Welcome to Invisible Ink

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Welcome to Invisible Ink. This is the personal homepage of Kobus Myburgh, and here he will either entertain you (or sicken you) with petty philosophies, tasteless jokes or his curriculum vitae. Hopefully you will see something here that interests you.

Kobus Myburgh was born in 1975, and has been working in the IT industry for over 12 years and has gained vast experience in managing tertiary education computer systems and users, all aspects of web development and customer care (through his company, NetGold Productions, founded in 2001, subsequently changed to InternetMAX in 2010 – www.internetmax.co.za), usability, accessibility and user experience improvements (through his B. Sc. (cum laude) and B. Sc. Honors degrees through North-West University) and also various other professional qualifications, some of which are A+, ITIL Foundation, ITIL Practitioner in Release and Control, Web development through Working Webs, Software specialist (with distinction) through Boston Business College, attendance of Novell 6.0 CNA, Project Management through Astrotech Training, and is currently busy with Red Hat Enterprise Linux course in an effort to become a certified Red Hat Certified Engineer.

In 2012 Kobus started a second company, Impero Consulting (www.impero.co.za). Kobus’ strong focus on web development, customer service and entrepreneurship has guided him through various business ventures, severl high profile development and consultation positions.

Shoes, beautiful shoes

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Well, slap me with a wet noodle and call me George. This weekend for the first time, I experienced (and subsequently began to understand the tip of the iceberg regarding the experience) with women’s fascination with buying shoes.

So, she has five pairs of silver “pumps” (or whatever those are called)  and 4 red pairs, 6 black pairs and maybe some blue and green pairs. She has about 12 pairs of shoes with varying degree of heel lengths, and she has various pairs of flat shoes which all look generally the same to me. I guess the reason I never did or never made an attempt to is simply because I always bought functional, cheap shoes. So what! It is a shoe! It works. Why make a big fuss out of the experience and the event?

I stand corrected. This weekend, I bought two pairs of shoes. Buying shoes is not the new experience, but WHAT I bought is certainly a new experience. I generally buy two new pairs of shoes every 6 months or so, but this time, my wife was with me, and she showed me the entire experience from start to finish. The process of first finding shoes that you think fits your style or likes, then the process of fitting them to your feet. (Why would you fit your shoes? Don’t be ridiculous! You know you wear a number 9 shoe! Right?). WRONG! I actually found that a number 10 shoe is now more comfortable. As I am a 36 year old male, I believe that my feet aren’t growing anymore, so it could mean I have worn the wrong shoe size for the majority of my adult life.

So, I have two new pairs of shoes. Both pairs are 1 size larger than I usually buy, and they cost more than double what I usually pay for shoes. At first, I had mixed feelings. I could have used that money better! Maybe I should have bought some shares with it, or maybe a nice bean bag for the lounge.

But today, all those doubts are gone. I have spent the money wisely. I am wearing a pair of Bronx loafers that costs about R 500.00 for the pair, and fits like a dream. For my more formal attire, I will certainly enjoy my soft, luxurious leather boots from Woolworths.

Although I have enough shoes in these two pairs to last me at least six months, I am looking forward to going shoe shopping again!

A day in the life of a scammer…

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So, I received a letter from a scammer. I thought I will toy with it a bit. I opened up a new e-mail account with no real information, and nothing linking my real life to the fake account, and decided to reply to the letter I have received. I have not yet had a reaction, but as and when the debacle unfolds, I will be sure to post some comments about it. But first, the letter.

 

Dear beloved,

Please read this mail with good faith because I  am writing it from my hospital bed with heavy tears in my eyes and great sorrow in my heart because my Doctor told me that I will die in less than two months time. Base on this I wish to transfer my wealth to you so that you can assist me in building a charity organisation, for the saints in helping orphans,  poor and needy people in some parties of the world especially kids Haiti and Africa as a debt I am paying to Allah which is my last wish because I grew up an orphan.

I am offering 20% to you, while 80% should be used judiciously on the charity project. The total amount in question is $2.5Million United States Dollars.

Please get back to me quickly.

