Apakah Zaman Kini?

Dulu ada zaman purba, zaman ais, zaman batu. La ni, zaman Che Det, zaman Proton dan zaman water filter. 

Tapi yang nak sembang ni, pasal weols orang moden, zaman Raja Network (networking) Sosial. Tinjau2 skit, nampak gaya ada satu collision Big-Bang, bukan Big-Ben yang London Bridge Is Falling Down tu ya, tetapi big-bang yang tercetusnya di antara manusia kategori baby-boomers, generasi X, Y mahupun generasi upcoming, Z. Dan letopan Big Bang ini semua berlaku di Taman Facebook. 

Ya, lebih tepat, inilah zaman Facebook. Dulu kala, hanya generasi Y mengamalkan kaedah social networking melalui Friendster apabala. Generasi X hidup dalam zaman kedekut SMS dan beli kad Raya. Kini, semua rojak 1kuali.

Anyway, zaman FB ni, rupa2nya penggerak satu teknologi. Sebagaimana porno penggerak daya maju internet dan rasuah penggerak daya maju politik, begitulah Facebook penggerak daya maju dunia telefon pintar. Kita guna terma 'smartphone' lah ya. Geli bila sebut telefon pintar. 

Demi FB, tetiba BlackBerry jadik famous. Diorang pun terkejut. Rupa2nya, sistem diorang yang bisnes-sentrik sesowai sangatlah untuk membela Tamagochi masa kini yang dikenali sebagai Facebook ini. Bermulalah orang meng-update status via BlackBerry bagi setiap suapan harian, anak pandai la, anak sakit la, suami balik lambat la, baby berak la.. letih saya.  

Ini merupakan satu oportuni yang hebat. Nokia kata, kalau aku letak tulisan Facebook, mesti laku fon aku. Tapi depa lupa, takat fon boleh berFB, kalau takdak data plan, tarapapapa la Cokia oi. 

So si BlackBerry ni pun suka la pasal depa punya sistem siap dengan data plan, bang. Pastu siap discover keindahan instant messaging. Then email pulak. Peh, senang hidup siut kalau ada BlackBerry nih. SMS? Zaman kartun Thundercat tu bang.

Pastu mai la hat lain. iPhone la, Android la. Etc etc. Tapi kalau takdak data plan, hampeh jugak la. Bagaikan letak air-con di rumah, tapi pasang kat 32'celcius pasal nak sep duit. Atau ada komputer kat rumah, tapi takde internet. Aaa, contoh kedua lebih senang nak faham. 

Kembali ke landasan, dari segi teknologi dan ekonomi, sebenarnya terdapat banyak pengaruh positif dari zaman Facebook ini. 

Pertama, lebih ramai orang menjadi hensem dan smart kerana dulu Nokia, sekarang smartphone. Dari sudut sosiologi, ini positif. 

Kedua, perbalahan tanpa vokal yang lebih efektif. Ya, dengan teknologi smartphone, perbalahan atau pergaduhan tanpa vokal yakni SMS akan lebih efektif melalui penggunaan instant messaging. Ini adalah kerana IM lebih cepat dan mempunyai banyak emoticons. Cuma saya hairan kenapa emoticon middle-finger masih belum dicipta. Mungkin ianya susah dari segi teknikal. Tapi itulah gesture yang sering manusia gunakan semasa penggunaan telefon. 

Ketiga ialah email. Email ni, kalau difikir masak2, amatlah berguna. Disinilah surat cinta atau surat ugut boleh dikrafkan secara creative. Di dalam zaman Facebook dimana smartphone digunakan, secara tak langsung akan menjadikan lebih ramai manusia kembali mengaktifkan email Yahoo-nya yang telah sekian lama bersawang akibat terlupa password. Dan di zaman Facebook, penggunakan nickname semakin berkurangan dan lebih ramai menggunakan nama betul. Jadi Oleh kerana email dipaparkan di profile page, lebih ramai akan menginsafkan email address mereka seperti dari iamagayboy@yawoo.com kepada idrismatsemah@yawoo.com.

