Singapore 2.0

Thinking of Getting Epi-LASIK Done on Both Eyes

2011-10-20T22:12:00.003+08:00

Many are sick of changing spectacles every 1 to 2 years, whenever the lenses are scratched or the frame becomes worn out. Glasses are not cheap. A decent pair of spectacles can set you back for $150 to $400! Some people have very high short-sightedness which can make the spectacle lenses thick, heavy and unsightly. Moreover, the quality of vision through these lenses may subject the wearer to distorted visual quality.

I hate those damn things. But contact lens are slightly better but still far from perfect.

Many contact lens wearers have suffered enough inconvenience. They suffer from dry eyes and blur vision whenever the air conditioning gets too cold and the air becomes too dry. Lens replacement is an ongoing cost! Not to mention when contact lens manufacturers release newer and more superior lenses, the prices are always getting higher!

What better way to do away with these inconveniences, other than to have LASIK surgery? But is Lasik all that safe? Is Lasik really the ultimate solution to all these problems? Is Lasik really safe?

Unfortunately, the answer is a resounding "No" like I found out from LasikSurgery.sg, a Singapore LASIK resource website. It seems there's a chance that the corneal flap may not adhere back ...permanently. This is a huge risk for a sporty person like myself, I mean imagine the flap comes of during a dive - OMG!

Which is why I think I'm going to take Mike's recommendation to visit Clearvision, which is located at Nutmeg Road, just behind the Paragon shopping mall in Orchard. The clinic is run by Dr. Tony Ho, who is supposedly one of the early pioneers of Epi-LASIK, a more advanced LASIK surgical procedure that doesn't involve cutting the cornea.

The Search Engine Marketing Option for SMEs

2011-08-17T15:49:00.002+08:00

If you're an SME in Malaysia and looking for a cost-effective way to give your business a boost, you should probably consider Online Marketing. Compared with traditional print, tv, radio and OOH advertising, Online Marketing provides much better targeting, is measurable and way cheaper.

Production costs is also much lower because there are no physical prints and videos to produce. This also means that you can get your ads out quicker with Online Marketing.

Online Marketing has evolved tremendously over the years, from just simple banner advertising to a sophisticated array of tools. Today, one has the option of email marketing (EDMs), pop-ups and pop-overs, social media marketing, article marketing and search engine marketing.

What is Search Engine Marketing? Search Engine Marketing or SEM, is an umbrella word for all methods that are used to promote websites in the search engines, e.g. in the search results of Google, Yahoo and Bing.

There are two main methods in SEM - Search Engine Optimization (SEO) and Pay-per-Click (PPC) advertising programs that are offered by the search engines themselves. SEO helps increase your website's visibility in the organic part of the search results (i.e. the left side), while PPC lets you place your ads under the Sponsored Ads areas (i.e. top and right side).

Between the two, SEO is more important because based on a number of studies, organic search results receive about 75% of the click distribution compared to 25% for sponsored ads. This can be attributed to 2 main reasons:

1. People apparently trust the organic results more because the positions are determined by Google based on a number of quality signals.

2. A big portion of users have developed some sort of "ad-blindness" which makes them look only at the organic search results.

Still PPC advertising shouldn't be neglected because it provides better certainty than SEO and lets you push your message out as quickly as within the hour. Unlike SEO, PPC also doesn't incur high upfront costs and you can stop your campaigns anytime when you feel that it has stop giving you a good ROI.

HomeGuru Malaysia vs. iProperty Malaysia

2011-07-03T21:48:00.002+08:00

It looks like the battle of the property portals in Singapore, between PropertyGuru and iProperty, has now spilled over the causeway into Malaysia. However, All Property Media has given it a different brand here, calling it HomeGuru - a joint-venture with Redberry (Malaysia).

The competition has so far resulted in some consolidation, as a result of iProperty snapping up ThinkProperty, while HomeGuru bought Fullhouse. Other property portals in the country are StarProperty, Propwall, and of course, the free and popular Mudah.my.

