Change of Blog Address

I have changed my blog to Spinosum Diary.
( http://spinosum-diary.blogspot.com/ )

In fact everything is maintained the same way it was, just a new address! Its a new blog, but old me! :)

Most Beautiful Queen?

And I thought the late Princess Diana was the most beuatiful queen-to-be; my friend from Bahrain, sent me a photo of Queen Rania of Jordan. Do you think she is the most beautiful queen on earth?

How Much Do You Worth?

I am worth $2,636,264 on HumanForSale.com

You should give this a try, and see How Much Do You Worth? ;)

3G Internet Surfing

Received my Huawei E220 HSDPA modem today, and tried out immediately. The set up was really hassle-free. And since I only subscribed to 3G speed, for RM68 per month - this is the speed I get after testing it with Speedtest.net.

Overall I feel the speed is just tolerable for normal net surfing, like checking some emails, updating blog and do some internet banking. I am amazed that using GTalk with this speed is also very acceptable in terms of its quality and smoothness of conversation! However, if you are a YouTube addict, you will definitely be a little disappointed with the speed - furthermore if you have always been pampered by the Streamyx 1Mbps or higher speed! ;)

It will be very useful for me to carry along my Dell XPS laptop, to places without any WiFi; and also if my wife needs to use it for assignment in university/library, this combination of a 13-inch lappy and a 3G connection will prove very useful indeed!

Google Wake Up Kit

Every year, especially on 1st of April, Google will introduce something new to the public. Never fail. This year, there is something called "Google Wake Up Kit"

The "wake up" notification uses several progressively more annoying alerts to wake you up. First it will send an SMS message to your phone. If that fails, more coercive means will be used. The kit includes an industrial-sized bucket and is designed to be connected to your water main for automatic filling. In addition, a bed-flipping device is included for forceful removal from your sleeping quarters.

Haha! Yeah rite... It's another April Fool's joke for sure! :)

Celcom 3G

Just signed up for the Celcom 3G package, costing RM68 per month. Received a USIM for it, but so far my Huawei E220 HSDPA modem is still on its way (probably arriving tomorrow). Therefore, I still can't try out the 3G connection using my laptop.

I would upgrade to the HSDPA 3.5G if I find the 3G speed too slow. But since there is no contract with the Celcom package, it is easier to ditch it if the speed is not up to my favor! ;)

RIP Kong Liong...

I was shocked to know that my good ol' pal Mr. Wong Kong Liong, passed away suddenly on 27 Mac 2008. Last night, a few of us who were very closed to Kong Liong, attended the funeral service. It was a very sad and depressing moment.

It is a very tough moment for his family to go through, and I wish they be strong. My deepest condolences to his family.

Life is just so unpredictable.

May you rest in peace, my ol' fren, Kong Liong.

Unbelievable!

I was reading the Star today, when I came across this:

School blocks invitation to non-Barisan elected rep

WHILST we the rakyat amuse ourselves over the post-election mud slinging and airing of dirty linen in public by the political parties, here’s something else to ponder over.

We are a PTA of a national-type school and being neighbourly and courteous, we decided to invite our newly-elected member of parliament for the Segambut constituency for a function.

Being politically polite, we sought the blessings of the principal of the school. We were told point-blank that because the MP was not of Barisan lineage, neither the school nor the PTA were to even think of such a thing.

Shouldn’t schools be apolitical where the soul of democracy is being taught to the future generation? The amusement continues. What say you?

URBAN MALAYSIAN VOTER,
Kuala Lumpur.

I am really speechless. Talk about Democracy!

Sammy i780

I was trying out the Samsung i780 pocket pc phone few days ago, and was really amazed with the form factor, and the speed of this little gadget. It resembles my current Treo 680 a lot, in terms of the size and QWERTY keyboard (something I can't forego now ever since using the Treo!), although they keys are slightly harder to press compared to that of the Treo. It's thinner and much lighter in hand.

It boast a 320x320 square screen, hence sharper and nicer display compared to all other PPC phones which only have 320x240 resolution. But this also means it has an unconventional screen, therefore might risk 3rd party software incompatibility! Already there are people who have tried it out saying program like Skype for PPC ain't looking nice and malaligned when used in this i780.

