When an Albanian crime ring abducted an American girl in Taken (2009), they had no idea that her ex-CIA dad would not only get her back, but kill them all in the process. In Taken 2, the thugs are back (or rather, their families), and they’re after revenge.
BK: What drew you to the IT field?
Going back to when I started using computers in high school, it was probably the games. Prince of Persia was very popular then. So I started playing games first, and then learned about the other things you can do with computers and started studying software.
BK: What were you doing before you started your company iAppDev?
I worked at a jewelry company creating inventory systems for about 10 years, then the iPhone came out. Now I’m an iOS [Apple’s mobile operating system] developer, developing programs for iPhones and iPads, like The Nation app and the Finlandia (vodka) app. It’s definitely better paid than when I was working for a company, because as an employee there was a limit to what they’ll pay you. Now it just depends on how many projects I can get.
BK: How much does it cost to get your own app?
We have to look at the requirements first, and calculate from there how many man-days are required. The price can range from five to six figures, depending on the size and difficulty of the project.
BK: Tell us about your Thai keyboard for iPhone.
In iOS 6, Apple’s actually changed the keyboard to a 4-row layout, like the one I developed for iOS 5. So after going through five versions, Apple’s probably realized that Thai people are comfortable with a different style keyboard, not their 3-row format. Their new keyboard is very similar to what I developed. But there will also be people who want Apple’s old 3-row format back, so now I’m making a 3-row keyboard app, too.
BK: Now that it’s finally been revealed, did the iPhone 5 live up to your expectations?
I’d have to say it’s 50/50. There was so much leaked information that I think everyone expected something really new from Apple, but we already knew about most of the new features before the release.
BK: Where do you get your ideas?
I like to learn about new things. If I want to find out what new ideas people are coming up with, I go onto www.kickstarter.com. People post their ideas on the website and anyone who thinks the idea will work can help fund them.
BK: What would be your dream project?
I want to link up traffic information from all over Bangkok by making a crowdsourcing app, because information from a central database is not always up to date. The app could help build a network that makes it easier to get around Bangkok.
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Fans of The Motorcycle Diaries were probably thrilled to hear that the same director, Walter Salles, had been hired to helm the project to finally bring one of the greatest road trip novels of all time to the silver screen. But On The Road, Jack Kerouac’s semi-autobiographical tale of friendship, wandering and debauchery, doesn’t translate nearly as well on screen, making it clear why it took Hollywood over 50 years to produce an adaptation.
