Thus Spaketh Idd Salim

Let us get innovative

One of the good things about philanthropic efforts if that they gather support pretty fast. There is always the element of  human weakness/strength that makes one want to help those who are less fortunate, afflicted, down, struggling etc. This is a good thing. Kenyans are now doing what anyone would do. Help the hungry.

I am a very vocal and active supporter of the #KenyansForKenya initiative and so it gives me great pleasure to share with you (BizMinds, Thinkers, Bloggers, Techies, The Salim-amesema-nini-tucritisize crew and the lets-find-faults-in-everything-everyone-else-does-because-we-are-doomed-losers brigade.) some few ideas to scale the initiative.

Slowly, we are reaching the end of what The Media, Bob, Twitter etc can do. We are at 121.6 M according to The official #K4K site, which represents 24.32% of the target aimed at. User fatigue is checking in. Slowly but surely. As a friend of mine would put it, ‘wasee wanaboeka na hii story’.

A few positive things make me glee with hope, nevertheless:

• End Month – It is finally end-month/Start Month. A few checks are clearing this week. Bars like K1 are already getting all creative on this and are donating KSHS 50 for each bottle of beer bought towards the #k4k. People finally have some loose cash to spend 100 bob per day to #K4K is not such a BIG ask anymore.
• Corporates – EABL will donate KSHS 10M tomorrow according to a rumor Bob shared on twitter. We just need 9 more Corporates to do that and we will reach 50% of the target. The challenge falls to The Big Wigs.
• Ramadhan – Shari-Ramadhan is here. No indulgences to the non-strict conformist Muslims. More money is thence available and can be channeled here. Also, it is the Month of harvest of rewards from Allah. Anything good done in the Month of Ramadhan is rewarded 100-fold. This is a challenge to the Muslim community.
• Media Push – The media is still unrelenting. Pushing the initiative like they can and should. In as much as some dont-know-any-better presenters from stations like Kiss FM insult Arsenal fans and try to make it funny when talking about donations (Ignoring the fact that gunners run this country and hence compromising the initiative), it is all going on well. Kudos the media!!  On the flip-side It is seen as hypocritical and vain at times when some corporates donate, not out of heart, but for Media Mentions, photo-ops and New headlines.

“So,”,  you ask Batiatas-esquely, “what is this user fatigue thing that you speak of?”

User fatigue is a condition/situation where users of a service/product get tired of routine. Simple as. Facebook changes their site layout, wordings, CSS etc every 48 hours so as the give the impression of an evolving real-estate.

Wazi.

It is a dusty *cough!!-cough!!* beautiful morning here in J2. The Fact that @ekaduki and MugambiSaf are my neighbors always tells me that I am in the right neighborhood. I am all smiles as I rise to day 1 of 30 of Ramzan.

I slept well last night especially after watching Julie read out the numbers from Vodafone mPesa about how much was donated in the #kenyansForKenya #feedKe campaign.

It is eye-soaking what ‘good-hearted’ people Kenyans are. I heard of the story of the Mboch who told the employer NOT to pay her fully for July but donate HALF the money to #111111.

The mellifluous @JulieGichuru went on to talk about the flurry of amounts streaming in and I was so proud of the Man U fans for all the 20 bobs and 30 bobs that were streaming in. This was a case of people LITERALLY giving the little they had. Actually, the LITTLE they always have. The fact Man Urinals Team A beat Barcelona Team D and won the American Chumpions league might explain the selfless generosity, but nevertheless, every little bit helped. No matter how little. Little.

But that is not the topic for today. Today we talk about the philosophy of life, as usual.

The phrase “One cannot have their cake and eat it” [1812] is a adulterated version of the original phrase: “wolde you bothe eate your cake, and have your cake?” [John Heywood - 1546].

The original version was straightforward and meant what everybody would decipher. You simply cannot USE something conclusively [e.g. the irreversible act of eating] and then still HAVE it [at hand and ready to be re-eaten].

The new version, loosely translated, means either of 2 things.

In my readings, Paul Brians, Professor of English at Washington State University, explains it best.

