Sunday 29 June 2008

Fascinating Subjects....

Well, I have to start thinking of my A Level subjects if I were studying in Singapore, right?

So here's a list of some fascinating subjects. Not that I'm definitely going to take [probably can't even take them, anyway.], but they're just fascinating...

1. H1 China Studies in English - 8817
2. H3 Mathematics - 9810
3. H3 Proteomics - 9815
4. H2 Computing - 9754
5. H2 Geography - 9730

6. H2 Physics - 9745
7. H1 General Paper - 8806


By the way, maybe it's just me, but I feel that people who take KI are high... Can somebody prove my case wrong? Please?!

Post #198 for 2008...

Target = 250
Current = 198

Number of posts needed before reaching the target = 52.

That's one post per day in July and August.

or 5.7 posts a day everyday of the September Holidays...

Easy Peazy Lemon Squeezy...


On a side note, really wanna thank a few people these few days...
Zexun and his Dad, for kindly fetching me to Punggol MRT after service yesterday [caught the last train home]
Ms Gan, for the awesome dinner just now
Jerome Tan, for the CD he passed to us with the photo slideshow. Really brings back good memories...

And by the way, Check this out:

SINGAPORE YOUTH FESTIVAL 2008

CENTRAL JUDGING OF CHOIRS

(PRIMARY SCHOOLS)

93 ST. ANDREW'S JUNIOR SCHOOL Gold with Honours
Can I say, I feel like smacking myself right now? CONGRATS, SAJS!

Perfect!

WebKit Build #34824: 100 / 100, no outstanding performance issues.
Awesome!

Friday 27 June 2008

getting to the 4SA class blog via Google.

Well, apparently, 4saints08.blogspot.com is too difficult to remember.

So, 4SA, here's a guide on how to get to our class blog via Google Search.

Here's the IDIOT-PROOF guide to logging on to 4saints08.blogspot.com, without typing 4saints08.blogspot.com
  1. On your computer, click on your web browser icon. This could be Internet Explorer, Firefox, or Safari. No Opera. [JOKING!]
  2. Type in your address bar: google.com
  3. Once Google.com loads, type in the following WORD FOR WORD: SASS 4SA 2008
  4. Click the FRICKING "I'm Feeling LUCKY" BUTTON and SHUT UP.
  5. Say WOW.
Make sure you do steps 4 and 5.

Survey reminder...

Erm, just a reminder, we have a survey.

so far, i have a few responses. No numbers to disclose [yet]. so please keep filling it up!

Chow!

Afunakwa

If you watch the 2006 and 05 version of the YouTube video by Matt Harding, you'll hear this very melodic vocal in the background. It's a nice compliment to the video.

This video, an interview of the singer's somewhat close relatives by Matt Harding, more or less introduces you to the derivative of the folk song.


"Patrick remembered the recording, which he accurately dated around 1971. He described the French man and his wife who made the recording, and the device itself, which he said was powered by a hand crank.

Afunakwa died a long time ago. I’ve read 2003, but Patrick said it was more like 10 or 15 years back. She has a son, Jack, who is still alive. He still lives in the same Baegu village, about a half day’s travel from Auki.

Everyone on Malaita knows the "Sweet Lullaby" song. They’ve heard it on the radio. Patrick confirmed that, at least to his knowledge, no one has ever received any kind of payment for use of the recording in an international hit pop song or its reuse in – ahem – a fairly popular internet video. Everyone is vaguely aware that some sort of payment is warranted, but no one has any idea what to do about it. And that’s how things have stayed for 15 years.

Patrick said someone came around last year asking about the song. They wanted to go to the village and meet the family, same as me, but he didn’t cooperate because it would simply be more exploitation without any real benefit for them, and the inquiring party didn’t seem to have any interest in a greater understanding beyond the recording itself.

