All photos by Adri

Google to offer Terminator style smartphone glasses later this year

Reblogged from Matt on Not-WordPress:

Since it was leaked last night, thought would share this prototype with everybody. :) The laptop on the right is a 13″ Macbook Air that’s been modified to have a glowing WordPress logo instead of the standard Apple. I’m really happy with how it turned out, though I need to start adding stickers again.

Ok, how can you NOT want to own something like this? :)

Sunday. Late morning. Small hangover. Pancakes. Maple Syrup. Jam. Chocolate.

Is there a better way to start the day? :)

Reblogged from WordPress.com News:

We’ve recently noticed that a fair number of you have been bringing your tumblelogs over from Tumblr to WordPress.com using one of the variety of Tumblr to WXR conversion tools which exist on the web. We thought you would appreciate an easier way to import your content, so we bring you 3 easy steps to import your content. Authenticate with Tumblr To bring your tumblelog’s content to WordPress.com, head to Tools → Import in your WordPress.com dashboard and look for the Tumblr importer. If you don’t …

Tumblers, here is an easy way to come over to the other side! :)

Reblogged from WordPress.com News:

Want to receive WordPress.com notifications instantly, even when you’re not on WordPress.com? Add the new WordPress.com extension for Chrome and as soon as you get a new follower or a new like on one of your posts, a notification will appear in your browser: Simply click the icon to view your latest WordPress.com notifications: Start following new blogs without visiting WordPress.com The Chrome extension also makes it easy to follow sites from your WordPress.com account by displaying a Follow button …

If you’re using Chrome and have a WordPress.com blog, it is a must! Makes things so much easier!

I haven’t read for a while. Other things to do, other things in mind, not the mood for it… But now that things are slowly starting to settle down, it should change.

Can you recommend me something?

Here is my shortlist for now, in no particular order, and as you can see, on quite different topics :)

• 11/22/63, Stephen King
• The Thank You Economy, Gary Vaynerchuk
• Steve Jobs, Walter Isaacson

Thank you!

These first days in a new city have been good. Not only because I started a new job, and gave my life a fresh start (no pun intended), but because it truly is different from life in Budapest (and in the other European cities I have lived in, for that matter). Of course, most things stay the same, it’s not like I would have moved to the end of the world. But still, here are a few things that have been a “cultural shock” to me.

People are polite.

Yes, that was a shock. I know that it is one of the stereotypes surrounding Canada, but as it turns out, it is true! They wait in queues for the bus to arrive (even when they’d be more comfortable inside the bus and not waiting outside in the cold). They stand on the right side of the escalator to leave space to the ones in a hurry. They are helpful in all situations, and will offer help if they feel you need it. A quick test can be to open a map in the city center, and you’ll see how fast people will offer their help :)

Some of you might feel this is normal, but this is not something I am used to, coming from France or Hungary.

People are friendly and informal.

How to say it better? In French, you can express distance to people by saying “vous” instead of “tu” (two different ways to say “you”). By default, you stay distant, and get closer to somebody only after a while. Here, people are friendly and close from the start. Only if you show that you want to keep distances will they “back off”. That was weird at first, in shops for instance; shop assistants ask you how you are, almost like you’d be a friend. It now feels right, feels like getting rid of the useless things, cut to the chase.

I wonder if that is the same in all levels of society, and in companies. Are Canadians close to their bosses, is it ok to make suggestions, criticism around your boss?

English, French, it doesn’t matter!

I have spoken with only a few people until now, but all of them spoke both languages. That’s actually very disturbing, because you don’t know how to start a conversation! When you meet somebody in the elevator, should you greet them in English or in French? Will they find it rude if you choose the wrong language? I still don’t understand how to work around this, and I wonder how Quebecers handle it. I don’t have a preferred language, I feel comfortable with both, so I can’t choose for myself… All tips are welcome! :)

Who orders Large Poutines?

Poutine can probably be considered like one of Quebec national dishes. It feels good, it is the perfect dish to have with a few beers when it is cold outside. But once you’ve eaten half your plate, you wonder: why did I order a large one? Of course I finished the whole thing, but next time I’ll know I should get the kid version! :)

All this makes me wonder:

• Will I still think the same in a few months?
• How is it in other provinces of Canada?

Well, I guess time will tell. If anything changes, I will let you know! :) Oh, and by the way: I know I didn’t talk about the weather, but there is not much to say about it, so far I am ok with it! :)

Wanna see more pictures of our adventures in Montreal?

//

Apres quelques jours a Montreal, j’aimerais partager avec vous mes premiers sentiments sur la ville et ses habitants, avant que tout cela ne devienne normal et que j’oublie toutes ces petites différences.

En globalité, ces premiers jours ont été une expérience positive. Pas seulement parce que j’ai commence un nouveau boulot, et une nouvelle vie, mais parce que la vie est vraiment différente de celle que nous vivions a Budapest (et dans les autres villes européennes ou j’ai vécu jusqu’ici en fait). Bien sur, beaucoup de choses restent les mêmes, je n’ai non plus déménagé vers l’autre bout du monde, mais il y a tout de même ces petites différences, ces “chocs culturels” en fait.

Les gens sont polis.

Et oui, c’était un choc. Je sais que c’est l’un de stéréotypes du Canada, mais c’est tout a fait vrai ! Les gens font la queue quand le bus arrive (même lorsque la température extérieure n’est pas des plus clémentes). Tout le monde se place du cote droit de l’escalator pour laisser passer les plus presses. Ils semblent prêts a aider tout le monde. Il suffit d’ouvrir une carte dans le centre ville pour faire le test ! :)

Certains d’entre vous trouveront peut être tout cela normal, mais c’est vraiment quelque chose a quoi je n’étais pas (ou plus) habitue.

Les gens sont très informels au premier abord

Ici, les gens tutoient par défaut. C’est assez étrange pour le moment; imaginez la vendeuse dans un magasin qui vous salue “Salut ! Comment tu vas ?”. Il va me falloir un peu de temps pour m’y habituer, mais j’apprécie pour le moment : cela les rend certaines choses plus simples !

Je serais curieux de savoir si c’est la même chose en entreprise, si tout le monde tutoie son patron, est autorise a faire des commentaires ou des critiques a ses supérieurs…

Anglais, français, peu importe !

Je n’ai pas forcement parle avec beaucoup de gens jusqu’ici, mais tous parlaient les deux langues. C’est assez bizarre au final, parce qu’il est difficile de savoir comment démarrer une conversation ! Lorsque vous croisez quelqu’un dans l’ascenseur, doit on dire bonjour en Français ou en Anglais ? Vont-ils mal le prendre si je choisis la mauvaise langue ? Je n’ai toujours pas trouve la solution a ce problème, et je me demande comment les gens qui vivent ici le gèrent au jour au jour…

Qui commande des grandes poutines ?

La poutine est probablement l’un des plats typiques a essayer lorsqu’on est de passage au Québec. Apres tout, c’est le plat parfait apres quelques bières, lorsqu’il fait bien froid dehors. Mais une fois que vous avez fini la moitié de votre assiette, vous commencez à vous demander : pourquoi est-ce que je n’ai pas commandé la version “normale” ? Bien sur, j’ai fini mon assiette, mais la prochaine fois je saurai qu’il faut que je commande la version pour enfant ! :)

Tout ça me fait me demander…

• Est ce que j’aurais le même avis sur tous ces points dans quelques mois ?
• Comment cela se passe t-il dans d’autres régions du Canada ?

On verra donc dans quelques temps, je vous tiendrai au courant ! :)

Pour plus de photos, rendez-vous ici !