Your one piece of wisdom...

[sundaymorningstaple]

That's why I stopped at MCSA after learning how to turn on the damn things at 55!

[GSM8]

It's hard to accept an offer when an agent has 'guaranteed and sworn blind' it'll get 30% more. Even without Chinese genes...

Agents often value high to get the instruction. When bollock-all happens they then coerce you into making a reduction; the very old trick has a name 'Get the instruction, then get the reduction'. But I'm quite sure some Asians won't agree to reductions; preferring to sit on empty property for ever and ever, rather than 'hand a deal to some bloody cheap buyer lah'.

Considering that over 3/4 of Singapore is of Chinese or Indian heritage, perspective from Russell Peters
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZtbyVFLl_7U

[CaptainBullus]

My one thing would be "don't worry, EVERYONE has back sweat"

[JR8]

Edited to add remark: The recently added forum function of putting links behind any property-related word is silly

I think the basic premise is flawed. Who wants to be say discussing rising condo prices, or misbehaviour at their condo, or indeed condoms or *1000 and then suddenly decide to hotlink from that random word to search condo ads? When the links are right above in the headers and clear as the day anyway.

Since probably 99.999% of these new hotlinks are not creating any value, and are in fact instead a positive distraction (and at times something of a farce, as we see) perhaps they warrant a rethink?

[zzm9980]

Edited to add remark: The recently added forum function of putting links behind any property-related word is silly

I think the basic premise is flawed. Who wants to be say discussing rising condo prices, or misbehaviour at their condo, or indeed condoms or *1000 and then suddenly decide to hotlink from that random word to search condo ads? When the links are right above in the headers and clear as the day anyway.

Since probably 99.999% of these new hotlinks are not creating any value, and are in fact instead a positive distraction (and at times something of a farce, as we see) perhaps they warrant a rethink?

In all fairness, there have been numerous posts by forum regulars telling other forum regulars how to install adblockers. While I don't enjoy ads, I understand if the forum admins want to try and get a revenue stream off it.

[JR8]

In all fairness, there have been numerous posts by forum regulars telling other forum regulars how to install adblockers. While I don't enjoy ads, I understand if the forum admins want to try and get a revenue stream off it.

Would an adblocker make condo type hotlinks go away?

I expect users are perfectly clear/cool nay supportive on why the forum needs sources of funding. It's about the efficiency of doing that. I can't say I've ever been on a forum (in 30 years) that has used this method of creating hotlinks, perhaps one reason why it comes over as a little strange.

[x9200]

Edited to add remark: The recently added forum function of putting links behind any property-related word is silly

I think the basic premise is flawed. Who wants to be say discussing rising condo prices, or misbehaviour at their condo, or indeed condoms or *1000 and then suddenly decide to hotlink from that random word to search condo ads? When the links are right above in the headers and clear as the day anyway.

Since probably 99.999% of these new hotlinks are not creating any value, and are in fact instead a positive distraction (and at times something of a farce, as we see) perhaps they warrant a rethink?

Aren't these links for site/ads positioning rather than any human user to click them?

But I agree, it should be much more discriminative and I also think is nothing really challenging to have it implemented properly.

[Akimbo]

One piece of advice? Hmmm...

Don't get offended if some (60%) people in service or even at work aren't that helpful/polite with their language with you.

I'm not talking about the F word or B word or AH word. It's more like...

Location: retailstore/supermarket

Question I have: "Excuse me, where do you keep the xxxx?" or "Do you have anymore of this xxxx?"

Answer I'm expecting: "Let me try and help you find it....ah, it's right over there" or "I'm sorry, but we don't have it"

Answer I'm getting: "If can't find, then don't have!" or "Should be there lor!"

I still get frustrated sometimes when I get the latter answers. But I just hold my chin up and move on. They can't help their Singlish, I guess. I just learned from Mandarin classes, that in practice, the words "sorry" and "please" aren't really part of regular conversational patterns.

[x9200]

Question I have: "Excuse me, where do you keep the xxxx?"

"Huh?"

[brian_singapore]

Ok, this is the one thing I'm glad I did before moving to Singapore:

Read diary of an expat in singapore.

I think the author has a blog somewhere. But I've never gone and looked at it.

[triste]

In all fairness, there have been numerous posts by forum regulars telling other forum regulars how to install adblockers. While I don't enjoy ads, I understand if the forum admins want to try and get a revenue stream off it.

Would an adblocker make condo type hotlinks go away?

I expect users are perfectly clear/cool nay supportive on why the forum needs sources of funding. It's about the efficiency of doing that. I can't say I've ever been on a forum (in 30 years) that has used this method of creating hotlinks, perhaps one reason why it comes over as a little strange.

I have been seeing these types of links on other message boards a lot in the past couple of months. There are a few companies that are set up to just skim through websites and set up affiliate links where applicable and they seem to be gaining in popularity.

Back on topic, I second a lot of the suggestions already given: don't take things personally, expect service to be different, cooking your favorite foods will almost always work out better than eating in a western restaurant, prepare for a big spike in prices for many things, but for electronics prices will be lower.

