From the story it seems they are investing €2 million. It doesn't seem like a lot but hopefully it will be just the start
Google To Invest Millions in Palestine
21–30 of 64 posts
Re: Google To Invest Millions in Palestine
#22Earlier quoted context omitted.
I wonder, why do you think there's no talent there? Do you think Google would have done some due diligence before hand?
I think there's no talent there because: 1. I never knew a Palestinian developer on any mailing list or other forum. 2. I never knew of any software or technological product developed in Palestine. 3. I never knew of any notable developer or software developed in ANY of the Muslim states in the middle east, and that's a huge evidence given that there are >100 million Muslims there.
Hi.
My name is Mahmoud Al-Qudsi, and I'm currently living in Jordan and I studied in Palestine. You've probably seen me here a lot :)
I run NeoSmart Technologies at http://neosmart.net/ which develops software used by tens of millions of people (for free). I also have a full time position as the Senior Software Architect at Genie-Soft (http://genie-soft.com), which is in the top 5 backup software companies around the globe, makes millions a year, and is headquartered in Jordan.
I've contributed to many open source projects, including WordPress and Ubuntu. I've collaborated with people from across the world of all faiths and cultural origins, without bias, and don't consider myself to be any "better" or smarter (or any worse, for that mater) than anyone else by virtue of my religion, language, or culture.
I never felt the need to shout out that I'm from Palestine because I figured no one cares where people are from, only what they can and have accomplished. Perhaps it is not incorrect to be overt about ones origins, in hopes of dispelling myths perpetrated by comments like yours. Please note, I'm not attacking, only lamenting...
Re: Google To Invest Millions in Palestine
#23Earlier quoted context omitted.
On the other hand, your government's policies have stifled Palestinians in both regions, in food, shelter, security, and basic medical care. It's kind of hard to produce anything when your house is demolished by bulldozers and your town's farm is burned. This sort of thing is how a viable Palestinian state is going to come about, if ever.
That is trolling. All you're doing is reciting your standard "Israel is evil occupier" routine typical of someone of a certain political bias. No sources or added incite. It is however a fact, that since a high percentage of suicide bombers came out of Palestinian territories when compared to other countries, it is accurate to imply that a different economic course could diminish the terrorist aspect of the Palestini…
I've never writen a political comment on HN before, and probably never will again. But this is one of these rare occassions where I really feel the need to do so, knowing it'll probably cost me karma and goodwill.
Anyway...
Of course there's a high percentage of suicide bombers in Palestine - it's their only option against an oppressive regime. They don't have tanks, they don't have fighter planes and they don't have a navy. It's their last resort. They have nothing else with which to fight.
Re: Google To Invest Millions in Palestine
#24Earlier quoted context omitted.
On the other hand, your government's policies have stifled Palestinians in both regions, in food, shelter, security, and basic medical care. It's kind of hard to produce anything when your house is demolished by bulldozers and your town's farm is burned. This sort of thing is how a viable Palestinian state is going to come about, if ever.
That is trolling. All you're doing is reciting your standard "Israel is evil occupier" routine typical of someone of a certain political bias. No sources or added incite. It is however a fact, that since a high percentage of suicide bombers came out of Palestinian territories when compared to other countries, it is accurate to imply that a different economic course could diminish the terrorist aspect of the Palestini…
Actually, you're the one trolling. The parent didn't say Israel is evil; he stated that Israel has taken actions that stifle Palestine. That is an objective fact and one that is separate from whether or not Israel is justified in doing so. You're going out of your way to project your opinions onto the commenter because he stated a fact.
In short, you're doing precisely what you just accused the parent commenter of doing, but wrapping it up in pseudo-logic.
Re: Google To Invest Millions in Palestine
#25Earlier quoted context omitted.
I think there's no talent there because: 1. I never knew a Palestinian developer on any mailing list or other forum. 2. I never knew of any software or technological product developed in Palestine. 3. I never knew of any notable developer or software developed in ANY of the Muslim states in the middle east, and that's a huge evidence given that there are >100 million Muslims there.
Hi. My name is Mahmoud Al-Qudsi, and I'm currently living in Jordan and I studied in Palestine. You've probably seen me here a lot :) I run NeoSmart Technologies at http://neosmart.net/ which develops software used by tens of millions of people (for free). I also have a full time position as the Senior Software Architect at Genie-Soft ( http://genie-soft.com ), which is in the top 5 backup software companies around t…
Looks good, I'll be checking out the NeoSmart stuff.
The question is if there are more people like you there. I think you can find a good programmer in any region, but there needs to be a good amount of them in order to create something substantial. So I am yet to be convinced that it's a myth that there's a low amount of talent in Palestine.
