Blogger category feed URL

By default, all blogs hosted on Blogger come with a single RSS feed URL. Many bloggers use "labels" to tag their blog posts, so that the posts of different categories can be grouped. Labels are extremely useful for organizing posts and directing readers to a specific topic of blog posts.

To create an RSS feed URL for a specific blog topic (i.e., posts tagged with a specific label) use the following URL format:

http://[blog.host.domain]/feeds/posts/default/-/[label]

For example, the feed URL of this blog's posts tagged "Business":

http://harry.hchen1.com/feed/posts/default/-/Business

Source: Blogger Data API

Technorati Tags: Blogger, Tips, RSS

Why I blog

Andrew Sullivan wrote an interesting article on his blogging experience as a professional journalist. Any one who has written a blog knows that blogging is different from writing essays and traditional journalism. A key distinction is that blogging is an expression of thoughts in words but minus the formal journalism rules.

Personally I enjoy writing blogs more than writing technical papers. My blog topics are usually less restrictive than which of the technical papers. Thus, it allows blog writing to be more creative and fun.  Writing blogs is an effective form of communication. Especially, when I want to receive reader response fast. For example, it usually takes weeks for the readers of my technical papers to send me comments. But, it takes only days (sometimes just hours) for my blog readers to respond.

"Words, of all sorts, have never seemed so now."  -- Andrew Sullivan

Blogged with the Flock Browser

How to think about the value of books and CDs

I'm the process of cleaning up my study room. I'm surprised by the amount of books and CDs that I have collected. In past, I was a strong opponent of throwing away books and CDs. I believed that they are valuable assets. Today, I no longer believe this.

I decide to either sell my collections to used bookstores or donate them the public library. There were few good reasons why I should have kept my books and CDs. They are memories of the past. Each book and CD represent a moment of my life -- when I bought it, why I bought it and whom I shared it with etc. Good books can serve as a reference. A chronological ordering of the CD collection displays a change of my music taste and a change of the popular culture. It would seem be an easy choice to keep all my collections. But, think again, there are many reasons why I should discard my collections.

First, books and CDs take up physical space. Because I rarely go through all my collection, they simply sit on the shelf collecting dust. Until I physically picked out each one them from the shelf recently, I had forgotten many of them. Second, the value of books and CDs diminishes when they are "consumed". Once I read a book, the knowledge it contains becomes part of my knowledge. Some books may require multiple readings in order for it to be fully understood. But, that's rare. CDs are like books. They get old quickly. When a CD has been played repeatedly within a short period of time, it gets old. They ended up on the shelf collecting dust. Lastly, to properly maintain book and CD collections require significant amount of labor and furniture investment. I'm tired of expanding my shelves and cleaning them.

After some serious consideration, I decide to keep only books that are timeless and CDs that have significantly influenced my life. I digitally converted many of my CDs. I wish I can do the same for my books. I decide to sell my books to local used bookstores for pennies before donating them to the public library. I believe used book business could contribute to the growth of local economy. If the owners can make few dollars from my old books, it's better than having them sitting in the public library.

I hope a new wave of 21st century technology will completely eliminate the existance of physical books and CDs. Everything should be digital. Once we've reached that stage, our study rooms can be compact and free of mess.

Snail Eating A Worm Video

I didn't know snails eat worms. This video shows that suburbs can be exciting if you know where to look. :-)

Applying for a US Green Card? Hire a lawyer.

The legal immigration system of the United States is extremely complex. The typical process for obtaining a Green Card (i.e., becoming a Permanent US Resident) is lengthy and sometimes adventurous. If you plan to go through this process, hire a lawyer and don't try DIY.

Here is a story from the law offices of Carl Shusterman.

After marrying a foreigner, instead of hiring a lawyer, Mr D. who is a US citizen tried to applied a Green Card for his wife. With an everything DIY mentality, he followed every steps of the application. Close to the end, the US Embassy notified his wife that she would be barred from entering the US for 10 years. The reason was because his wife had studies in the US and stayed in the country after her student visa was expired.

Now what? It turned out that the wife could file for a waiver if she can prove that a 10-years separation from her husband can cause the couple to suffer "extreme hardship". Sounds easy? Not really.

After filling for a waiver, they received a letter from the government:

... the applicant's situation, based on the record, is typical to (sic) individuals separated as a result of deportation or exclusion and does not rise to the level of extreme hardship.

It's time to hire a lawyer. At the end, the lawyer solved the problem for the couples using some legal maneuver. The wife got her visa to enter the US and joined her husband.

Read the full story...

Wii Economics

Next month, Nintendo Wii Fit becomes available in the US stores. The Web is full with speculations and rumors about Wii's future prospect. This includes a conspiracy theory on how the company sells its Wii products in a weak US economy.

Some speculates that we will continue to see a shortage of Wii console in the US stores, at least for another six-nine months. New advertising of Wii Fit will likely drive up the console demand. On Ebay, Wii continues to sell for above the typical store price. One month before the Wii Fit release, bids for the pre-orders of Wii Fit are also selling above the store price.