Keempat, perkara seperti 'i know what you did last raya' bukan lagi satu statement yang mensuspenkan. Kerana, sememangnya I KNOW what you did last Raya. Siap post photo album pun. Apatah lagi status update "oh taik, aku terlanggaq orang". Tapi ada contoh2 yang lebih baik dari ini. 

Kelima, tandas yang lebih bersih. Ya, amat pelik tapi benar. Penggunaan smartphone di zaman Facebook telah menyebabkan lebih banyak penfokusan terhadap kebersihan tandas, terutamanya cermin kerana disitulah kelahiran kebanyakan profile picture. Dari segi kesihatan, ini amat baik kerana mampu mengurangkan kadar penyakit berjangkit. 

Keenam, meningkatkan keyakinan diri. Dari sudut saikologi, menurut Dr. Idris Mat Semah, merangkap Tokoh Saiko Zon Taiping, smartphone di zaman FB ini boleh menjatikan diri individual melalui kaedah statement dan posting gambar yang ntah apa2 dengan niat untuk memprojek diri seperti mencapai tahap kasta tertinggi. Hmm, apa la Dr. Idris nih dok cakap, saya pun tak faham. Lupakan saja point keenam ini. 

Ketujuh, teknologi nano yang power. Syarikat seperti ARM telah berjaya mencipta processor yang amat power dalam pakej yang amat kecil. Imagine, 1.5Ghz dalam mesin sekecil telefon bimbit? Dulu saya main game Doom guna komputer processor 133Mhz, siap kata "wow, smoothnya!". Tapi nak download gambar Samantha Fox memang slow. Dengar cerita, BOM cost 1Ghz processor untuk iPhone 4 ialah USD10 sekeping. Peh. Hebat dan murah. 

Panjang juga saya menaip ya. Guna Blackberry la katakan ehem. Setakat disini sajalah blog kali ini. Terima kasey, babai. 

Tips For Healthy Living, As Told By My Roomie's Dad

For the past 3 days, I was admitted into a hospital for my back injury. My roomie, Ethan, was admitted for fever. A young guy, 28 years old.

His dad, early 60s, would come to visit him every now and then. Very nice guy. He gave some tips on staying healthy, so I want to share it you.

After 40, your body is no longer the same. Your mind might be the same, but not the body. So, first thing first, lower down your stress level. Keep the blood pressure on check. Don't gamble or bet. Or even play shares. That'll keep you away from a stroke.

Next, your eating habit. Lower down seafood stuff such as crab, prawn, oyster and the likes. That'll keep you away from stones.

Next, your bowel and digestion system. Coffee and choco drinks, reduce. And eliminate gas drinks such as Cola and such. Drink lots of plain water and barley. This is one way to reduce risk of kidney problems.

Next up, just reduce your cholesterol intake. Rice, white bread, potatoes, donuts, those are carbo stuff. Reduce. Oats for breakfast, that's recommended. Ways to reduce risk of diabetes and heart related problems.

If you're overweight or under, no problem. Just keep a steady check on your food. Its a bit too late to work the flabs out of the abs. So, forget about it. As long as you're eating right, you're on the right track.


Sent via BlackBerry

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iPhone Apps Review: Streaks $1.99. A stylish way to know how screwed you are.

BlackBerry, I miss you.

I have come to a conclusion that a BlackBerry is one of life's necessity, a close fourth, right after clothes. This enlightenment came just after my blackberry crashed. And to think that I was bitching about it being a dinosaur in the iPhone era.... I had to learn, as usual, through the hard way.

Let me share, now that I'm badly missing the Berry, on what features I miss the most. Needless to say, the basic telephony features tops the list. Second, is definitely the instant messaging features. Third is the emails. And fourth is the camera.

Well, actually I miss the camera more than the emails. Anyway, I definitely do not miss the games. And when I'm out of the house, I don't really care about internet browsing via wifi. The last thing I want is for the Berry to be out of juice.

Now, would I feel the same assuming I'm using an iPhone? Well, I'm sure a lot of iphone users can answer that coz life without iPhone is quite common due to it's short battery life. But if I think logically, if the iPhone is used for games and internet browsing most of the time, if it's out, I'd probably just get a book.

BlackBerry is for convenience. iPhone is to waste time, in style. Generally speaking.