I’m not sure whether it was the money or the greater understanding that weighed more heavily, but I made it clear that I wished to know as much as they could tell me about their music, and I’d be happy to give payment to him and to the family. I explained that I had used the recording in a project and done very well with it, and I wanted to help them out in return.

That seemed to do the trick. We discussed plans to head out to the village. Patrick said he would have one of the elder members of the family perform the song for me, as well as several other songs from the village, and they would all be translated into English. Unfortunately, things fell apart when we got down to timing. They couldn’t go out there for several days, and the trip required two nights. There was no way I could make it work without getting stuck in the Solomons for an extra week and blowing over a thousand dollars in non-exchangeable plane tickets.

We agreed that I would come back another time and arrange with them in advance. No one is in much of a hurry here, so I’ve decided I’m not either, but I’m already half-planning to work it into my Asia trip early next year.

Wilson and David warned me that other people would approach claiming a relation to Afunakwa. They weren’t kidding. Word got around town about a white guy handing out money for information and I had several parties come to the hotel toting relatives and presenting their credentials.

I don’t know that any of them were lying, as these families can get pretty extended. And conversely, I suppose some doubt should be cast on the authenticity of Patrick’s claim. But here’s a thing I’ve learned: the person you actively seek out is much more likely to be on the level than the guy who comes knocking on your door. Also, my gut tells me Patrick is telling the truth and the other guys were peddling crap."

You can read more here...

Matt Harding's back!

Matt Harding, the guy who brought you "Where the Hell is Matt?" YouTube Phenomenon, is back with a new video in 2008!

Featuring 42 countries...

Wednesday 25 June 2008

cramming.mugging.bombarding.gapless.

My schedule for a schoolday [hopefully, I can stick to this.]

6am: wake up, get ready for school, while listening to stuff from iTunes U.
7am - 3pm [or 5pm if there's Art, HCL, etc]: school.
3pm-4pm: iTunes U. or TV.
4pm - 8pm: Sleep [while listening to stuff from iTunes U]
8pm - 1am or 2am: Homework, study, iTunes U, blog, revise.
1am / 2am to 6am: 2nd sleep session. [while listening to stuff from iTunes U]
6am: new day.

and so on.

It's the perfect schedule before the 'O's. I've discovered the formula!

iDA + iPhone

Hi there,
I noticed that on that iDA site you linked to it lists the following:
"3G Mobile Phone with Wi-Fi & Bluetooth Apple iPhone A1241 ".
Not sure if this means it's approved already or still pending approval.
Anyway, thought I'd share.

Cheers
Nils

A little check back at iDA...

S/NEquip CategoryEquip TypeEquip DescriptionBrand/Trade NameModel NameSupplier
1Multiple Interface Type (Combination of Specs)3G Mobile Terminal + ISM-Band SRD/LPD3G Mobile Phone with Wi-Fi & BluetoothAppleiPhone A1241APPLE SOUTH ASIA PTE LTD

Yes, people. iPhone. Let's wait for the announcement from Singtel...

iPhone A1241. Approved 19 June 2008 by iDA.

Monday 23 June 2008

Wanna resign?

Check this site out:
[WARNING: the site contains explicit words. You have been warned.]

Yahoo! employees & HR, hope you guys can take this with a grain of salt. A HUGE grain.

It's a site that lets you 'create' DIY Yahoo! Resignation letters. Genius, right?

I tried making one just for the fun of it. I kept the options open for some of them just because I can't decide. So YOU decide yourself which is better. Here it goes.


SAMPLE:


Dear whomever is running things today (sorry, the org chart Wiki is changing too fast for me to keep up)

It is with great glee that I ask you to accept this letter as my official resignation from Yahoo!

My last day here will be the best day of my life you f*cking incompetent nincompoops, after which time I shall be taking a position
.

As you know, for some time now I have been desiring you guys quit destroying all my net worth and thus I feel the time has finally arrived for me to . And of course, I would not be forthright if I failed to mention how much it dumbfounded me to see some of the moves management has made in recent .

