Reflections

It's the last day of the year and it's time for me to reflect on what I have done in the past year. I will try to count any good deeds I performed, mistakes I made, sins I committed, etc... So far, I cannot remember any good deeds or having any grave sins to atone for, but mistakes I am sure there are aplenty. A wrongly spoken word here and an undesirable action there have made my 2005 worse than the previous year. I want to apologize to those people whom I have offended one way or another. Let us place aside any misgivings and restart on a different footing. Let's do the countdown - "5, 4, 3, 2, 1, 1, 0!" and sing the Auld Lang Syne...

Merry Christmas!

On this day of making merry, let's wish the whole world happy.
May peace blanket this earth, covering everyone with love and warmth.

心情日記013

哈哈哈！已經過了兩年了我才發現我在這裡*曾經有留下過一些心情隨筆。2004年我把心情日記移到自設的網站。然後又在2005年移到現在的一個部落格。（填寫網址被禁，要看的人可以留言給我）

*注：“這裡”是指Yahoo!奇摩交友裏的心情日記部落格。

心情日記012

哇！不知不覺聖誕節就快到了，也就表示這一年就要過去了。
最近雖然有很多工作，但都沒有心情去做，already in holiday mood   ：P
再加上現在是雨季，每天都有下雨，真想躲在被窩里不出來。

Lost Connections

I was clicking around the Yahoo! Singapore website late yesterday night when I came across a section in the Message Boards called Lost Connections. (Yes, there are interesting stuff in the Yahoo! website. It's up to you to click around and find the one you like.) This section is for people to post messages looking for friends or relatives that they have lost contact with. Then I got thinking whether I have anyone I wish to locate and yes indeed I do. Hence I posted a message looking for two people that have left their marks in the very early years of my life.

Sometimes this is how things happen. A person can come into your life, make a difference to you, but then leave your life as quickly as he/she has came. There are many people who really have shaped and are shaping my life. I truly love them and appreciate their presence, and will always treasure your kindness. They are you my friends. Though I may not get to meet you often or at all now, you are definitely not far from my mind. Friendships...

Anyway, the two people I am looking for now are just the first two in a long list.

Ms Lim Ah Ewe, thank you very much for nursing me back to health after my major surgery in 1994 at the National University Hospital (NUH). I have tried looking for you again at the hospital but you have left for quite some time. Please contact me at nghianja@gmail.com if you happen to see this message.

Yang Jiayi was a classmate I had in primary school back in 1984. Though I don't remember we having spend time together or talk much, a small gesture you did made me realise something. The small smurf toy you gave me made me understand that being on a wheelchair should never be an obstacle or excuse for making friends. I don't think you will remember me but still hope you can contact me at nghianja@gmail.com too.

Hahaha... it's the end of the year and I always tend to go into such reflective mood around this time;

Two Special Linux Distributions

I will like to introduce two special linux distributions that I came across a couple of days ago. They are special because they are created to target small objectives. The first targets small computers while the second targets small people.

The first linux distribution is called Damn Small Linux, a.k.a DSL, and it must be one of the smallest linux distribution around, weighing in at 50MB only. It targets small computers and other computing devices. Given its small size, it can boot from a business card CD as a live linux distribution (LiveCD), a USB pen drive, and within Windows. So now you can carry around an operating system easily and not be afraid of using a non-personal computer away from home. Most importantly, you don't have to use Windows anymore if you dread to.

PS: This post is written using DSL.

The second linux distribution is called Edubuntu - Linux for Young Human Beings. It targets small people - kids between the age of 5 to 12 (adults are of course welcomed to use together). It basically is for school children to use in a classroom setting and at home. It is filled with applications which a school-going child can use to learn, do his/her homework, manage his/her time, and have fun. I certainly hope that such initiative for the benefit of children can continue and that more schools, teachers, and parents can help spread it around. I wish I can find people to help start a sort of community service to showcase edubuntu...

PS: A nice review of Edubuntu available here.

