Should some players start learing Vietnamese just in case there is a work stoppage this offseason? More seriously, this is a great interview with a lot of details soccer fans don't normally get to read.

I wouldn't really tell a lot of guys that Vietnam would be a #1 destination for footballers, but if you want to make a lot of money in a short amount of time, they are offering some pretty big contracts over there. Instead of taking the MLS minimum or maybe \$50,000, a player can easily double if not triple that in a place like Vietnam.

This Is American Soccer, US Soccer, MNT, WNT, and MLS » Blog Archive » Not So Secret Agent

The Nexus phone is an intriguing announcments, moreso for me since it'll be available through T-Mobile.  I've been very happy with T-Mobile, so switching carriers to get any other phone, no matter what vowel it's name starts with, has been a no-starter with me.

Rather than doing a typical review of its features --- frankly all that stuff has been blogged to death --- I wanted to share with you what it's like to live with this device, day in and day out. In other words, to tell you whether or not the Nexus One is worth the hype.

Nexus One: The Best Android Phone Yet -- GigaOM

Speaking of cell phones,  there's an interesting clash of strategies at play between Google and Apple in this market.  Android phones are becoming more available across all carriers, and its only a matter of time before someone gets the hardware and software combination just right.  Meanwhile, Apple's iPhone, which sets the bar for smart phones now, is available only through AT&T - unless you jailbreak it.  Will this be an Achilles' Heel that Google and other carriers can exploit?  At least it's nice to enjoy this much choice as a consumer.

We're at the AT&T presser here at CES, but it looks like we know what to expect: the carrier just announced that it's launching five new Android devices in the first half of 2010, including devices from Motorola, Dell, and HTC.

AT&T finally goes Android, confirms Dell, HTC and Motorola on board -- Engadget

If you're looking to build your own style plugins for Drupal's Panels module, the following post will step you through how to do so. The functions and files you'll need to declare are a bit arcane and this beats stepping through the panels code yourself.  I've found the rounded corners plugin that ships with panels is a good reference to review when you're stuck.

Creating panels styles can be very powerful. You can define certain styles for your client to choose from, so they can choose what type of display the panel pane will be like. This way you keep the workflow clean, your code under revision control, your themer gets to keep his sanity, and your concious stays clear.

How to create a panels style plugin | manuee -- Putting the puzzle together.