The core revenue for these property portals come from the listing fees paid by property agents. And then there is some income from display ads, and also from marketing projects for property developers. Listing is mostly free for ads posted by the public.

For now, it remains to be seen how HomeGuru intends to win market share from the incumbent, iProperty - which has a very established brand in the country. The battle is expected to be intense, infact, both portals are already suing each other over the use of the brand "HomeGuru".

With less than a year in the market, it's hard to tell who will emerge the victor. Currently, HomeGuru is expanding their staff size at their Bangsar South City office. The new kid on the block has also boasted of having over 50,000 listings of Malaysia property for sale and rent on their site.

Using AdWords To Boost Your Business During This Lull

2011-05-29T21:11:00.003+08:00

The global economy looks like its weakening again. The U.S. is still fighting with high unemployment, growth in the U.K. has been anaemic at best, and some of the countries in the Euro zone are at risk of going bankrupt. Hence, it's no wonder that you may be experiencing a slowing business during this period.

One of the quickest and most effective way to give your business a boost is by advertising, and nothing gives you better ROI than Google AdWords - the world's largest Internet advertising program. There are several benefits of using Google Adwords:

1. Hundreds and thousands of Internet users advertise with Google AdWords every year, and it’s no wonder why. Google AdWords will advertise almost any niche or genre for anyone, anywhere, that when published will be aimed directly at your market’s target audience. AdWords uses PPC (pay per click), which simply means that you do not pay for your advertisement until someone clicks on it.

2. When signing up for your Google Adwords advertising account, it allows you to set a maximum bid limit for you PPCs, with bids starting at just 1 cent US. Advertisers are able to see their ads up and running on Google within a few minutes of setting them up. The ads are displayed along with search results when someone searches Google for any one of your keywords. Ads are listed under the heading "Indicators" on the right side of your search results page. They can also appear in additional positions above the free search results. This way, you are advertising to an audience that is already interested in your topic. You can also place the ads on sites in the Display Network part of the growing Google Network. You can select the exact placement of the display of the network on which your ad will appear. Alternatively, you determine the right content for your keywords with contextual targeting.

3. Choose from a variety of ad formats, including text, image and video ads. Each has it’s own benefits in relation to your target audience. With the statistics and reports in your AdWords account, you will have full control over your ads’ performance.

4. With Google AdWords there is no minimum monthly fee - only one initial activation fee.

If you feel that you'd like to focus your time on your core competency and leave the campaign management to professionals, or if you feel that AdWords is too technical for you, you can always engage one of the many Google AdWords agency available in Singapore. Be sure though, to check that the person or company is an AdWords Certified Individual or Company - a validation by Google that the person/company has passed certain minimum criteria, and thus is capable of managing your AdWords campaign adequately.

Looking For A Reliable MLM Company?

2011-04-29T20:50:00.002+08:00

Much controversy surrounds multi-level marketing (MLM) companies, and none more so than QuestNet. This article gives the company profile of QuestNet and talks about whether the company is legitimate or if it just a pyramiding scam.

Who is QuestNet?

QuestNet traces its beginnings in 1998. Initially, it dealt exclusively in selling collector coins and medallions, eventually earning a reputation as being one of the world's leading companies in numismatics. Eventually, the company expanded their product line, including other kinds of jewelry, luxury watches, health and wellness products, household products, and even vacation packages. Aside from retail, the company has also delved in telecommunications, also investing in radio stations.

Strictly speaking, QuestNet is unlike other kinds of MLM companies in that it neither has physical distributors that sell the products, nor does it require those who are part of the network to reach a certain sales quota each month. Instead, it has independent representatives (IRs) that earn money by referring people to QuestNet, effectively making the organization a mail order retail company that makes use of MLM strategies to get the word out on their products and services. Because people don't have to deal directly with inventory management and don't require a big capital in order to earn in QuestNet, a lot of individuals have become interested in joining the organization, with most doing so in order to supplement their income. A person can earn as much as $2,400 per day, depending on how much effort he or she makes in promoting the company. See this QuestNet presentation for more details.

