Category: Web

Fake booze in SE Asia

All this ad needs is some Billy Dee Williams.
All this ad needs is some Billy Dee Williams.

So I was talking about fake Absolut from Laos with the crew today, and it occurred to me that the last bottle of Heineken I had tasted a lot like piss, which is a trademark of the lowest levels of Thai brew (I’m looking at you, Red Horse). I wondered if people bother to adulterate/fake/fuck with tax stamps and lot markings on beer as well, and fired up the old Web Wombat (it’s an Aussie thang):

That video prompted this official response from Heineken: Tampering with Heineken® labels

Which led me to this vid:

Story here: Heineken ‘absolutely on top’ of fake beer threat after Vietnam gang bust

The two stories aren’t about the same incident, andnowI’mgettingsleepysonowittyconclusionforthispost, sorry.

Finding where Bill’s Bar was located.

Note to self: Look for the yellow building with slit windows. Surugamachi 2? Goddamn Japanese street numbers.

Bill’s Bar Sound, Nara ( ????)

https://www.google.co.th/maps/place/Japan,+%E3%80%92630-8357+Nara-ken,+Nara-shi,+Surugamachi,+35%E2%88%922+%E4%B8%AD%E7%94%B0%E3%83%93%E3%83%AB/@34.6784822,135.8207621,3a,60y,328.03h,89.04t/data=!3m6!1e1!3m4!1sE_QVszFnHQ3pRUsmsXCwlA!2e0!7i13312!8i6656!4m13!1m7!3m6!1s0x60013a2581e65349:0x5daa2b94dd96e74c!2zSmFwYW4sIOOAkjYzMC04MzU3IE5hcmEta2VuLCBOYXJhLXNoaSwgU3VydWdhbWFjaGksIDM14oiSMiDkuK3nlLDjg5Pjg6s!3b1!8m2!3d34.6786425!4d135.8208921!3m4!1s0x60013a2581e65349:0x5daa2b94dd96e74c!8m2!3d34.6786425!4d135.8208921?hl=en

720, 960, 2048 pixels wide

These are the optimal sizes for photos you upload to Facebook. I had no idea. I knew that FB automatically resizes and formats your photos, but did not know these were the magic numbers. Also:

  • Resize your photo to one of the following supported sizes:
    Regular photos: 720px, 960px, 2048px (width)
    Cover photos: 851px by 315px
  • If you use a 2048px photo, select the High Quality option when you upload
    To avoid compression when you upload your cover photo (emphasis mine), make sure the file size is less than 100KB
  • Save your image as a JPEG with an sRGB color profile

I copied the entire contents here, but the FB help link is at: https://www.facebook.com/help/266520536764594

AVG will sell your browsing and search history to advertisers

On my trip back to the states, a few people asked me why I don’t use AVG Free antivirus software. Well, aside from the reasons I stated then (pop-ups, bugs, general clunkiness), AVG has changed their privacy policy and expressed their intent to sell the browsing and search history of their users to advertisers. Tsk, tsk. Of course, if you are reading this on Facebook (my blog auto-publishes to my FB wall), similar data of yours has been sold already.

The truth is, free antivirus programs are not free at all, and most are complete shit.

My choice of antivirus software? I do not always recommend my personal choice because it’s a bit esoteric, but it’s 360 Total Security with the optional Bitdefender and Avira AntiVir engines enabled.