Foreword of Maximum PC Magazine issue January 2008 from Will Smith, Editor in Chief.

Have you ever heard of this thing called “the Internet”? It turns out that it’s a great platform for publishing information. Color me impressed! I think this “Internet” thing just may change the future of magazine publishing. Seriously though, I’m super-stoked to share the next phase of Maximum PC’s plans for world domination. First off, on MaximumPC.com we’re going to post time-sensitive content much, much earlier than we have in the past. Our current strategy of posting reviews months after everyone’s stopped caring is, admittedly, pretty lame. Starting with this issue, we’ll be posting our reviews online as soon as they’re written.
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Most of the world’s Internet users lost access to YouTube for several hours after an attempt by Pakistan’s government to block access domestically affected other countries.

The outage Sunday highlighted yet another of the Internet’s vulnerabilities, coming less than a month after broken fiber-optic cables in the Mediterranean took Egypt off line and caused communications problems from the Middle East to India.

An Internet expert explained that Sunday’s problems arose when a Pakistani telecommunications company accidentally identified itself to Internet computers as the world’s fastest route to YoutTube. But instead of serving up videos of skateboarding dogs, it sent the traffic to oblivion.
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And the countdown begins. At exactly 00.01 of February 7, 2008, we stealthily move into the Year of the Rat, having just snorted our way out of the Year of the Pig. But take note that the Year of the Rat (it’s an Earth Rat) starts from 7 p.m. of February 4, 2008 and ends on February 3, 2009. So, if your zodiac sign is lucky this year (but more on that later), you know when your luck begins.

Luck was certainly on my side when I attended the press conference-cum-lunch hosted Wednesday last week by Mandarin Oriental, Manila, which yearly celebrates Chinese New Year, with a mouthwatering lineup of activities. First of all, there was no traffic on Makati’s usually traffic-choked streets on a usually frenetic Wednesday. This must be my lucky day!

Good fortune and lots of goodwill and good food awaited us at the Ballroom of Mandarin Oriental, Manila that’s all set to roll out its 12th traditional welcome to the Lunar New Year on Wednesday night, Feb. 6, the eve of Chinese New Year with a lot more fanfare than a fireworks display and lion dance. Guests can look forward to the prosperity parade with BMW cars, the first lucky meal at midnight, and the debut of the 2008 forecast of Hong Kong-based feng shui master Joseph Chau. And prepare to be charmed by China with Phyllis Zaballero’s art exhibit on auspicious themes, Feb. 5-17 at the Clipper Lounge of Mandarin Oriental, Manila.

The festivities which kick off on Wednesday, Feb. 6 at 10:30 p.m., the biggest lunar welcome outside Binondo, are held in collaboration with Citibank, BMW, Hennessy XO, Shanghai Tang, and Lifestyle Network with the support of the city government of Makati.
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