Another difference QuestNet has with conventional MLM companies is that IRs can have unlimited operating accounts, which theoretically gives them an unlimited source of income, while other MLM organizations limit their members to having only a single account at a time.

Today, QuestNet has over 5 million IRs worldwide, establishing and maintaining their presence in over 160 countries.

Is Questnet a Scam?

As with other companies that operate using networking principles, a lot of critics have come up and accused QuestNet of being a big scam, with some of the accusers previously serving as some of the company's IRs who didn't manage to make a lot of money even if they were involved in the company. The controversies surrounding QuestNet has left a bad taste on a lot of people's mouths, and they automatically believe the naysayers simply because they have the loudest voices.

The truth, however, is far from what is being widely publicized. QuestNet is in fact a legitimate business. The reason why it has received so much negative flack is that, being one of the companies that make use of MLM models, the company has automatically become attached to the pyramid schemes that have victimized thousands of people globally. The fact that QuestNet has been in the business for over 10 years and is a trusted brand by even some of the biggest events and companies, including but not limited to the 2000 Sydney Olympics, the 2008 Beijing Olympics, the 2004 Athens Games, and the Federacion Internationale de Football Association (FIFA), to name a few is a testament to its legitimacy.

While it's true that there are some IRs that don't make a lot of money even if they joined QuestNet, that is mainly more their fault than the company. All too many people join QuestNet and other MLM companies because they believe that these organizations can make them get money quickly and easily. However, like other legitimate companies, the income of the IRs will depend on how much effort and commitment they put into their work. Simply put, if they don't work, they don't earn.

The fact that it has weathered several criticisms and controversies is testament to the enduring nature of this organization. QuestNet is a reliable company that seeks to share their financial success with hardworking individuals who are willing to take the time and effort to earn extra income.

Singapore: A Booming Business Hub

2011-04-09T13:31:00.004+08:00

Singapore has been ranked by the World Bank as the 3rd best country for doing business and trade. It has also come first in being the least bureaucratic and corruption-free place for all business matters in Asia (Source: Singapore - Number One Choice for Foreign Investors).

Despite not having many natural resources to call its own, this tiny island nation has defied the snide comments of others and beat all odds to become one of the “Four Asian Tigers”, holding one of the most rapid growing economies in the South East Asian region.This success can be attributed to its industrious population and its strategic location on major sea routes. It is no wonder that international trade associations are now on the rise in Singapore.

After separating from its now neighboring country, Malaysia, way back in 1965, the country faced numerous challenges that were brought on by the limitations on resources and lack of an international market. The Singaporean government then adopted the strategy of enforcing export-oriented policies and encouraging foreign investments by combining it with state-directed investments in government corporations. This move proved to be a huge success as the economy grew at an average of 8% from 1960 to 1999.

It is always said that the one resource Singapore always has is their human resources. True enough, their highly skilled workforce proves to be one of the factors responsible for putting Singapore on the business map. Together with its favorable tax regime, fair laws and regulations, Singapore has managed to attract businesses from some 3000 multinational companies from US, Europe and Japan.

New and exciting employment opportunities are constantly being created in an effort to turn Singapore into a knowledge-based economy. At present, Singapore’s business sector is a thriving industry that attracts people from all around the globe. The growing economies of fellow Asian countries India and China, has also seen many foreign investments coming the Singaporean way, most notably in the IT sector.

Interested in setting up your business in Singapore? Refer to Company Registration Singapore for comprehensive guides on the requirements and step-by-step procedure for incorporation.

