Category Archives: Technology

Arts, Business, Film and TV, Health & Medicine, Human Interest, Technology, The Media

NEW TV SERIES ON ‘SELFITIS’ TO DEBUT ON ABC THIS FALL

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Image: ABC

New York, NY (The Adobo Chronicles) – In March of this year, The Adobo Chronicles broke the story about the announcement by the American Psychiatric Association (APA) officially classifying taking selfies as a mental disorder, called ‘Selfitis.’  Since then, there has been much debate in the media about this growing phenomenon on the Internet.

This fall, a new television series will debut on the ABC Network largely based on the story that went viral.  Titled ‘Selfies,’ the new show stars Karen Gillan (‘Dr. Who’) and John Cho (‘Star Trek,’ ‘Harold & Kumar go To White Castle’).  It will airTuesdays at 8pm.

During pre-production, the reporters of The Adobo Chronicles were asked to lead the show’s writing team, but the reporters declined. “We don’t do television,” they said.

Initially, the series  was titled ‘Selfitis’ but ABC Network could not get permission from the APA to use the patented name.

Here’s the new show’s trailer.

 

 

 

 

 

Business, Economy, Health & Medicine, Human Interest, International, Language, Technology, Travel

PHILIPPINES OVERTAKES INDIA AS CALL CENTER CAPITAL OF THE WORLD, THANKS TO NURSES

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imageManila, Philippines (The Adobo Chronicles) – If you try to call customer service to inquire about your credit card or online product orders, chances are you will be speaking to someone from India or the Philippines, the top countries where U.S.-based companies have outsourced their phone services via call centers.

Until recently, India was considered the call center capital of the world. Not anymore. With an estimated 400,000 Filipinos working in call centers, the Philippines has displaced India from the top spot, thanks to Filipino nurses. Say what?

Nursing has become one of top courses and professions in the Philippines, with local universities graduating anywhere from 80,000 to 100,000 every year.

With the very limited number of local hospitals and more stringent requirements for nursing graduates seeking employment in the U.S., it is now estimated that close to half a million licensed Filipino nurses are unemployed or underemployed.

But no worries. Filipino nurses are now being hired by the growing number of call centers in the country, and this has attracted many foreign companies to outsource their services to the Philippines. The reason? Customers who are connected to the Philippine call centers get an extra perk: free medical advice.  Calling the centers is like calling Kaiser Permanente or Blue Cross Blue Shield and speaking to an advice nurse.

After answering customer queries about their credit card or online orders, Filipino call center representatives will ask, “and how are you doing today, healthwise?” The caller can then proceed to ask health-related questions.

So the next time you are connected to a call center in the Philippines, don’t forget to ask about the side effects of your medication or what over-the-counter drug you should be taking for your allergies.

 

 

Business, Human Interest, International, Language, Technology, The Media

FACEBOOK, TWITTER TO ELIMINATE HASHTAGS (#)

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A restaurant menu board: hashtag overkill
A restaurant menu board: hashtag overkill

San Francisco, California (The Adobo Chronicles) – Social media giants Facebook and Twitter jointly announced today that they are eliminating the use of hashtags (#) from all user accounts.

Hashtags are used before words and phrases to expand the reach of tweets and Facebook posts. They are also a way for netizens to determine what’s trending on the Internet.

The announcement came after the U.S. National Association of Schools and Universities (NASU) complained that the extensive use of hashtags is responsible for a decline in grammar efficiency among students, as well as in the national GPA average.

A spokesperson for NASU said that it is time to go back to the good old grammar school and to banish all the technological advances in messaging and communications, especially hashtags and abbreviations like ‘LOL’ and ‘LMAO.’

The Adobo Chronicles learned of the way in which Facebook and Twitter will eliminate hashtags:

Everytime someone types in a hashtag in a tweet or message, a central computer will immediately detect the character and automatically delete it.

There are rumors that Apple and Microsoft are considering eliminating the hashtag sign from their future computer and smart phone keyboards.