Re: Google To Invest Millions in Palestine
#26I wonder, why are they doing this? I mean, the reason tech companies go to Israel is because there's an enormous concentration of talent there. Why would they go to Palestine? I don't think there's any talent there. Is this a humanitarian thing? I'd be happy to hear first-hand experiences from people who worked with Palestinian developers or with software produced by Palestinian developers.
Hmmm declaring the people of a territory you occupy to be less talented than your own people. Reminds me of something
That's a completely trollish comment.
Re: Google To Invest Millions in Palestine
#27Earlier quoted context omitted.
That is trolling. All you're doing is reciting your standard "Israel is evil occupier" routine typical of someone of a certain political bias. No sources or added incite. It is however a fact, that since a high percentage of suicide bombers came out of Palestinian territories when compared to other countries, it is accurate to imply that a different economic course could diminish the terrorist aspect of the Palestini…
I've never writen a political comment on HN before, and probably never will again. But this is one of these rare occassions where I really feel the need to do so, knowing it'll probably cost me karma and goodwill. Anyway... Of course there's a high percentage of suicide bombers in Palestine - it's their only option against an oppressive regime. They don't have tanks, they don't have fighter planes and they don't have…
No one here said the Palestinians don't have a good reason for doing suicide bombings. We'll all just be happier if they'll have a good economy so they'll stop blowing up.
Re: Google To Invest Millions in Palestine
#28Earlier quoted context omitted.
Hi. My name is Mahmoud Al-Qudsi, and I'm currently living in Jordan and I studied in Palestine. You've probably seen me here a lot :) I run NeoSmart Technologies at http://neosmart.net/ which develops software used by tens of millions of people (for free). I also have a full time position as the Senior Software Architect at Genie-Soft ( http://genie-soft.com ), which is in the top 5 backup software companies around t…
Looks good, I'll be checking out the NeoSmart stuff. The question is if there are more people like you there. I think you can find a good programmer in any region, but there needs to be a good amount of them in order to create something substantial. So I am yet to be convinced that it's a myth that there's a low amount of talent in Palestine.
Talent is another word for potential - it's there, but it's not necessarily showing. I know it is hard for anyone living in comfort to truly imagine living in the Middle East, with all the conflict, oppressive regimes, and limitations that are around. I can afford the 800 dollars a year for ADSL 2mbps internet (with a 10GB per month download limitation), but not everyone here can. Not everyone is lucky enough to have a PC at home (or even at school) they can learn to hack on while they are young.
You cannot judge a people to be "talentless" without taking in the context. And you cannot/must not ignore the context in this case. It is not these peoples' fault that they are unable to start the next facebook/twitter/whatever, you have no idea how difficult it was for me to accomplish what I did here. People here will put the same amount of effort as yourself, if not more, and not succeed simply because of the environment they are in.. it takes a lot of work to break away from the layers of obstacles in the way and makes something that can be appreciated by people like yourself.
In answer to your question: Yes, there are. Everyone at Genie-Soft is a talented hacker. I've met dozens of hackers at tech meetups and at conventions sponsored by Google and Microsoft. If you're predisposed to not see these people though, they are easy to miss.
Re: Google To Invest Millions in Palestine
#29From the story it seems they are investing €2 million. It doesn't seem like a lot but hopefully it will be just the start
€2 million may not seem like a lot in western nations, but typically third world countries have a much more favorable exchange rate of dollars/euros into local currency. All those charity ads on TV that talk about people surviving on less than $2 a day tend not to mention that $2 a day can buy you a lot of more stuff in other countries than in the US.
Re: Google To Invest Millions in Palestine
#30Earlier quoted context omitted.
On the other hand, your government's policies have stifled Palestinians in both regions, in food, shelter, security, and basic medical care. It's kind of hard to produce anything when your house is demolished by bulldozers and your town's farm is burned. This sort of thing is how a viable Palestinian state is going to come about, if ever.
That is trolling. All you're doing is reciting your standard "Israel is evil occupier" routine typical of someone of a certain political bias. No sources or added incite. It is however a fact, that since a high percentage of suicide bombers came out of Palestinian territories when compared to other countries, it is accurate to imply that a different economic course could diminish the terrorist aspect of the Palestini…
How is it trolling to point out that the Israeli government has made economic development in Palestine very difficult?
I'm pretty neutral on the conflict as a whole (I'd need to know way more to have a real opinion), but I'm pretty certain I'm against the Israeli blockade of Gaza[1].
It's pretty hard to build stuff when you can't import cement, steel, or glass. And the food restrictions have contributed to malnutrition in Gaza.
They did finally ease the restrictions in June (after 3 years), so I think it's a lot better now. I can't find a list of what's still not allowed.
1: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2007%E2%80%932010_blockade_of_t...