Developing Your IELTS Listening Skills

2011-03-21T16:07:00.002+08:00

The common belief among students getting ready for taking IELTS or TOEFL is to listen as much as possible, as often as possible from all potential sources, in all possible dialects of English.
This approach might efficient with advanced students. Some upper-intermediate students can follow this approach too.

What about those whose command of English is at a lower level? Well, I would advise them to refrain from listening to randomly selected materials, especially if they find them too difficult and as a result, discouraging. No one wants to get discouraged, do they? Instead they should choose carefully their listening practice by making sure it is at a suitable level. An ideal listening exercise should enable learners to guess the meaning of new words from the context. Besides, they should be able to follow the main idea of the recording without difficulty. To find out the level of your English, you can either take a placement test in a language school or test your own listening comprehension skills by using recordings available on the internet. Start with listening for beginners, then move on to materials for intermediate learners, and finally those for advanced learners. It should give you an idea of your English proficiency level.

While you're at it, you should make an attempt at this IELTS quiz and see how you fare.

GMAT: The 2-at-a-time Sentence Correction Method

2011-03-01T12:54:00.002+08:00

No one likes staring at a mass of text on the monitor of their computer adaptive test on the big day of your GMAT exam, whether it’s a reading comprehension passage or a long critical reading prompt. But one particularly area where it’s particularly daunting to see a lot of text is on sentence correction question that’s four lines long- and all four are underlined. One question could be almost as long as a short reading comprehension passage.

First, we have to break down the question into layers and eliminate accordingly. See a plural singular error in the first answer choice? See if you can spot a similar error in another answer choice- and eliminate both of them. Often, errors repeat themselves.

After that, compare the answer choices to one another two at a time. Pick which one you think sounds better, and eliminate the other one. Eventually, you’ll arrive at the correct answer- and with less stress than if you had tried to compare all 5 in your head at once.

Finally, learn to spot the common sentence correction errors- especially ones involving parallel structure, comparisons, and modifiers. These will help you get through the longer prompts much more quickly.

Remember that the GMAT is about more than getting the correct answer- it’s about getting the correct answer in enough time and without stress. The test designers know this- that’s why they use longer stimuli for sentence correction questions- for intimidation as much as difficulty. If you can break the stimulus down, compare two choices at a time, and remember common errors, you’ll have more than enough preparation to stare down those intimidating monster questions.

TOEFL iBT Independent Speaking

2010-12-17T15:02:00.002+08:00

According to ICON+, a TOEFL Singapore specialist, most students prefer to think that independent speaking tasks are one of the easiest among the spoken tasks, when compared to integrated ones. This thought can be true so long as you know how to take advantage of that one minute that you have for each independent speaking task. Having 15 to 20 seconds of preparation time and subsequently speaking for 45 to 60 seconds can be daunting for many TOEFL IBT test takers.

Infact, most students find it rather difficult to either fill in the time given or fit in all they have to say in their TOEFL, which stands for Test Of English As A Foreign Language, independent speaking test. The key to success is splitting the response period into 3 proportional parts, each of them devoted respectively to: stating your opinion, presenting at least two reasons that would justify your stand and providing some examples. By speaking a bit faster, when you have more things to share, or slowing down, when you feel that this topic is not your cup of tea, you can take control of your time. Last but not least, make sure the pace of your speech sounds natural!

Google's New Place Search

2010-11-14T18:16:00.003+08:00

If you're performing local searches, e.g. on google.com.sg or google.co.uk, you may have come across a new search results format, where Google Places (i.e. Google Maps) listings are merged together with organic results.

This is part of the new Place Search function recently rolled out by Google, which you can activate by clicking on the Places link or the red pin on the drop-down menu on the left. It's also automatically triggered for certain keywords under "Everything" searches.

Larry Lim, an SEO Consultant in Singapore, has written extensively about this new Google Place Search function and its impact on local SEO. Go have a read!

