This might be a little bit different from what this blog is themed towards but it still has a slight tinge of software flavour to it.

Those that know me well will know that I have been dabbling in music for the past year or so. The sound engineering aspects of it, besides the musical genre, fascinates me with all regards to acoustic and digital. I recently had a chance to learn about the lip-sync issues that HDMI threw up. The write-up here is very good and explains why HDMI 1.2, 1.3 are are all poor bandaids on a problem that shouldn't have happened in the first place. RTP packets (in internet VOIP and video) have timestamps and packets that link those to a shared timebase so you can synchronize audio and video. It is therefore strange and unimaginable to me, from an engineering perspective, that the first version of HDMI was released without at least considering the possible variable delays on the two chains. OK, I have digressed.

In any case, I had the chance to encounter this problem straight-up recently when I wire-up all the video devices I had with HDMI because of the many HDMI options my new TV offered me. However, the audio capabilities of my AV receiver remained, at best, at an analog level.

In a nutshell, what happened, was that the the audio delivered through my AV receiver->speakers was processed, and therefore heard, lot faster than what the visuals was processed to the TV. In other words, I heard the crash ahead of the specific moment when the drummer actually crashed on the cymbals.

Contrary to popular belief, this is NOT a lip-sync issue that HDMI 1.3 was designed to solve. The usual culprit in audio lag is due to a TV's video processing, which is constantly trying to send a resolution that matches your TV's native resolution. Most of the workaounds today revolve around getting an AV receiver that allow a time-lag adjustment that enables you to set audio delay by source, in effect, allowing you to calibrate, or slow down, your audio processing to match the *slower* video processing. This works, provided you have enough dough to cough out to get a new AV receiver, with matching speakers probably.

I decided to apply some common sense and see if there is a way to *speed-up* my video processing so it can catch up with the audio processing instead. Now, I am aware that this would probably mean that you may not get the best visuals for your TV. However, to be honest, a lot of the infinite details is not visible to the naked eye, not mine anyways, so I am willing to live with that compromise.

If you are still with me at this point, you would understand that most TVs today come with a "Game-mode". It is designed to reduce the amount of processing involved in producing the image on the screen so that high-speed high-intensity graphical images can be served up fast on your TV. By speeding up the served image, it reduces input lag.

I set my TV to "Game-mode" and true enough, the *calibration effect* was applied and now my video processing could now match my audio processing. The graphics are still superb as visible to my naked eye, just less vivid, which is not something you would care about while watching a live concert DVD, etc.

Till I decide to plonk down money to get an AV receiver that allows me to set a time-lag/delay for my audio-processing, this *free* workaround actually works well and will suffice for now.

One of the hidden is what I thought to be the most useful setting in IE9 - and that is to be able to split the STOP and REFRESH icons and move it before the address bar. This effectively reduce the cluster on the right of the address bar. Because all those icons were bunched up together by default, it was hard to see what you want to do and easy to make the wrong clicks.

Right-Click on the icon cluster on the right of the address bar to make that change.

Pretty darn sneaky GOOG. Do you really have to resort to this to hijack someone to Chrome? Accuracy of GOOG search is definitely questioned here and gives rise to how much truth is actually tweaked.

Sigh. I try to avoid commenting or referencing public marketing furor over Microsoft because I am just not a cult-fanatic or hold a religious view on technology (for Goodness sake - Get a life ...) BUT the story that PervX ran that says: "Black Screen woes could affect millions on Windows 7, Vista and XP" is really saying something about the responsibility issues that comes with technology journalism.

Gosh - really, is there nothing we can do about this ?

Obviously, PervX was made to eat their own words. They issued a public apology to Microsoft but there is obviously still a sense of denial in between the lines.

Ed Bott says it best here and how I wished this furor they caused stays with them for a long time until redemption time comes. As what Ed says in his closing para: "As for Prevx, they deserve to be laughed out of the security commmunity for their role in this fiasco."

I read with amazement at how Google is allowed and could be bestowed a patent for their iconic search home page.

No, dont get me wrong, this is not about Google and I always give credit where it is due BUT gosh - I am very sure that way before Google, there were a few that came up with this UI design. I believe I saw Yahoo! Search page way before Google. While it may not be the same, I am quite sure the design principles are the same.

In my years of IT project developments and deployments, I am sure I have seen many of my teams' designer engineers come up with the same principles into database full-text search, Index servers, etc

In any case, this is interesting and this does change the patent strategy for many companies, doesn't it ? I wonder if Bing would do the same for its background images. Furthermore, to enable users to allow that to be turned on or off is itself a "patent-able* design, wouldn' it be ?

