Plurking My Days Away
August 18th, 2008
hellohelloe! in between crazed attempts to cram my entire room into two suitcases, teary final meetings with loved ones as well as other frantic preparations for a long 4 years away in the US of A, i am here to introduce to you all the best ever micro-blogging tool i’ve had the pleasure of using :) it’s called Plurk, and it’s that orange-colored widget that’s been on my sidebar for a few months now.
i’ve been meaning to write this review for the longest time, but i’ve been putting this off. apologies to all the curious folks who’ve been emailing me and leaving comments asking me how to work Plurk and what it’s all about :( i actually told them all to wait for this post that i would be putting up “in a few days time” (ya i’ve been saying that for so long now, SORRY :( !!), but i think most of them went already ahead and figured out Plurk by themselves :P or at least, i hope they have!
in a nutshell, Plurk is like a mini-blogging site where you can post your updates (aka Plurking) either through the website or from your mobile phone. then, your Plurks will be displayed on your Plurk page (aka your Timeline) for your Plurk friends to see and interact with, OR your Plurks can also be displayed on your blog, should you want a display widget on your blog like i did. you can Plurk anything at all - what you’re doing at the moment, how you’re feeling, a question that you would like feedback for, your thoughts and opinions, etc. it’s a little bit like blogging, but a whole lot more instantaneous, mobile and random!
this sounds a little bit like Twitter and any other similar SMS-update/micro-blogging tools, but where Plurk differs is through two major features: one, its concept of a community timeline; two, it is feedback/comments enabled. i’m going to explain these two features first, and then later on i’ll explain a few other nifty things in Plurk that i really like.
1. THE TIMELINE
Plurk’s Timeline concept is something that’s really quite genius and is the backbone to the entire site. it confused me like hell the first time i logged into Plurk, but after some guidance from the almighty Puppy who introduced me to Plurk, i saw how simple it really was. it’s mind-boggling because it’s so simple.. kinda like when the iPod first came out and people couldnt wrap their minds around the one-button interface. anyways this is how the timeline looks:
the blue area is the timeline, and those white blurbs of text are plurks by me and my friends. it’s displayed in chronological order, with the ones on the left being the most recent plurks, and the further you go right, the older the plurks are.
clicking on the timeline and dragging left or right will take you through the timeline. this is helpful for navigation and catching up on plurks that you may have missed while you were away. you can go months and months back into your timeline if you so wish, just by clicking and dragging. it’s easy and smooth, apparently a programming wet dream (puppy not my words!!!).
your timeline will have your plurks, obviously, but it will also show plurks by your friends. i love it because i can be updated with whatever my friends are doing just by going into one single page, kinda like a compilation of everyone’s Facebook Status updates that is sorted chronologically. in this way, Plurk does away with all the fun frills of all other social networking sites out there, and focuses on what matters most: keeping in touch with your friends and loved ones. and um, people-stalking :P
2. FEEDBACK / COMMENTS ENABLED
i loooooove this function. i’ve used a couple of micro-blogging tools that didnt allow feedback, but i quickly grew disinterested because it was like talking to a wall. with Plurk, everytime you update, people can click on your plurk through their own timeline and leave you comments.
the boxed numbers are the number of comments each plurk has. red means there are unread comments. clicking on the plurk will open up the comments box immediately and on your timeline:
besides the mobile phone version, this is THE function in Plurk for me. i love the interaction i get from my friends (especially those who dont read my blog or never leave me comments, hmph) and also the conversations with them about our everyday activities and events. every time i’m bored or waiting in line somewhere, i get onto Plurk via my phone and just start plurking with my friends, because there’s ALWAYS people on Plurk to keep me company :D it’s like an SMS chatroom, but FREE! hahahaha! and not to mention more ORGANIZED!