A Tip For Property Speculators

2010-11-08T15:31:00.002+08:00

Ask any friends or relatives in Singapore, and at least one of them would tell you that they (or someone they know) have made lots of money from properties. I personally know a friend of a friend who made substantial money from government-subsidized HDB flats, and then went on to own 2 condominiums from the profits of selling the flats. Even Singapore property agents are having a field day, thanks to investors flipping properties.

Based on data from URA, Singapore real estate prices have appreciated significantly in 2010. Although this is not surprising since Singapore real estate and property prices will almost definitely trend up in the long-term due to rising population, tight land space, influx of immigrants and of course, inflation.

The biggest problem for any property investor or speculator is the near impossiblity of trying to time the property market ...still there's more certainty than trying to predict the direction of the SGX stock market though.

At the height of the current global financial crisis, caused by U.S sub-prime problems, Singapore property prices fell an average 30 per cent at the end of 2008 alone. Since then, the prices have risen back up and have infact, surpassed the previous peaks.

Overnight policy changes by the government are also another uncertainty to consider, like the recent cooling measures to implement RPGT and minimum downpayment increase to 30 per cent. Property analysts expect demand to fall as much as 20 per cent this year just because of these moves.

Hence, if you are going to speculate in Singapore property and real estate, or properties anywhere in the world for that matter, always make sure that you have enough reserves to tide you through tough times and sudden policy changes.

Jipaban Online Shopping Mall

2010-09-19T17:30:00.002+08:00

While there has been an explosion of blog shops by enterprising bloggers and a handful of online shopping directories, there hasn't been a real online shopping mall per se ...until now.

Jipaban, founded by the same people behind Nuffnang.com - Asia's biggest blog advertising network, is the first real online shopping website in Singapore and houses a wide variety of products and brands, such as Bonito Chico. All the stores are managed by different owners - Jipaban merely provides the platform and helps retailers with the marketing.

What's even more interesting is the creators have cleverly integrated "social networking" features into the shopping experience, e.g. a wish list so friends know what to buy for your birthday, the sharing of product ratings and the ability to easily update friends on your shopping activities on Facebook.

On the flip side, anyone can sign-up to be a retailer and rent a virtual store for a nominal fee. What you get in return is participation in the hottest online shopping fad in Singapore, plus all the magic that happens in the background, like a seamless payment system, full-fledged online shop and advanced analytics.

To see the website in action, head on over now to http://www.jipaban.com.sg

Company Registration and BVI Incorporation

2010-05-24T21:28:00.002+08:00

Singapore's highly-skilled workforce, favorable tax regime, extensive FTA network, strategic geographic location and test-bedding opportunities are some of the factors that such potential start-ups wish to leverage upon. Incorporating a company in Singapore is not a complicated process if one has the papers right and skills to meticulously organize and follow up on any developments or queries. Nevertheless engaging an expert is always a prudent approach because when operating on a foreign land familiarity with the system always helps.

Bizcorp Management Pte Ltd, is a leading Business registration and company formation practice in Singapore. Bizcorp provides an array of comprehensive incorporation and business administration services. Its client roster includes companies ranging from sole proprietorship to Multi-National Corporation.

Bizcorp provides a comprehensive business incorporation package right from proposed company’s name search unto registration and preparation of company seal. The service bandwidth expands even beyond incorporation, Bizcorp helps companies with its service to manage ongoing regulatory compliance matters as well as provides accounts management services. Innumerous local entrepreneurs and many foreign companies and entrepreneurs have engaged Bizcorp for their company incorporation requirements and have continued to retain Bizcorp to manage their accounts and compliance matters.

By engaging professional consultancy like Bizcorp, foreign enterprises and entrepreneurs can complete their incorporation process remotely unless some special circumstances requires their presence in Singapore. This enables saving of resources. Apart from saving time and money, the promoters can focus on their core operational tasks which will facilitate an immediate kick start of the business when the company is incorporated. This is a very significant benefit because in the present scenario the ‘time to market’ is an important phenomenon to succeed.