Regards,
Mrs. Magda Bekker.

Okay, so I concocted a reply to this letter, in a hope to draw out the author, “Mrs. Bekker”. I made some obvious as well as some subtle hints about the fact that I know this is a scam, but I am hoping that this person’s grasp of the English vernacular is as low as his/her grammar skills, and would not pick up on these hints. Here is my reply:

Dear Mrs. Bekker,

I am “touched” by your letter. Truly so. No, really, I “mean” it!

I am sooooo-so-so-so sorry that you are going to die in 2 months time, but you know, all of us, our time comes one day or another, for some of us our time comes too late. 

In your case, the millions of dream “money” that you made in your life time will be well spent on all the “other” little orphans in Africa and Haiti who might have gotten hope from your “generosity” – if only they had internet access to read about your skit “heroics.” 

I am absolutely, irrevocably certain that your intentions are pure, and I “trust” you, because your letter was written with so much “heart-felt emotion” that I had really a lot of difficulty not to cry myself. I am absolutely “certain” that you have all the money you say you have, and can thus make the promises that you do. Wow, what a burlesque notion of concocted “philanthropy!”

You always hear things like “A fool and his money soon parts” and also “When money is scarce, friends are rare”. This is so true! You must have been VERY shrewd and secretive in your money making ventures during your life time, because nobody knew about all these “millions” that you have stashed away over the years. Poor soul. You must have worked day and night, because your attempt to contact me, a total stranger, to help you is so sad. If only you had real friends to help you distribute your “wealth”.

I am therefore offering my “devoted” help to you get rid of your unclaimed “millions”.

Tata ma chance! :-)

William Jenkins

It would be quite interesting to see what unfolds here – if anything… Stay tuned!

Survival Instinct

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This morning, I rescued a gecko from one of my cats. This was an eye-opener in two ways for me. First, the look on my cat’s face; a look that says: “Dang you! I worked hard for that! You are taking my livelihood away from me!” My feeling of guilt was short-lived though, as something else totally grabbed my focus shortly after.

As I held this little gecko, in total not even the length of my little finger, this brave little creature started to bite me. It bit me with all its might, and with a passion I can hardly describe. I wish I had a chance to take a picture of the event, but it struck me how much of a will to survive the little creature hard.

I stood there for a few seconds, observing the tenacity with which it bit me, and I simply had to admire its will to live. I could squash this little thing like a bug, if I wanted to, and it probably instinctively knew it, but it did not give up. It bit me as if it knew I would sooner or later have to let it go in a yelp of pain.

After a few seconds of watching this brave little thing, a few seconds that felt like an eternity in awe, I went outside and put it down in the garden. This leads me to another thought about where did my cat grab this gecko in the first place, and would it be able to find its way back from where it was initially kidnapped from? We know that cats and dogs can find their way home for miles and miles, but what about this little gecko? Your thoughts?

Until next time…

A song for every occasion…

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I got the idea to write about this from a very special friend. Her suggestion was that there is a song for every occasion, every mood and every whim. Is that true? Let’s find out…

I can only speak from personal experience, and from a few hints dropped from others over time, but there is definitely truth in the Beatles song “Hey Jude” – “Take a sad song and make it better…”.

I wonder why you feel better when listening to a sad song? Or is it only a subgroup of people who feel better when they listen to sad songs? Perhaps it is the thing that subconsciously you feel better because you realize there are people out there who are more sad than you are at that time. Or maybe you are not quite that vindictive. Maybe the song makes you realize that you are not alone. What do you think?

Elton John says: “Sad songs, they say, sad songs, they say so much!” Perhaps that is the reason? When you are sad, you may be more perceptive to the words of the song. You can associate with the words better, you listen better. Could that be it?

But sad songs are for only one emotion. What about happy (feel-good) songs? What about philosophical songs? Religious songs? A very old song, by Katrina and the Waves, called “Walking on Sunshine” comes to mind. When I hear that song, no matter what mood I am in, I am ready to dance. ALWAYS. Bring me the biggest dance floor you can find, and bring it to me NOW! This seems to contradict the statement about sad songs written above. Perhaps two totally different songs can produce the same mood reaction? Perhaps one song can affect your mood in both ways, depending on your current mood, or when you listen to it?