this comments function is also such a convenient way of getting feedback. for instance, i once asked for laptop advice and suggestions, and i got over 250 comments from my friends on Plurk and even blog readers who signed up on Plurk just to help answer my question :D
3. FRIENDS AND FANS
in Plurkville, you have both friends and fans. friends are people whose Plurks you follow and who can also follow your Plurks; fans are people who follow your Plurks but you dont follow theirs. basically, fans are people whose plurks dont show up on your timeline, but they can see your plurks on theirs and they can respond to them too.
this is a good thing, because if you have something like 1000 friends, you’re going to have one very busy timeline that is cluttered up with plurks by people you dont even know. when Puppy was explaining Plurk to me, this is what he said, “so plurk is like, if you have to choose 5 of your most important friends from your facebook friend list, and add them as your plurk friend, then you will start to see the beauty of plurk.” and now that i am familiar with Plurk, i totally agree :) Plurk is cool because it keeps you in touch with the people you care most about and are close to, yet not completely alienating everyone else.
there are also extensive privacy settings where you can choose to add someone as a friend yet not follow their plurks, or you can choose to ‘mute’ certain plurks that are getting way too much feedback that you are not interested in, or you can block non-friends from viewing your timeline at all (disallowing fans) and many other settings that you can customize to your own liking.
4. SEARCH PLURKS
if you look back at the first picture of the timeline, there is a little ’search’ button on the lower right of the timeline. you can use this to search for any keywords throughout your own plurks, your friends plurks, or EVERRRYYYONE in Plurkville! i had fun searching for ‘Phelps’ yesterday and reading how many people think he’s not human :P
5. MOBILE PLURK
a godsend! Mobile Plurk is basically Plurk for mobile phones. i love it. i can Plurk everywhere and at anytime, get feedback instantly, start chatting with friends on Plurk when i’m bored (naeboo, artreyu, wolfx and ionstorm are the most amusing bunch!) and also follow or stalk out all my friends lives anytime and even when i’m not at the computer.
of course, this is only for 3G phones, and would be best if you had an unlimited data plan, because going online with your mobile phone can get pretty expensive especially if you start downloading videos or picture-heavy websites.
my favorite Mobile Plurk moment was when i went go-karting at Shah Alam with Martian and my brothers, and i was in a two-seater kart with Martian, and i got bored of helping him steer, so i started plurking and telling everyone i was karting. hahahaha the responses were like “huh why are you on your phone then?? go play!” hahahaha because i CAN’T KART, you guys!!! i always end up last… T___T
6. EVERYTHING ELSE
so, some other reasons why i like Plurk in general! i like the fact that Plurk compiles day-to-day, diarylike updates from my friends, yet is not intrusive. i really dont like the micro-blogging tools that spam SMSes to my phone each time someone updates, especially since i had a lot of spammy friends on those networks, and it made my phone bleep all the time :\ at least with Plurk, there is the timeline which i can check at my own free time. also, props for a wide range of privacy settings, as well as the Private Plurk function where you can send Plurks to just one person or a couple of people or even Cliques that you can pre-determine!
and i also love that some of my best friends are on Plurk. it’s so cool because i get to see what they’re up to at any time of the day, whether they’re in PJ or Penang or Canada or London. this is going to be especially useful for me when i’m away in the US and will desperately want to be in touch with friends and family back home :(
this concludes my n00b review of Plurk! do give me a holler if you decide to join Plurk! to all friends and family reading this, SIGN UP RIGHT NOW so that i get to keep an eye on you guys when i’m no longer in Malaysia!!! yes that means you too Martian -___-
you can sign up easily at Plurk via the widget on my sidebar :) or sign up here at my referral link if you want to donate me Karma Points! Karma Points will earn me some really cool smileys and features in Plurk :)
Entry Filed under: General
37 Comments Add your own
1. Simon Seow | August 18th, 2008 at 7:40 am
Hmm.. Looks like an interesting tool. Should I ditched PacMee and Plurk instead? lol
2. yosie | August 18th, 2008 at 8:28 am
plurking looks fun :) good luck moving. where will you be for those 4 long years?
