BugJackBaron

FYI: The Poseidon hotel at the Jomtien Complex is now serving a daily breakfast buffet for 145 baht. Great good, great value!!

Well to each their own. It's OK food, not more. The bacon was inedible - way too salty.

Free refill of coffee appreciated though.

 Unfortunately there are simply no good buffets in Jomtien though reasonable breakfasts can be found with effort. 

 The last time I had a great buffet for under 300 baht was in Chiang Mai in high season

4 years ago. Doubt you could get that now.

Sorry, I didn't realize that Bangkok Post articles couldn't be linked.

I must say, I've missed Kinokuniya bookstore.

Me too. Probably the best thing in that overpriced mall.

Yes. Another unsafe situation is when you pile into a bus or subway to get that seat.

You will hardly notice that something is missing until you are inside.

Keep your hand on your wallet at this time.

a couple of days ago they were still finishing and no sign of a promotion area open--------i think they are a bit slow with coming forward with some sort of promotion before opening---------come on tony

There is a smaller gym recently opened by Jomtien market but its not Tonys.

It was eerie last night in Jomtien(midnight) . Only a few dogs enjoying themselves on the

beach - ALL bars and clubs closed(though i could hear music behind the shut door of one). Like out of a "last man on earth" movie.

Almost scary 

WM (Windows Managers)[/url], how can we have an intelligent discussion? And while I'm no Martha Stewart, I think the below screenshot looks just as good as anything out of OSX-ville.

(Note that I have a 1920x1080 on the left and a 1680x1050 on the right; hence the 30 pixel gap in the right half of the picture)

dave, user interface design is not only about the 'looks', it's about usability in general, intuitiveness, ease of use, how well things play together, the concept behind the UI, etc. Installing and managing the software on your PC is also an aspect of usability.

I dare say that Ubuntu's UI of course suffers from the fact that it is a collection of software developed by various persons/companies and are not under the supervision of a strong UI guru/department. I guess the Ubuntu team can only do so much to level out the usability aspects of the various applications they try to unite under one hood and introduce a global 'look & feel'.

Other OSes suffer the same problem with 3rd party apps. The Adobe suite on Windows used to bring some Mac style UI elements to Windows which was sometimes confusing for Windows users. With Linux the same problem appears on much 'lower levels' of the OS.

I think Linux has come a long way and improved a lot, but Ubuntu is not there yet where I personally would like to see it. The software manager that is not 'yet ready' to completely replace the standard tool set is one example.

For some those issues might be a show-stopper, other can easily accept it and embrace the many other benefits that Linux offers in other areas.

I don't think it benefits Ubuntu if users ignore or deny those problems. Which doesn't mean that all problems mentioned in this thread fall into this category and cannot be disputed.

I myself got pretty frustrated too when coming back to Linux with Ubuntu 9.10, see thread here.

I remember dave_boo recommended openSuse to me which has a longer history of smoothing the user experience and provides a all-in-one configuration & management tool to ease system maintenance.

welo

Perhaps I'm still stuck in the 80's. You remember back when getting a DOS prompt was what a freshly booted computer gave you? The standards that I hear flung around regarding 'usability' and 'design interface' are so arbitrary and subjective it's really impossible to refute them.

I have yet to have found any dialouge boxes out of place in Gnome/KDE (although I still don't like KDE 4.xx!) nor found glaring instances of things not 'playing together'. I may be one of the odd men out, but I prefer my applications to be slightly dissimilar; the confusion of whether the app I'm in does what I need it to or not is quickly re-enforced by the different looks. This is across OSes, for instance I don't expect my Windows apps to look alike if one transcodes dvds to *.mkv and the other then burns them to a disk for instance. I would love to hear examples of low level 'look & feel' discordance you are refering to.

I also believe that some of the disconnect experienced by former Windows users comes from them not understanding an olde tyme *nix principle; to whit, "<I>Make each program do one thing well." I.E., while there are attemts to shove multiple programmes into one GUI, the best tool is one that will just 'git 'er done'. Further down that article it has a quote that put quite a smile on my face "Unix is user-friendly. It just isn't promiscuous about which users it's friendly with."