The speed is very much faster compared to any ppc phone to date. Partly due to the latest processor chipset, and partly also because of the 128MB ram it has! The camera is a 2.0MP one, but it is quite sharp taking an indoor picture; and there hardly is any shutter lag (my previous ipaq rw6828's camera is painfully slow in terms of shutter speed! gosh!)

Didn't have a chance to try out its 3.5G capability, but I presumed it should be ok. And also I didn't bring along my iTech clip BT headset to try pairing with this Sammy.

All in all, I like this ppc phone a lot, and will be getting it quite soon - once Samsung can figure out how to do a hard reset in this unit (a well known issue currentl)!! :)

Streamyx's Best Effort

This is the Screamyx ... ooops, I mean Streamyx's best effort speed. Paying RM88 a month for a 1000kbps package, but only getting 650+kbps speed 95% of the time. I hope the new Science, Technology and Innovation Minister can do some positive changes to the current broadband services in Boleh-land!

The Aftermath

After the political tsunami yesterday, it is the KCLI which is facing the little earthquake today. The Star read "Bursa Malaysia halts trading after KLCI falls 10% limit".

KUALA LUMPUR: Bursa Malaysia halted trading at 2.58pm after the Kuala Lumpur Composite Index (KLCI) fell 10%, which is the maximum limit.

Trading will resume at 3.58pm.

The KLCI fell 130.01 points to 1,166.32, the biggest one-day percentage loss in recent years.

I hope the political tsunami is actually turning Malaysia into a new dawn, and not a new doom! ;)

Time For Change

A New Dawn For All Malaysians. It's time for change!

Quoted from the Star today

The coalition suffered some of the greatest defeats in its history. Barisan Nasional chairman Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi, in accepting the results, said this was clear proof of democracy at work in the country.

Among the results yesterday were:

• The Barisan lost Kedah, Penang, Perak and Selangor,
• PAS strengthened grip on Kelantan,
• Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi, Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak and Datuk Seri Ong Ka Ting won in their seats,
• Among ministers who lost their seats were Datuk Seri S. Samy Vellu, Datuk Seri Shahrizat Abdul Jalil, Datuk Seri Zainuddin Maidin,
• Gerakan acting president Tan Sri Dr Koh Tsu Koon lost to Dr P. Ramasamy in the Batu Kawan parliamentary seat.

Well, like what Doc said in his blog, "The People Have Spoken". No Representation, No Voice... And that's NOT the price of wiping out the component parties in BN, warns the People.

Voted This Morning

I was at the polling station this morning at 8:25am and cast my vote wisely. I have fulfilled my responsibility as a citizen, and that I hope democracy and equality are continued to be upheld in Malaysia.

Disappointed

Read this in the headlines of The Star today, just barely 24 hours from the polling day. I am utterly disappointed with what our PM has got to say.

PENANG: Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi reminded the Chinese community that if they gave the DAP their votes, they will end up not having any representation in the Government.

“You have to decide if you want a louder voice in Parliament or representation in the Cabinet where they can be more effective in representing all communities,” the Barisan Nasional chairman said.

He said if the Chinese did not have representation in the Cabinet, their requests would not be heard.

C'mon Pak Lah, is this a threat or a reminder? I was putting so high hope in your government ever since Tun Dr Mahathir stepped down. And now you uttered such statement just one day before the voters make their decision - I really wish you all the best, Pak Lah... Let's hope the BN win tomorrow's election (if this statement really was a reminder)! :)

Sick Joke!

I used to play Roller Coaster Tycoon on my computer years ago but I have never thought of such sick joke the game can be! ;P

Who Will U Vote?

8 Mac is drawing nearer. It's our national polling day. With all the news and propagandas we read in the papers and internet, every politician seems to be the right person to lead our country. Every party will come out with all sorts of promises so that they are elected to be the MPs and leaders of our nation. But who is telling the truth? Which party is the right one for us in the next 5-10 years ahead?

We have experienced and gone through whatever BN has to offer for the past few decades. Do we still want to give BN another opportunity this round to bring Malaysia to another height? Or should we at least let the opposition parties a chance to prove that they are more capable ones?