For example, I found to be f*cking retarded. Furthermore, as I have watched management squander once-valuable properties such as my vested shares of Yahoo! stock, I have come to realize that management does not seem to fully understand how to run a f*cking taco truck, much less an actual, you know, $30 billion business. Thus, I am tendering my resignation as of today. If you would like me to sign a non-compete clause, I will be glad to do so, seeing as .


Your Name Here.

day 1, term 3.

yay...

prepare ye the way of the Lord...

coming soon... watch this space...

Sunday 22 June 2008

More SPAM

Ok, I'm exposing my SPAM folder to show you just how retarded I think SPAMMERS are. This one's about some dude who claims to sell degrees.

Bacheelor, MasteerMBA, and Doctoraate diplomas available in the field of your choice that's right, you can even become a Doctor and receive all the benefits that comes with it!

Our Diplomas/Certificates are recognised in most countries

No required examination, tests, classes, books, or interviews.

** No one is turned down
** Confidentiality assured

CALL US 24 HOURS A DAY, 7 DAYS A WEEK
-number censored-
"Just leave your NAME & PHONE NO. (with CountryCode)" in the voicemail

our staff will get back to you in next few days


My opinion:
-Why do you spell all the degree names with either an extra 'e' or 'a'? Masteer? WTF is that?
-Benefits of a doctor? Like what? Getting the privilege of standing in court for malpractice?
-And dude, can you use the "quotation marks" correctly? you make it seem as if you're giving "air-quotes"

More sh*tty SPAM.

This email really caught my attention for being REALLY WRONG...


Not even going to show you the content. Just the Subject.


From: otnettoh_1987@412easttaylor.com

Subject: Hot girl for sale

Date: June 9, 2008 10:14:13 PM SST



Get my drift?


This guy kidnaps people!


FBI, please do something!

indulge inSPAM

EXHIBIT A: "MRS REBECCA WILLIAMS"


From: reb_will00@yahoo.fr

Subject: SPAM: From Mrs Rebecca Williams

Date: June 7, 2008 2:19:52 AM SST

To: reb_will00@yahoo.fr

From Mrs Rebecca Williams
N�[38 Rue Des Martyrs Cocody
Abidjan, Cote d'Ivoire

ATTN:
DEAREST ONE OF GOD

I am the above named person from Kuwait . I am married to Mr Benson Williams, who worked with Kuwait embassy in Ivory Coast for nine years before he died in the year 2004. We were married for eleven years without a child. He died after a brief illness that lasted for only four days.
Before his death we were both born again Christian. Since his death I decided not to remarry or get a child outside my matrimonial home which the Bible is against. When my late husband was alive he deposited the sum of $2. 5 Million (Two Million Five Hundred U.S. Dollars) in the bank here in Abidjan in suspense account.
Presently, the fund is still with the bank. Recently, my Doctor told me that i have serious sickness which is cancer problem. The one that disturbs me most is my stroke sickness. Having known my condition I decided to donate this fund to a church or individual that will utilize this money the way I am going to instruct herein. I want a church that will use this fund for orphanages, widows, propagating the word of God and to endeavour that the house of God is maintained.
The Bible made us to understand that blessed is the hand that giveth. I took this decision because I don’t have any child that will inherit this money and my husband relatives are not Christians and I don’t want my husband’s efforts to be used by unbelievers. I don’t want a situation where this money will be used in an ungodly way. This is why I am taking this decision. I am not afraid of death hence i know where I am going. I know that I am going to be in the bosom of the Lord. Exodus 14 VS 14 says that the Lord will fight my case and I shall hold my peace.
I don’t need any telephone communication in this regard because of my health hence the presence of my husband’s relatives is around me always I don't want them to know about this development. With God all things are possible. As soon as I receive your reply I shall give you the contact of the bank here in Abidjan . I want you and the church to always pray for me because the Lord is my shepherd. My happiness is that I lived a life of a worthy Christian. Whoever that wants to serve the Lord must serve him in spirit and Truth. Please always be prayerful all through your life.
Contact me on the above e-mail address for more information’s, any delay in your reply will give me room in sourcing another church or individual for this same purpose. Please assure me that you will act accordingly as I Stated herein. Hoping to receive your
reply.