Both references are good reads and would propbably be a good debate topic for many but lets not do the religious cult thing:

• At This Point, I’d Prefer Java Developers Over .NET Developers
• ... and the ensuing: The Good, The Bad And The Ugly In The .NET World

Abstraction, Componentization, Reusability, etc. They have all changed the world the developers live and breathe in, havent they ? No, I dont want to sauter transistors on a motherboard anymore. Give me a PC anytime. Give me solutions.

My personal opinion is that there is no end and you cannot find a answer that fits all. Question one has to ask is:

• Are you looking for a brick builder/manufacturer
• ... Or are you just interested in building a wall/house ?

Make no mistake, I think there is a market for both. However, chances are, no one single good person will fit both bills. 

A short but note(pun-intended)-worthy blog entry. Microsoft releases SongSmith: Karaoke in reverse.

 Microsoft Research on Thursday is releasing software that gives musicians, both casual and professional, a new way to speed up song development. Called SongSmith, the $29.99 application creates musical accompaniment based on whatever is sung into the computer's microphone.

In order to do this, the software processes the pitch and tone of what's recorded and lets users hear how it might sound if they had a little backup in the form of a virtual piano, drums, and keyboard. Microsoft is expecting them to use the new track either as inspiration for further song development or as a simple way to create karayoke-quality recordings for friends and family members.

The software lets users change the feel of a song completely using various sliders that adjust mood, volume levels, tempo and what instruments are being used. Users are also able to purchase additional instruments from Garritan for a small fee that can drastically change the way a track sounds. Each purchased instrument comes wrapped in a special installer that automatically adds it to SongSmith. Dan Morris of Microsoft Research tells me there may eventually be a marketplace for other sample providers, although for now the software is using it exclusively because of its the only compatible format.

SongSmith lets you simply sing into your computer's microphone to hear what it would sound like if you had a back-up band.

(Credit: CNET Networks)
SongSmith is starting out as a digital download only, and will be available from Microsoft's recently launched digital downloads store front. Morris says there are no current plans to make the software part of a larger suite of music oriented products from Microsoft. Competitor Apple has offered a slightly similar feature in its Garageband software that gives you virtual band mates that can accompany you as you record music with an in-line microphone, however each of the instruments must be programmed by the user.

One interesting thing to note is that the technology is fully capable of providing automated accompaniment in near real-time. Morris says the only hurdle there is that the programming does all its magic by seeing where users are going with a melody and compensating accordingly. Morris also says a Web based version of the software could be possible later on down the line, although development in that area has been slowed down due to latency and recording quality bottlenecks.

Embedded below are before and after clips of what SongSmith is capable of. As mentioned before, to change the sound of this song users simply need to adjust a slider or two.

I was recently pointed to this post that highlights a "successful attempt" by some students in Germany to crack Microsoft Cardspace.After reading through the post several times, I became convinced that it is NOT what it seems it is and that if the "breach" is what it says it is, there must be some pre-conditions that must be satisfied before it can happen and these criteria are not going to be easy...

Just as I was putting some of my thoughts down that relates to why I think the attempt is somehow "inappropriately glorified":

1. If an end-user would be stupid enough to put and store his/her passwords, credit card information on his PC
2. There must be some sort of DNS compromise on the end-user side, which also means successfully hacking into his/her router
3. There must be some sort of Digital Certificate Store compromise on the end-user side, which also means successfully hacking into his machine with highly-elevated priviledges or saying, the user's machine password has been stolen

Points [2] and [3] relates to the statements from the attempt and I quote from the above post:

 To reproduce the demonstration, you should change your own DNS settings and install an untrusted certificate

If I can do both those points sucessfully, to be honest, I already have control over what the user does on his machine, stealing his Infocard is probably of low priority at that point in time.

Then, the brains behind Cardspace, Kim Cameron, himself, wrote a comprehensive reply, which basically was a detailed answer to my brief thoughts above, to counter the students' attempt and should really put any doubts in anyone's mind to rest.

[Added 02 June 2008]: In this video on his blog, Kim demonstrates how YOU, the end-user, must FIRST POISON your own machine first before the attack can happen: http://www.identityblog.com/wp-content/images/2008/05/Students/Students.html

Some comments standout and I quote:

 The demonstrator shows that if you are willing to compromise enough parts of your system using elevated access, you can render your system attackable. This aspect of the students’ attack is not noteworthy.

 There is, however, one interesting aspect to their attack.  It doesn’t concern CardSpace, but rather the way intermittent web site behavior can be combined with DNS to confuse the browser.  The student’s paper proposes implementing a stronger “Same Origin Policy” to deal with this (and other) possible attacks.  I wish they had concentrated on this positive contribution rather than making claims that require suspension of disbelief.