Unbelievably Disappointed

It is definitely unbelievable. How can someone older than me be so immature? Though we have never met before, having only interacted (a verbal fight actually) online, I still find it hard to believe that both of us came from the same school (abeit many years apart). She actually stops my posting from appearing in the Yahoo! Group. Never know that she can be so petty. If anyone should be angry, it should have be me. I have already left much of the unhappiness and misgivings she caused me behind such that I thought I can work with the group again. But now for this to happen, I am really disappointed. How scary a person's character can be...

What constitute happiness at work?

I often came across this question, most of the time asked by myself. Finally, I am able to come up with a pseudo-formula I am satisfied with. It's a bit hard to explain in words so I have drawn the following diagram to answer those who asked this question.


Work Happiness = People + Environment + Job Scope

People: basically refers to colleagues and supervisors here;
Environment/Location: the morale and spirit in the office as well as physical distance and place;
Job Scope/Work Nature: concern learning opportunities and exposure to new knowledge;


Well, you must have by now called me a hypocrite or something. I know, there is no mention of the "most important" component called "money" in my diagram. Don't worry, I didn't forget it. I just feel that its importance pales when compares to the above three after a certain point.

Money is the ultimate criteria when it's at the amount you need to survive. I still need to pay for my bills and loans so I won't want to work if my job can't pays for them. However, I don't believe there is a high enough amount of money that can compensate for the lack of any, and definitely not all, of the three components.

Happy Birthday Justine!!

今日同樂為最佳
每年相聚謝主恩

"It's not what you say, it's how you say it."

My score:
Directive = 39
Analytic = 87
Consultative = 84
Behavioral = 74

Men & Women

I was told today that men and women are really different. (And you will think you know all the differences. Yah right...)

What men need:
- To feel accepted
- To feel admired
- To feel appreciated
- To feel approved of
- To feel trusted

What women need:
- To feel validated
- To feel respected
- To feel understood
- To feel reassured
- To feel cared about

So do you know how to deal with them personally and professionally now?

[網上所閱] 紅顔 & 知己

只想珍重這一份真摯友情
只想做你的一個紅顔知己
只想把你深深的收藏于心底

當你沉沒在迷津裏時
只想牽著你的手
帶你去看迷底

只想給朋友一份發自内心真摯地關愛
卻不願在迷失的目光中讓自己迷惑到底

我願意
願成爲你的紅顔
願成爲你的知己
也許這會帶著一點淺淺的愛情影子

不能縂圍繞在身邊纏綿
不能常常的俯首于耳邊思思細語

紅顔知己是一種神秘而默契的情意
為你的喜悅歡歌笑語 為你的憂傷迷離
給一份溫暖一份慰籍 一份愛心一份情意

會選擇默默地注視你行進的步履
在你失意的時候在你困惑的時候
我會用我的臂膀將你的脊梁托起

就讓我做你的紅顔知己吧！

[Advertisement] My Best Friend's Blog

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Finally you have got your blog up. Congratz. I have to say that the content you have there is amazing. Very thought provoking and I can get to learn more of you as well as questioning myself on the same issues.

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"Breaking Through Limitations" with John Kanary

I attended the above-titled talk organized by NACLI, John Kanary International, and The Educated Mind. I am usually (and still am) very skeptical about such motivational talks but this particular on was rather interesting. I have to agree to most of what was presented in it though I have reservations on a couple of Kanary's ideas that conflicted with my personal principles and beliefs.

This talk is about how we are who we are because of our own beliefs. Each of us has infinite potential to succeed in whatever we want to do but are often restricted by our own beliefs. We all have both a conscious mind and a sub-conscious mind. We are fed ideas, expectations, experiences, and teachings into our counscious mind, forming paradigms. These paradigms eventually get into our sub-conscious mind as beliefs. It is some of these old paradigms and beliefs that are holding most people back from doing want they want and can do.