But would it mean I'm not getting the iPhone 4? Of coz not!! I'm still putting my sight and a little bit of my pay on the side every month for it. Who needs books when they can have an iPhone - the stylish time wasting machine.

But what I'm saying is, BlackBerry is just wonderful. The convenience it contributes to your life is just marvelous. Its hard to make a u-turn once you Berry yourself.

Would I be comfortable with 2 devices in my pocket? I have a few choices. Start wearing baggy pants... or get a handbag. I still have a few more months to think until the iPhone 4 gets here.

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Which Android Phone To Choose From?

2010 World Cup, go Malaysia!

Last night, all of a sudden, in the wake of German's masterclass mauling of Argentina, my wife asked me with a very serious face, "why do you support France?"

As usual, as a person who ALWAYS have a reason (or a scapegoat) for almost anything (yes, I know, I need help), I would like to share my reasons.

And please, ready yourself for the most deep rooted thought process rationalization. Hopefully, it could even help most people out there who are still walking in circles feeling lost, to finally choose a team to support for World Cup.

As a person who comes from a footballing nation that excels in village tournaments, I have the privilege to choose any country to support. And since my fellow countrymen who are directly involved in the World Cup are confined to just being the fourth officials, I can even change the teams I'm supporting during play.

But on every World Cup, I always start. by supporting France. Ask me who I'd support for 2014 World Cup... France of course. I'll tell you why later.

Typically, ladies chose which team to support by analyzing which football player appears in the People magazine most often. Players who are dating celebrities would add more weight to this already heavy analytical brain activities, that sometimes need to be hasten as it occupies the processing power of the brain to think about how to lose weight, while chomping off biscuits over coffee.

Generally speaking, of course. For me, I'm just happy that my lovely wife just stopped at "Why France?" and not continue with, "Is it because of Beckham?".

I'm not going to say I like France because of their passing game, their flair or showmanship of skills. Because in fairness, a lot of other teams do that too; Chile, Brazil, Argentina, Spain etc.

I chose France because of the country itself. It's policies on world peace and environment are exemplary. They are good friends of the West and East. They are friends of the Muslim world despite being a stronghold nation for Christianity. On top of that, my name has a close similarity to the Eiffel tower.

I'd not support Serbia because of their genocide stunt.

I'd support Chile, Brazil and Argentina because on top of their beautiful game, they party so much that they don't have time to cause nuisance to the world.

I don't support England because I have already spent so much on merchandise and satellite TV for the English Primier League. But as a nation, I hate it when they second US for war stuff. I can't think of anything that ties England with peace. Think Gandhi, Apartheid, Ireland, Mad Cow Disease and Frankie Goes To Hollywood. I can never support England knowing the damage they have caused my country. Their divide-and-conquer policy was solely responsible for the nation's imbalance and racism to this very day. But in recent time, I'm not so fond of them being USA's cheerleader for destruction.

But I'd support USA.

I love that country. The people (minus the rednecks) are great. Most of all, I love Apple, McDonalds, Facebook and Hooters. And the fact that, few hundred years ago, someone pulled a practical joke on them by giving them the book of 'Football 101' upside down, where even to this very day, they still play foot-ball with their hands, USA have come a long way to finally resist the temptation to wear make-up and tights and catch the ball with their hands and run towards the goal in tights. Have I mentioned that they actually wear tights? Actually, for that alone, I'd support USA.

I support Netherlands because the Dutch Lady chick gave me a lot of happy times when I was a spud.

I definitely support German for their massive use of the letter Z. This letter has been underutilized and ignored in almost all language. This shows that they are a caring country.

I can go on... but I think I should stop now. And I also I think I have to stop eating funny looking mushrooms.

Sent via BlackBerry

I'm not contactable via phone....

This is an amazing experience. After 3 years of using a BlackBerry, I'm stuck with no phone. My Berry suddenly went bonkers and died on me.

Its a totally different feeling. I was just on Facebook via iPod Touch and was just about to send a status update that almost sounded like a suicide note:

I'm no longer contactable via twitter, instant messaging, Facebook and emails. I will also no longer be updating my blogs, forums and responding to your flickr messages. ....till I get my phone fixed.