Some people asked why it's so hard to find Wii in the US, but not so in other countries. For example, if you live in Japan or Germany, it's not hard to find Wii in the stores. Some speculates that Nintendo has intentionally reduced its Wii console shipments to the US. The theory is that Nintendo can profit more by selling the consoles in countries with a strong currency.

I can't wait to see what's going to happen this X'Mas. I wonder if Wii will continue to be out of stock in Best Buy and Amazon? Maybe the current console will eventually be available to everyone once Nintendo releases Wii 2.0.

Spotted on:

• Wii Fit to Spark New 'Boom in Demand' for Wii
• Wii Fit Release to be Turning Point of ongoing Wii Shortage?

Tibet and the Olympics are two separate issues

No democratic society can progress without giving people the right to free speech. Unfortunately, people in democratic societies often abuse their rights to the freedom of speech. Here is a typical example. Supporters of an independent Tibet raged strong protests in Paris as the Olympic torch travels through the city.

Whether or not Tibet should be free from China is an issue requires serious debates. This problem doesn't have a simple solution. Exploiting the 2008 Summer Olympics as an opportunity to impose an extreme politic view on the issue is both irrational and uncivilized. Violent protests can't solve any problem. They can only create more violence and more disagreements.

The Olympics is a world event that promotes peace and unity. Through the Olympic Games, nations put aside their culture and political differences, and participate in one united sports competition. We celebrate the Olympics as a united human race.

Preventing China (or any other countries) to host the Olympic games is an active destruction of world peace and unity. While the Tibet issue is an important issue, but it's far less significant comparing to a successful completion of the Olympic Games.

If you're interested in world peace, you must accept that Tibet and the Olympics are two separate issues.

Updated (April 9, 2008):

• Non-violent protest turned violent? (Paris, France).

Super Tuesday, What I've learned

Super Tuesday (February 5, 2008) was a big day for the Democratic and Republican Party presidential candidates. This year we observe and experience one of greatest historical events that takes place in the US. Two leading candidates of the Democratic Party are non-traditional type of US President candidates. Barack Obama is an African-American and Hillary Clinton is a woman. On the Republican Party side, John McCain pulls off one of the great political comeback in the US history. Not too long ago, McCain was broke with insufficient campaign funding, and his popularity was low because his strong support for the Iraq War troop surge.

As an observer, I learned few things from this historical event.

First, a fight is never over until it's over. I'm somewhat surprised with the political comeback of John McCain and the popularity momentum building of Barack Obama. I think both candidates can reach today's election results is because of their tireless fighting for what they desire -- "I want to be the President of the United States of America".

Second, the outcome of the Iraq War has permanently changed the political dynamics among the young Americans. Many young people no longer have faith in the "old ways" of doing things. They want change. Thus, most young people I know support Obama. I think this type of thinking has a lot to do with the changing in mentalities of the young generations.

Third, religion plays in an important role in the US politics. This may seem somewhat surprising to those live outside the US. Although the US Constitution explicitly states the separation of the States and religion, but everywhere we look in this election, candidates often send faith-based campaign messages. The general population is also deeply religious when it comes politics.

Given the outcomes of the Super Tuesday, I think there is a real possibility that the Democratic Party will lose the White House in 2008. The fight between Clinton and Obama is not yet over. If they are to campaign against each other, it's possible that McCain's popularity will continue to grow since the typical Democratic voices that would otherwise attack him are busy attacking each other. McCain simply benefit from the absence of strong Democratic Party attacks.

I support Hillary Clinton. I like Barack Obama, but he is a bad candidate for the US President this year. He may be a good candidate in 2012. Experience trumps idealistic thinking. The US is in a state of great uncertainty. Obama's idealistic thinking of "change" will only bring greater uncertainty to this country's future. Clinton is imperfect, but she is the most qualified and experienced candidate.

It's wrong to argue that Clinton is a less qualified candidate because her imperfect political and voting record. No politician is perfect. Part of the politicians' job is to do whatever that needs to be done to bring prosperities to their people. Sometimes this means buying into compromises and "playing the game". Be able to negotiate and compromise in order to achieve a greater good is an essential skill for a US President. Thinking and talking ideally is easy, but experience can only be gained with age.

Reasons to use Facebook

Facebook is a social networking application. Unless you are a teen who tries to show off your 100+ social networks or a business person who tries to profit from the latest social networking trend, Facebook seems to be a waste of time. After playing with the service for two days, I conclude that while excessive use of Facebook can be a tremendous drain on time, but if the usage time is managed well, Facebook is a valuable tool for maintaining healthy social networks that otherwise is difficult to do in the physical world.

I was an anti-Facebook person. I used believe that for a great part of my life I was able to maintain my social networks without tools like Facebook and MySpace, there is simply no good reasons to use them. This thought is no longer valid.