 However, the students propose equipping browsers with end user certificates so the browsers would be authenticated, rather than the sites they are visiting.  This represents a significant privacy problem in that a single tracking key would be used at all the sites the user visits.  It also doesn’t solve the problem of knowning whether I am at a “good” site or not.  The problem here is that if duped, I might provide an illegitimate site with information which seriously damages me.

While I know the ignorant media will find some ways to sensationalize this unworthy episode, especially when Microsoft is such a big target, this brings to mind a popular joke which I think can be used as an anology:

Q: How do you make 1 million dollars ?
A: Start with 2.

Gosh, I think I am in desparate need for some new empty bookshelves ...

   <-- Click this pic to see a higher resolution for even more details.

...and you havent even seen my other bookshelves containing my other interest, which I wont share for now ...

I am left speechless at this. Really. Simply astounding ...

One cannot run away from understanding infrastructure needs when one is pitching or designing software solutions in the enterprise (which I do a lot of) and it is sometimes strange (in a pleasant way) when the conversation goes like this:

 Please make sure you have failover expertise in your next meeting. I recommend getting Steve to proxy in for William, even though I dont think anyone can impersonate him. At least, I have been able to ascertain that Steven can mirror William quite well and will be able to backup William in the event of a failure 

Lumbar Spine Report (13 February 2008):

• The lumbar spine has a mild lateral curve convex to the right.
• There is minimal slipping forwards of L5 on S1 which is lumbarised on the left side.
• Moderate osteoarthritis is seen in the apophyseal joints beween L5 and S1 segments.
• The bodies of L1, L2 and L4 are slightly wedged anteriorly. These changes may be secondary to the previous trauma.
• The lumbar discs spaces have average heights.

Conclusion:

• Unilateral lumbarisation of S1 segment.
• Lower lumbar spondylosis.

• From playing a lot of competitive basketball back in my varsity days in Canada in the late-80s/early-90s as a point-man to getting the above report in my envelope is somewhat depressing, I am getting old ...

There are not too many movies that will get me rushing onto the web once I get home to find our more about it and the various viralmarketing and spins behind it. Blair Witch project was one. This one, which I just caught, is another. Spoilers here.

I am not worthy, JJ Abrams

The movie's creepy monster louse is especially my favourite.

So...Let me start off this New Year 2008 with a rant post.

I am constantly amazed at the technical knowledge of some of the folks manning the shops selling computer peripherals. I was in the market shopping for an external casing for my SATAII HDD and someone recommended for me to use an USB2.0 external interface because, as he simply puts it confidently and points to the marketing material on the box, "it is faster"

I have to correct him that the theoretical speed of USB of 480Mb/s is not faster than the theoretical speed of SATAII, which is pegged at 300MB/s. The astute reader will notice the difference in casings.

A quick glance at this article will show the usual naming and differering configurations and the huge difference between a Byte and a bit.

To do some simple calculations - The max burst transfer rate of SATAII is 3 billion bits per second, which is equivalent 3 Gb/s, via normal conventions not definitions.  This is equivalent to 300 million Bytes per second, or 300 MB/s. Some sites like this states 300Mb/s, which actually means we are moving backwards in technology. Worst, some people state it as 300 GB/s, which means I can transfer the equivalent data of 31 DVDs in 1 single second and overstating it by about 1000 times faster than it really is.

The same applies for USB2.0. Many technical sales people I talked to told me its 480MB/s and I have seen the same marketing collateral on the packaged boxes it comes in. In actual fact, it is 60MB/s.

Now, if you compare apples to apples - it is a no-brainer to compare 300MB/s against 60MB/s, isnt it ? Of course, the arguments will always begin when people start arguing whether is it really a 5 time performance difference, taking into account the costs of USB's overheads and the cache memory that some of the higher-end SATAII HDD offers.

Well, lets just leave those arguments in those other blogs and forum posts for now.

I have been a SingTel and SingNet customer for the longest time and do recommend friends and family over sometimes. While I have no complains about the service, I do have questions about some of their front-line staff operations and capabilities.

Another incident struck today.

I decided to sign up for the ADSL upgrade package from the current 3500kbps to the ADSL2 6000kbps after my contract is up for renewal. On the day of service activation, things just weren't going well. To cut a long story short, the downtime and service disruption was almost 3/4 of the day (which meant no www and email access == no work gets done) and my router power-supply cable failed today for some reason (due to age, I believe) and luckily, I had an old power-supply cable lying around which was put to good use. When the ADSL2 modem arrived late, I hooked it up, expecting a simple plug-n-play.