And I was thinking, hey, wait a minute! I can still do all that with my PC! So, I deleted my post.

That's what a BlackBerry can do to you. It makes your life so convenient that you almost forgotten about how other people are doing it.

Now, I have to rely on my laptop to do all that. It's such a pain and a real waste of time. I just wanna get my Berry back and live 'normally'.

More Beijing Pictures

I'm trying out a different app for uploading this blog. It's called Blogpress for iPhone. Let's see how this one goes.

Beijing 2010

I went to Beijing last month. It was a family vacation. And we loved it. Beijing was marvelous. Here are some piccas.

Update: Dang it. I can't upload more than 1 picture using this iPod Touch app. I'll update when I'm back on the desktop.

My Last Blog Here...

Update 28th June, 2010
I Just Realized That I Can't Leave My Lovely Blogspot. So, I Am Back. But, I've Decided To Maintain Two Blogsites. This Site Will Remain True To Its First Intent: A Venting Machine. The WordPress, Will Be My Tech Site, Where I Will Blog On Material Stuff... Stuff That I Can't Take With Me When I'm Dead.

Wishlist for iPhone 4th Generation

The iPhone 4g is rumored to be released this year. I'm a huge fan of iPhone and am seriously hoping that they'd come up with a version that will eventually free me from my obsessive need of a BlackBerry to function in this world.

iPhone has gone thru 3 cycle of evolutions. The 3rd gen, dubbed as 3GS, which many thinks S stands for Sex, is the closest iPhone to beating a BlackBerry as a communicator. They've started to 'push' mails, FB and other stuff now. But of course, 'close' is still very, VERY far actually.

iPhone's strong point lies in being an savvy Internet device, a mind-boggling gamepod and a rich multimedia machine. Even the highest-end BlackBerry could not get a sniff of these.

But, the fundamental of a phone is as a communicator. For battery sucking applications such as internet, games and multimedia, or GPS, it's always a better idea to use stand alone dedicated devices as the last thing a person wants is a dead phone. At that moment, even the lousiest Nokia will look like a million dollar diamond.

People who are proud that their phone is a wonder phone that can even cook a pancake will always sound like a moron when he approaches you to borrow your phone due to flat battery. These features are actually meant to be used as a time-waster. Not a replacement for a PSP, GPS or netbook.

But reality check, since men don't carry handbags thus we only carry 1 device at one time, it's always been my wish to have an iPhone with a BlackBerry connectivity. So, I hope the iPhone 4G would be the one.

But being practical, Apple only needs to have these on top of it's already brilliant capabilities:

Interchangeable batteries. Either that or a fusion powered battery cell that will last for 120years.

One handed operation interface. For example, some buttons are at bottom, and some at the top. The scattered buttons are hampering one handed operation.

Better keyboard layout. I hate that 2-second brain freeze everytime I need to add a symbol or a number. And I hate that frequent accidental pressing of caps lock button. iPhone sucks at keying in. Period. We can't even customize the Autotext function!

Multi tasking. The biggest killer. Fix this.

Better instant messaging. Sorry, I think this is the biggest killer. For now, we prefer third party solutions to IM. But it still can't group IM. In fact, it has so many shortcomings, I can't describe in 1 blog. So, I'm just shaking my head on this.

Anyway, my battery is running low again. Good thing I have my BB. But I love Apple products. So, i'm really wishing for the 4G.

But another alternative is, instead of Apple cracking their head to meet my demands ;-) maybe RIM needs to perfect their devices. And seriously, there's not much for them to do;

1) Include their QWERTY devices with multi-touch screen

2) Popularize their App Store (and make it available WORLDWIDE!)

3) Enrich the internet browser (see iPhone's Safari)

Just 3 minor tweaks for RIM, and waLLa! PERFECTION!

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Marsha's Joy

Not everyone has a someone other than their parents, worthy enough to be called a parent. Marsha is very lucky to have found someone to love and be loved.

Old Habits: iPod Touch

I have a very bad habit. Everytime before i travel, I'll buy something. Something that I made myself to think that it is a necessity.

In my latest pre-travel shopping, I torture myself thinking that I need to bring along either a netbook or an MID. Something I don't have.