The choice is in your hand. This 8th March will determine our future. Vote wisely! :)

Samsung 32-inch LCD TV

I ordered a new Samsung 32-inch LCD TV yesterday, and it was delivered in the same evening. It was really a very slick and sexy TV to start off with its outlook, and the display is gorgeous too! I was initially comparing among Samsung, Panasonic, Sony, LG and Haeir. At the end, I took the cost, aesthetic and display quality into consideration, and chose Samsung. I didn't go for a plasma TV because I read many negative feedbacks on plasma technology. And the display isn't as crisp as the LCD screen.

It has an 8000:1 compression ratio, and a response time of 8ms. The outlook of the Samsung LCD TV is aesthetically appealing to our eyes. The Panasonic and Sony have good display as well, but the looks are just too old fashioned! There are 3 HDMI slots, and I purchased a HDMI cable as well at a very special price. Immediately after I connected my Dell XPS laptop to the new Samsung LCD TV, via the HDMI cable, the display on the screen was gorgeous! I tried surfing net using the 32-inch LCD screen, and it was a nice experience! I also tried out playing the RMVB videos using Codec Media Player -- watching Ice Age 2 -- and I must admit the quality of the display is just superb! :)

Well, another new toy added to my collection! Need to work harder now to earn more $$$ for my next gadget! ;)

My Indon Maid

After a long wait, finally today my Indon maid arrived. So this morning went to settle all the final bills with the agency, and then brought her back home. This is her 2nd time to Malaysia working as a maid, and she was lucky to work in Singapore for a year before this - but lucky for me, coz with her experience in Singapore, now she could speak very fluent English! I was surprised too, as I think her English is as good as my relative's Filipino maid!

I hope she could adapt well working in my family, and that she enjoys her stay in Malaysia.

My New Nuvi 200W

During the Chinese New Year break, I gave my ol' trusty Nuvi 200 GPSr to my father-in-law, because he was just too impressed what the gadget could do to save time and patrol while driving in Johor and Singapore. And he was astonished how accurate the map (from Malsingmaps) was, despite it being slightly outdated (unlocked public map - June 2007). Initially I thought of coming back to KL first before buying a new unit for him, but his gesture at that time showed that he wanted that unit, even though not a new one, very eagerly! And so that gave me a good reason to hunt for another new GPSr after I came back to KL.

At first I was thinking of the more expensive range, like Nuvi 310, 660 or the latest 710. But after consulting a few GPS "sifu" and Google around; my conclusion was that I don't need the Bluetooth, FM transmitter, TTS etc. functions -- all i need is just a simple straight forward GPSr! I thought the previous Nuvi 200 had a tad small screen, and that I hope the new unit I am gonna buy will have a bigger and wider screen.

So I came across the Nuvi 200w, and it has a 480x272 pixel WQVGA TFT screen. I bought it from the previous eBay seller I purchased my Nuvi 200, and he was kind enough to give me another RM50 off.

With this new Nuvi 200w, I personally feel that the cold startup time is very much faster than my previous Nuvi 200. And now with the new unit, the wide screen is so much nicer to look at, and so much clearer. Driving in KL is very much comfortable with a GPS on board! ;)

Plastic Surgeon As Psychiatrist?

Spotted another amusing typo error (I hope!) at the Putra Medical Centre's website. According to their site, the Consultant Psychiatrist Dr A. Brito is apparently holding a Diploma in Plastic Surgery (UK), instead of a postgraduate degree in psychiatry! ;)

Witch Yoo Hee

Recently I just finished watching the Korean Drama "Witch Yoo Hee" 《魔女幼熙》. And I must admit that it is really a nice and touching love drama (and who said guys don't like Korean Love Dramas?!) i am particularly attracted to one of its soundtrack. Thought of sharing with you guys here. If you have watched the series, the song is even more meaningful!

Malaysian English?

This is probably the best English standard you will get from our MMC.

Bomoh

With the recent shocking news of the missing girl Sharlinie, I really feel that our society's safety is at stake. Today, I read in the Star paper with the headlines "Sharlinie alive and will be found, predicts bomohs".

One thing really makes me ponder a lot: as far as I know, Islam discourages (or is it prohibits?) its followers to believe in bomoh and all those ilmu sihir. Then how come bomohs can come into picture amongst these muslims in our country?

