:: cosplay kids in Canada; pictures taken from Kei-kon 2009, an anime convention in Victoria, BC (right outside my office).  //

[ is a guest contributor on 56minus1.]

:: taken in Shanghai on Yanping Rd., close to Xinzha Rd.  // AjS

:: five songs by five different Chinese indie folk bands. Please have a listen, 56minus1 would be very interested in hearing any feedback you may have, even if its just a thumbs up or thumbs down. Comment below or send an email to: 56minus1 -AT- gmail.com. Thanks. // AjS

You Can’t Blame Me by Zhu Fangqiong (歌手: 朱芳琼, 歌曲: 怪不得我)

Ha chew! Ha chew! by Glorious Pharmacy (乐队: 美好药店, 歌曲: 啾啾)

Improvisation 2 by The Traveler (乐队: 旅行者, 歌曲: 即兴Ⅱ)

:: a video produced by Scott Sykes, author of the blog 36PR, showing graffiti in Beijing’s Sanlitun area (inside the 3.3 building).  // AjS

:: I recently came across a Forrester report that takes a close look at social media usage by Chinese netizens in “metropolitan China” (Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou, Chengdu, Wuhan, and Xian). To Chinese Internet watchers, the report’s main points are nothing new, but nevertheless worth repeating: 1) social media in China is mainstream, 2) content creation among Chinese netizens is more common than in the West, 3) BBS discussion forums trump social networks in China, and 4) Chinese social media users have higher incomes, education, and consumption levels, compared to non-users. Below are some interesting figures and conclusions for marketers. Does anyone have any insight into methodology for this research? (i.e. how many people were surveyed, how the surveys were conducted, etc.)  // AjS

:: I recently got to know Shanghai-based François Yang, the man behind PHAI DESIGN – I was even fortunate enough to have been gifted a few of his most recent pieces: great stuff. Yang’s work addresses the relationship between design and the problems of human society. As such, Yang aims to create basic products that are environmentally reasonable and friendly, using old and new materials. In this line, titled 1st collection (shown below), Yang uses only recycled materials – aluminum coated aluminum bubble wrap (fun!), Velcro, and nylon / polyester cloth – in designing a handbag, wallet, file pouch (I use it for my laptop accessories), and computer sleeve. You can even pop the bubbles if you want! Bravo, well done.  // AjS

:: Chinese netizens have a plenty of options when it comes to spending money online, but their choices are more limited when it comes to managing their finances. Similarly, there’s tons of information about investment and the stock market, but not as much about other aspects of financial planning.

Here are a few different types of websites and services that Chinese netizens are using for wealth and personal finance management:

household budget websites ::
A large number of websites have sprung up in the past few years to help Chinese netizens manage their household finances. Zhangke (账客网) is a typical example. Its name is formed from the word zhang, “account,” and ke, a common suffix used in Chinese Web2.0-related terms. Together, the term means something like “accounster.” The URL means “I’ve tallied it!” The clean-and-simple site offers monthly plans for entering data via mobile phone, and it provides functionality for discussing consumer-related topics, posting expenditure diaries, and finding other consumers in your city. Caakee (财客在线) was founded in early 2006 and targets white-collar workers between the ages of 25 and 35. It has a large feature set, including the ability to handle stocks, funds, and credit cards, and to export all data in an Excel file for offline applications. Caakee founder Tian Keshan is a young entrepreneur who recently appeared on an Apprentice-like Shanghai TV show called No Free Lunch. My Money (网上理财记帐) features an extensive list of capabilities that includes rolling stock quote updates and foreign exchange accounting for 26 different currencies. It lists frequent system updates: in May it launched version 3, in September version 4, and in November version 4.5. There are far more of these sites than can easily be summed up here, but you can find twenty of them listed here on Parandroid, a blog devoted to lists of software and web technologies.

financial blog sites ::
Many investment and financial planning experts blog on hosts designed to bring together bloggers on financial topics. CNStock’s blog platform hosts wildly popular stock bloggers who have mirrors across all of the major blog providers as well as other writers who address less exciting financial issues. This is to be expected, according to a recent post by Tang Xuefeng, a financial consultant who blogs on CNStock and writes columns about personal finance for the financial channels of other portals. Tang notes, “China’s financial sector is mainly Investment right now, and Personal Finance is lacking. People chase headlong after profit and are unconcerned with rational, practical planning and management of risk, benefits, resources, and goals.” Caixun (财讯) is a financial portal associated with the Beijing-based Shihua International Financial Information (世华财讯). It’s a large, cleanly-designed site that provides news and analysis, as well as exclusive commentary from experts (mostly on investment and market-relate issues). A large personal finance section offers extensive archives of relevant background information, reports, and reviews of financial products on offer from China’s major banks. Associated BBS discussion forums and blogs fill out the community aspects of the site. As on other financial platforms, specific wealth-management topics are in the minority, but people are blogging about housing purchases, white collar savings, and strategies for managing taxes.

e-Commerce-related communities ::
Websites that facilitate online spending are also home to money-management and personal finance communities. Alipay, an online payment service run by e-Commerce giant Alibaba, has a community subsection that offers general-interest forums. It has two major sub-boards devoted to financial issues: an investment and personal finance board, which hosts discussions about financial planning, stocks, and family finances, and an economization board, devoted to exchanging techniques for saving money. Alipay itself has set up partnerships with other financial websites, including a number of the personal budget services found in #1 above.