[JR8]

...cooking your favorite foods will almost always work out better than eating in a western restaurant,...

It's true. For example I don't recall when I've had a correctly cooked dish of quality pasta here. What I have had is flavourless and stickily overcooked.

But you can't say, 'Western food, cook it at home', as then the same would apply never trying Japanese, or Korean, or... and you'd never get to justify eating out.

[brian_singapore]

...cooking your favorite foods will almost always work out better than eating in a western restaurant,...

It's true. For example I don't recall when I've had a correctly cooked dish of quality pasta here. What I have had is flavourless and stickily overcooked.

But you can't say, 'Western food, cook it at home', as then the same would apply never trying Japanese, or Korean, or... and you'd never get to justify eating out.

I'd suggest it applies to your own cuisine. Anything mid-range that isn't part of my own culinary repetoire is going to be better at a restaurant then when I can do in the kitchen. I don't have the time to become a gourmet chef.

I'd also recommend avoiding your own culinary repetoire outside your home country. I always used to cringe when my boss in N.A. would take our Thai visitors to 'Thai' restaurants. And of course they'd always tell him how much they appreciated his consideration....

They were uniformly crap, even the upscale ones.

[Brah]

Ok, this is the one thing I'm glad I did before moving to Singapore:

Read diary of an expat in singapore.

I think the author has a blog somewhere. But I've never gone and looked at it.

If you're referring to that awful series "Notes From a (something) Island", I only made it through the first half of his first book, so I can save you the trouble of reading it.

[JR8]

I'd suggest it applies to your own cuisine. Anything mid-range that isn't part of my own culinary repetoire is going to be better at a restaurant then when I can do in the kitchen. I don't have the time to become a gourmet chef.

I'd also recommend avoiding your own culinary repetoire outside your home country. I always used to cringe when my boss in N.A. would take our Thai visitors to 'Thai' restaurants. And of course they'd always tell him how much they appreciated his consideration....

They were uniformly crap, even the upscale ones.

Well I'm not sure. I am confident I could (and do) make better burgers, fajitas and moules mariniere (poached mussels in a tasty broth) etc than anything I can buy out here, and none of them are from my culture. I can do a better beef rendang, or penang chicken curry than I can find out here too. Most of that is down to paying for quality ingredients (rather than the very cheapest) and having the time/inclination for precision (there seems something of a concept here that it's impossible to ever overcook something).

I don't think such as 'not having time to be a gourmet chef'. Most of us don't, after all it is a full-time 12month+ course followed by hands on internships etc. But there is a wide potential middle ground between that and not even being to open up the fridge door and putting together a simple meal. Even a pretty good simple meal given a little time and thought.

I've said it before and please believe that I'm not crowing when I say that when desiring to and willing, I can produce meals better than maybe 80% (???) of what you'll find in Singapore restaurants. I can also simply bake a better cake than I've ever had out in Singapore. I think it comes down to there not being enough of a market here that recognises quality ingredients (examples: wouldn't recognise difference between a cake made with margarine vs butter. Recognises no added virtue in fresh cream vs spray/plastic/chemical 'cream').

So I don't think it's 'don't have time', I think instead it's 'not interested', and/or 'happy eating the poor food that I do'. I also don't think the tropical climate here is conducive to youngsters hanging out in the often tiny kitchens and watching their parents cook. You can do something really simple like sauteed mushrooms on toast with scrambled eggs on the side +/- bacon or sausage on the side, as you like; but if you've never seen anyone (your parents) actually do it, I suppose it might seem challenging.

I tend to agree with 'avoiding your own culinary repertoire outside of your home country', when you're eating out, unless you are going high-end. There's a spectrum a) Swensons will always disappoint whatever you order, (as will any pizza here and all take-out sushi, IMHO) vs, some places of the b) high-end 'boutique-y' kind that have been discussed here recently that I'd rank as being... erm... of notably fine quality, even when considered within a global peer-group of establishments in a similar price range. They do exist, just locals want as cheap as possible, and visitors flock to what's convenient and currently headline (Morton's, KuDeTa etc).

We were living for some years recently in Continental Europe, and purely by chance on a quiet street-corner a short stroll away was a very highly regarded restaurant. It wasn't 'crazy expensive', but it was expensive enough that it was a birthdays/anniversaries event, and a very occasional - 'oh eff it, shall we just go next door tonight? , Reply: ':o ... ... ') That was Italian, and we were not in Italy. And it was some of the most reliably immaculately prepared food I have experienced from a restaurant. Perhaps that's why I have a thing about places that can't even cook pasta correctly (here) as it's such a dumb/ignorant/don't care they'll still pay thing...

p.s. And no there is no way that I'd say have visitors from Thailand then take them to a Thai place here, that's doomed to failure. Like taking German visitors to Brotzeit or Brewerkz - Odds on it's the last thing they wish to try, and it's doomed to disappoint anyway (excl the highest end, but why would they want to do that here anyway).