Elaborating on the advantages of engaging an incorporation expert Mr. Jason Chen Director of Bizcorp Management Pte Ltd says, "As we have been managing the incorporation of companies and registrations of businesses of all nature and size from various parts of the world, we have achieved a sort of domain expertise and this makes the whole process seem so much easier. It saves time and money for the client and even before a client incorporates, we can advise whether the move will benefit the client or even which types of entity to choose depending on the nature of business. This way the client is relieved of the procedural nitty-gritty and will be in a position to better streamline their business plan”.

Visit BizCorp Company Registration for more details.

Singapore Accounting & Auditing Firm

2010-03-10T13:03:00.003+08:00

Trustnet Alliance is one of Singapore's leading public accounting and auditing firm. The company boasts a team of qualified accountants and auditors, including the much sought CPA professionals.

Trustnet's accounting services include monthly/quarterly/yearly accounts preparation, annual reports, bank account reconciliation, GST advisory, payroll services and management financial reports. Fees for Trustnet's accounting services start from just S$300 a month, depending on the client's volume of transactions.

Trustnet also provides auditing and assurance services for Singapore companies, from SMEs to MNCs and local subsidiaries of listed companies. These include statutory audits, internal audits and special audits. Fees for Trustnet's auditing services start from just S$1,000 for a small-sized company.

For more information, please contact Trustnet Allicance:

Add: 100 Tras Street #09-03, Amara Corporate Tower, Singapore 079027

Tel: +65 6423 0030

Email: support@trustnetalliance.com.sg

Website: http://www.trustnetalliance.com.sg

Payroll Outsourcing Provider

2010-01-14T12:49:00.004+08:00

There are many benefits of outsourcing your payroll. The biggest benefit is to enable you to focus on your core business and leave this mundane administration work to someone else to handle.

This may not be a big issue with a mom-and-pop shop, but for an MNC with many branch companies in many different countries (and different local employment laws to comply with), outsourcing the job to a payroll processing company can save a lot of headache.

Hence, the key here is to find a payment processor that is "compliant with local employment laws" in all the countries that you have an office in, so that you only deal with one party.

One such company is Zapper Services, a company that has been around since 1986 and whose payroll processing service is compliant in 15 countries in the Asia Pacific region, specifically Thailand, Hong Kong, Malaysia, Philippines, Japan, China, Australia, New Zealand, Korea, Vietnam, Taiwan, Brunei, India, Indonesia and Pakistan.

Serving 1,800 clients ranging from SMEs to MNCs from all over the world, some of its payroll clients include Adidas, Citibank, Heinz, L'oreal, MTV Asia, Nokia, Pfizer, Skype and Volvo.

Apart from payroll services, Zapper also has an online HR solution that is completely built in-house. The modular Human Resource system is based on an ASP model.

What this means is the entire HR system is hosted by Zapper and for a small monthly/yearly fee, clients can simply login and manage their employees.

For more information, please visit Zapper's website - http://www.zapper.net

Singapore Company Registration Guide

2009-12-23T11:33:00.003+08:00

Company Registration Singapore provides a comprehensive guide for anyone interested in setting up business in Singapore. The website was created by Company Incorporation expert, BizCorp Management Pte Ltd.

Topics covered include:
1. Benefits of incorporating a company in Singapore.
2. Basic requirements to register your company.
3. Documents required for company registration.
4. Procedure for registering a company in Singapore.
5. What else to do after incorporating your company.

Incidentally, BizCorp is having a limited-timed promotion for their Company Registration service, with fees starting from S$600 (usual: S$900). Check out Google Maps for direction and contact information.

QuestNet | Network Marketing Company

2009-10-18T13:23:00.000+08:00

QuestNet is a global network marketing company that was established in 1998 and today, has over 3 million members in 160 countries. The company distributes as varied range of products which includes health and wellness, jewellery and watches, and holiday products among others.

