For a while now, Google Maps has been displaying the names of towns and cities in the countries’ local languages when you pan over them. So for example, when you go over Japan, you’ll see the name of towns in Japanese with English subtext. This is similar for European and Arabian countries.

Interestingly enough however, Israel-Palestine has been mostly blank with only English written there. That made me curious because Google, like many other tech companies, tries to remain neutral when it comes to international political issues, and i wanted to see how they handle this one. So i kept on checking back often.

Today I noticed that they started to display Hebrew names in pre-1967 areas (which is politically safe). Interestingly however, the Hebrew words only appear when you are not zoomed in to see the individual city names.

Anyway, what is really funny is that they have hugely misspelled the Arabic name of Madaba. Here is a screenshot below:

Btw, I couldn’t find a link to report this mistranslation, otherwise i would have reported it.

A long time ago, when search engines were relatively primitive, the “meta keywords” section of your site/blog were used as a first heuristic for search engine optimization. All of us, of course, want search engines to find us; so when we created blogs back then, we would dump anything and everything that could be –even remotely– related to us or the topic of our blog into that meta keywords section (some blogging engines even asked you about that).

Nowadays, hardly any search engine looks at the meta keywords or meta description sections of your blog. So they are more or less useless (as far as i know). However, it is sometimes fun to look at these keywords to see what each blogger thinks of himself or his blog.

Just for reference, this is how the “meta keywords” tag would look like in an HTML file:

<meta name="keywords" content="keyword,another keyword ..." />

For a little entertainment, i checked out the meta keywords of some of the folks on QP. Not everybody had them, and mostly all who did included their names or misspells of their names. Here are some of the interesting keywords:

• AndFarAway: Jordan, Design, Art, Amman, Islam, Arab, Chat, Blog, Pictures … (ok this one kinda works out)
  
• KJ: UAE, Dubai, Moogle, Humor, Funny, Thoughts, Hani Obaid (huh ??), Sheep, Holidays, Adha, Turkey, Thanksgiving, Religion, Ambush, Grand Theft Auto, Lost and Found, Police, Eyelashes, James Bond, Nutcase, OCD, Psychology, Traffic, Women in Coma  (what ???), Photography, Blood, Scary, Video, Violence, Zombies …..(essentially KJ encompasses everything under the sun!! .. and then some! )

Now if KJ’s keywords didn’t catch you, then his meta description might lure you in:

• KJ’s meta description: Jar of Juice is your ultimate source for humor, randomness, and your occasional serious post! … (somebody is confident :-p … actually this one also kinda works out)

• Hani Obaid (who apparently also is a keyword for KJ): Jordan, Amman, Blog, Canada, WordPress, Montreal, Blogger … (what ? no mention of KJ ?!! )
  
• Qwaider: Photography, Philosophy, Movies,  Jordan, Arab, Blog, Islam, Computers, Science and Technology … (ok this one also works out .. but what’s up with that “LutsToLove” email address in the meta text ?)
  
• Cinamon Zone: Animals, Arab World, Art, Blog about Jordan Day, Books and Literature, Children, Courage, Diaries, Fekra, Funny, Health, Science, Miscellaneous, Nakba, Palestine, Phobia, Pictures, Comments, Ramadan, Movies, Sports, Thoughts, Translation, TV, Videos, Women, Work, Zucchini … (also everything under the sun …. but what’s up with Zucchini as a keyword ?!! )

I only posted this for a little smile, no harm intended. I would have also posted my own meta keywords if i had them.

This song by the Palestinian comedian Asa’ad Sabah (أسعد صباح) was a hit during the mid 90s. It was released on a cassette tape along with many other jokes and comical songs. Almost any Palestinian growing up in the 90s would instantly recognize this song and its Hebron accent . For those who are interested, this song is poking fun at family fights, tribal reconciliation, and marjaleh.