Remain blessed in the Lord.
Yours in Christ,
Mrs Rebecca Williams.

I went on to check if Exodus 14:14 did indeed say what she claimed it said. And Yes, it did. So to whoever you really are, "Mrs Rebecca", I must say, your sincerity to SPAM really amuses me. You desire to give your husband's money to someone else instead of SOLVING YOUR PHYSICAL PROBLEMS give me confusion. and How the F*** do you know you're sending this email to a Christian? Facebook? I mean, that's the only place where I indicated my religion... so far...

You stalker!

Fellow Christian readers, let's pray for these kind of spammers to find constructive things to do rather than this kind of ridiculous emails.

And Please, go ahead. SPAM this guy back. I know it's a guy. He's french, not Kuwaiti.

Thursday 19 June 2008

Who the heck is Andy?

From the tagboard:
andy: hi all i gtg now, feel free to visit my blog http://utahjazzforever.blogspot.com/or msn utahjazzforever@hotmail.com


To find out more about this "andy" [i think he's legit, btw.], I went on to the link. {hey, im on a Mac. Nothing to worry. At most, I'll get porn. At least, I'll get a website filled with ads].

After looking around his blog and links, I concluded he could be one of the following [in no particular order]:

a) He's really a MediaCorp Actor
b) He's a wannabe who wants a Mediacorp actress as his bf. [probably wrong].
c) He's a boyfriend of a Mediacorp actress. [gasp. some link.]
d) He's a CS freak. {citation here and here]
e) He's a retard who likes to slack, and will fall for any offer. [citation here, and his plain BAD grammar used in his blog.]
f) He's a friggin' SPAMMER.

Well, we may never know, right?

I sure know Option F is ABSOLUTELY CORRECT. Get outta here!

Wednesday 18 June 2008

Help me help you!

Hey there!

Ok, I know I don't serve ads, and I am not a professional blogger. But I was curious about who reads my blog, and what they think of it. I want to know and hear from you guys about how I should improve my blog. So please give me your feedback. Just complete the survey top to bottom, and click on the ridiculously small "Submit" button at the bottom of the survey. There's 10 simple questions, and it should only take you 10 minutes or so to complete.

Rest assured, the answers will not be openly displayed, as I am not collecting any personal data that can be traced back to the actual user. Of course, if you choose to be funny in your suggestions, I will take special interest in you. An in a not-so-cool-because-you're-gonna-get-it-from-me kind of way.

So please take some time to do the survey. I will not give away any personal information. However, do note that your answers are being logged, and I MAY use your feedback publicly, or as a collective statistic / generalised statement. You have been warned.


Happy answering! P.s.: Those who want to pose me, I'm not going to make this easy, but here are the keywords: "How To" "Higher Ed" "Form" "Create" "Google Docs"
Ronald

Come ON!!!

Get Firefox 3 by 2.16 AM Jne 19 GMT+0800h.


Help set the World Record!

OTHERWISE...


[FYI: At post time, Total Download is >6,000,000.]


UPDATE: For those who downloaded, get your certificate here!

Tuesday 17 June 2008

Bible verse: enemy.

"But I tell you that anyone who is angry with his brother will be subject to judgment. Again, anyone who says to his brother, 'Raca,[b]' is answerable to the council. But anyone who says, 'You fool!' will be in danger of the fire of hell."
Matthew 5:22

[b] - contempt, the feeling that a person / thing is beneath consideration or worthless

I came across this verse while I was in China, on one of the long road trips.

This verse reiterates one of God's commandments that we should love our neighbours as we love ourselves. Above that, we must respect them and not look down on them or disregard them.