And in the end, I bought an Apple iPod Touch. And to skip to the good part, i think its worth every single ringgit!

iPod Touch is basically an iPhone without the phone and camera. But it gobbles up any iPhone apps which does not use 3G/GPRS. It even looks like an iPhone!

And why I said it was worth it? I actually used it, well.. after i had to snatch it from Sara or Marsha, to perform value-added stuff which helped my travelling!

I used it to look for a shop, understand the surrounding roads via map, calculate the forex, jot down important notes and to perform web check-in with the airlines.

And on other time, there were web browsing, games, youtube, emails, facebook and tweeting.

And all that were done via a device no bigger than an average phone. Of course, I had to rely on WIFI to be connected, but nowadays, most hotels or deli would have that.

Someone asked me, why didn't I buy an iPhone instead? Well, this device is just around RM1000. And iPhone is between RM2500 to RM3000. If I had that much money to spend, I'll probably buy one. Furthermore, I just bought a new phone to replace my aging 3year old device.

Well, anyway, iPod Touch gets my thumbs up. I've always liked iPhone. I think it's a techno marvel. And therefore I knew I would love the Touch. Its no multi-tasking communicator like a BB. But for everything else (especially multi 'tabs' for Safari).... iPod Touch (or iPhone) is just simply brilliant!

Sent from my iPod

The Unwritten Rules of Pictionary

#1: Increase your hearing and seeing sensitivity like a hawk or a cat. Chances are, your opponent will cheat at every chance they get.

#2: During All-Play, appoint a judge for each team. Without one, both teams will cheat.

#3: Appoint time-keeper from the opposing team. Coz the playing team will cheat at time keeping too.

#4: No mirror, even TV nearby. The reflective surfaces will be used for... yup, cheating.

#5: Snap a picture to record your position on the board. Chances are, your marker might be moved by the opponent without you knowing. For some ODD reasons, sometimes to an advanced position too.

#6: Ensure your todlers are wearing diapers. They will be ignored for the next 5-8hours.

#7: Make pre-arrangement to purchase or rent a house in another area or district. Just in case your house is torched down by angry neighbors.

#8: Have a team name. Do not use acronym. It could be misleading eg. L is chose for 'Leader'. The opposing team will, for some ODD reasons, think that its for 'Loser'.

#9: When your team member catch the other team cheating, just play along and support your team member. Even though you're not sure. After all, teamwork is key.

10#: Don't upload your Pictionary drawings in Facebook for it might be humiliating. On second thought, that's exactly the point! Load it! And don't forget to tag!

Sent via BlackBerry

You Know You're Addicted to Pictionary When...

FIVE: You'd quickly grab ALL the pencils and memo pads you see during your meetings at the hotel.

FOUR: You start to think about how to draw every 6th word you hear e.g. the ball was out of court... COURT!

THREE: You called you mom to ask for cooking recipes so that you can invite your friends over and force them to play.

TWO: Ikea pencils look very tempting.

ONE: School night? What school night?

BlackBerry vs. iPhone, why is it an argument in the first place?

These are 2 very different animals.

BB is a communicator. It connects you via push e-mail, IMs, Facebook, Twitter and everything that connects. And BB is not so much about the phone unit itself. It's MORE about the BlackBerry service. Each unit is 'served' by a BB server that pushes information. As for now, there is NO competition for BlackBerry.

iPhone, is... a phone with lots of features. That's it. It's a great multimedia and gaming tool. And it oozes with superb user-interface . But its no 'communicator' like a BB. It does not have a server working for it.

So, the real argument is actually iPhone vs Nokia something2 or.. vs Sony Ericson something2. Never a BB.

A person who NEEDS a communicator, just grab a BlackBerry.

A person who needs a device to play games, watch videos etc, would consider iPhone.

It's clear cut that these 2 are very different. But, as profit making organizations, Apple would LOVE to have iPhone with BlackBerry capability. And RIM would LOVE to have iPhone's user-interface and features in its BlackBerry.

As email and social-networking becoming more popular, convergence is inevitable. It's just a matter of time.