3. ben | August 18th, 2008 at 9:49 am
whoa that timeline is wicked
4. pinkshirtz | August 18th, 2008 at 11:01 am
sighz … seems like everyones leaving malaysia. Gf just went over to ireland for good. And i’m back here still! sighz …
Too bad for chong wei … the match was a massacre!
Good luck ya when ur over there …
5. chee hong | August 18th, 2008 at 11:37 am
wow , awesome rundown on Plurk , i might consider using it …….
6. allen.g | August 18th, 2008 at 11:52 am
Sad to see that you are leaving so soon. so just like to wish you farewell and good luck. Though we’ve only met a few times, I can see that you’ve got a lot going on for your future, so keep up the good work! Hope you could still continue blogging from U.S. I couldn’t imagine my days if your blog cease to exists :S
7. EVo | August 18th, 2008 at 12:10 pm
Hi there, it’s my first time commenting, I’ve been swinging by here on and off, ever since recommended by Alvin. Your blog’s probably the only one that i have to bring my face within 12″ from the screen coz of the font size.
So, finally I can’t keep quiet lor, must comment. Hehe.
Like allen.g says, hope u keep blogging. Would like to meet before u go2US..perhaps if u would have a final farewell b4u go do let me know.I’ll b glad 2 b there.
Till then, happy packing. and thanks4 d plurk intro. That was good for blur me =)
Cheers!
-EVo-
8. EVo | August 18th, 2008 at 12:11 pm
And I’m gona have ur feed on my blog!good resource for emo-ing moments..hehe..!
9. Emily T | August 18th, 2008 at 12:36 pm
OMG what a timely post! I just refreshed quaintly.net because I gave up the intention of signing up for Plurk just to drop in a respond for your nasi lemak query. But after reading this, I MAY go back and register myself on Plurk too, heh.
So yes, back to your query of where to have the best nasi lemak!! I have a few favourites and they are all special in their own ways so don’t bother comparing them with each other but try to savour each as its own.
1. Nasi Lemak Famous in Bangsar. This is a stall near one corner in the food court opposite Bangsar Village 2. There are alot of nasi lemak stalls here but make sure you look out for one that has a sign/banner above it that says “Nasi Lemak Famous”. It’s often layan-diri style and I would so recommend you to just pile your rice with those fried flour bits that they salvaged after deep frying the chicken. Those are so flavourful and crunchy and goes really well with your rice.
2. Nasi Lemak @ Sea Park. Some call it the Maybank nasi lemak because it’s a make shift stall set up in front of the Maybank branch in Sea Park. The sambal here is the best! Its texture is runny yet it’s very spicy and has lots of ikan bilis and onions in it but the amount is becoming more miserable in recent days.
3. Village Park, Damansara Uptown. This place is a little overrated but I have my nasi lemak there every Sunday morning because it’s generally a very conducive place to just sit on and catch up with friends after the food. The only thing that I really like here is the fried chicken. Many claim that this is one of the best nasi lemaks around the area.
Okay, there’s more but these are my personal Top 3s. :) By the way, the Nasi Lemak Antarabangsa was quite unmemorable for me, there wasn’t anything to shout about. It’s only convenient for the party-going crowd as it’s a short drive from Jalan Ampang and it’s opened ’till late.
So please eat an extra plate of nasi lemak for me, Su Ann! The ones here (in Melbourne) are nothing compared to what they have back home. :( Enjoy!
10. ahlost | August 18th, 2008 at 12:53 pm
I’ve Plurk.. But I don’t really like to use it :S
11. yuhhui | August 18th, 2008 at 1:38 pm
thanks for the post. Someone invited me to join plurk too but i have no idea what is it. hehe.. thanks !
12. Sharon | August 18th, 2008 at 2:24 pm
Hi SA. Just felt compelled to write this comment. Dunno why. While you have two suitcases to pack, I have two to UNpack. Ive just moved 8000 miles across the globe to the boot shaped country two days ago, and am missing home. And booted my laptop to read the regular blogs from home. I did what you did, ate all the local food before leaving. Char kuay teow, satay, roti canai, laksa, bak kut teh, nasi lemak.