Apart from the official company website, here are a couple of other related websites that we have found to be very useful:

1. QuestNet Online Magazine - also known as Qpportunity, the weekly newsletter dispenses personal development tips, product highlights, current promotions and success stories to inspire new members.

2. QuestNet Scam - this is an interesting PR site that presents the facts to counter all the allegations on the Internet, instead of blindly protecting their brand. Go give it a read and decide for yourself if what you've heard is true or not.

3. QuestNet @ Twitter - get frequent updates related to QuestNet and MLM.

4. QuestNet On Facebook - the official QuestNet page with lots of news updates, announcements, photos and member discussions, e.g. the recent donation drive for Typhoon Ondoy victims in the Philippines.

Singapore Online Learning Website

2009-10-12T15:18:00.003+08:00

Popular e-Learning Holdings Pte Ltd, the digital arm of POPULAR holdings, has recently launched the eduPOP educational portal that aims to provide a one stop e-Assessment and e-Learning portal for parents. The portal allows parents to preview, purchase and access content from different education portals via a single login, thus freeing up the hassle of parents needing to remember multiple passwords.

The company has also placed demostration booths in selected POPULAR bookshops in Singapore. This helps to provide a better experience for parents in making informed decisions in the purchase of relevant education products for their child.

The portal offers a suite of contents starting from as low as SGD$12.90 for their e-Assesssment (school assessment papers) series with automark and performance analysis module to about SGD$100.00 for various e-Learning (online learning programs) package from different vendors with unique features including diagnositic abilities, mini virtual world, interactive experiments based on Singapore Primary School and GCE “O” level syllabus.

Since the official launch of the eduPOP portal in November 2008, the number of subscribers has reached the 7000 mark and is increasing exponentially. Parents and educators have given very postive feedback about this service.

LASIK Education Website

2009-05-16T19:48:00.004+08:00

LASIK Surgery Singapore is a non-profit website that was recently setup to educate the public about LASIK, a popular refractive surgery for astigmatism, myopia and hyperopia. Basically, people who undergo the surgery do it with the hope of being able to ditch their spectacles and contact lenses.

The website begins with a detailed explanation of the LASIK procedure, including what to expect during the recover period and the subsequent post-operative reviews with the opthalmologist. There is a step-by-step video animation to illustrate this.

There is also comprehensive information about the risks of LASIK, warning likely candidates about the potential of cornea scarring, visual problems like glare and the possibility of under and over-correction.

The LASIK cost comparison table is particularly useful to get a quick comparison about the charges by different clinics and for the different types of LASIK. The website also features a directory, listing LASIK surgeons in Singapore for the readers convenience.

Dedicated Hosting

2009-04-14T11:39:00.002+08:00

A friend of mine just started a hosting company called Questnet Hosting. The difference is he's concentrating solely on the corporate market by offering only premium dedicated hosting.

There are 3 plans in all - the lowest plan being Questnet Starter ($300/mth), with a Dual Core Xeon and 2GB RAM, and the highest is Questnet Pro ($900/mth), with a Quad Core Xeon and 8GB RAM.

He's running a limited-time promo currently where you'll get an additional 2 months plus a free domain name when he prepay 12 months of web hosting. So skip ahead to his site, Questnet Hosting, to lend some support. :)

Vijay Eswaran - An All-Rounded Entrepreneur

2008-12-03T12:20:00.003+08:00

Vijay Eswaran is a self-made entrepreneur, whose rags-to-riches story is sure to inspire Singaporeans not only towards financial success but spiritual bliss too. An Indian migrant who came with nothing, Mr. Eswaran turned QI Ltd into a billion dollar empire that includes telecom, tv station, vacation club and modern network marketing. Today, the company has over 2.5 million customers in over 160 countries.

Mr. Eswaran was bestowed the title of 'Dato' in Malaysia some years back and is often seen in the company of VIPs and celebrities alike, including the Pope and Ronaldinho [source: Vijay Eswaran Photos].