I guess I have not been very good at this. Someone once told me that I liked to criticize people, especially if they have done something wrongly or badly. That someone is now a frienemy with me. I guess I need to change in this area.

What about you? have you been angry towards someone? Have you looked down on someone? Or even worse, have you cursed someone?

I'll just leave you with Matthew 5:38-48
38"You have heard that it was said, 'Eye for eye, and tooth for tooth.' 39But I tell you, Do not resist an evil person. If someone strikes you on the right cheek, turn to him the other also. 40And if someone wants to sue you and take your tunic, let him have your cloak as well. 41If someone forces you to go one mile, go with him two miles. 42Give to the one who asks you, and do not turn away from the one who wants to borrow from you.
43"You have heard that it was said, 'Love your neighbor and hate your enemy.' 44But I tell you: Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, 45that you may be sons of your Father in heaven. He causes his sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous. 46If you love those who love you, what reward will you get? Are not even the tax collectors doing that? 47And if you greet only your brothers, what are you doing more than others? Do not even pagans do that? 48Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect.
Matthew 5:38-48

--Bible verses adapted from BibleGateway.com

Bible Verses discovered on the "KJV Bible" Ebook on my iPod touch.

Download Day 2008!

Download Day 2008

Get Firefox 3. Starting 1AM 18JUN08. (GMT+0800h)

Music Chart for the moment - 17JUN08

There are based on tracks recently purcahsed in May - June 2008.

1. Coldplay - Lost!
2. Coldplay - Death And All Of His Friends
3. Whitney Duncan - When I Said I Would
4. The Wombats - Let's Dance For Joy
5. The Ting Tings - That's Not My Name
6. Jason Mraz - I'm Yours
7. Coldplay - Lovers in Japan
8. Madonna - Miles Away
9. Coldplay - Strawberry Swing

And since it's the last week of June, why not?

Album Chart for the first half of 2008...

1. Coldplay - Viva La Vida
2. Jack Johnson - Sleep Through The Static
3. The Ting Tings - We Started Nothing
4. Madonna - Hard Candy
5. Jason Mraz - We Sing. We Dance. We Steal Things.

Special Mention : Various Artistes - Juno OST

Tanglin-Orchard tour...

Went to Tanglin for my first orthodontics appointment in a year...

Folks, I tell you, don't wear braces and then leave them as they are for one year...


After that, I went to get Coldplay's new album, Viva La Vida. Yes, it's out today. Go get yours if you want it!


And then, I went to Singtel's hello! store at Ngee Ann City to reserve my iPhone. 1 unit Black 16GB model, with my current existing Singtel iOne Plus plan. Coming soon. Watch my review once I get it!

And my way back home, I met Evan! We were discussing about having a gathering on National Day. SAJS people, what do you guys say?

Monday 16 June 2008

My source of music...

iTunes Free Singles of the Week

http://www.apple.com/itunes/freesingle/

It's the link of the moment.

My camera phone gallery [long post]

As the Holiday comes to an end, I thought I should post some snapshots of what I did during this holiday, as captured on my camera phone.


I enjoyed 3 scoops of Ben&Jerry ice cream (2 scoops + 1 complimentary)



I entered Changi Terminal 3 for the first time. And in several years, I took Singapore Airlines flights, even as gas prices are at all time highs...


and I met with the A380. Currently, SIA is the only commercial airline with 4 in their arsenal.



Then I flew to Shanghai with my Dad & Bro (on a B777-200, not the spanking new A380), where we were fetched by my dad's business partner to Yuyao, Ningbo, ZheJiang, or in Chinese, 余姚,宁波市,浙江省。

There, we ate some berries,


and we saw this decor at our hotel. very interesting decor...