online bank communities ::
Most of China’s major banks have websites that are one-way: they provide netizens with information but do not allow for much interaction beyond basic online banking services. Some have minimal forums set up to allow netizens to ask questions online, while a few go all out and host extensive BBS discussion forums that cover a broad range of financial topics. China Merchants Bank offers forums with content ranging from online banking issues, to currency markets and investment, to financial planning and insurance. ICBC has only a limited selection of forums, but it schedules live video chats on the second and fourth Friday of every month. Financial experts are online to discuss currency trends, financial planning, fund dynamics, and other related topics with interested netizens. The China Construction Bank website has a section featuring the products of online merchants, which allows netizens to reserve plane tickets, buy jewelry, and purchase online gaming vouchers through the bank.

widgets / tools ::
Online financial calculators are provided by a number of banks and financial websites. ICBC offers a set of tools for calculating loans, returns on stocks and bonds, and foreign exchange rates, among other data. Financial portal Hexun offers an impressive battery of tools for performing calculations related to credit estimates, period investment returns, insurance, major household purchases, and retirement income, as does Eastmoney. Widget platforms offer a variety of stock widgets that can be embedded into blogs and other web pages. Sohu’s Open Widget platform hosts an Eastmoney-branded stock widget that reports general market information for Shanghai and Shenzhen, as well as allowing blog visitors to look up the activity of specific stocks. Another relatively popular (though unbranded) widget charts detailed stock info on a large graph. Bloggers who embed the widget can select a stock to track, and the widget will automatically update with near-live market activity and rolling averages.

// AjS

[Friday 5 is the product of my work at Edelman Digital (China). Link here for the full Friday 5 archive. If you'd like to be added to the bilingual (English & Chinese) Friday 5 email distribution list, please send me an email at: adam DOT schokora AT edelman DOT com.]

:: “my high school teacher is a rock legend…” Anyone remember the Chainsaw Kittens? They were one of the great pre-alternative bands of the early 90s; credited with starting the whole “alternative” genre (which was later made popular by Nirvana, of course) along with the Pixies, Sonic Youth, and, uh, Redd Kross.

In 2000, after Chainsaw Kittens last album All American, the band’s front man, Tyson Meade, suddenly vanished from the U.S. music scene, and rumor had it that he up and moved to China. Well, that rumor turned out to be true. Tyson moved to Shanghai and is still there / here now, enjoying life as a high school English teacher.

Listen below for excepts from an entertaining phone interview I conducted with Tyson about his life in Shanghai and, more importantly, the reason behind his decision to give up being a full-time rock musician. In the interview, Tyson also looks back on his music career and shares some amazing rock ‘n roll stories involving John Lydon (of the Sex Pistols and P.I.L) and Billy Corgan of the Smashing Pumpkins (who is close friends with Tyson and the Chainsaw Kittens as one of their albums was released on James Iha and D’arcy’s Scratchie label). Have a listen.

Also, if you are interested in Tyson’s adventures in Shanghai, check out his blog.  //

:: following up on Jon’s post yesterday about the José González’s show at the Shanghai Children’s Art Theatre, I went to his second performance in Shanghai last night at Glamour Bar. José again put on a great show, with an intimate stage arrangement that allowed for everyone to get up close. One highlight of the night was José showing off his Chinese and saying “牛逼!” (niu bi) to the crowd, something he must have picked up in Beijing a couple nights earlier. Below is a video I took on my phone of “Teardrop,” his last song of the night. Again, kudos to and his team at Split Works for bringing José to China. // SL

[Sean Leow is a guest contributor on 56minus1.]

:: last night, I took in a Jose Gonzales performance at the Shanghai Children’s Art Theatre – a perfect venue. It was one of those so-intimate-that-there-are-zero-bad-seats kinda places. Below are some snaps from the show. Also, see here for a short video Sean posted from Jose’s second Shanghai performance at Glamour Bar (2/19/09). Hats off to and his team at Split Works for making it all happen.  //

[ is a guest contributor on 56minus1.]

:: in the office today I noticed a colleague of mine wearing an interesting contraption around his neck. He’s not injured – despite its bulkiness, he assured me the device it’s strictly for comfort. I want one.  // AjS

::  a TED presentation by Barry Schwartz, an author and academic, in which he makes a passionate call for “practical wisdom” as an antidote to a society gone mad. Rules often fail us; incentives often backfire; wisdom can rebuild our world.  // AjS

:: mr. lan (张岚) has long been my favorite graffiti writer in Shanghai, perhaps China. See below for a sampling of works he painted over the past year or so. Also, click here for a Danwei TV video featuring Mr. Lan. The video also features two other well-known Shanghai writers, Popil and HKR. “The City Needs You.” Bravo, well done.  // AjS

:: JR is a brilliant French photographer whose work transplants large-scale photographs onto highly visible public spaces, buildings, and even vehicles. The resulting effect is tremendous. See below for a sampling of JR’s most recent projects in Rio De Janeiro, Brazil and Kibera, Kenya. Bravo, well done. // AjS

[h/t to Panthea and Nial for introducing me to JR's work]

:: “…content isn’t king…conversation is king…content is just something to talk about…”

- Cory Doctorow