special tax status in that donations (including non-cash items) may be tax deductible. To gain this advantage, an application has to be made to the relevant tax authorities. Often an accounting or law firm will handle the paperwork.

NGOs and NPOs (Non-profit organizations, or Not-for-profit organizations) aren't necessarily charities. Nonetheless, in organizational terms, there should be a formal committee (or governing board) overseeing the organization, with day-to-day affairs delegated to officers appointed by the commitee.

These details will be governed by the relevant constitutional documents which are required to form the "entity" in the first place.
Posted by WilliamW at 2004-01-12 16:38:26. More

42 My Name is on Mars

Did you include the URL http://www.wangjianshuo.com? :P
Posted by WilliamW at 2004-01-09 22:28:53. More

41 Salary in Shanghai

Thanks for the helpful figures.

The exceptional property price increase in the last few years has to an extent been fueled by young people, especially those in their mid- to late 20's, taking out sizable commercial mortgages to acquire their first homes. Now it seems affordability has worsened significantly since salary raises have far lagged property price increases. Fair observation?
Posted by WilliamW at 2004-01-09 22:26:41. More

40 Salary in Shanghai

Very insightful.

It might be interesting for visitors to this blog to learn about how servicing a mortgage would affect your calculations.

Say a white-collared couple with a joint monthly income of RMB20,000. They recently bought an apartment for RMB 1,000,000, & spent RMB250,000 on decorations, etc. Assuming they paid RMB200,000 upfront (typicaly 20%?) for the property, & the furnishing expenses, out of their savings, & have therefore taken out a RMB800,000 mortgage (typically for 10 years?), how would they fare?
Posted by WilliamW at 2004-01-08 12:04:11. More

39 Bring Your Mobile and Internet to Shanghai

Oh, I was only asking speculatively... I don't think such a pre-paid service has been introduced, but would personally use it myself.

Also of interest, GPRS mobile Internet access:
http://www.shanghaiexpat.com/PNphpBB2-name-file-viewtopic-t-6445.html
Posted by WilliamW at 2004-01-06 12:51:59. More

38 Bring Your Mobile and Internet to Shanghai

Is there a pay-as-you-go or pre-paid card scheme whereby visitors (ie non-SH residents) can use the TianYiTong Wireless LAN service (51wireless.com) in Starbucks to access the Internet?
Posted by WilliamW at 2004-01-06 11:13:10. More

37 Got Flu and Went to Hospital

Hope you two get well soon. Please stay away from computers for a while - the rest will do wonders to your health. :P
Posted by WilliamW at 2004-01-05 08:56:29. More

36 PmWiki Successfully Installed on Windows 2000

Nice PmWiki GB pointers :) but il18n should read i18n :P
Posted by WilliamW at 2004-01-04 13:12:12. More

35 Happy New Year 2004

Happy New Year, Jianshuo!

Nice photos. Did you have to put your camera on a tripod to cope with the slow shutter speed exposures?
Posted by WilliamW at 2004-01-01 11:19:39. More

34 My Alexa Traffic Ranking Improved

Hehe, I'm the 5th person voting for u this time. Good luck, u're now in joint lead. :)

2003ӢBlogѡ
http://www.wesnapcity.com/award2003/indexe.php

PS Transfer this comment to a new blog?
Posted by WilliamW at 2003-12-30 17:14:08. More

33 Wonderful MeetUp on Dec 26

Nice 2T1F game. :)

Hope to catch you guys next time.
Posted by WilliamW at 2003-12-27 18:37:07. More

32 10 Things You Love/Hate About Shanghai

Hi Jianshuo

How was your meetup last evening?

Just got back from Shanghai, & would certainly echo Phil's comment, having lived & worked in London for nearly 9 years. I deliberately used the Shanghai Metro (almost) exclusively on this trip, & was very impressed (despite the at-all-hours crowded conditions).

WilliamW
Posted by WilliamW at 2003-12-27 14:12:56. More

31 Directory Added

Your new directory is a joy to navigate, with a Yahoo feel to it. Great job!
Posted by WilliamW at 2003-12-13 09:47:23. More

30 Directory Added

A most desirable improvement! Thanks. Look forward to checking out the new combined site.
Posted by WilliamW at 2003-12-13 09:43:25. More

29 Vote Me as Best Mainland Blog

... and one (mistakenly) thought moblogs were written by Sopranos fans. :)
Posted by WilliamW at 2003-12-07 22:06:09. More

28 Vote Me as Best Mainland Blog

I'm vote #14. :)

Let me to do a little lobbying for you, Xiao Wang, in the coming week.
Posted by WilliamW at 2003-12-07 14:08:23. More

27 Typical Taxi Fares in Shanghai

Very helpful. Thanks!
Posted by WilliamW at 2003-12-07 14:02:48. More

26 Watch Out Bad Shanghai Taxi Drivers

Thanks for the useful "warning".
Posted by WilliamW at 2003-12-03 07:08:55. More

25 To 30N 119E

Have a safe and interesting trip!

Are Sebastian and his friends current German students at SJTU? His site provides an interesting perspective on Shanghai.
Posted by WilliamW at 2003-12-01 09:08:41. More

24 Starbucks in A Day - Part II

Isn't there a 6th Pudong Starbucks too, in the lobby of Taiping Life Insurance Building (formerly known as Information Tower) at 1399 Min Sheng Lu, Pudong?
Posted by WilliamW at 2003-11-25 18:31:58. More

23 Starbucks in A Day - Part II

Many Thanks for your helpful pointers, Jianshuo!