I was wrong.

The SingNet technical service staff was at a loss to help me. The only thing they could do was tell me that I could hook up my single machine (I have 8 at home) to the modem directly and things work fine. That is not a solution. Solve my problem, SingTel. Dont you know how many people in Singapore uses a Router to share broadband bandwidth amongst the household. If ADSL bandwidth was made for 1 machine and 1 user, we dont need anything more than 256mbps. Their technical staff did 1 step further and said they supported only 2 brands of routers with their modems. Fine - given that there are hundreds of models of routers anyways. I qualify myself as a technical person and asked if I could have the settings  of those "supported" routers so I know how to tweak and configure mine to work with the new modem.

Me: "Could I have those config settings of those routers so I can see how I can configure mine"
SingNet: "Err...We support 2 brands X and Y of routers but I am sorry, the settings are NOT in my knowledge base so I cannot help you there..."
Me: "OK. What else can I do ? If it doesnt work with my router, I cannot surf so tell me what I am paying for again ?"
SingNet: "I am sorry, Sir but those are the only 2 brands of integrated Router-modem we support"
Me: "Huh ? Integrated Router-modem ? Are you asking me to throw away my VPN Firewall router so I can use your modem ? Duh !"

So, we have this pipe of 6mpbs of bandwidth flowing through, we share. It makes sense and is cost-effective. So, while looking at the PO of the delivered modem, I saw the vendor who actually was being subcontracted by SingTel to sell those modems so I decided to give them a call and it was great that their support-line was open till 2100 hours. This would have never happened in the Australia, US or Canada.

It turns out that SingNet has only subcontracted to bundle their modems with their ADSL service offerings and the modem they are bundling is actually a router-modem !!! which explains why it cannot work with my current router as both services and DHCP will clash. To cut another long story short, I had to do some research, together with this vendor, to see how we can disable the router function and use this modem mainly as a bridge. There is no user iterface. Guess what I have to do ?

I have to telnet into the device with the proper credentials and command-lined these:

_{Administrator}=>ppp relay
{Administrator}[ppp relay]=>flush
{Administrator}[ppp relay]=>..
{Administrator}[ppp]=>flush
{Administrator}[ppp]=>:eth
{Administrator}[eth]=>flush
{Administrator}[eth]=>:atm
{Administrator}[atm]=>flush
{Administrator}[atm]=>phonebook
{Administrator}[atm phonebook]=>flush
{Administrator}[atm phonebook]=>add
name = pvcInternet
addr = 0.100
:atm phonebook add name=pvcInternet addr=0*100
{Administrator}[atm phonebook]=>..
{Administrator}[atm]=>ifadd
intf = atmInternet
:atm ifadd intf=atmInternet
{Administrator}[atm]=>ifconfig
intf = atmInternet
[dest] = pvcInternet
[qos] = default
[encaps] = llc
[retry] = 10
[fcs] = disabled
[ulp] = mac
:atm ifconfig intf=atmInternet dest=pvcInternet ulp=mac
{Administrator}[atm]=>ifattach
intf = atmInternet
:atm ifattach intf=atmInternet
{Administrator}[atm]=>..
{Administrator}=>eth bridge
{Administrator}[eth bridge]=>ifadd
intf = snbbridge
:eth bridge ifadd intf=snbbridge
{Administrator}[eth bridge]=>ifconfig
intf = snbbridge
[dest] = atmInternet
[portstate] = forwarding
[retry] = 10
[vlan] = default
[prioconfig] = disabled
[ipprec] = disabled
[priority] = 0
[regenprio] = 01234567
[ingressfiltering] = disabled
[acceptvlanonly] = disabled
[mcastfilter] = disabled
[dynvlan] = disabled
[igmpsnooping] = enabled
:eth bridge ifconfig intf=snbbridge dest=atmInternet
{Administrator}[eth bridge]=>ifattach
intf = snbbridge
:eth bridge ifattach intf=snbbridge
{Administrator}[eth bridge]=>saveall
{Administrator}[eth bridge]=>:
{Administrator}=>dhcp server config state=disabled
{Administrator}=>saveall
{Administrator}=>exit
 
After this exit, this particular router-modem functions as a bridge mode and I was able to post this blog.

WTF ?!?!?!?! Are they expecting home-users and lay-men to be typing these commands into a UNIX firmware ? I consider myself to be fairly technical and yet I barfed at the idea of doing this. Goodbye Civilization, Hello Stone Age ...

... which brings me to my main point ...

I bought into an upgrade path. My old modem was A modem, nothing more, nothing less. I used a router to connect to it. An upgrade path should be seamless. But SingNet decided to have a field day with me ...

