first 500 words of my technology blog piece

BBM for Android and iOS... again?


'Even when something seems to be going right for BlackBerry in 2013, it swiftly ends up going wrong.'

For example, over 1 million people were so eager to get its BBM app for Android that they downloaded a leaked version ahead of its official release on 21 September. The problem being that the app was faulty, and kept producing "volumes of data traffic orders of magnitude higher than normal for each active user".
BlackBerry's head of BBM Andrew Bocking stated that the Android and iOS versions of BBM need some more work. "This will take some time and I do not anticipate launching this week," he blogged. BlackBerry could easily fix those problems and get BBM working efficiently for iOS and Android devices, but its real challenge is ensuring people actually will go out of their way and download it. BBM still has around 60 million active users on BlackBerry devices, but you do wonder how many people would discard it for the new version and/or even want to continue using it any more anyway.

BBM has its fair share of fans but the development and popularity of its 'cross-rivals'. Although BBM million people use BBM; WhatsApp has 300 million active users, although it is not directly known how much still use their accounts. Whatsapp in particular has a vast amount of users, as its free to download and free to use - how can Blackberry compete with this?

Blackberry's counter-strike was to finally launch BBM for other companies' devices, to try and face the competition in the market. But will this ensure they stay relevant? This all or nothing approach may be due to the fact the BB10 software and Z10 smartphone being deemed as 'unpopular'.

Blackberry's counter-strike was to finally launch BBM for other companies' devices, to try and face the competition in the market. But will this ensure they stay relevant? This all or nothing approach may be due to the fact the BB10 software and Z10 smartphone being deemed as 'unpopular'. The Z10 mobile failed to compete with the likes of the iPhone5, Samsung S4 and the Sony Xperia. Is this Blackberry's counter-measure or an act of desperation? Possibly a bit of both.

Especially as competition is now even closer than it seems... In the form of fellow Canadian firm Kik Messenger, who now have a total of 80 million registered users. New types of instant messaging apps are emerging from other categories like video calling (Tango), VoIP (Skype), social networks (Facebook Messenger) and photo-sharing (Snapchat).

BBM is now available to download from Apple's App Store, Android's Google Play store and some countries' Samsung App Stores. BlackBerry. however,  is using a virtual "waiting line system" to stagger access to the new app. It's taken people, a few minutes, a few hours, even a day to successfully download the app.

It's asking people to download BBM and register their email addresses, then wait for an email to notify them that they can use the app. The many fortunate people who signed up for information on the BBM website before the original launch in September get immediate access to the app.

First 500 words of my travel writing piece

THE HISTORICAL HOTSPOT FRANCE ALTHOUGH A PLACE OF CREAM-FILLED CAFES AND BOISTEROUS BOULEVARDS, come and see Paris and it will add and improve your knowledge of the French culture and lifestyle.

The gigantic iron lattice tower in the middle of the Champ de Mars in Paris towers above the entire city, surrounded by forests of happily dancing green trees. The Eiffel Tower, this palatial podium has been attracting foreigners for centuries, beautifully demonstrating the combination between architecture and art. France's most iconic landmark. It could be argued that this sparked the rise for Paris' mission for fashion, art and cultural dominance of Europe. Attraction, attraction, attraction, the three-floor column is like a lantern that draws in swarms of tourists, journalists and photographers. At night he tower exemplifies Paris' acclaimed title of ''The City of Lights'' as it beautifully intensifies the whole city. A bombardment of light, colour, grandeur, creating an atmosphere of awe and amazement -without a doubt something spectacular to observe.

Dissimilar to most French cities, Paris did not just stop when it peaked. It's lasting relationship with modern culture has helped its transformation into a truly prospering city with cosmopolitan tastes, top-end fashion stores, massive media management offices, and exquisite art galleries that add to the je ne sais pas which makes Paris world-class. However, not entirely their only claim of independence, Paris has a hunger for business. As France's financial epicentre, patisserie heaven, fashion, television, entertainment, and corporate playground.





If you're interested in "the best known, the most visited, the most written about, the most sung about, the most parodied work of art in the world", then The Louvre is an unmissable piece of history, famed as the world's most famous museum. Here you can admire the armless beauty Venus de Milo, simple yet extraordinary; a sculptural masterpiece by Alexandros of Antioch, arguably 'one of the greatest works of ancient Greek sculpture'. The Picasso Museum and the National Museum of Modern Art are but two others that rank among the country's finest. To get a glimpse of the most revolutionary piece of artwork revisit the Louvre and there amidst the greatest creative concoctions of all time, Leonardo Da Vinci's La Jaconde - more commonly known as Mona Lisa - illuminates the museum's Salle des États behind bulletproof glass.

Its hard to deny Paris its reputation as the World's most beautiful city. The Bois de Vincennes in the east and the Bois de Boulogne in the west truly epitomise this acclamation. The Bois de Vincennes was created between 1855-66 by the Emperor Louis Napoleon and to this day it still holds historical importance to Paris, and even France as a whole. The Chateau de Vincennes is located within it's vicinity - a former residence of the Kings of France. Sometime in the afternoon, however, if in need of a picnic or chilled couples outing then the Parc Floral located inside the Bois de Vincennes is a perfect place to rendezvous; the walk alongside the river Seine is a couples' personal commodity. The 'Temple of Love' is secludedly situated on the cliffs of the 'Lac Daumesnul', a romantic haven, hidden deep within the park's forests. Families can enjoy this park too as it doubles as an amusement park with a zoo attached (closed for renovation to 2014 unfortunately).