But you really shouldn't be replying to blog comments at 2:39am... :(

Have a great Monday. :)
Posted by WilliamW at 2003-11-24 09:21:24. More

22 Starbucks in A Day - Part II

Jianshuo, would you happen to know at what time the Super Brand Mall Starbucks open in the morning?
Posted by WilliamW at 2003-11-23 23:58:30. More

21 Starbucks in A Day - Part II

As a matter of curiosity, where is the 5th one in Pudong which you didn't visit?
Posted by WilliamW at 2003-11-23 23:46:29. More

20 Smart Card ID Card in Hong Kong

I collected my sister's new "smart" HK ID card too - she's not in HK at the moment. One thing Phil didn't mention is that the card allows the holder to verify his (or her) fingerprint electronically. The implications are endless...
Posted by WilliamW at 2003-11-18 23:05:25. More

19 Appologize from Baliforyou

Well done! Also good to learn that people are decent, after all.
Posted by WilliamW at 2003-11-12 12:42:44. More

18 Going to Europe?

Excellent update!

Zhu's book is interesting too. Thanks for mentioning it. He seems to appreciate the art of self-promotion. :)
Posted by WilliamW at 2003-11-11 09:36:48. More

17 Going to Europe?

I previously read from Christina's blog that it's a lot of hassle for a mainland Chinese citizen to get visas to visit Europe. Is it much easier for you, since you've travelled on business to the US and other countries so many times already?
Posted by WilliamW at 2003-11-10 08:16:04. More

16 All Work and No Sports Made Jack a Dull

Wonder if the newer residential property developments include sports facilities, or at least a gym, as part of their community services?
Posted by WilliamW at 2003-11-06 17:08:42. More

15 Wendy Became PMP and This Site Listed in DMOZ

Congrats to Wendy (PMP) and JS (Dmoz)!

As a matter of interest, how many unique visitors is this site getting daily after the listing?
Posted by WilliamW at 2003-11-07 10:32:20. More

14 PVG: Closer Look at MagLev

Nice pic's. morning and impolo.com look interesting too.
Posted by WilliamW at 2003-11-05 16:26:02. More

13 Shanghai Metro Map and Timetable

Very clear. Thanks for posting it. Would you happen to know where to get a hard copy?
Posted by WilliamW at 2003-11-04 20:46:26. More

12 My New Toys - Clock, Radio and TV

"I found simple and realiable things are most attractive to me..." Usability, usability, usability. :P This is also why your site is so user-friendly. :)
Posted by WilliamW at 2003-11-02 11:21:04. More

11 Houses in Shanghai

Perhaps it's more appropriate to say that many buyers hold properties for speculation, not investment, purposes.

Bubbles burst when most people no longer fear that they'll burst. Would you be interested in devising a "fear scale", Jian Shuo? :)
Posted by WilliamW at 2003-10-30 11:54:47. More

10 Hand-Made Map of Pudong Area

Hi Jianshuo

I don't mean to flatter you, but you've a rather good memory and road sense. :)

As a matter of interest, what are the price levels (per sq. m.) of the properties near Century Park?

WilliamW
Posted by WilliamW at 2003-10-25 21:48:02. More

9 PVG: Location of Maglev Station

Thanks for your excellent directions and explanations. :)
Posted by WilliamW at 2003-10-24 13:16:46. More

8 Kecak.com - (No Longer a) Comment Spammer

Please note "lolita", a new spammer.
Posted by WilliamW at 2003-11-04 20:51:54. More

7 Kecak.com - (No Longer a) Comment Spammer

Hi Jian Shuo

Just to make sure that I'm not mistaken for the spammer of the same name above, I'll use the username "WilliamW" for posting from now on. :)

These spammers are so pathetic ...

WilliamW
Posted by WilliamW at 2003-10-22 15:49:49. More

6 Pudong Airport Maglev in Depth

Noted with Thanks, Jianshuo.
Posted by WilliamW at 2004-02-18 15:38:47. More

5 Pudong Airport Maglev in Depth

Is there a large number of taxis serving the LongYangLu subway station during daytime? Would appreciate it if anyone could offer a pointer or experience.
Posted by WilliamW at 2004-02-17 18:17:25. More

4 Comments on My Daocheng Pictures

Your site seems to have become a magnet to spammers like "levitra". :(

These people are so pathetic...
Posted by WilliamW at 2003-11-05 11:56:25. More

3 Guestbook

Came across LookAtChina.com by chance. Lots of pretty photos. John, its creator, seems like a nice guy. He's a JiaoTong University graduate who now works in the US. Thought you might like to know!
http://www.lookatchina.com/web_ch/phpBB2/index.php
Posted by WilliamW at 2004-02-13 22:38:22. More

2 Home.wangjianshuo.com Moved Out of my Home

server quality 3/10? Unacceptable downtime due to hardware (mainly disk?) failures then? Too frequent?
Posted by WilliamW at 2003-10-30 12:23:01. More

1 Home.wangjianshuo.com Moved Out of my Home

Can you say a few words about CompanyCN.com's services after over 1 year with them?

Thanks.
Posted by WilliamW at 2003-10-30 12:06:43. More