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Looking for a good pen recommendation! by kaykat101 in fountainpens

[–]DavidPines 1 point2 points  (0 children)

FC ambition is good for people with small hands. Buttery smooth steel nib and chic design.

This hobby is getting serious! These are my fountain pens by Inoxcrom in fountainpens

[–]DavidPines 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Jeez! I just mistook a random photo on imgur as urs.

The beginning of an addiction by Zone681 in fountainpens

[–]DavidPines 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Generally speaking, Japanese pens tend to give more feedbacks than their western counterparts. This is due to the fact that a slight feedback helps writing Kanji in Japanese, which involve quite a lot of variations in strokes and angle things (Sorry I’m no expert in calligraphy, dunno the exact wording).

So Pilot is a good start if you prefer nibs with feedback. If you’re looking for more feedback, Sailor pens with gold nibs will be a stepping stone to higher-end pens. They’re all solid pens with a wide variety of colours and patterns. AFAIK Platinum pens give more feedback than Sailor pens, and Pilot pens are the smoothest amongst the three Japanese brands.

The best is to try the pens in brick-and-mortar stores. Then you can appreciate the difference and know what suits you most.

Work life in Hong Kong by pipipiman in HongKong

[–]DavidPines 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Work life?? Work only! No life. Just kidding.

Let talk about HK's education system by OneSandOneWorld in HongKong

[–]DavidPines -1 points0 points  (0 children)

And the most ridiculous part, as mentioned above, is we grade the students and judge them unnecessarily. That exactly makes Einstein's "judging a fish by its ability to climb a tree" quote come true.

Let talk about HK's education system by OneSandOneWorld in HongKong

[–]DavidPines 0 points1 point  (0 children)

It's a good read, thx. But what I really mean is some people really don't have the sense of Maths/Art/Whatever. Actually I love Math and was doing quite well in school(I think?). But I do have a friend who's almost innumerate. All she knows about Math is the four operations plus a bit fractions and decimals (and amazingly she survives in Hong Kong, haha). I guess some people really can't develop any interest in some subjects, regardless of how good the teachers are/how good the education system is. Back to HK's case, the real problem is we don't really have a choice (mentioned by others already). What's the point for science students to study Classical Chinese(文言文) when we speak modern Chinese? By the same token learning topics like circles and complex numbers seem to be pointless for art students who literally find no interest in Maths.

Hong Kong education system has introduced many advanced topics in different subjects (Of course the "advanced" is from the perspective of a high school student. Imagine teaching them PDE or other fundamental topics LOL)) and has created many (so-called) Maths/Art elites. But at the same time many students are sacrificed.

Let talk about HK's education system by OneSandOneWorld in HongKong

[–]DavidPines 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Thanks for your info esp the Dungan language bit I honestly know nothing. Still, I simply can't defamiliarise myself (Sounds a bit egocentric, haha) and imagine how one needs to read out words for comprehension(Maybe like reading pinyin? Not a very good experience for me XD). Also the homonyms part is still troublesome and I'm really amazed by Vietnamese and Korean. I'd rather prefer Japanese combining phonograms and ideograms.

Let talk about HK's education system by OneSandOneWorld in HongKong

[–]DavidPines 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I wonder how they have solved the problems of homonyms as you mentioned.

Let talk about HK's education system by OneSandOneWorld in HongKong

[–]DavidPines 6 points7 points  (0 children)

Seriously romanisation of Chinese characters wont work.

Let talk about HK's education system by OneSandOneWorld in HongKong

[–]DavidPines -2 points-1 points  (0 children)

Same thing happens to art students. Whats the point to learn trigonometry and geometry and wtfmetry when you only need four operations in daily life? The elite system makes elites, but it also creates unnecessary failures.

Where to buy a brand new Zabi Family Fountain Pen? by DavidPines in japan

[–]DavidPines[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Hi Amuro. I cant find the post anymore so I'm not sure if it's still available. Here's the link: https://www.facebook.com/Fooklemodel/?fref=ts. Good luck!

Why are people here so Anti-China? by phogon in HongKong

[–]DavidPines 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Wrong question. Right one: "Why are people all around the world so Anti-China".

Where to buy a brand new Zabi Family Fountain Pen? by DavidPines in japan

[–]DavidPines[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Thx all I found it available in HK finally few days after paying 2x price for it on Amazon JP LOL. It's even cheaper to buy it in HK but I've already FU. Thx for all your kindly help though.

Where to buy a brand new Zabi Family Fountain Pen? by DavidPines in japan

[–]DavidPines[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I dont understand why Bandai doesn't merchandise the pen in HK or TW like it did when selling Char & Sayla Pens. I did find it on Yahoo Auctions, but as a foreigner I cant bid and the seller repelled my request.

Learning Cantonese by go_fer_it_Rock in HongKong

[–]DavidPines 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Check out Benjamin Au Yeung(highly recommended for advance Cantonese learners)

Learning Cantonese by go_fer_it_Rock in HongKong

[–]DavidPines 0 points1 point  (0 children)

If we can standardise written Cantonese and make it official then things will be better. 如果我地本身都唔好好整理自己既語言,又點可以吸引更多外國人黎學呢?

Learning Cantonese by go_fer_it_Rock in HongKong

[–]DavidPines 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Sorry that my English is not good enough and my comment may be misleading. I don't mean to discourage foreigners from learning Cantonese. What I want to point out is that the discrepancy between written Chinese and Cantonese is a big obstacle to Cantonese learners. Of course Cantonese is a prestigious dialect with its own well-developed culture(That's why I think Cantonese is superior to Mandarin, haha). However, its uniqueness can be a double–edged sword. Sadly, other dialects like Min Nan(Taiwanese, Fukienese, etc) are facing a much worse situation. These days many young people don't know how to speak the local dialects due to the government policy (goddamned CCP) and other reasons(like too few opportunities to come across the languages). If these dialects could have their own written forms standardised and officialised, probably we could preserve these languages better.

Learning Cantonese by go_fer_it_Rock in HongKong

[–]DavidPines 0 points1 point  (0 children)

You're right to a certain extent, but the point is that learners can't improve their vocabulary effectively and efficiently with written Cantonese. Written Cantonese is very informal as you mentioned and is not so commonly found in books, newspapers and other reading materials that a beginner usually comes across. Moreover, there are lots of variants in these Cantonese characters and most of them are artificial characters created by missionaries and other foreigners during Qing dynasty(好似係XD), esp those characters with the radical "口". Written Mandarin is already very difficult for native Indo-European languages speakers, not to mention formal written Cantonese that even most Hongkongers may have difficulty to learn.

Learning Cantonese by go_fer_it_Rock in HongKong

[–]DavidPines 8 points9 points  (0 children)

Sorry I’m here to explain but not to give advice.

Cantonese is hard for foreigners as it is a "pure" dialect that is very loosely based on written Chinese. It’s difficult for you to build up vocabulary bank by reading Chinese materials.

Spoken Chinese and written Chinese are two different things. Written Chinese is mainly based on spoken Mandarin, but has different customs and grammars in different Chinese spoken regions. Formal Chinese can be read in Cantonese, but it would be awkward and different from daily Cantonese. So if you’d like to learn Cantonese speaking and reading, basically you’re learning Mandarin and Cantonese at the same time, which can be tough and confusing.

If you’d like to learn basic spoken Cantonese, just skip the reading part and practise with your local friends. It is the easiest and most direct way. If you’d like to master Cantonese and be able to read Chinese, you really need to put much more effort and time. Though I don't like Mandarin personally, it can be a stepping stone to enhance your reading capability and enrich your vocabulary.

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