Then we went to eat. We saw this on the table. Notice, even the cups glasses come in S, M, and L.

and they served up this. See if you (or your heart) can take this. Seriously and literally, this is not for the faint of heart. My bro and I estimates that this contains 2599KJ (yes, 2599000J) of energy, mostly as saturated fats. (Apparently, the locals told us that Mao loved to eat this as a luxury item, and when the people were facing famine, he stopped eating this dish, saying "If I were to indulge while the people suffer, then I'm letting them down." What a leader!)


Then we went to see a glass factory which makes glass bottles for perfumes and stuff. Not talking too much about this. Just take note of the molten glass depicted as orange pixels in the background in this picture, and the long cooling vent in the right. there's a conveyer belt in this vent which cools the bottles as it goes through really slowly.

From Yuyao, we went to Hangzhou by car, to catch a flight to Guangzhou. Unfortunately for us, the weather was bad, and visibility is low, so our flight was delayed. but thank God, we flew anyway, and everything was safe and sound, even though I was squeezed on the plane because my seat couldn't recline, while the guy in front of me reclined back all the way. It's domestic flights! They use really small and old Airbus A320s!

At Guangzhou, we ate at a restaurant that probably won't make PETA happy. They serve crocodile meat, snake meat, stone fish, shark's fins, abalone, and (soft shell) turtles amongst other things. Didn't take a photo there, because I felt really sad for the creatures being cooked up (literally) there.

Then, from glam food, to "why you'll love being a vegan" food. We ate at this place called "知青第一村", which loosely translates to a village where knowledge of the greens takes first priority. This actually refers to the Mao era. And seriously, that place means it. When you go there, you'll be greeted by an old building, probably from the 50s. The people there dress up in Communist green shirts with a red armband on their right. (the shoes don't really match, though. some of them wear blue Converse canvas shoes.) When you enter the building, you'll be greeted by the sound of the national anthem being played over their radio, then you'll see propaganda posters and pantings depicting Mao ZeDong, Sun Yat Sen, Deng ZePing, and the communist workers. They even have a horse breeding area!

Now, earlier on, I told you you'll be happy to be a vegan here. Why? Well, let's start with the appetisers...
If you thought I kid you by photoshopping a little chicken, well, no. This is exactly what they serve. They serve you around 15 of them in a tray. How do you eat them? Oh, you think you just peel the meat from the bones, right? WRONG. You bite the whole thing. Yes. the WHOLE thing. from the brain matter to the bones in the wings, and even the beak. And the scary thing: Its skull is hard but chewy on the outside, and rubbery on the inside.

Normally, I don't take photos when I eat, so I took a photo of the leftovers for you to figure out what's on the dining table before the munching begins. A hint: it's just one hotplate with meats cooked in a soup, kinda like those Seoul Garden buffets with the soup. Minus the "choice" and variety of the buffet.
Want some answers? Well, the most prominent one in this picture will be the snake ribs. Yes, there was snake meat being served. Aside from that, there's some bird I couldn't even describe, especally after seeing its beak in the hotplate. But I guess snake meat is nothing to Chinese people, eh?

Here's another pic of the place's decorations. See the propaganda messages?

And with that, we have come to the end of the Chinese trip. Let me leave you with this photo of the place where the wacky food and propaganda occured.


Oh, by the way, last day, we ate breakfast at the hotel where we stayed (they didn't have complimentary breakfast). It's the HNA Guanzhou Central Hotel, or 广州中央大酒店。We ate dim sum for 3 people, and we paid only RMB78. I'm not going to calculate the SGD for you, but this is actually considered expensive for yum cha. But I did enjoy the breakfast. And the price, compared to Singapore... well, you be the verdict.

Download Day tomorrow!

Download Day: 17 June 2008.

Don't forget to download Firefox 3 tomorrow!

Analysis on iPhone 3G in Singapore

[My first attempt of writing a blog post in a more professional collumn-style post. Pardon me if it's too formal.]

So, we know iPhone 3G is coming to Singapore. We all learnt that from the WWDC 2008 keynote, which later echoed in the blogosphere. But there's some unanswered questions. And so, being the Apple fan-boy Singapore resident that I am, I shall try to guess the answers to these unanswered questions.