I took home with me a few sentences which I want to share:

    "To do more, remove the obstacles in your mind."
    "As you accept a thought, it is impressed upon the second part of your personality."
    "Nothing needs to happen for you to be happy."
    "Don't let doubt be a reflection of yourself."
    "...stop minimizing what we can accomplish and to stop believing that others have something we have not."

However, I also want to point out the differing views I have with some of Kanary's (John vs Me):
- beliefs vs abilities
- wants vs purposes
- monetary/material gains and success vs spiritual happiness and ease of living
- high(er) expectations vs self-contentment
- limitations vs responsibilities

So what do I want? Happiness in a simple peaceful life with freedom to pursue knowledge. Can Kanary help me? Yes to a certain extent but I am the only one who can make the decision to control my life. The decision that will be based on my morals, values, principles, and priorities. Will I break my beliefs? Maybe yes, maybe no...

MIT Media Lab: $100 Laptop

Finally, the big corporations of the IT world have come together to help M.I.T. and the U.N. in giving something good to the people of some of the poorest nations in the world. Children in extreme poverty can now get an opportunity to use modern technologies to learn and improve their lives. Read about this wonderful initiative in this CNET report or go to the M.I.T. website.

Have you ever wonder...

about the things that nobody seems to bother to wonder? For example, have you ever wonder about the person behind the voice of the announcements played in the MRT and at the station? I thought I hear the voice of a radio newscaster but I may be wrong;

Happy Birthday Francine!!

EarthLink IPv6 in the Home

The Linksys WRT54G router has a firmware built using Linux components (unannounced of course). Now the OS community has caused Linksys to open its firmware source code. A result of this is that a whole new list of firmware supporting various new functions and features has been written for the public. Now your WRT54G can be updated to have the functions and features comparable to a Cisco router. One such feature is the support for IPv6 and the reference link I provided below offers one such firmware for download.

http://www.research.earthlink.net/ipv6/

Selamat Hari Raya Aidilfitri to all Muslims

Happy Deepavali to all Hindus

iPod Video...

Seriously, will you watch video while on the move? I know I won't. It's simply too dangerous lor. Plugging earphones has already deprived the music listener his/her sense of sound, hampering any hearing of danger. And now to be deprived of the sense of sight? I can sense more accidents happening... Anyway, I have to give credit to Apple for blending such a technology with portability. They didn't let a small screen deter them from promoting mobile video viewing;

Y!M and MSN to talk to each other next year!!

This must be the Web/Tech news of the month. (Well, the first piece of news that qualifies for the news of the month award anyway. More about the second piece of news later.) It has been announced that users of Yahoo! Messenger will be able to talk to the users of Windows Messenger come next year. Finally, there is no need to download and register an extra messenging client. However, I am getting a bit paranoid about this. The reason I haven't been using MSN is to avoid spam and virus/worms. So now will I get infected through Yahoo!? Maybe it's time to move to Google Talk...

Creating PDF documents for free!!!

I was browsing the PCWorld site when I came across an introduction to the application to creating free PDF documents without any watermarks. It's FREE for both personal and commercial use. I'm sure many of us will find that this is what we have been looking for. This fantastic solution is called CutePDF Writer and it is downloadable from the CutePDF (http://www.cutepdf.com/) website.

Happy Children's Day!

To the young and the young-at-heart...

《知错了》

我知道  我想接近妳的方法错了

我知道  我的主动让妳惊慌失措

心急地想认识妳  却使妳害怕

知错了  上天要如何来惩罚我

是不是我的思念将换回妳的冷漠

不理不睬是妳对我的防备  我了解

看也不看是妳给我的难受  我心痛

妳那厌恶的眼神有如万针穿心

妳真的没有必要轻易的原谅我

心灵的空虚我无法自拔

对妳的道歉我只能自言

多么希望一切可以重来

愿上天给我多一次机会

我真得很喜欢妳

世上最笨的人就是我

1421 The Exhibition

I went to the 1421 exhibition held at Marina Promenade yesterday and came away with a different perception of the Ming Dynasty. I used to view the Ming Dynasty as a redundant dynasty that caused China to lag behind the rest of the world in terms of science and technology advancements. I was wrong. The Ming Dynasty did indeed made used of their knowledge of the world and their state-of-the-art ship-building technology to chart the world to such details that future “explorers” were to benefit.