Meaning one

One cannot have their cake and eat it, where have means possess, own, hold etc and eat means use, benefit from etc. It it a common thing in modern society. You cannot enjoy the fruits of your smart [or hard if employed] labor.

There are always things/situations/people to make sure you don’t enjoy life despite the rewards you have. Pesky city council officials, gutter press, laws, mututho, emergencies and accidents etc. You simply do not have the peace and space to enjoy what you reap after sowing.

Meaning two

One cannot have their cake and eat it, where have means eat, devour [e.g. have a cup of coffee etc] and eat still has the same cyclic meaning but with an intended beneficial end to it. This is the classic example of someone wanting to use their butter and sell their butter.

Meaning 2 is similar to the saying that one “cannot have it both ways”. Or one cannot have “the best of both worlds”. Stop being greedy. It is either-or.

They both, have their place and meaning in modern life, nevertheless. It all depends on implementation.

Hope this helps clear the air. Wiki away, too.

Back to code…

Wazi!

Persistence: No matter what!

Word of the day: ‘Persistence‘. And you will eventually get there. One thing will eventually lead to another.

I got the right model to talk to a BIG corporate without seaming weak and needy, while AT THE SAME TIME, not insulting people and seeming confrontational, from Books like The 33 Strategies of War, The 48 Laws of Power and my personal best: As a Man Thinketh.

As James Allen says :

“A man’s mind may be likened to a garden, which may be intelligently cultivated or allowed to run wild; but whether cultivated or neglected, it must, and will, bring forth. If no useful seeds are put into it, then an abundance of useless weed seeds will fall therein, and will continue to produce their kind.”

This is a story of a coder’s journey through the mashes. Misunderstood and denied of a business opportunity, but choosing the right channels to air your reason for grievancies.

Being mature about conflicts and resolving them amicably. Sometimes, writing a blog post and looking for a mbugua, too, muendo, kachwanya, linnet or linda to read through before posting. Listening to one telling you : “Hii ni personal insult that will lead to nothing. Toa. Phrase it like this.”. Not hoarding blog traffic by hurling insults to people you WILL need in your life; and making your miserable life even more miserable. Making big enemies in a small town.

My journey with Safaricom Mpesa and my alleged ‘Hacker’ tag has been a torrid one. The details are public. I won’t dwell on them. But finally, the issue is being resolved. Call it finally getting the attention of the right people. Call it banging the door politely until it opens or breaks. Call it respecting the fact that you are dealing with humans with emotions (and not robots) on the other end and NOT insulting people. Not making everything a personal personal attack and bitching online like a menstruating prostitute. Not using your blog to castigate and slander upon people trying hard to make a change in the society, whilst you have done NOTHING of note, to-date. The internet is a MEANS not an END.

If you use the Internet to make enemies, to start a one-man army, To report baseless facts and numbers based on pure Sicilian vendetta and conjecture, then surely, yours is a path of doom. You find yourself alone. You find yourself now needing to create multiple-email accounts and commenting on your own blog so as to make your posts credible and seem to be getting traffic. A sad little, lonely, impactless meaningless life. All your efforts, even good and genuine ones will ‘fichiwa white’.

Allen Tells us:

“If you would perfect your body, guard your mind. If you would renew your body, beautify your mind. Thoughts of malice, envy, disappointment, despondency, rob the body of its health and grace. A sour face does not come by chance; it is made by sour thoughts. Wrinkles that mar are drawn by folly, passion, pride.

I know a woman of ninety-six who has the bright, innocent face of a girl. I know a man well under middle age whose face is drawn into inharmonious contours. The one is the result of a sweet and sunny disposition; the other is the outcome of passion and discontent.

As you cannot have a sweet and wholesome abode unless you admit the air and sunshine freely into your rooms, so a strong body and a bright, happy, or serene countenance can only result from the free admittance into the mind of thoughts of joy and good will and serenity.”

Coming soon to an Internet near you:

• A final and conclusive Free Mpesa Paybill API for everyone.
• Moca – Reloaded.
• More value add for developers and content owners.