1. When can we get one?
The flat-out answer is 'probably not July 11'. And there are several reasons for this.

Firstly, there is probably not enough iPhones being produced for release on 11 July for 20 countries. [That's not a typo. 2 of the original 22 initial nations had to delay their release]. Also, There Singtel side is probably not prepared to bring them in as well, especially since they're still contemplating about when to start selling in Singapore. I also suspect that their online "pre-reservation" programme is to get a clearer estimation of the demand in Singapore for this gizmo. Either way, both Apple (or Foxconn, whoever produces the phones) and Singtel need more time.

Secondly, there's the IDA approval. Just like iPhone version 1 needed 5 months from the time it was announced to the time it was available to consumers, the iPhone 3G has to go through government agency approvals before it could enter certain markets. For Singapore, the IDA (Infocomm Development Agency) has to approve the equipment before it could be sold in Singapore. In fact if you go to the IDA's Approved Equipment Search , and search for "Apple" under the brand name, you'll notice that everything Apple sells which has a Bluetooth, Wifi, or any other wireless communication method, from the Nike+ accesory to the Apple TV, need to be approved by IDA first before it can be sold here. Do the same for Nokia, and you'll realise that this ruling applies to Nokia as well. As a result, we may need to wait 3 weeks from the time the first actual-production unit (not pre-production units) reaches IDA offices before we can get an iPhone. Until then, keep checking IDA's Approved Equipment Lists.

Thirdly, and this is just speculation in addition to the first point, Singtel could still be setting up their infrastructure to support the flood of iPhones coming. They need to prepare their wireless broadband HSDPA network to support all the iPhones which have to keep a constant connection with Apple. Also, they need to set up the Visual Voicemail back-ends.

Having said the above 3 reasons, I conclude that the release dat for Singapore will be the days before National Day, meaning 1 - 8 August 2008.

UPDATE: someone gave me a hint that the hello! store people said "September"!

2. How can I get one?
This one's pretty straightforward. From what we've seen so far, you may not be able to get an iPhone from the iShop or Epicentre on release day. That said, these places could still get the iPhone, just a little later, when supply and demand are more balanced.

Outside Singapore, the iPhone is only available through the Apple Store (the ones with the Genius Bars, not the "authorised retailers" that Singapore has)

Apple Store Online says hello! Stores, so I'm going with that. No other ways.

3. Plans?
The iPhone will NOT have a prepaid plan, mainly because Singtel never gives High-speed data services with their prepaid cards. Singtel will probably bundle unlimited data for all the plans, since the iPhones will always stay connected to Apple. This is out of the norm for Singtel which caps their mobile broadband plans at 50GB.

Doing some math, you can sum up the price plan to be something like this
Data plan: $22 to $62 (based on current data plan prices)
+
a voice plan, ranging from the iOne SuperValue ($15, 80min, 50sms), to the iThree Plus ($192.60, 2000min, 2000sms)
+
Visual Voicemail

The range (excluding visual voicemail) ends up being $37 to $254.60 per month.

For an average person like myself, the best would probably be

Broadband on Mobile 1000 (1Mbps DL, 384kbps UL, 50GB, $22.42)
+
iOne Plus ($25.68, 100min, 500sms)
+
Visual Voicemail (probably +$5 over Voicemail, complimentary in iOne Plus)

= $52.42 PER MONTH.

Can you swallow that?

3. Other Telcos?
Let's just get this straight: Singtel cannot release their phones exclusive to themselves. I posted the relevant laws in an earlier post some time ago. As such, it won't be a surprise when Starhub and M1 gets the phone.

In fact, it's not a surprise if M1 gets the phone. They should have. After all, to quote wikipedia:

"M1 offers Vodafone products, a result of it being the official Singaporean partner of the Vodafone mobile community."