The exhibition wasn’t a grand one but it was an eye-and-mind-opener nonetheless. The many theories presented are surrounded by much historical information that the exhibition left little for the visitors to refute the theories even if they didn’t believe them. I got to understand the background and findings which have led Gavin Menzies to write his book. Yes, I now believe the Chinese did sail the world.

Today is the last day of the 1421 exhibition and it will be a pity if you haven’t gone to visit it. If you have missed it, you can read about it at http://www.1421exhibition.com/ and understand more about the continuing work in gathering more historical evidence to support Menzies’ theories at http://www.1421.tv/. ChannelNewsAsia will be showing a documentary about 1421 soon so try not to miss that.

Questions...

What would you do if you lose the opportunity to be friends with someone just because you are trying too hard and too anxiously to know that person? Is there any chance again of gaining friendship? A more stupid question. Would you have messed up the chance in the first place?

* I have made every mistake possible and screwed up big time...

Google has started talking!

It is finally here, despite Google having denied all rumors before. Google Talk is in town and with it, Google has entered the arena of messaging services. It is trying to give MSN, Yahoo Messenger and ICQ a run for their money. My initial try at using the Google Talk software shows that it is as good as the other messaging clients. It offers what the rest already does so no major surprises there. However, I want to point out that the interface is clean and refreshing for a change. There are no clutty advertisements or banners to make you dizzy. The predominantly white layout gives the same feel as an Apple iPod shuffle. If you already have a gmail account, you can log into Google Talk now. To download it, just go to http://www.google.com/talk/.

I am confused!

A box of chocolates which was accepted should be a good sign but why is she ignoring me,  even avoiding eye contact? I don't know what to do next; guess I shall lie low for a while...

I am a total failure…

After finally mastering enough courage to ask her out and had her sitting in front me during tea break, I had said nothing. No words, no chat, no questions. I am pathetic; cheez… I am such a loser.

Happy 40th Birthday, Singapore!

Happy National Day everyone!

60th Anniversary of the A-bomb dropping

Just finished watching the first part of the BBC documentary "Hiroshima". It was really scary how human creativity and intelligence could be used for the intention to kill and destroy; such cruelty. Let us not waste effort on arguing whether the dropping of the A-bomb was necessary or not; that is history. Innocent lives had been lost and hopefully this fact will serve as a reminder to humankind that history shall not be allowed to repeat itself. Humanity will survive...

文天祥的《正气歌》

天地有正气，杂然赋流形。下则为河岳，上则为日星。
于人曰浩然，沛乎塞苍冥。皇路当清夷，含和吐明庭。
时穷节乃见，一一垂丹青：在齐太史简，在晋董狐笔．
在秦张良椎，在汉苏武节；为严将军头，为嵇侍中血，
为张睢阳齿，为颜常山舌；或为辽东帽，清操厉冰雪；
或为出师表，鬼神泣壮烈。或为渡江楫，慷慨吞胡羯，
或为击贼笏，逆竖头破裂。是气所磅礴，凛然万古存。
当其贯日月，生死安足论！地维赖以立，天柱赖以尊。
三纲实系命，道义为之根。磋余遘阳九，隶也实不力。
楚囚缨其冠，传车送穷北。鼎镬甘如馅，求之不可得。
阴房冥鬼火，春院閟天黑。牛骥同一皂，鸡栖凤凰食。
一朝蒙雾露，分作沟中瘠。如此再寒暑，百沴自辟易。
哀哉沮洳场，为我安乐国。岂有他谬巧，阴阳不能贼！
顾此耿耿在，仰视浮云白。悠悠我心忧，苍天曷有极！
哲人日已远，典刑在夙昔。风檐展书读，古道照颜色。