Mr. Eswaran is also a well-known speaker and acclaimed author. One of his best seller, In The Sphere Of Silence, has been translated into various languages because of worldwide demand. The book aims to motivate people towards success and is published through Rythm House - another one of Mr. Eswaran's project to enable like-minded authors to spread their work.

Jan & Elly - Phonics Class

2008-07-20T22:15:00.002+08:00

Jan & Elly has been teaching Phonics for kids in Singapore since 1995 at their two English schools in Upper Bukit Timah and Serangoon Gardens. Phonics involves teaching kids to associate the sounds of spoken English with letters to enable them to speak and pronounce more accurately.

Jan & Elly also helps students prepare for their PSLE English exams. The course is MOE-compliant and helps PSLE students improve their composition, comprehension, vocabulary, spelling and oral skills.

TOEFL Singapore - TOEFL Test Preparation

2008-05-19T19:36:00.002+08:00

TOEFL Singapore provides TOEFL test preparation classes for students in Singapore. TOEFL, which stands for "Test Of English As A Foreign Language", is the most recognized English test in the world and often used by universities and businesses.

TOEFL Singapore is run by High Q, an international education group that specializes in university entrance courses like IELTS, GMAT, GRE and SAT. High Q has taught over 250,000 students since 1983, while the Singapore school has taught 15,000 students since 1999.

TOEFL is available as a standard classroom course or personal training and priced from S$890 nett, with a score improvement guarantee.

Larry Lim - Singapore SEO Consultant

2008-04-15T18:54:00.003+08:00

Larry Lim is a leading SEO Consultant in Singapore, counting companies like SPH, M1 and Edelman among his clients. Beginning as a web entrepreneur, he used to own a network of websites serving over 8 million pages a month, before providing SEO services.

He currently ranks #3 for "seo" on google.com.sg and have been able to achieve top 5 rankings for his clients, for general keywords like "property", "jobs", "cars" and "classifieds".

Apart from search engine optimization, Larry also provides Google Adwords campaign management and internet marketing coaching for companies.

iProperty - Singapore Property For Sale / Rent

2008-03-13T19:39:00.004+08:00

iProperty is an online Singapore real estate classifieds where you can find residential, commercial and industrial property for rent or for sale. Some of the popular searches on iProperty are for HDB flats, private apartments and office space.

Apart from property listings, there are useful articles and information like HDB guidelines, mortgage calculator and home interest rates. You can also browse their Singapore Condo directory for all the condominiums ever built in Singapore.

iProperty is listed on the Australian stock exchange and they aspire to be the leading property classifieds in Asia.

Office Compass - Singapore Office Rental

2008-02-13T12:48:00.004+08:00

Office Compass offers a search engine for anyone to conveniently find available office space in Singapore. There are thousands of office listings and which are updated on a daily basis. The company also provides office rental rates for easy comparison.

Started by freelance property agent, Raymond Lau, Office Compass specializes in commercial properties up to 30,000 square feet in size. This includes office space in corporate buildings, hi-tech and business parks, shop houses and serviced offices.

Ping.sg - Singapore Meta Blog

2008-01-13T15:19:00.000+08:00

Ping.sg is a meta blog that displays an excerpt of blog posts written by its members, primarily Singapore bloggers. The benefits are two prong:
- a convenient one-stop to read local blogs.
- a place where bloggers can interact and promote their blogs.

Ping.sg also features a shoutout box and a forum.

How It Works
Upon receiving a 'ping', an extract from the latest blog entry is posted on Ping.sg. Whenever someone clicks on the link on Ping.sg, the blog entry receives a 'pong' (i.e. a vote) and the visitor is taken to the author's blog to read the entire post. The top 10 blog entries that receive the most 'pongs' within 24 hours are displayed at the top of the mainpage.

Ping.sg is the brainchild of Chua U-Zyn, a Computer Engineering major of NUS and freelance web designer.