Sina Versus Twitter, Fight!

Twitter is based in the US and has about 200 million global users.  Sina Weibo is based in China and has about 50 million users (as of Oct 2010).  Both of these platforms are known as microblogs which allow users to publish instant text messages on the internet within a 140-character limit.

Over the past few weeks our web application was enhanced to integrate with these two social media platforms and we notice some similarities and differences that may be of interest to others.  However this blog post isn't meant to be an exhaustive comparison.

Similarities

1. Has a 140-character text message limit (although in the Chinese language, one can express a lot with 140 characters)
2. Adopt the followers, following, mentions etc for the friends' social graph structure.
3. Has API for many languages (php, python etc) for developers to integrate applications into these services
4. Has URL shorterning services.
5. Supports OAuth 1.0a (a secure authorization standard).

Differences

1. Sina Weibo allows uploading pictures (in JPG, PNG etc formats) in a text message.  Twitter requires the use of a 3rd party service such as Twitpic.
2. Sina Weibo supports identity verification.  Users which are tagged with the letter V are verified users.  Well-known celebrities seem to have their screen names tagged with the letter V.  For regular users to be verified, they need to submit identification to prove who they say they are.  When a new user signs up at Sina Weibo, a list of verified users is recommended to be added to his/her follower list.  At Twitter, we had a few spammy users automatically following us after we first signed up.  
3. Developers who are building applications to integrate with Sina Weibo are required to get verification in order to have their application logo/image shown during the authorization process.  This may mean submitting their business licenses or certificates to Sina.  Twitter allows application logos to be shown without any verification process and there's no verification for individual users.
4. Sina Weibo supports commenting on text messages.  Twitter does not.
5. Sina Weibo supports saving anyone's text messages.  Twitter requires the use of a 3rd party service such as BackupMyTweets which only seems to save a user's own tweets.
6. We work with the Python SDK for both services.  Twitter's python SDK is Tweepy developed by a 3rd party.  Sina Weibo Python SDK is supported officially by Sina, and is basically a slightly modified copy of an old version of Tweepy.
7. Twitter is blocked in China while Sina Weibo is accessible globally.
8. Sina is listed in NASDAQ in the US stock market.  Twitter is a privately held company.

So which services should your web application integrate with?  In our experience, once you get Sina Weibo integrated, the integration with Twitter is very similar (in other words, buy one get one free).  Sina Weibo is your friend if you want to reach your potential customers in China.

Amazing Food Bloggers in Hong Kong

Traditionally, Hong Kong has termed people who talk about food with special authority as Eating Gods (食神).  They claim to have good knowledge on all kinds of food, and are often invited to appear on television programs to show off their knowledge.  They sometimes write books on food as well.  They act as spokespersons for restaurants or named brands once they gain enough popularity, but I do not agree that using celebrity endorsement is an effective promotion strategy.

Ever since I discovered the food blogger network foodbuzz last year, I was surprised to find that in this part of the world there is a lot of very high quality food blogging going on.  To me these bloggers are far more capable than the Eating Gods because they are usually the webmasters of their blogs, photographers, photoshop experts, chefs and writers combined into one!  In the past few months, I wandered across the internet and found these Hong Kong-based food bloggers who love food and enjoy sharing their passion with the rest of us.  The following is a brief introduction of each one of them.

Mochachocolata Rita is a food blogger who is also an expert in food photography.  Her food photos especially those taken in low-light restaurants are really good.  She uses a Canon 7D DSLR camera to take food photos.  She's also a featured publisher in foodbuzz.  Her blog is in English.  Her twitter is @mochachocolata.

Gregoire Michaud works at the Four Seasons Hotel as a pastry chef.  His blog is in English and is full of pastry photos (and lots of closeup shots too).  His twitter is @gregoiremichaud.

Hong Kong Food Blog by Anna is a down-to-earth food blog that tells the world about the traditional Chinese food in Hong Kong.  Her blog is in English.

mandykwok1031 has tons of photos of ordinary dishes that people make at home.  Sometimes recipes are also provided.  "Mandy" sometimes appears at www.discuss.com.hk.  The blog is in Chinese (Cantonese style).

tkocell sometimes hangs out at the www.dchome.net and www.discuss.com.hk food forums.  There are tons of food photos taken at home and at restaurants.  The blog is in Chinese.

fatjoykitchen categorizes its blog with Chinese cooking techniques which is very useful to find recipes based on techniques.  There are tons of food photos too.  The blog is in Chinese.

Jason Bon Vivant has lots of food photos taken in the restaurants he visits.  The photos are really nice.

wokwithnana produces many food-related videos.  Most of the videos are in English.  Their twitter is @wokwithnana.

Cai Lan (蔡瀾) is a well-known food critic (but nobody calls him an Eating God for some reason) and author.  He appears in many food-related television programs and has written many books on food and restaurants.  Lately he takes as many food pictures as he possibly can with his iPhone: raw beef, Japanese rice etc and put them in his microblog.  His blog is in Chinese.

The Chinese Soup Lady is a project between sisters Lisa and Tracy.  It has lots of soup recipes and pictures. The blog is in English.

If you come across any other amazing food bloggers in Hong Kong, please let me know!