Why am i posting this you ask ? Nothing, some random memory recollection that came up during a chat with some anonymous tipster

أنا مع قرفان، شلة المدونين العرب الأشاوس شكلهم زهقانين شوي . صراحتاً أنا حسي النكتي ماكل هوى مؤخراً، فما بعرف إزا كني الشخص المناسب لأُسأل عن نكته هلئ، ولكن جواباً للـ “تاج” تبعت قرفان، خذولكم هالنكتتين اللي سمعتهم لما كنت في الأردن الصيف الماضي:

- واحد مسطول دقوا على بابه دائرة الإحصاء وسألوه: (إنتَ من أهل البيت ؟) .. فرَد عليهم وقال: (لأ، أنا من كفار قريش).

- طفيلي بيقول لجماعته: صلوا وصوموا وزكوا، مش أروح عالجنة وألاقيها كلها كركية!

(ههههه .. طبعاً هلئ قرفان لما شاف بياختي حرم يسألني عن نكت من اليوم وطالع )

You get to read a lot of stupid comments on the Internet these days. On forums, YouTube, blogs ..etc, many idiots are getting to voice their “thoughts” and “ideas”. Of course there are also many clever and insightful comments as well, but stupid comments do tend to stand out.

For example, read this comment i just found on Aljazeera English’s Youtube channel:

You heard him ladies and gentlemen; Everybody, let’s get busy … we need to increase our “production” by more than 1,000% a day over the next 10 years!! So, drop whatever you’re doing, go home, and get down to business … from 43,000 to 500,000 A DAY !! LOL.. it is all part of his grand scheme.

The following short segment from “Nova Science Now”, which is an amazing program btw, highlights a company that is exploring the idea of extending a thin sheet-like line from earth to outer space to use it as a basis for an elevator to cheaply transport people into space!! I honestly don’t see this happening, but it is entertaining to see great bright minds playing around with the idea.

This definitely is a wacky idea in my opinion. I mean come on, can you imagine planet earth orbiting in space with a big pipe extending out of it ? Even if such a thing could be built, how on earth will you maintain it and protect it from meteors and other space hazards ? How will you even make it stable ?! … i personally don’t think it will even be economically feasible to build and maintain such a link.

In totally unrelated news, and in contrast to that wacky idea, i think the following events can actually take place .. (but i hope they don’t ):

• Qwaider making a blog post *during* his wedding party: … yeah, who amongst us doesn’t believe this is possible…. i’d actually be surprised if he didn’t … heck, i’ll be surprised if he didn’t blog during his honeymoon .
• Two days after their marriage, Qwaider seriously tries to convince Maioush that she should migrate her blog to be hosted on Memories Documented (his blog) instead of WordPress: … he explains how his own private hosting can provide her with secure backups and strict anti-spam mechanisms (not to mention his perceived superiority of his blogging engine to everything that is readily available out there) … i say resist the temptations Maioush.
• KJ‘s imaginary friend, Moogle, gets jealous of Qwaider’s marriage and decides to have his own imaginary friend: … (yes .. with KJ it is very well possible that an imaginary friend could get an imaginary friend). Unfortunately, Moogle’s imaginary friend runs off to get married as well … this will leave KJ perplexed for a few weeks… oh boy … god help us if that happens.

Qwaider .. sorry buddy, somebody had to pick on you because you’re getting married … and congratulations to you and Maioush again.

On terrorism, symbolism, donuts, and scarfs … Shaikr is at it again

Thanks Shaikr for this funny cartoon.

هههها فيديو عن جد نهفة

***UPDATE #1:*** A Facebook event for this initiative has been created. Please join the event and pass the message on to your friends (more info here).

***UPDATE #2:*** A list of possible topics to write about can be found (here and here).

***UPDATE #3:*** A small list of bloggers who are participating in the event is published here.

***UPDATE #4:*** A sample harvest list of blog posts contributed to this event has been published here.

Dear all,

May 15th of this year is the 60th anniversary of the Palestinian Nakba –which marked the beginning of the modern age Palestinian plight and suffering. This date is remembered annually on local, regional, and global levels.

I am certain that many in the blogosphere will dedicate some posts to commemorate this tragic event. However, inspired by the success of the “Blog About Jordan Day” initiative, i would like to start a formal initiative to encourage everybody to dedicate one post on Thursday, May 15th, to talk about Palestine or the Palestinian Experience.