Thaipusam

Glad that this year's Thaipusam is declared a public holiday for KL and Putrajaya, and not only for Selangor and the other 3 states. This means that my wife has holiday as well. So early in the morning today, my wife and I woke up pretty early and brought our 5 month old daugther to Kota Damansara for breakfast. My brother and sis in law joined in as well. My daughter usually wakes up around 10-11am, but whenever it is a weekend or public holiday, she will automatically wake up between 7 and 8am; without needing us to tell her (as if she could understand us even if we'd told her?!) This is something quite consistent over the past 2-3 months, without fail; even my nanny also realises this fact too! ;)

I really enjoy weekends or public holidays nowadays, not so much like in the past when I enjoyed going for movies or makan; but now I enjoy taking out my wife and daughter for sightseeing, as well as breakfast at places like Jom Bali cafe, Burger King etc...

Relaxing Time

This is how I relax in between study time. :) How about you?

8GB SDHC

I bought an A-data 8GB SDHC few days ago, and happy to know that my "new" x50v with WM6 ROM is able to recognise it. And with Softick Card Export installed, I don't need to purchase a SDHC-compatible card reader for the moment. It is really great to now have a total of 10GB in my x50v (8GB SDHC and my old 2GB CF card)! ;)

My Ol' Faithful Axim

Recently I flashed my ol' Dell Axim x50v with the unofficial A03 WM6 ROM (courtesy of XDA developers), and revived the "brick" into a whole-new gadget!

With the new ROM, I have so far been very satisfied with the speed improvement and attractive GUI - more so with the VGA display of the x50v. The only worry initially was whether the Thinkoutside Bluetooth keyboard driver was compatible with the WM6 ROM - but luckily after installing the driver, the bluetooth keyboard works like a charm - so much so it is better and more stable than during the WM2003SE era! But you must remember to turn off the built-in HID option.

I even tried out the RealVGA for WM6 - although the display is greatly enhanced, especially during surfing net with PIE (or Opera 8.65), the speed is tremendously slowed down. I did a hard reset because I was unable to tweak the setting back to the original one.

The Treo 680 is indeed a great PDA phone, and when we compliment it with the x50v (WM6) - they are the best companions a gadget-freak-doctor can have! ;)

Braun Oxyjet

Last Christmas, my wife got a gift from her mom - the Braun Oxyjet - it's essentially a powered device utilising high pressure water jet tooth cleaner! It's not any ordinary electric toothbrush, but a fine piece of equipment, to really clean your teeth right to their base!

All this while, I thought I am really satisfied with my rechargable electric toothbrush plus the dental floss, but after I tried on the Oxyjet, I am just overwhelmed by the result it gives! My teeth look so much cleaner than before, and the best of all, you could clearly see food particles dropping out from your oral cavity, as the water jet is in progress - sounds gross, but the after-effect is just marvellous! This is especially useful for those people with malaligned teeth, giving rise to deep seated cavities which could potentially hide food particles which are impossible to be removed during normal toothbrushing.

It has a container to place water in it before you activate the waterjet system; if you like, you could even add a cupful of mouth rinse (eg. Oral B, Listerine etc.) in it -- it feels so much better!

The price could be a little steep for most of us, but if you care much for your teeth, it is a worthwhile investment! You have to try it to believe it! :)

Fall Sick

This morning I woke up feeling very dizzy and throbbing headache; to make it worse, I even had diarrheoa. I was so lethargic that I couldn't even go to work - gotta sms my consultant to spare me from work today.

Towards the night, I am feeling slightly better, but still feverish. I hope I can get back to work by tomorrow.

Chua Soi Lek In Sex DVD

What a way to start in 2008. I was utterly shocked to read this in The Star today, in my on call room.

I am the one in the sex DVD, says Chua
LABIS: Health Minister Datuk Seri Dr Chua Soi Lek admitted he is the politician in the sex DVDs
circulating in Johor.
In a press conference here Tuesday, Dr Chua said the girl is his “personal friend”.
He apologised to the Malaysian public, his supporters and colleagues.
He said he did not make the tape himself.
More...

He is quite an out-spoken health minister, and has fought for quite a few benefits for the doctors and paramedics. I wish him all the best, and may luck be with him.