The Hungry Ghost Festival

Today is the seventh month of the Chinese calendar year. It is also the month of the Hungry Ghost Festival. Tradition has it that during this month, the gates of Hell will be opened and ghosts are let loose to enjoy the offering people leave for them. The offering comes in the form of incense, hell paper money, food, and candles. There will be open-air stage performances, which we called 'ge-tai', for both the living and otherwise. The elders will also advise the young not to stay out late during this period and to be careful not to offend 'them'. I still remember a teacher of mine had told me that by reciting an ancient prose titled 《正气歌》 aloud, one can walk late in the night without being 'disturbed' by 'them'. If only I can recall how the prose goes... will post the prose when I google it;

Life's Little Happiness

Today is my father's birthday and we just came back from a dinner celebrating it. It wasn't anything fancy, just some simple but good food at my aunt's eating place. My father is not someone great but he's great at taking care of his family. I wish him a happy birthday and grateful for the fact that he's healthy and fit.

This morning I also had the fortune of sharing a table with the cute girl from my work place while eating breakfast. It was certainly eye candy sweeter than the tea I was drinking with enough sugar to last me throughout the day. Don't be mistaken, I am not some sort of a pervert. I just appreciate the little things in life that make me happy daily.

Just like the national day song of old, it is the little things that matter. I don't need to chase after riches, just enough money to survive. I don't have to take elaborate vacations, just quality rest now and then. I don't need powerful alliances, just a few good friends. But then again, who doesn't want the best the world can offer?

《只因为是暗恋》

望着天
我仿佛看见你的脸
露出美丽的笑颜
伸出你那柔云般的手
示意让我过去

看着地
我愿给肩膀你依偎
在把你拥入怀里
握住彼此的心与手
告诉你我的意

就是说不出口
我的爱 已在心里好久
这份情 并不会有花开
只因为是暗恋

面着海
多么希望你会走来
不再远瞧你倩影
每当你出现于眼前
没了所有烦扰

背着山
鼓起勇气和你搭讪
很想跟你有个约
一起到海边看日出
共度美好时光

就是说不出口
我的爱 已在心里好久
这份情 并不会有花开
只因为是暗恋

Commencement

Today is my graduation ceremony and I want to share with you all my joy.
http://picasaweb.google.com/nghianja/Commencement?authkey=Gv1sRgCNHdg9nmt7vFrQE

Note: back-dated post!

[Review] The Rule Of Four

Authors: Ian Caldwell & Dustin Thomason

The Rule of Four is a way of hiding a message within a grid formed by another message. It consists of a set of four directions and their distance values. Given a message arranged into a grid and given a starting position on the grid, one can find out the hidden message by following the stated Rule of Four. A point on the grid is a letter and by following the Rule of Four letter by letter, one gets the message.

What is the Hypnerotomachia Poliphili? According to the historical note given in the book The Rule Of Four, it is one of the most treasured and least understood books of early Western printing. Scholars continue to debate the identity and intent of the Hypnerotomachia's mysterious author, Francesco Colonna. Only in December of 1999 did the first complete English translation of the Hypnerotomachia appear in print. Google points me to the Wikipedia site with more information on Hypnerotomachia Poliphili which you can read at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hypnerotomachia_Poliphili

The Rule of Four is about two Princeton University undergraduates, Tom Sullivan and Paul Harris, whose lives became entwined because of the Hypnerotomachia. It talked about how their obsession (one as influenced by his father) in deciphering the Renaissance text affected their relationships with each other as well as with the people around them. Their quest to unravel the secret that lies within the ancient book was a long and tedious one that had threatened to stall until the appearance of a long-lost diary. Then what seems to be just an absorbing path to discovery became dangerous when their lives were punctured by a murder of a fellow researcher of the Hypnerotomachia.