I personally love the nasi lemak at JomBali Cafe in Tesco Mutiara Damansara. The portion is quite generous and the rendang is awesome.
My suitcase weighed 33kgs(!!!!), and I took a chance anyway. The MAS check in person of course insisted that I remove it, and gave me some leeway in the form of 26kgs. So, do like I did, just take a chance, pack whatever you can (esp the stuff you cant get there), go early to the airport to check in. If they insist that you offload, bargain with them, and then calmly go to a corner and remove those things which are not SO important. At least you will leave knowing full well that you TRIED to take whatever you can.
Good luck. :)
13. j o l e n e | August 18th, 2008 at 5:27 pm
seems bit mahfan leh. i cant plurk on the widget straight frm my blog? have to go to their webpage? i put it on then took it off in no time.
14. Samantha Poh | August 18th, 2008 at 5:45 pm
it’s way nicer to be categorized as a friend than fan!
glad i’m not exactly ur fan but otherwise ;)
15. Michelle | August 18th, 2008 at 6:40 pm
You’ve inspired me to Plurk, you know. :) and by doing this, I inspired my friends too.
Soon, Plurk will be like the LBD, ruling the blog-drobes of every blogger arrive.
blog-drobes= blog+ wadrobes.teehee
bon voyage, pinkpau and do write how lovely your place is. =D
16. kreazi | August 18th, 2008 at 6:46 pm
Pack me into the suitcase with you, can, can cannnnnnnnn?
17. chareli | August 18th, 2008 at 6:47 pm
I’M ON PLURK TOO! THANKS TO YOU!
and also to PC mag because they called it “one of the coolest undiscovered networking websites”.
hahaha.
hail all plurkers! =D
18. foreverjas | August 18th, 2008 at 9:11 pm
u’re not coming back in 4 years time???? T.T
19. nina | August 18th, 2008 at 9:43 pm
Plurk is love! And evil!!! Productivity is WAAAAY down ever since I started using Plurl >_<
Mind if I add you, Ms. PinkPau? :D
20. Jun | August 18th, 2008 at 10:13 pm
it’s hard leaving home for the 1st time, but stay strong su ann, u’ve got wat it takes to swim in the sea of incoming columbian students :)
21. Huai Bin | August 18th, 2008 at 10:32 pm
Nifty. I’m looking for something like this for my blog as well ever since I got kinda addicted to the Digi sidebar thing. I’m going to sign up tomorrow. Shall donate Karma Point to you. :)
All the best Su Ann! Enjoy the states.
22. wenqi | August 18th, 2008 at 11:38 pm
limsuannnnnn!!!!
i miss u already :(
nah.. i comment here so i no need to sign up for plurk okie?
*hug*
haih, damn sucky dun get to see u anymore.. sigh..
23. pinkpau | August 18th, 2008 at 11:59 pm
simon seow : i used pacmee for a while.. while that one is good for spamming texts to a number of followers, it wasnt too suitable for my blog cos cannot receive responses
yosie : new york
ben : haha i had a friend who called it a programming dream
pinkshirtz : follow your gf! :D
chee hong : buzz me when you do!
allen g : hahaha you overpraise me.. :) but thank you for your kind words.
evo : haha! i just met up with alvin yesterday for supper. well i actually dont have much time here in KL before i leave.. but when i come back over the holidays, i’ll let alvin know and we can all hang out!! :)
emily t : ooh! you are quite the nasi lemak aficionado. i’ve tried nasi lemak famous in bangsar, but i didnt like it at all :\ yeah maybe except for the fried batter bits! and zomg i have heard about this maybank nasi lemak!!! hahaha i must ask martian cos he used to live near there. hmmm! ok will look out for the uptown one cos it sounds convenient. yes will eat one for you.. with extra fried chicken!
ahlost : it takes some getting used to.. :) i was very confused too at first
yuhhui : mucho welcomes!