There are no restrictions on what you can write, or the language that you can use. Really, anything that talks about Palestine, or the Palestinians; in the past, present, or future; political, social, economical, or any other aspect is welcomed. The goal of this event will be to share thoughts, and raise awareness about the Palestinian situation. Hopefully, with everyone’s support, this will be such a spectacular event that it will catch the eye of the mainstream media (specially that the Palestinian situation is inadequately and incorrectly represented in most of the western media outlets).

FAQ:

• Do I have to be Palestinian / Arab to participate ?
  No, everybody is welcomed to join in on this effort.
• Does it have to represent the Palestinian point of view (or be a positive article) ?
  No, you are free, and encouraged, to write whatever you want.
• Does it have to be about the Nakba precisely ?
  No, you can talk about the history of the Palestinian plight, current internal and external affairs, or outlooks for possible future resolutions to this conflict and how do you think can we achieve and maintain peace.
• Does it have to be a political article ?
  No, you are free to talk about any aspect of the Palestinian life inside and outside Palestine. You are free to talk about whatever you want.

I would appreciate it if you could help me spread the word about this event. For your convenience, i have created some simple counters and banners for this event. You can find their code below:

Thank you in advance for your help and support.

**UPDATE:** Thanks to Qwaider for mentioning that blogs *hosted* on WordPress.com (and possibly other engines) might face some trouble embedding JavaScript code as is done above. If this is the case for you, you can use the following image banners below:

<a href="http://www.za3tar.net/2008/05/01/blog-about-palestine-day/"><img id="countdownimage" src="http://files.za3tar.net/pal-day-08/buttons/pal-day-en.jpg" border="0" alt="Blog About Palestine Day" style="background-color:#000"></a>

<a href="http://www.za3tar.net/2008/05/01/blog-about-palestine-day/"><img id="countdownimage" src="http://files.za3tar.net/pal-day-08/buttons/pal-day-ar.jpg" border="0" alt="Blog About Palestine Day" style="background-color:#000"></a>

<a href="http://www.za3tar.net/2008/05/01/blog-about-palestine-day/"><img id="countdownimage" src="http://files.za3tar.net/pal-day-08/buttons/pal-day-en-big.jpg" border="0" alt="Blog About Palestine Day" style="background-color:#000"></a>

<a href="http://www.za3tar.net/2008/05/01/blog-about-palestine-day/"><img id="countdownimage" src="http://files.za3tar.net/pal-day-08/buttons/pal-day-ar-big.jpg" border="0" alt="Blog About Palestine Day" style="background-color:#000"></a>

يعني مش معقول … عمرها صارت معك (أو معكي)؟

اليوم طلعت من الحمام عل المكتب. وطول الوقت وأنا بغني “طلع الزين من الحمام” وبصفق (تسحيج) وبتهزهز زي أكني في عرس القرن. صار لي ساعتين على هذه حالة. زملائي في المكتب بفكروني مجنون أو إيشي من هذا القبيل. لسة الأضرب من هيك إنو سبب الغناء إنو أخيراً قدرت أشغل قطعت الـ “سيميوليشن” (بالعنقليزي) المطلوبة مني …. آخ يعني مش هيك البئوس

هي الأغنية .. يللا سوا

طلــــع الـــزيـــن مــن الحمـــام

اللّـــــه وإســــــم اللّــــه عليـــه

ويــا بــو الحطــــه والعقـــال

اللّـــــه وإســــــم اللّــــه عليـــه

منيـــن صـــايــد هـــالغـــزال؟

ونيـــالـــك يـــابــو حطـــــه

ويــا إم التـــوب مطـــرزتيــــــه

وحطيتـــي البـــلاوي فيـــــه

وعـــن جـــوزك خبتيـــــه

ويــــوم الـــزفــــة أطلعتيــه

يـــا حـــلالـــي و يــــا مـــالــــي

طلــــع الـــزيـــن مــن الحمـــام

اللّـــــه وإســــــم اللّــــه عليـــه

…

Hahahaha .. this is hilarious.