And since Vodafone has sealed a deal with Apple, you would expect M1 to also get the iPhone, before Singtel, right?

And as for Starhub, they have the highest 3.5G network speeds in Singapore, which makes them a viable party in this 3-way race to get the iPhone.

4. Any special extras?
Activation: probably have to be done in-store at the hello! stores, since we don't have iTunes Store Singapore to activate our iPhones on. But one plus point: MobileMe / iTunes account is not a must.
iTunes Store Singapore + iTunes Wifi Music Store: Probably not coming yet.
Apple Store Singapore: Also a distant future, the way I see it.
iPhone App Store: I'm guessing you'll need a MobileMe username and a valid credit card to use this feature.
Roaming / Data Roaming: BridgeAlliance Data Roaming plan from Singtel. Not cheap, but that's the only way to go.

5. How could I forget: Price!
The question here is about subsidy. We know the 8GB costs US$199 (S$273) on AT&T, £0 on O2 with certain plans, and EU499 (S$1000) somewhere in Europe.

Based on these numbers, I am going out on a limb by saying that the iPhone will launch at S$799 (8GB) and S$850 (16GB) and then drop over time.

We'll see how right (or wrong) I am!

Sunday 15 June 2008

renovation...

new look! see what you think!

critique!!!

P.s.: im trying to balance the sidebar and the main contents, such that the sidebar is either shorter OR as long as the main content. please give me suggestions, ideas, etc.

appreciated!

Reformatting...

...the template of this blog

Please be patient. Call this blog a BETA for now! [this could get ugly]

Gaming makes a PC lag, eh?

Blog browsing
0 (0%)
watching videos
0 (0%)
photoshop
1 (12%)
video editing
1 (12%)
gaming
5 (62%)
Pro Apps [3D, compositing, etc.]
1 (12%)

Well, Maybe most of you own PCs or something, or maybe not many do video editing with HD footage (should have clarified that). but anyway, this poll was unclear, so i guess we can debunk all the options in orange. But it's clear. Gaming making our computers lag. So let's wait for stuff like 64-bit full support on Applications as well as the OS, and technologies like "Grand Central" or "OpenCL" from Mac OS X Snow Leopard 10.6 to be available...

Nose bleed?

POLL:"WHAT DO YOU DO WHEN YOUR NOSE BLEEDS?"

Look Up!
2 (14%)
Look Down!
5 (35%)
Stuff with tissue!
4 (28%)
Just add water!
3 (21%)


Sorry, my blog appear cluttered, so I closed my polls 3 days ahead of the one I set earlier when I created the poll. But anyway, as you can see, most of you would EITHER look down, OR stuff with tissue. well, maybe it's both for some of you, since I do both. But anyway, now we know how the readers think about reacting to nose bleeds.

中guo

Define: China

  • a communist nation that covers a vast territory in eastern Asia; the most populous country in the world

  • high quality porcelain originally made only in China

  • the third single released from the Tori Amos LP, Little Earthquakes, in January 1992 in the United Kingdom...

  • a 1979 album by the Greek artist Vangelis




  • Let's just focus on the first.

    I must say, after visiting China for the third time [the first in 7 years], I have many descriptive phrases to add to that list...

    China
  • A very densely populated region, mostly made of patriotic, but often rude, fair to yellow skinned Asians who often have the 'villager''s way of thinking, with a tendency to drink and smoke even during or after mealtimes. They are strictly controlled by the Authority, especially the communist government, in every aspect of the media, through censoring, blocking, and propaganda in the news and media. In fact, blogging has been controlled. Aside from the above, China is also a country which face serious air pollution problems and experiences rain that affects their air traffic. However, China is a very systematic, efficient nation with very matured industries, probably above the maturity of other nations around them, especially in Europe.


  • If you don't like what I just said, just click close this window! I'm just giving my opinion, which under first amendment rights, is legal. Aside from that, this is just journalistic integrity, and integrity is the best policy!