It turns out that the installation guide conveniently forgot to mention three important steps *grumble grumble*:

1. create a MySQL database and user
2. rename mt-config.cgi-original to mt-config.cgi, then fill in the settings
3. insert $ENV{'MT_HOME'} = '/home/userfolder/public_html/cgi-bin/mt'; in the Bootstrap.pm file

If only Wordpress natively supports multi-site management. Oh well.

Lesson learned: just buy a prepaid sim. I just found out it only costs HK$68 in any 7-Eleven and should work with a spare Nokia 1100.

Before:

After:

Next on the ta-da list is to make a proper portfolio page instead of direct links and to redesign this blog (and hopefully keep it updated from now on) using the really great Cutline theme.

I personally like these kind of questions, the ones that ask about seemingly irrelevant personal details. I used to buy another entrepreneur magazine every month, but the interviews were repetitive and the questions were too “mainstream”.

Not every visitor that goes to your website is already sold on you. Some would want to read up before they buy your product, contract your services, or subscribe to your feed. Some could’ve just stumbled upon your website and have no idea who you are. Imagine setting up the layout of your store so a customer can walk in and immediately see the merchandise so they’ll know what you’re selling. As Seth Godin nicely puts it in Big Red Fez, having Flash on your site is like “requiring your customers to put on special goggles to see your store’s merchandise”. You’ve worked hard to get people into your website, don’t give them a reason to walk out.

To be fair, Flash in websites does have its uses and it does them well. The video players for sites like YouTube and Google Videos, for example. I don’t know why some still use Windows Media Player on their sites, which barely plays anything.

I’ve read business and legal magazines, websites, and books, and asked for advice from other businessmen, but as always there are a lot of things you learn along the way only after you’ve taken the plunge. These are the things I missed before, and kept biting me in the ass throughout the entire time of operation. If you’re considering getting a franchise, hopefully this will help you out.

1. What Their Business Is About. If you want a franchise that sells waffles, then the franchisor should be selling waffles. If their claim to fame or come-on is “we’ve sold over 100 franchise outlets”, or they’re giving you sales-talk instead of facts, then their business is probably selling franchises and that’s not good. Chances are they can’t help you after the deal is done since they haven’t done any of the actual operations. Eventually, no one will want to buy and the company will collapse, leaving you with a dead brand. My franchisor kept getting new franchisees at blinding speed, putting up stalls everywhere in the region and limiting us existing franchisees of places we can transfer to. And yet 99% of my friends and relatives has never bought a cup of coffee from, let alone heard of, the company. The few who did buy hated it, and won’t buy again (an issue of quality control, a problem we won’t discuss today).
2. What Other Franchisees Are Saying. Ask around to counter-check whatever details the franchisor gives you. More than once has my franchisor claimed certain branches have been generating a lot of income, as it turns out it was all hype.
3. Total Inital Investment. While most franchisors are responsible enough to quote the total initial investment required which includes everything, we were caught unaware when our franchisor billed a hefty sum for the starting inventory! Then they started quoting how much we need to spend for other equipment, cabinets, countertops, and other food items we should sell.
4. Recurring Costs. One huge benefit you’ll be getting from a franchise is that the franchisor buys consumables in large volumes from their suppliers. You can then buy the consumables at significantly lower prices than buying them straight from the supplier or manufacturer. In my experience however, the franchisor’s prices were 50%-100% more than the suppliers’ prices (which anyone could’ve easily called and ordered from directly)! Remember you’re required to purchase supplies only from your franchisor. Also find out who will be shouldering the repair costs of the substandard equipment they will be providing.
5. Do I Really Need Them. It sounds a bit arrogant, but it’s true. If what they have and are doing are truly special, then I’d bite. But if I could visit a couple of expos and trade shows to find all their suppliers (as well as cheaper, higher quality suppiles and equipment), is it worth to pay a few hundred thousand for a brand no one likes?

Don’t forget issues like track record and other topics that have already been discussed in several articles from business magazines and websites.

<?php
function getphotos($photogroup) {
  $files = glob ("images/thumbnails/$photogroup-{*.jpg,*.JPG}",  GLOB_BRACE);
  if (is_array($files)) {
    foreach ($files as $image_small) {
      $image_large = str_replace("thumbnails/", "", $image_small);
      echo "<a href=\"$image_large\"><img src=\"$image_small\" /></a> \\n";
  }
}
?>

This loads all jpegs in images/thumbnails/ then links to their full-sized counterparts in images/. The files are named with a photogroup- prefix so you can easily load only a particular group of photos. Ex. to load all images beachparty-01.jpg, beachparty-02.jpg, beachparty-03.jpg, etc., use <?php getphotos("beachparty"); ?>.

P.S. Turn off visual rich editor before trying to post code in Wordpress.

Great work on their redesigns, but I hate the width reformat. Even though I am using 1024×768, my browser window is never maximized. As a compulsive multi-tasker I need the space for my other programs, so please don’t assume you can take up my entire screen.

It might be fine or maybe even just a slight nuisance for your friends and relatives that you change your mobile number every three months, but not for your clients. It’s a sign that you are unreliable, that you might be unreachable when they need you, or that you might be into shady activities.

So try to keep your contact information, phone numbers and even email addresses, unchanged for as long as possible. Someone you met in a bookstore or coffee shop two years ago might be calling you tomorrow for that deal you’ve been waiting for.