I also find the insistence that the software manager be a one stop shop a bit disconcerting. For instance, while you can use the control panel to uninstall programmes in Windows (and with quite a bit of difficulty, much more than in Linux's package managers anyways, install programmes), it's not really a valid comparison. Even, in at least the iPhone and perhaps OSX itself, the 'App Store' is seperate from the system settings is it not? And isn't Apple's solutions the most elegant out there?

And I do love my SuSE, but this is an Ubuntu bashing thread and I have to defend all distros.....

 As a former distro hopper I will join and say other distros don't need defending.

Many are simply better than Ubuntu which has never worked well for me.

Check out, PClinux, SimplyMepis, Fedora or even PC-BSD(not linux but a cousin).

Easier to get stuff like java - including plugins - working.

Ubuntu is great on hype though.

Very sad indeed. These people were fighting for what??? Oh yes, democracy. The poor taking on the rich? Now look at all of the poor bastards who work in Bangkok (Centralworld and elsewhere) who will be out of jobs. It is bad enough that the reds were loosing credibility day by day, but now any ounce of creditability that they had left is long long gone.

Geee it's only an horrible fake naff shopping mall defacing what used to be a beautiful equivalent of venice!

I tend to agree. Bangkok has too many shopping malls anyways.

May they build a park in its spot. Dedicate it to peace and a greener Bangkok.

google.com -> translate brings up

http://58.97.5.29/ict.html

Blocked

Could be because google translate is horrid for Thai 

Even for european language no better than "fair".

For anything of substance find a human translator

I have

1x 42" LG 7 yrs old

1x 42" Panasonic Plasma 3 years old

1x 32" Panasonic. 7 years old

1x 32" Philips, 6 months old this was to replace the LG, as the LG picture is so bad… Big mistake should have paid the extra 6,000 baht for another Panasonic

There is no comparison the Panasonic is way ahead, picture is crystal clear and sharp even on the old one which is far better picture than the new Philips.... The Plasma is the best picture over the LCD ones

Interesting. I was looking at three current LG sets in some electronic store today - plasma. lcs and led. I could barely see the difference in quality. The LED seemed a little brighter(Avatar was playing). The salesman tooted LED as the best.

I hear plasma is best for dark colors.

The food there is good but not great. Yes a little on the expensive side.

Never had a problem with the two for one  but you should always check your bill. Also they have excellent free-wifi and if you come often they will give you a 10% discount card.

 Overall, a good place to relax and escape the heat.

Thanks for that info BugJack. I heard something about government limiting the salary, but I wasn't sure what the exact limit was. Do you know why the government placed a limit? Also, by 30,000 with housing do you mean a salary of 30,000 then add housing allowance on top or 30,000 including housing allowance?

Sisaketmike, how do I check this info on Ajarn? Is there a specific section dedicated to universities on the website?

BTW, I have a double Bachelor's degree, a CELTA and a little under a year's experience teaching General English in Australia.

EDIT: Another question I forgot to ask is, is a salary of 19,800 + 8,000 housing allowance, but only 10 paid holidays (i.e. you'll be working during school holidays) a good deal for universities? And what about a salary of 21,500 with no housing allowance, but has approximately 9-10 weeks of paid holidays?

I meant 20000 salary+ about 10000 housing.

With tax and social insurance your take-home pay may be about 27000

In Bangkok this simply isn't enough unless you want to live like a Thai.

In Isaan(which may offer the same salary) it is better as the cost of living

is lower.

All the farang I know at unis have supplementary income which is why

you often see older teachers here - they have pensions from their home country.

Younger ones have one or two extra part time jobs.

Even Thai teachers do other work on the side - which gives the lie to their

telling you the salary is good.

I am not sure why it is that way. However, unlike the west, taxes are low here

so that is probably the main reason.