The Rule of Four is an intelligent book, with it being based on another extremely intelligent book, the Hypnerotomachia Poliphili. The older book is definitely a work of art in the domain of cryptography. It encompassed techniques such as steganography, ciphers in different languages, and riddles to keys to unlock the hidden messages. The messages were hidden using the method of making the first letters of some words the letters from the plain-text. Understanding this method in fact is how the name of the author is known. The riddles themselves requires in-depth and multi-disciplinary knowledge of Renaissance art, math, and literature. Other suspected methods of encrypting the author's secret messages included using maps or geographical directions though all puzzles ultimately are of the use of words. The encryption is usually two-fold, one for the keys and another the cipher-texts using keys. You have to admire the writers of The Rule of Four for telling one of the best work in crypto-analysis.

The writers also injected many philosophies ranging from Renaissance to their own. It is also one of the themes for the characters of the story relied on their philosophies to decide their paths in life which eventually tore them apart. Friendships are hard to maintain when friends start to drift away from their views on life.

However, to say that The Rule of Four is better than The Da Vinci Code can be an overstatement. Though it excels in the presenting of a fascinating breakthrough and the process involved, it fails in being a thriller. The pace of the story is far too slow. The first 10 chapters are about the background of the two undergraduates and their lives in Princeton. There is also a lot of descriptions of the university that are hard for a non-Princeton student to visualise and leave no impression on a foreign reader like me. The fictional part simply just doesn't add much value to the book.

The book also uses present tense to narrate the story from Tom's point-of-view. I understand that the writers wanted to involve the reader, to make the reader feels like he/she is part of the story. The use of 'I' as the pronoun in the narration makes it as though the reader is either repeating the story or reading someone's diary. However, this doesn't appeal to me but may work for you.

The use of present tense does however serves another purpose. The book contains many flashbacks by Tom and the present tense helps to differentiate the differences in time. But there were still times where I lost track and became confused. IMHO, having a time-stamp on the switch of events will be better for the reader.

So in all, the book is intelligent as well as philosophical. If you have the patience to overcome the initial slow pace of the story, I am sure you will not regret reading The Rule of Four.

[Ultimate Spoiler]
Paul Harris, with the help of Tom and others, managed to decrypt the message hidden by Francesco Colonna and found out that Francesco had hidden a treasure of priceless items in a secret location. The treasure included artwork and literatures by Renaissance artists and scholars of the Italian city Florence. He hid them to prevent the preacher Savonarola from burning them. Savonarola, a fanatic, had burned numerous precious artworks and books in the name of God to purify people's souls. Francesco tried to save as many of Man's beautiful creations as possible from Savonarola. And this is the story within the story of the Hypnerotomachia Poliphili. As for the Princeton murders of Bill Stein and Vincent Taft, they were committed by Paul's mentor, Richard Curry, to prevent them from stealing Paul's research. Different people in different times but same motive with the same result.
[/Ultimate Spoiler]

"War of the Worlds"

Just came back from watching this latest production by Tom Cruise and Steven Spielberg and I only have a three-letter word to sum it up: B-A-D. The story didn’t represent the original version whereby humans exploited the flaw in that the aliens could not breathe our air. Hence there was no war between the two worlds. The movie simply concentrated on Tom’s character hiding and running with his children. The ending was so crappy that it left me with a disgusted feel when the credits rolled. I at first thought that it was a joke on the audience by the director but hell no. It was a waste of my money as the movie is definitely a Tom Cruise showcase rather than a story-telling. And he didn’t even act! In all, I will say the the movie is worth at most two stars, one for Dakota Fanning and one for the special effects.

Fortunately I was able to reach home in time to catch the TV telecast of A.I. to restore some of my faith in Steven Spielberg;

Off-site meeting

I have just reached home about two hours ago, having been in my company's off-site meeting held in Sofitel Palm Resort, Johore Bahru, Malaysia. We arrived there the day before to stay overnight in order to start the meeting early the following day.

The meeting was an annual affair for employees, especially 'blur' ones like me, to listen to the management talk about the company's current status, future expectations, and strengths and weaknesses. There was also a session on motivation of individuals in a team.

