Truth be known, one of the best online forums catering to Filipinos and everyone else interested in the Philippines is the Pinoy Money Talk Forum. I came across this community last year when I was trying to figure out how to receive payment from my Paypal account.
It's been six months, and so far my first impressions of how this forum is being run and the kind of people who participate in it haven't changed one bit.
There is a healthy sense of community among the people who participate in the forum and who visit the site in general. You get the impression that everyone knows and likes each other but new participants and guests are always welcome.
Some people get out of their way in providing you with answers to your questions - no strings, complete, accurate information. And that's priceless in the face of a deluge of useless information that comes up in every search.
There are disagreements naturally, just like in any public exchange, but the people at Pinoy Money Talk don't go for each other's throats just to prove point. Either that or the moderators are doing an excellent job. I mean, guys, I don't know about you, but when I see Pinoys treating each other with mutual respect, courtesy, and professionalism I cant help but be inspired by it. Inspired to pay it forward some more.
I'm quite keen about this atmosphere of mutual respect and courtesy, because I also visited other Pinoy forum sites at about the same time I stumbled on Pinoy Money Talk. Some are just as good, but the others are simply frightening.
I followed one thread in one site posted by a troll-baiter who said something rather unflattering about Filipino nurses working abroad. The statement brought out all sorts of responses from people including one comment from a US-based nurse. She must have said something perceived by the group as similarly insulting or "mayabang," and people just pounced on her, everything going down to the personal and gutter-level language.
I'm no stranger to sordid interactions, I see that almost everyday offline in the street where I live in Bicutan, but seeing someone getting mobbed like that is a bit unsettling. The sense of hatred emanating from the wolf pack was so palpable, you get the feeling that if it happened offline, they would have torn that woman apart. Each time I think about that forum, my skin just crawls, ugh, I don't need that kind of stress in the internet, lol.
Thankfully, Pinoy Money Talk Forum is different. Hmmn, could it be because everyone is so focused in making money online?
Whatever the reason is, I found one more example of the willingness of people here to help each other. There was this thread about Academia, a company that caters to professionals writing scholarly (as in well-documented, well-referenced) papers. Someone, a researcher or professor from the University of the Philippines, I think, was trying to double-check if the company really pays its writers. Academic professionals from the leading universities responded to it providing an exhaustive catalog of relevant information based on their experiences with that company.
The same richness of information I got when I was trying to figure out Paypal. For the record, I followed the advice in the Paypal thread, and everything just went smoothly from there, as far as receiving payments from clients in the US.
So, for Pinoy professionals seeking online gigs or simply trying to find a place online to hangout with friends, you can't afford not to visit Pinoy Money Talk. It's a thriving community of online folks like you and me, seeking opportunities in the brave new reality of the internet medium, and willing to lend each other a helping hand. See you there, mga kaibigan.
It's been six months, and so far my first impressions of how this forum is being run and the kind of people who participate in it haven't changed one bit.
There is a healthy sense of community among the people who participate in the forum and who visit the site in general. You get the impression that everyone knows and likes each other but new participants and guests are always welcome.
Some people get out of their way in providing you with answers to your questions - no strings, complete, accurate information. And that's priceless in the face of a deluge of useless information that comes up in every search.
There are disagreements naturally, just like in any public exchange, but the people at Pinoy Money Talk don't go for each other's throats just to prove point. Either that or the moderators are doing an excellent job. I mean, guys, I don't know about you, but when I see Pinoys treating each other with mutual respect, courtesy, and professionalism I cant help but be inspired by it. Inspired to pay it forward some more.
I'm quite keen about this atmosphere of mutual respect and courtesy, because I also visited other Pinoy forum sites at about the same time I stumbled on Pinoy Money Talk. Some are just as good, but the others are simply frightening.
I followed one thread in one site posted by a troll-baiter who said something rather unflattering about Filipino nurses working abroad. The statement brought out all sorts of responses from people including one comment from a US-based nurse. She must have said something perceived by the group as similarly insulting or "mayabang," and people just pounced on her, everything going down to the personal and gutter-level language.
I'm no stranger to sordid interactions, I see that almost everyday offline in the street where I live in Bicutan, but seeing someone getting mobbed like that is a bit unsettling. The sense of hatred emanating from the wolf pack was so palpable, you get the feeling that if it happened offline, they would have torn that woman apart. Each time I think about that forum, my skin just crawls, ugh, I don't need that kind of stress in the internet, lol.
Thankfully, Pinoy Money Talk Forum is different. Hmmn, could it be because everyone is so focused in making money online?
Whatever the reason is, I found one more example of the willingness of people here to help each other. There was this thread about Academia, a company that caters to professionals writing scholarly (as in well-documented, well-referenced) papers. Someone, a researcher or professor from the University of the Philippines, I think, was trying to double-check if the company really pays its writers. Academic professionals from the leading universities responded to it providing an exhaustive catalog of relevant information based on their experiences with that company.
The same richness of information I got when I was trying to figure out Paypal. For the record, I followed the advice in the Paypal thread, and everything just went smoothly from there, as far as receiving payments from clients in the US.
So, for Pinoy professionals seeking online gigs or simply trying to find a place online to hangout with friends, you can't afford not to visit Pinoy Money Talk. It's a thriving community of online folks like you and me, seeking opportunities in the brave new reality of the internet medium, and willing to lend each other a helping hand. See you there, mga kaibigan.
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