sharon : wow thank you for the advice about the baggage. i get to have 2 bags with me, with 23 kgs each so i suppose that’s not so bad..! where is the boot shaped country? i hope you’re holding up well .. :)
jolene : well you just have to bookmark your plurk timeline! and it takes u straight there. the beauty of going to the timeline (instead of plurking via ur widget) is that you get to see what your friends are up to. the widget is just your plurks
samantha : haha! glad to be ur friend too.
michelle : hehehe micheniche!! see ya in plurkville .. :D
kreazi : ok! then i wont be so lonely there.. :(
chareli : haha! welcome to plurk
foreverjas : after 4 years i will be coming back to work of course!
nina : add away!
jun : ah i sure hope so :( it’s been a very emo week for me, knowing that i’m leaving
huai bin : yay, karma :D
wenqi : you sign up for plurk when i go to US okay :( so i can spy on you
24. don | August 19th, 2008 at 6:35 am
i don’t have a blog, but this sounds like something very useful for my bunch of friends. we’re all scattered around different parts of the world and need something like this to update each other on the ongoings of our lives. so… thanks for sharing this!
25. RuYi | August 19th, 2008 at 7:03 am
Reminds me of Twitter. Can you also update by SMS? My phone is has no internet enabled.
26. anony | August 19th, 2008 at 2:49 pm
6 months before break up
27. cheesecakeman | August 19th, 2008 at 4:57 pm
i have been wondering what the plurk thing is all about ever since i saw it on your blog. kind of understand it now. thanks for the guide, pink pau!
28. Apple | August 19th, 2008 at 7:32 pm
try the nasi lemak in sea park,pj…i love the nasi lemak thr ^.^
29. skyler | August 19th, 2008 at 8:53 pm
pinkypau i love you /eyes wtf okay bye bye
30. Sharon | August 19th, 2008 at 10:25 pm
Eh SA, not BOTH bags 20+kgs leh! The suitcase that is to be checked in can be abt 20+kg, the handluggage actually must not exceed 7kgs, but mine was abt 11kgs :P since they dont weigh this one. So, what I do is to put the heavy stuff into the handluggage, so my check-in luggage has more space! Smart or not. Heheh. But remember, no liquid stuff in the handluggage.
And oh, the boot shaped country is Italy :)
31. RealGunners | August 20th, 2008 at 8:41 am
me loves Wall-E too~
no wait.. me loves EEEEE-Veeeeee more~
32. naeboo | August 20th, 2008 at 12:03 pm
pau is going to america. they allow more luggage being brought over there.
33. paulineyap | August 21st, 2008 at 7:41 am
Hi pinkpau, nice post :)
34. pinkpau | August 21st, 2008 at 3:01 pm
don : yessss when i go away to the US it’s going to be extremely helpful for me :) it’ll be a good window into the lives of all the ppl i will miss. sigh.
ruyi : yup you can, but i dont know the number to text to cos i dont use it. maybe you can look it up in the FAQ!
anony : hmm?
cheesecakeman : most welcome!
apple : haha is this the one in front of maybank? a few people have recommended this!
skyler : i love you too skyler /eyes pls come to the airport on saturday!
sharon : i get two bags, both 23kg each cos i’m going to the US :) i checked. hand luggage im not sure if there is a weight limit, but it wont be too heavy! zomg you’re in italy O_____O
realgunners : hahaha “directiveeee?” “CLASSIFIED!”
naeboo : yupp that’s right
paulineyap : thank u! :)
35. Apple | August 23rd, 2008 at 8:54 pm
erm…i cant rmb…but i rmb havin 7 eleven & watson thr…if i’m not mistaken :)
36. arbaeyah | September 1st, 2008 at 11:24 pm
wow. awesome page you have here.
plurk is addictive. and i am addicted to it.
oohh..i am definitely going to buy 3G phone!
37. azizul | June 2nd, 2009 at 4:15 pm
nasi lemak antarabangsa now new opened at shah alam.. n combo set for NLA francais is COMING SOON..the price of combo RM 9.90.. nasi lemak + ayam goreng berempah + paru goreng + ice lemon tea… they have 6 combo set and same price…MURAAAH…
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