But regardless what your feelings are about this observation, I am sure everyone agrees: music soothes the soul. Music does not only express your mood, but can change it. It can create a perception about you in other people. It can make you smile. You can fall in love to music, or you can have a break-up song. Music is LIFE!

Until the next time…

Open

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What does an open window and curtain tell you? As opposed to a dark room with curtains closed? Compare the two.

Open window and curtains. Fresh air and light. It invites you in. And usually, when your window is open so other people can see into your place, the place is relatively neat. You don’t want people to look into your bedroom window when your clothes are on the floor and your bed is not made?

Closed windows and curtains. Stale air, darkness, Wants you to stay out. Your place could be a mess, you could be ashamed of your place. You could, perhaps, be too lazy to clean it up. Or, you could simply be busy with private matters.

Using this physical comparison, we can bring it to bear on your every day lives. Are we open? Are we closed? Are we a source of light for other people? Do we shut them out? Do we keep to ourselves and appear grumpy all the time? Or do we smile and let people into our souls?

Some of us have been hurt so many times and are so untrustworthy, that we do not want to let people inside. This is particularly true of the love scorned.

Are you like that? Closed? Perhaps. What are your reasons? Is it because of being scorned, or perhaps you simply do not know how to invite people in? Whatever your reason is, work at letting people in. The ones you appreciate most will be the light that shines from your eyes if you do…

Vanishing of e-mail?

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WebProNews posted this article about an executive at Facebook stating that e-mail will probably go away. I have commented the below, what do you think?

Well, that article hits the nail on the dot. E-mail can’t die. It is so integrated into our daily lives that there is no real way to conceive it to just die. But because I like to play Devil’s Advocate, I will contest this statement (without any proof, all just postulates, so don’t see it as opposing your story or the comments of the hundreds of – absolutely correct – commentators on your post).

The other side of the story goes something like this…

Who’s to say there will not be a new technology to take the place of email in the near future? Maybe Facebook is currently busy developing it. Who would’ve thought about 15-20 years ago that cellphones would all but replace conventional telephones?

Furthermore, when Sheryl said email will vanish, did she mean it will vanish like dinosaurs did, or did she mean it will vanish like the Illuminati did? Or even vanish as the KKK in the USA or Apartheid in South Africa? Just think about that… Does “dying” really mean “extinction” in this case?

Now, I didn’t attend the show, or listen to the broadcast, but I am just speculating here: could she have meant “conventional email sent via a computer” would die out? Could she have said that “email will die out in favor of mobile technology”? While these mobile devices certainly all have messaging technologies, and has a “handle” or “nickname” that has the format of an “email address”, does that necessarily make it an email?

And now, let’s go back to the other side for a bit… (sorry Sheryl)… If you take the official definition of email, according to one source on the net: “Email is a way of sending messages from one computer to another.” or another: “Email is the exchange of computer-stored messages by telecommunication”, it could be postulated that even an SMS is an email. So is an MMS, so is ANY other method of receiving a notification via electronic or telecommunications media.

So – will email die? Completely? NEVER, unless they can devise a way to send a message via telepathy. With the human mind sending signals between neurons via “action potentials”, which are considered by some as electrical impulses, that opens up a whole new debate…

Go figure…

Karma? Luck? I don’t know…

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Do you believe in Karma? Is she a bitch on high heels? Or is she just and fair? Does she “exist”? I don’t know, and quite frankly, I believe that is for each to decide for themselves. I have often heard “What goes around, comes around” or “She got what she had coming” and things like that – this would suggest that Karma is indeed a bitch, if treated inappropriately…

I am not 100% sure – but based on my general feelings, I agree that you attract the response you send out to the world via your attitude. If you’re a kind person, people will be kind to you in return, well, generally speaking of course. If you trample people, they will trample you, or die trying to, depending on your disposition.