All because of mature, responsible, persistent BUT non-pussy blogging.

Tafakari hayo.

PS: Yes, I heard the usual estate dog barking yesterday. But I will hurl no stones at it. It’s life is hard enough already. Thus adviseth my learned crew.

Back to code…

Wazi

We once coined a phrase in Twirra called the RobAl Syndrome. This is defined as the uncontrollable and self-righteous urge to insult, prematurely report/attack/blame people without checking facts and stick to your story, irrespective of the repercussions.

Anyone who knows anything about me will tell you that of the 8 things that I am, A good pool player is one of the top 5. In pool, there is a term called ‘Kifichiwa White’. A full eclipse snooker. A malicious act based on hatred, fear or unfounded vendetta by someone in power; permanently or temporarily. Also, there is the other thing  called ‘Kujifichia White’. Self Snooker. More like an unforced error in Tennis. An own goal or a silly penalty on Soccer. Dropping the ball in B-Ball.

The new constitution gives us, among other things, 2 fundamental rights. The right to speech and the right to a fair hearing. I rarely, if ever, Agree with @RobertAlai on anything. Not at all. I do not like his always-personal, mostly-unfounded, rarely-fact-checked barrage of insults hurled at anyone from anywhere. This guy seems to have bad beef with everyone. All the time.

If you ever want to develop a Kenyan Version of AngryBirds, he should be top of the list of who should model for the splash-screen.

The 48 laws of power teach us about picking our battles. Pick an opponent. A big one. It is more honorable to lose badly to a formidable opponent, than to totally obliterate and vanguish a weak opponent.

Additionally, Sun Tzu says: “To lift an autumn hair is no sign of great strength; to see the sun and moon is no sign of sharp sight; to hear the noise of thunder is no sign of a quick ear.”

So, the question begs. Where do we draw the line? How do we decide what responsible reporting is; What expressing an opinion entails; What a personal attack is; what clear malice and slander is.

If there is something wrong about a process or an organization, why not approach the people in-charge and talk to them? Even if they are Safaricom, they will always listen and consult [eventually]. You make some friends. You make some money. The trick being that you need to talk to TOP executives. People who can make decisions. Don’t talk to the cooks or watchmen or sweepers. They will just waste your time and inundate you in false hope. Talk to TOP or talk to NONE.

One thing I have learnt from my altercations with Safaricom is that people have fragile Egos. Even if you are speaking the truth. If the sentense does not come out as ‘you guys are the best, the cleverest and have the roundest nipples’, you are immediately classified as an enemy. I have religiously studied the Mpesa System and have a documentation of the Security issues it has.

I offered to share it for FREE with Vodafone so that we can secure our beloved system before Dimitri of Moscow or Chung Hang Lo of Guangzhou takes notice. But NOOOO, there seems to be no gentleman’s way or civilized way of giving such people a FREE solution. For the last 1 year, I have been blocked from Mpesa. Anyone who tries to Hire me to integrate gets a phonecall. Remove Salim from your team or face immediate and perpetual disconnection. Such a nice fella. Such genuine intentions. But Fragile egos, my guy! The result, harsh and cacophonous reactions. Tick.. tock…

So, what happens when we let the RobAl tourettes out? White Ball inafichwa!

I tweeted that I agreed with his last post about Pivot25. 10% of his sentiments were right. 90% were wrong. I came to this conclusion after talking to Erik Hersman. Getting all the facts. He argues that starting developers should not be charged to access IT events. True. I Agree. He argues that Google, Nokia etc should have enough pocket change to cover such events. Since they are sponsors. It is they who benefit anyway. True. I Agree. But he has not contacted Erik or Muendo to find out why the event is being run like it is. He fails to understand and/or appreciate the precedence Pivot25 will set. Then he makes it a personal attack. Again. Mentioning names. Again. This dilutes his argument. His last post now seems like a Kawaida RobAl tourette. Again.

Lesson: Check facts. Don’t add salt to make the argument seem more credible.

Back to code…

Wazi.