Though the off-site meeting was held on a weekend and was exhausting, it was nonetheless necessary for the company to communicate important information to the employees. Besides, we were rewarded with an environment away from the office that was conducive for the employees to bond.

"Safe In A Crazy World"

Corrinne May's newest album is excellent, worthy of 5 stars from not just me but from everyone who listens to it. The songs are soothing, giving the listener a peace of mind. The lyrics gives you a glimpse of how Corrinne views this world; a little crazy world with all its eccentricities. It also talks about how life can be saved with a little prayer and help from HIM. The music flows from one song to another, carrying along the same feel throughout the album. You will be equally at rest closing your eyes to let the music fill your ears or humming along. I urge you to go to Corrinne's website to read about her works and sample her albums. This album definitely will be on my playlist for weeks to come.

The biggest technology news of this decade is...

undoubtably the one on Apple switching from being IBM-based to Intel-based. Steve Jobs, Apple's CEO, announced on Monday (Tuesday, SGT) that Apple are transitioning from PowerPC to Intel processors. Jobs' vision for the switch is that an Apple-Intel tie-up will allow Apple to break into the mainstream market with better and cheaper Macs. The Mac OS X will run on a next generation of Intel processors (not sure at this point in time whether this new class of processors is exclusive for Apply or that Mac OS X will run exclusively on them) and Intel has promised to supply Apple with a greater volume of processors.

The main reason for Apple's switch has been IBM's failure to cater to Apple's demand for more processors. IBM is unable to deliver more of its PowerPC to Apple, which is important for Apple to price their computers more competitively and create a greater presence in the market. Another important reason is that Intel's processors are far ahead of IBM's when it comes to delivering performance without consuming a lot of power, "a quality that is very important to Apple's future products," said Steve Jobs. [link]

So one may feel compulsed to ask "What the h*** is IBM thinking?" Is it worthwhile for IBM to lose the apple in hand over the chasing of oranges (Sony, Microsoft, and Nintendo game consoles)? Besides, who knows Apple may or may not venture into the console market, with the Mac-mini already looking like one. IMHO, an Apple-Sony/Microsoft/Nintendo tie-up is not entirely impossible. Now Intel will just get bigger and bigger. Poor AMD...

Well, the users seem to have mixed feelings about the switch, with most adopting a wait-and-see stance before they are willing to comment. To me, the switch will cause developers and fans a sense of disillusion now but in the long run, this is good news for the average user who simply wants a cheaper and more widely-used system that runs out-of-the-box and is user-friendly (read idiot-proof). So should I wait or go get myself a Mac-mini anytime soon?

Beware of phishing sites!

Phishing: the act of attempting to fraudulently acquire through deception sensitive personal information such as passwords and credit card details by masquerading in an official-looking email, IM, etc. as someone trustworthy with a real need for such information. [www.wikipedia.org]

Phishing is one of the major internet threats now. It is a serious problem that seems to get more serious by the day. Phishing sites are popping up as I am writing this. So allow me to introduce you to the Netcraft Anti-Phishing Toolbar. It consists of a user interface implemented as a toolbar and central servers, able to respond quickly to large numbers of requests as each user moves around the web. The central servers are managed by Netcraft and hold the information about URLs and sites provided by the the Toolbar community and Netcraft. It is available for both IE and FireFox. Download here;

Spreading FireFox...

I confessed. I am a fan of FireFox and the FunnyFox ads. I was reading about how popular the FunnyFox ads have been, how they have created more awareness about FireFox as well as pushing the idea of having a mainstream commercial. This has set me thinking and a crazy commercial idea popped into my mind. I thought it will be fun to share them here and who knows, maybe someone can turn them into reality.

Idea: A National Geographic-styled documentary having the camera on a Steve Irwin-styled naturalist screaming "I think I saw a wonderful creature just ran into the woods!" Then he will chase after the creature (incidentally a brown fox) into the woods. Upon a clearing in the woods, the camera will zoom in on the fox lying down on the ground, forming the FireFox logo...