Actually the original poster is right - I should know.

Government regulations limit salary to 30000 with housing

This has not changed in many years.

A little more if you have a Masters.

Tell me one government school that offers significantlty more.

We are speaking about teaching English here but if anything teachers

of other subjects make less or no more.

Want to teach economics?(in English)

Have a PhD?

Apply to Mahidon(sp?)

85,000 salary but you will be treated as any prof would be in the west.

In other words: publish or perish.

So many:

From Stanley Kubrick -

"Open the pod bay doors HAL"

"I'm sorry Dave, I can't do that"  2001: A space odyssey 

"I was cured all right" A Clockwork Orange

"You can't fight here, this is a war-room!" Dr. Strangelove

From Sergio Leon Once upon a time in the west

"Looks like we're shy once horse" (Bad dude)

"Nope, you brought two too many (Charles Bronson good dude - then mandatory

shoot out)

"I'll have what she's having" when harry met Sally

"Do you feel lucky? Well do you punk?"  Dirty Harry

"A man's got to know his limitations" Dirty Harry in Magnum Force

"They're Here" Speilburg's Poltergeist

"Honey, I'm Home" Homicidal Jack Nickolson in Kubrick's The Shining

"Help Help I'm being repressed, come and see the violence inherent in the system"

(peasant meeting King Arthur in Monty Python and the Holy Grail

That's That's That's all folks..for now

I rarely go tot he cinema anymore as most movies these days are

Hollywood junk(thank god for torrents!). However, as a chance to get out of the heat in the hot season, is it worth worrying about it?

Never go to Tip's or Thip's or whatever or Baywatch so don't give a dam_n about them...as to the developers...so glad they're changing Patts for the better. I mean, can anyone even remember what was at Central Beach before Central...oh yeah, a couple whole prime beach front blocks of randy beer-bars filled with drunken old ferengs feeling-up poor displaced farm-girls.

But that is what Pattaya was and is and without it you would not be in Pattaya or have any interest in it. You could always go upmarket, if the budget allows.

pattaya was, and its changing, for the better. its going upmarket, slowly, but thats the direction its heading in. thank god!

What you are saying is either true but trivial - There has always been upmarket development, depending on where and how you define it - or it is nontrivial and clearly false as the "direction" is mostly talk(yep that mayor really cleared the beaches!).

Pattaya remains a fishing village and a party town and an upscale hotel stay place....it will never be just one thing. It neither can nor should, though it is true that some are trying

THIS is what i think the OP is referring to.

I was in there as late as last year. Are people saying its now "no longer there"?

(There IS a "Thips Fashion" not as far towards Walking Street as the above, but i think that place sold ......fashion, as the name suggests HERE)

Penkoprod

Penkoprod nice photo, and exactly what I meant.

Sure the food wasn't the greatest but it wasn't the worst either(tried royal garden food court lately?)

And by gawd the price was right. It was also a nice place to people watch.

Now, the best budget place for western grub on beach road is probably baywatch.

If you take a walk along Beach Road, you will see lots of those one storey shacks (for want of a better word) with a bit of scrubland behind them, just BEGGING for a developer to come along and buy them out. Even bigger plots further up Beach Road. As Mr Zimmerman said.....The Time's They Are A'Changing !!!!!

As you say....a lot of character going out of Pattaya at the moment. Whether people liked the restaurant or not.

One of the 1st places i ate as a matter of fact. Full breakfast @ 35 baht, and a BIG mug of tea !!!!

Penkoprod

Interesting. The question then is why it hasn't happened already. The answer I suspect can

be seen in the vacant 2nd floor of Avenue mall on 2nd road and the struggling Royal Garden.

Too many high prices. Not enough high spenders. This isn't Phuket and never will be.

If all the beach were to go high end Pattaya would lose too many customers - this place

would have a lot of white chang so to speak on the beach. It is also possible that Tips

may have closed for other reasons.

THIS is what i think the OP is referring to.