Now me, I am generally kind, and I am having it pretty good in Karma’s books. I have not had any serious problems recently. Am I doing something right? I don’t know. But I do know that I have been blessed twice in two days with excellent service. First my car repairs on Friday, and this morning, great service at my hair dresser’s. Maybe I am doing something right afterall :-)

Of course, you can argue that this is expected, as you pay for the service, but still – we have become so complacent that service is bad, that we are starting to accept bad service as the norm. It doesn’t have to be this way…

When thinking back about this all, I figured what had at least a part in the good service I have received in the past few days – friendliness. I realised in hind sight that I was friendly (well, I am almost always friendly, given, but recently it was more than usual – the reason for that is a story for another day). Being friendly got me friendliness in return. Simple as that. Karma.

Perhaps we should stop seeing the fault in everyone else when we receive bad service, and start looking at ourselves. Hmmm?

Life

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We are very sad today – our friend Jaco was taken away in a car accident this morning. SJS will not be the same without Mayor around. Mayor, friend, you have enriched our lives.

The collective sadness we feel today at SJS is so overwhelming. Everyone is quiet, keeping to themselves. Nobody is posting much, so I thought about this:

If we assume that there are at least 50 people mourning Jaco’s departure, and that all departing people are mourned by at least 50 people, this would world is a sad, sad place. Every day millions of people die. Considering South Africa as on July 2009, 16.99 of every 1000 people die per year. With a population of almost 49 million, that means around 832000 people died in the last year in South Africa alone. That would make 41 million people mourning the death of a loved one througout the year.

Well, this post was not meant to be negative, depressing or even 100% accurate, but I think you get the idea. When we’re sad, we’re often sad for our own loss, as the person who left us for eternity is in a better place. His or her job on earth was complete. It is not for us to try and figure out why.

The point of this post is, that even though 41 million people mourn every year about a loved one lost, that same 41 million people rejoice every other moment in time about the joy that people brought to their lives while they were alive.

Don’t cry because it is over, smile because it happened. Yes, harder to achieve than to say, but we have to try, otherwise nobody will ever be happy…

So – let’s celebrate Jaco’s life, for who he was, what he has meant to all of us, and what we’ve learnt from him…

Can you ever know someone completely?

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The question that I pose is: Can you ever know someone completely? My answer is – I certainly hope not!

Why would you want to know someone completely? What is in it for you? No more enigma, no more surprise. No more thoughts of “what’s next”… How boring it must be!

Given, you need to know at least a few little things about a person you want to marry or otherwise spend your life with, need to find out the things that you can’t live with and the things you can’t live without. You have to know the fundamental differences and similarities between you. You need to know if your potential mate is an axe murderer. Wanted by the police? For sure, you need to know that. What about HIV status? I am sure that is high on everyone’s list.

But honestly, before getting married or otherwise hitching up, does it really matter if she had a Barbie doll when she was 7? Or that he had his appendix removed when he was 16? What about having 2 false teeth? What about being Victor Lodorum in school? NO! You don’t need to know this before committing! That is the fun of being with the one you love – you get to learn something new, every day!

After all, you want to do this for your entire life (the commitment, I mean). Well, at least most of us do. Most of us do not think – “Hey, I will date this person for a while, until I am bored” and those that do, have decided already that you can know someone completely right from the start. Skip the boredome! Leave something for the future. Grow old together, and die old, one day, thinking – I wonder what colour dress that Barbie doll had on?

Ciao!

Love eternal

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Ah, the ever elusive concept of eternal love. Does eternal love between lovers exist? The short answer is YES. But what about the long answer? ABSOLUTELY! Well, technically speaking the one answer is short and the other one is long. So bite me!

But before you can really know for sure about eternal love, you have to ask yourself WHAT is eternal love. How do you practise it? How do you get it?

You practise it by being absolutely dedicated to the one you love. Consider everything you do and say in such a way that you would be happy if someone did that to you. Scold them? Would you like to be scolded at? Cheat them? Would you like to be cheated upon? Ignore them? Mistreat them? Make them sad? Make them cry? That is the simple recipe, and I have the answer, straight from various religious sources: Do unto others as you would want done unto yourself.

So easy in theory, isn’t it? :-)