My old blog...

Only now do I notice that my old blog which I have discontinued is still online, though I have only an inconspicuous link pointing to it;

I have gotten a new book...

To continue with my "occassional" spending on reading materials, I have bought The Rule of Four by Ian Caldwell and Dustin Thomason. It has been highly recommended on book review sites and branded as a work better than Dan Brown's The Da Vinci Code. I have read the latter quite a while back but I love it so much that most details in the story are still fresh in my mind. I just hope The Rule of Four lives up to its name. I will give a small review of my own once I am finished with it. Watch this space;

好台词

刚才电视重播了旧电影《烈火战车》。里面有两句台词给我很大的印象。
“有些东西，失去了，即使有最快的车也追不回。”
“生命不需要有一定的回忆，但一定不要有遗憾。”
我也觉得生命就必须如此。要追求的，必须趁早。不要老来才说为什么当时没有把握时机。

Long weekend...

What does that mean? One more day to sleep late...

A Nice Dinner...

A bunch of us met up for dinner at The Rice Table restaurant yesterday. It was a nice little dinner with tasty food. I have never tried Indonesian cuisine before so I don't know how good I can rank this restaurant. Can anyone who have tried other Indonesian restaurants care to share with me any other must-go places and dishes? Anyway, I like what I ate yesterday;

War of Words

Have you ever been in a war of words with anyone using emails or mailing list posts? I just did yesterday and it wasn't any less uncomfortable and regretful than doing it face-to-face. Anyway, I needed to have the war as I was defending myself against some accusations that I felt was unfair to me. However, the cause doesn't made the consequence any less unpleasant to the mind. What a crummy way to start the weekend. Ay... it really hurts to have someone you thought you can turn to for advice to abandon you first and then turn around and stab you in the back;

Words Extracted From A Tired Mind

The weekend is here, for the rest I badly need;
But sleep is not near, for a book I wanna read.
From the library I picked, fantasy world waiting;
To Midkemia I seeked, no imagination lacking.
Unfortunately till now, temptations aplenty;
All sorts of programs, on the web and TV.
By the time everything is finished and done;
I would be in bed snoring sound.

New Blog Name

I have made my decision..."Semicolon;" is the new blog name; though I still love the old name "Words Extracted From A Tired Mind", it is just a bit too long; however, it will make a good title for a future post; sounds like a title for a poem too...

As for "The AntGoddess Worshipper"...it belongs more to a shrine than a blog; I have no intention of turning this into a shrine...maybe creating a new webpage with the title;

Too Long A Title...

It has only been two days since I have put up this blog and I have already felt that the title of this blog is a tad too long...so I intend to change it to a shorter one; I currently have two candidates for the new blog title..."Semicolon;" and "The AntGoddess Worshipper";

Why "Semicolon;"...a semicolon partition a sentence having two ideas...it stops a sentence after explaining an idea, indicating the start of another; Use here as a title, it symbolizes that this blog will keep having new posts...representing a lively blog; Besides, the semicolon is also used in computer programming languages like C and Java to end a line of code...so I type it quite a lot;

Why "The AntGoddess Worshipper"...AntGoddess is one of my friends' nick...she exudes elegance, intelligence, and confidence...that is my impression of her anyway; and I like such traits in a person...hence my Y!M status line "I am a little Ant worshipping my Goddess..." - Wind Fox; too bad I already have a nick known to my friends, or I may change my nick to "The AntGoddess Worshipper";

Hmm...1st Post...

Wow, even friendster provides blog service too... ...oh well, never good at coming up with nice web pages so this may be a good place for me to just throw my tired mind without having to worry about how it is going to be organized... ...that is if you can organize a dysfunctional mind as well... ...blue color, suits my pic;

Yesterday was April Fool's Day... ...no pranks, that's good... ...new work environment so better not play a fool; that's all for my 1st post...;

Happy New Year!