شوية نهفات خفيفة. طول الوحدة منها 15 – 30 ثانية موجودين هون وهون وهون. للأسف الفيديو بيشتغل أول ما تفتح الصفحة فما بقدر أحطهم هون … إزعاج

تنزيلات ؟! … آه قصدك ديسكاونت…. هاهاها رهيبة

This TV ad is really awesome, you have to see it

Haha .. my favorite line is:

This is the Golden Butterball; 28 inch string, silk, real smooth action.

Here is another one from this series:

More of them here.

I was just filling out this graduate school survey when i was confronted with this nifty little question:

ya3ni seriously, did you really have to specify the unit of measure for this question ? Is it likely that someone will answer you in a unit other years? “well, i am about 280 months old”. Age in months is of course acceptable for babies, but i think that if you are in you’re twenty’s and you’re still measuring your age in months, then something is wrong here. How about i answer them in metric time units just out of spite that’ll be something.

Huh?! .. i just discovered that there are two fire alarms *and* a sprinkler in my (small) bedroom.  Apparently it is expected to combust at any moment!!

بدون تعليق

موقع الشركة المصنعة 

It is obtrusive. It is ubiquitous. It is simple and (forcibly) memorable. It is annoying. It is on almost every wall and corner … and soon it will be on your shirt! …

.. Introducing … the لتشييك مزارعكم t-shirt…

This is an actual screen shot from the Microsoft Support Knowledge Base, i originally found it along with other great ones on this site.

I know security is a hot issue, but this is definitely just too much

So assuming 60 words per minute and 4-5 characters in a word, it’d take you over an hour to type in your password. And hopefully you’d type the correct one in, rather than one of your last thirty thousand passwords. … [source]

The daily events of this common “hard-worker”. Ya3teek el-3afyeeh Sob7ee

This clip was created by the creative folks at Zan Studio in Ramallah.

The team at Zan Studio

I was reading this Wikipedia article, when i noticed an interesting link at the bottom.

Hey, we don’t need a new census, because apparently we are all listed in Wikipedia!!!

This is pretty funny

I was just looking at the second section of Al-Ayyam newspaper, and i found it a bit odd (and funny) to see the following:

 These are advertisements for 4 radio stations that were placed one after the other !! What was the rationale behind this. Maybe they all wanted to be on the first (colored) page of the second section ?? Eh … who knows !!

Funny clip from the IT Crowd show.

Do you dare to try it out ??

If you are using Firefox you can enjoy this nice, and meaningful, “easter egg”. In the address bar type about:mozilla, and you will be greeted by the following “holy” text.

And so at last the beast fell and the unbelievers rejoiced.
But all was not lost, for from the ash rose a great bird.
The bird gazed down upon the unbelievers and cast fire
and thunder upon them. For the beast had been
reborn with its strength renewed, and the
followers of Mammon cowered in horror.

from The Book of Mozilla, 7:15

Beyond sounding as if this text came from some holy scripture, this text does indeed reference events from the end of the browser wars. Here are some of the references it makes:

1. The Beast: is actually the Netscape browser. The core engine of Netscape was called Mozilla, and its mascot was a dinosaur, and thus it was a beast.
2. The Fall of the Beast: that is when Netscape loss the browser wars for MS Internet Explorer.
3. The Unbelievers: are the Internet Explorer crowd.
4. The Great Bird: the original name for Firefox was Phoenix.
5. Fire & Thunder: references to Firefox and Thunderbird

From Khadija Teri’s blog.

This card was given to me by a friend who got it from someone who stayed at the Alkabir Hotel in Tripoli. Well, at least there are no spelling mistakes!
Dear Guest

We are pleasure to welcome you in one of Social Security Hotels. We are sure that you will enjoy a very happy accommodations.

Our policy is good welcome for you and to Prepare amicable friendly good atmosphere for You, and to render for you brilliant service distinguished with courtesy, cleverness and respect.

We kindly request you to help us for achieving our Objective by filling the attached questionnaire Overload before leaving our hotel.

Thank you for your co-operation, and for Choosing our hotel, we are looking forward to Welcome you again soonest.

Full Post.