Update: It seems like Sean, the director of Velocity really likes me (or hates me, depending how you see it). I’m on the 11th page of the Frosh Issue (Tuesday, September 2, 2008) Iron Warrior. Download it here: http://iwarrior.uwaterloo.ca/pdf/2008-frosh.pdf

I lol’d when I saw my picture from the Velocity photo shoot a few weeks ago.

"Entrepreneurship is like being electrocuted!"

Or is it…"Starting your own business is electrifying!"

Check out http://velocity.uwaterloo.ca for the original pics.

And now you can lol with me…

PS: Oops – my year should be 2B Systems Design rather than 3B Systems Design.

Peter Kao

Yes, I've arrived

Just moved into Velocity, Canada’s first (that I know of) student incubator residence. I first wrote about it in January (see Velocity – The UW Student Residence for Undergraduate Entrepreneurs) and now I’m living in it.

At first glance, the Velocity building doesn’t look like a student residence at all, rather it looks like an University staff building, but upon entering you are presented with a nice slab of glass that lists impressive sounding areas of the residence. You also get a top-view glimpse of the Rogers Wireless Device Lab which, sadly, is still in construction. I can already imagine it looking stunning though.

Entrance Slab

Device Lab in Construction

The residence will have several rooms that are completely at our disposal. Rooms such as the Device Lab, Great Hall and Conference Room will help entrepreneurial students like me collaborate on projects without having to worry about space or technical limitations.

My only peeve are the old-fashioned rooms and how everything is laid out. Don’t get me wrong, the rooms look nice and habitable. It’s decently sized as well. It’s only the old wooden cabinents and tables and the un-usable layout of the plugs that bother me. First off, the ethernet jack is at least 2 meters away from the today, so you’ll need an extra long ethernet cable to access the LAN line. The other thing is that when sitting down at the table, you irresistibly feel like you’re in a prison cell. There are no windows visible. Maybe it’s just the layout of my room, so let me know if yours is fine, but from what I’ve seen from my friends a lot of the rooms feel very secluded. These problems are small and won’t be a bother once you get used to the room, but I thought I would lay it out for those interested in joining us next term.

My Room! MH-225a

My Room (again)! MH-225a

Door Room Vanity

Here are some more pictures:

My Cheesy Looking Room Door

Sexiest Looking Kitchen I've seen on Rez

And here’s a video showcasing the world’s most advance window at Velocity! It’s a rod attached to a window…

The people are nice, the facilities look nice (though some are still in construction) and the energy is superb. Can’t wait till we have our first Velocity meeting tonight!

PS: News is that we’ll be hooking up an XBOX 360, PS3 and Wii on the big screen TV in the lounge! Man, how are we going to get work done in this place?

Peter Kao

One of the most annoying things with owning your own company is having to deal with the government. Here are some links that you should read over at least once before you start a business.

Online Services from the Government 1

Online Services from the Government 2

Reporting and Remitting Schedules

Tax FAQ’s for Small Businesses

General Information on Goods and Services Tax (GST)

The Basics of the Retail Sales Tax (RST)

How the RST Applies to Internet Related Services

How the RST Applies to Computer Programs and Related Services

Scientific Research and Experimental Development (SR&ED) Tax Incentive Program

The good thing is that there are free seminars from the government that cover most of the above. They also give you handy handouts and brochures too. Read my previous post, FREE Government Seminar Listings for Small Business.

EXTRA: Business Start-up Info Guide

Peter Kao

Just found out that you can’t create a Google Group Page with Chrome!

How funny…

Peter Kao

There are few companies out there that has the guts or care to keep a corporate philosophy that focuses on its consumers. Recently, Google proved that it really cared for its users.

Let me start off with an introduction to Google’s newest product, Google Chrome (get it here). It’s a web browser that has Google fans jumping for joy across the world and has even converted some Firefox users. Despite the fact that it’s still in Beta (aren’t most Google products? ex. Gmail) it has been benchmarked by geeks on scriptNode as the fastest browser on the market.

However, after a few hours post to the launch people started complaining about the End-User License Agreement (EULA) for the product. To put into layman terms, the EULA says that all information submitted using the browser belongs to Google. This obviously pissed off some people. It was a sign that Google had gone awry with its “Do No Evil” mantra and turned into the typical faceless corporation that cares little for its followers.

Within a few hours after hearing the complain, Google immediately added a new clause:

“11.1 You retain copyright and any other rights you already hold in Content which you submit, post or display on or through, the Services.”

Which basically shut everyone up…including myself – I’m using Chrome to type this very entry! And I get to keep ownership of it too

Peter Kao