Ask me anytime, perfection is having BOTH iPhone and a BB. If only Apple strikes a deal with RIM to have BB connectivity in its iPhone...

Why BlackBerry?

Here we go again, in a round-about adventure, the Coffee Table syle.

With BB, you're connected. You're logged in. You're IN the network.

With any other phone, you need to log-in to get connected.

At that juncture, BB is definitely the better option. But the problem is, it comes with a price. So, the question now: is it worth paying for BlackBerry service for such minor difference?

But on the other hand, if you use a normal phone and always 'log-in', you WILL be charged for data usage. And if you SMS like Instant Messaging and a big MMS user, at the end of the month, the amount could be MORE than paying for BB service.

Of course, if you live in Starbucks, there's no argument. The accumulation of money for BB services spent in a year is quite ridicioulous when you have WiFi and can be connected for free.

But from economics standpoint, someone IS paying for the WiFi. Be it in a form of coffee, fuel and time to drive to a WiFi point or monthly subscription. So, let's put the WiFi argument to the side and wait for the day when we can have WiFi signal emitting from our wrist-watch. So, in today's reality, to stay connected most of the time, we HAVE to use GPRS.

So, I guess, the cost of BB service is justifiable. But another question: Do we 'NEED' to be always 'connected'?

Tricky question. Mainly coz it's bounded by social norm. Still remember saying, "Bah, I don't need a cellphone, there's public phone all over."

So, to say we don't need to be "always connected" is a bit short-sighted. One day, we might have to swallow back our words. At the end of the day, human need and behavior are always bounded by social norm and economic power.

The social norm (or 'trend') in Malaysia is that the convenience of IM and e-mail in everyday life is slowly overtaking the limitations of SMS and MMS. VoIP too is catching on. All of these uses data network.

In the name of connectivity, people are already ditching their desktop for laptops to netbooks. The only logical trend is toward your cellphone. And that's where BB is already giving the solution.

But the wave will catch on only when the difference between 'stay connected' vs. 'need to log-in to be connected' will be of significance.

In a world where people don't give a crap, you must always keep it interesting.

How To Take A Great Photograph?

2 words: Compose It.

Yup, the only way to make a beautiful image is; to stage it. Something like studio work. You visualize an image and try to replicate it. If your visualized image is OMG. Then chances are, you photo will be OMG too.

If you notice, we don't even talk about the camera. Because, in reality, the camera can’t compose a image. Yes, it’s true, even the most Nikon of camera can’t do it. It’s just a tool. It’s not a magic wand. Only YOU can create an image and compose it via photography. The Operator.

Before photography was invented, an image had to be drawn by hand. These artists would have a subject to draw and paint. And they were quite pissed when Kodak came up with a tool that captures an image in a blink of an eye. But my point is, historically, an image - drawn or photographed – are usually either physically or imaginatively staged, be it weeks of preparation or a matter of seconds.

The only problem with staged image is, some are too fictitious. But if you browse Flickr, imaginative images are better accepted. Mainly because, people respond better to beautiful images, even if it's staged. It's art creation.

But if you're type who feels that studio work is a big fat bluff. That it's not 'real' and does not capture the 'emotion', yada yada. Then you're not being fair to these artist.

Images that represents 'truth', 'timeliness', 'accuracy' and 'realism' is actually not photography. That's photojournalism; capturing emotions and the 'right moments'.

Parents will bring their camera to their child's concert or a travel. That's not something that you can 'stage'. You snap based on how the event unfolds. And in the end, you'd view the pictures as how you saw and experience it. That's photojournalism.

Having said that, I guess most of us are are basically photojournalist, not photographers. So, the next question is: how to be a great photojournalist?

2 most important ingredients: the 2 Fs --- FAST shutter speed and FAT aperture. A photojournalist needs a fast tool. A studio photographer does not need these as much. They have studio lights and stationary subjects. But a photojournalist has subjects that runs around and not entirely within their control. Sounds familiar!

Photographer or photojournalist, just like any artist, you still need some form of pre-work. Before any photo is taken, you’ll need to decide the speed, aperture, the angle of the view, the focal length, the subject placement, the foreground and background. If you just pick up the camera and snap, you’re not an artist. You're just a picture taker.

Good night.