My Priceless photos of London

Priceless.com, a site owned by MasterCard, features some of my Flickr photos taken at the Camden Lock Market in London. The originals can be found tagged camdenlockmarket. Other photos from the same trip are tagged london.

AI video competition

AAAI announced a video competition that is aimed to promote and document exciting research and applications of artificial intelligence. Winners could receive prizes up to $3000 US. This competition is running in part with AAAI-07.

For more information: http://aivideo.org

AI videos from YouTube:

• Robot doing dishes


• Android woman giving a presentation


• Honda Asimo


• AIBO vs. Lizard

Who do you rescue first, your wife or your mom?

To all married men, here is a philosophical question that your wife or your mom may ask: "if both us (i.e., your wife and your mom) fall into water at the same time, who do you rescue first?"

This is a tricky question. If your wife asks this question, and your answer is "my mom", then you're doomed to sleep alone in the basement for days. If your mom asks this question, and your answer is "my wife", then you may receive a long lecture about how much your mom has sacrificed in order to raise you and why it is important for you to care about her even after your heart now belongs to someone else.

Bilingual Benefits on the Internet

I'm fluent in two different languages, Chinese and English. Tim Finin's recent blog post on "China predicted to have 60,000,000 bloggers by year's end" got me to think about the benefits of being bilingual (or multi-lingual) on the Internet.

High Gas Price! Five Unconventional Saving Tips

Down the street, the cheapest gas at my local gas station is $3.07 per gallon. This is expensive comparing to $1.50 per gallon that I was paying few year backs. Given the ongoing geopolitical uncertainty in many oil production countries, I don't expect the price of gasoline is going to fall anytime soon.

Meanwhile, I ask myself what can I do to reduce my spending on gasoline? And, what can I do as a consumer to help to drive the down the high gas price?

Keep Healthy Yourself and Your Credit History

The best way to make money is not to lose money. Two things that everyone can do to not lose money -- keep healthy yourself and your credit history.

As the health care cost increases, keeping yourself healthy is an effective way to save money. Even if you have health insurance, keeping yourself healthy is still important. Taking a sick day off will cause you to lose productivity, and will cause you extra gas to drive from home to the doctor's office. Not needing to see doctors means you can save those co-pay money for something else (such as few more cups of Starbucks coffee). BTW, your health is worth $84,000.

In the US, how good the credit history of a person is usually more valuable than how much saving the person has in the bank. It pays to check your credit history every year. Details on building healthy credit history can be found here.

Shopping May Prevent Memory Lost

In Chinese culture, there is a belief that playing Mahjong can help elderly to stay alert and prevent memory lost. In the West, experts believe that shopping may also help to prevent memory lost.

"Women not only live longer than men but possibly maintain their brain functions better than most men in part because they shop. While shopping, they are physically active, wandering through stores and carrying parcels. They are mentally active, comparing prices and making choices. And, after completing their shopping, they feel they have accomplished something."

Source: Remember this -- How to prevent and protect your memory and makes it grow, by Marshall Loeb, MarketWatch, March 4, 2006.

Why Do People Blog?

Frank Ahrens at Washington Post asks the question, "Why do you blog?" He received many interesting responds. One blogger expresses that blogging is the only way for him/her to make friends. Some other believes that blogging is engaged democracy -- creating an end-run around power publication, in that the people with the most power control what is heard.

Of course, not everyone thinks blogging is a such great invention. One person replied, "28.7 million blogs translates to almost 28.7 million illiterate fools with a digital soapbox who cannot manage to correctly spell the word 'definitely,' even with the help of a spellchecker."

I asked myself, "Why do I blog?"

America's Oldest Business Heirlooms

As baby boomers gray, hundreds of thousands of family-owned businesses are facing a major decision: What will they do with the business? BusinessWeek's top story of the week is "The Bommer Handoff".

Part of this week's special is a presentation of America's Oldest Business Heirlooms -- from bells and brews to canvas and food, here are 10 of the longest-lived family businesses in the country.

Beware of IRS Tax Refund Scams

In the next few weeks, watch out for scam emails that claimed they are sent from the Internal Revenue Service promising info about your refund. Some tips that everyone should know about:

If you have a refund due, you can find about it legitimately by going to www.irs.gov and clicking on "Where's My Refund."

The IRS wants you to know that the agency is still firmly rooted in snail mail and never asks for taxpayer information by e-mail: "The most important thing to know is the IRS doesn't request credit-card and [other] personal information through unsolicited e-mails. We just don't do that," the spokesman says.

Source: Phishing in IRS Waters, Howard Gleckman, BusinessWeek Online, Feb. 15, 2006.

Be Careful about What You Say on the Internet

In fact, be really careful about what you say on the Internet. If not, you may end up in some unthinkable situation like the tale of lawyers William Korman and Dianna Abdala.

The story goes like this. Korman offered a job to Abdala. After two meetings, Abdala tentatively agreed to take the job. Few days later, Abdala changed her mind, and wrote an email to Korman saying that "The pay you are offering would neither fulfill me nor support the lifestyle I am living."