About this Blog
IT talks! started out as my newspaper column, way back in 1998. That was the time when I had become active in the local IT scene, and begun to organize the erstwhile Information Technology Society of Davao. I thought that having a weekly column would be ideal as a vehicle for information dissemination and as a way for me to voice out my opinion. So I approached Sun•Star Davao and they immediately agreed to publish me.
In 2004, I decided to bring IT talks! online, via a weblog. In the beginning, however, I wasn’t able to maintain a regular publishing schedule due to other concerns. But in January 2007, I finally made a fresh commitment to pick up my pen (well, my laptop) again and write. And, from my original blog over at Blogger.com, I took the next step after a few other minor steps, by getting the column its own domain, www.ittalks.net, and its own hosting service.
I’d like to thank my good friend, Bob Martin of Mindanao.com, for giving me the push to take blogging more seriously. Bob generously provided me with my first hosting service for my blogs. Now I’m on my own VPS and hosting other bloggers in turn.
Welcome to IT talks!. I hope that you will find it informative and enlightening… or at least a good way to pass the time. This blog-column is all about the I.T. industry in the Davao Region, and how it relates to the rest of the world. Your comments, suggestions, and reactions are very much welcome!
Some articles here appear on the Edge Davao business paper, where I am now the editor for the IT section.
About Blogie
Oliver V. Robillo, born 28 July 1971, known to family, friends and colleagues as "Blogie".
I am a Davaoeño. I was born here and I have made my life here.
My work in Davao involves the I.T. industry on one side, and the Japanese language on the other. When this all started out, there wasn’t much of a connection between the two, but in recent years that has changed. 
In the past, my contributions to the Davao I.T. industry were in community-building, organizational development, and marketing & promotions. But from a few years ago, I’ve become active in the introduction of Davao City to the Japanese market.
Japanese-language classes and translation work form part of my regular activities. I am also endeavoring to publicize the study of Nihongo in Davao City. In 2005, I represented the Philippines in the Trans-Asia Students Conference in Taiwan, which was organized for the purpose of encouraging the spread of Nihongo as a medium of communication for cultural exchange, education and industry. I hold a Level 2 certification in Japanese Language Proficiency.
Currently, I am the chairman of the ICT Industry Cluster of the Regional Development Council-Region 11, which is under the auspices of the National Economic Development Authority and the Department of Trade & Industry. I am also a director of the ICT Davao Inc. — the umbrella organization of all I.T. industry associations in Davao, as well as a permanent member of the City Mayor’s Office’s ICT Task Force Technical Working Group.