I was in there as late as last year. Are people saying its now "no longer there"?

(There IS a "Thips Fashion" not as far towards Walking Street as the above, but i think that place sold ......fashion, as the name suggests HERE)

Penkoprod

Penkoprod nice photo, and exactly what I meant.

Sure the food wasn't the greatest but it wasn't the worst either(tried royal garden food court lately?)

And by gawd the price was right. It was also a nice place to people watch.

Now, the best budget place for western grub on beach road is probably baywatch.

No, it's not gone. Several years ago, it moved to the corner of 3rd Road and Pattaya Klang (Central Pattaya Road). Diagonally across from the TOT office.

The restaurant is still very clean and has good food at very reasonable prices. Last time I was there, Khun Tip was still working there. i believe she still advertises it as being 'the first restaurant in Pattaya, serving Western Style Food'. The only problem, is trying to find a parking spot.

You're right: "Area probably bought up by greedy SOB developers". The old location (near Royal Garden) now has the 'new' Walking Street mall.

No, this was the restaurant between Baywatch and walking street and it was there as recently as

a couple of months ago. Now just rubble.

It would seem that one of the original Pattaya beach restaurants is gone.

Clean food at reasonable prices/.

Area probably bought up by greedy SOB developers.

Hopefully Baywatch won't go under too.

Pattaya continues to get less interesting as SOB developers buy it up.

I've never understood this parochial either-or mentality

that graces so many of the posters here and

among the expatriates I have met(including many of my friends).

Maybe I'm a rarity. Someone who can appreciate the hippies and

Russian mystics in the north but also often enjoys the pleasures of

the flesh in Pattaya or the wonderful beaches of Phuket.

At least in Chiang Mai it cools off in the evening(unlike Bangkok).

And unlike Bangkok, western food is usually more affordable

Maybe among the yuoutube generation not many read any more but if you do CM is the place

for second hand books. The bad? Burning sure. And too few jobs compared with Bangkok. The strippers are uglier than

down south And

I did notice more gangs of wayward youth there, hanging around in the street. In Bangkok you would

have to actively look to find such trouble

In my opinion netbooks have been defined out of existence. What is the maximum screensize for example?

Laptops are getting to netbook weight or at least acceptably light and with long lived battery performance.

And you won't sudddenly run out of powerr when you decide you need to video edit

or expand into gaming(OK that may be pushing it)

I was there on Saturday and this is my take.

In a sentence, it was OK and cheap but the best? Come on! The service was reasonable and friendly and

the premises clean.

One big problem I had was the cheddar cheese(I had the bacon cheddar burger)

It was clearly processed. But with cheese prices perhaps that is to be expected.

The bacon was quite tasty though.

Don't forget they add tax and service to the bill.

The other prioblem is that to get a quality burger you should be able to ask

for it to be rare, medium or well done(etc). No choice was offered so it was just well done.

The onion rings were thin but OK.

With a water it was about 300 baht.

For my money I would find a pub like the Huntsman where although expensive, they do use real cheese.

Or simply wait till I find a place that offers Texas or Alberta beef(yes the prices will skyrocket)

Overall a mixed bag, but it was better than Piri Piri(gone downhill from a few years ago)

I will buy a ThinkPad for the simple reason that a laptop is not a toy and these babys last.

They are several series to choose from and you can get a powerhouse for less than 700 bucks.

IT world has a good selection. As a bonus they are linux friendly.

HP is a solid alternative

No it is not. At least not for Canucks. 200 bucks canadian (7000 baht) to live near beach(view talay)? no way you could do that in Canada

!80 baht(5 dollars Canadian) for buffet? no way you could do that in Canada..

Dating, motorbike rental(not to mention stupid license requirements)?

obviously much cheaper in Thailand

makes total sense MSG makes everything better

what next? msg in beer?

Nope. It's either chili flavored milk or chili flavored ice cream.

Chili flavored ice cream is available at a shop in

Bangkok's Siam Paragon

Haven't tried it yet..