• Their technical service staff have no idea it is a router modem. They kept using the term "Modem" only so I had to run around in circles figuring out why it doesnt work in the first place
• It gave me a router modem, with no user interface and documentation on how to use it, much less how to enable it to switch to a bridging mode. Obviously, an upgrade path is given to customers who have been on a certain older plan for x amount of time and obviously had their way of doing things. To share a ADSL connection, most people (if not all) use a router. By introducing a router modem into the picture, SingNet is forcing customers to throw their old router away. People like me have VPN rules, Firewall rules, Port Forwarding rules in this router and if it functions as a wireless access point as well, absolutely NO ONE would throw it away.

That is not a solution. Solve my problem, SingTel. Give customers options, SingNet. Follow the lead of UOB. A customer like me, and I am sure there MUST be hundreds of me in Singapore, at least, who were on the older plan for an x amount of time uses a current router. Then give me a pure modem, please. Give what you gave me today to those people who are looking for a router modem. Have choices. Choices are good. No choices are bad.

To make things worse, after I got it all set up, I ran multiple FTP test plus the famous SpeedTest and found my speed to be about an average of 2900kpbs. This is only a fraction of my promised 6000kbps and even worse than my older 3500kpbs plan. If this doesnt get fixed in time, I will make sure everyone in Singapore hears about this though formal and informal complaints through chat rooms / forums and the press

Gosh - when are our service providers ever going to get it right ?

My friend, Chester, shared this link with me. I am fully aware of Facebook's privacy policies and I think that it leaves much more to be desired. This is precisely the reason why I dont share much in Facebook or dont put up incriminating pictures of myself up there.

I wonder how many of the millions of people in Facebook knows about this. Come to think of it, who wouldnt do so. I would assume that the Googles, Amazons, LinkedIns would love to have that kind of leverage and power, wouldnt they ?

So, I have 2 bank accounts that I usually do transactions in. One is the Development Bank of Singapore (DBS) and the other is United Overseas Bank (UOB). I was on an overseas business trip and then I had to check my account balance with DBS online. Then I realized that I cannot because I did not bring the DBS 2-Factor Authentication (2FA) Physical token, also known as hard-token with me. I ended up not doing what I need to do and had to return home to check my account balance.

I was initially irked when DBS took matter into their own hands and decided what is good for their customers BUT this incident blew my top. A quick look at their FAQ reveals the below snippets

As you can see from here, "DBS decided to go with ...". I am surprised that for a world-class bank that prides itself on customer-standards, they are taking matters into their own hands and deciding for the customer. Shouldnt the customer be able to decide this for themselves ?

By the same token (pun intended), let us take a look at UOB's FAQ below:

A-HA ! A choice was not made but given. Customers are given the choice to deicde what they want. If they prefer not to carry too many devices with them (God knows how many we have to carry these days - USB Thumb Drives, iPods, mobile phones, keys, etc) and prefer to leverage on what they are already comfortable in carrying, they can choose their mobile phones to receive the One-Time-Passwords (OTP) va a SMS. If they are going to be in a country whereby their auto-roaming GSM doesnt work (such as the different networks in Japan or Korea), they can opt for the hard-token.

To cut it short - No decision was made for the customer. Instead, a choice was given to the customer. In other words, UOB empowers their customers, unlike DBS, who thinks they are better themselves by making a decision for the customer. Shame on you. In these days of social computing, networking mashups, Web 2.0 communities, etc, user-empowerment is key. It is sad that DBS has not understood this point fully.

While I have some suspicions that cost (of sending the SMSes) may be a determining factor, I dont see UOB relenting on that point and they dont own a telco either. They have perfected the art of: If you keep your customers first, their money will come in.

This issue, by no means, has got anything to do with security. Both banks are practicing it - by making sure there is another authentication factor before logging for banking transactions. This is about choice, empowerment and delegation. In short, it is about being customer-focused, in every sense of the word. UOB's FAQ details very well about the operations of both sets of authentication so that the customer can make a right decision for themselves. Bravo ! They know the customers who bank with them can think. Kudos to them !

UOB went even one step further. If you are left stranded with no means of a second factor of authentication (like I was while overseas), check out what is on their FAQ above and I quote:

 What if I have enabled Two-Factor Authentication but do not have my mobile phone or Token Device with me; and I urgently need to use Personal Internet Banking?

In this case, you will be able to login to UOB Personal Internet Banking using your Username and Password to perform balance enquiries only. You will not have access to perform transactional activities.

... you can still login with very minimalistic rights such as checking on your account balance. You cannot perform any banking transactions neither can you see your bank account number or other sensitive information.

This is what I mean by being customer-oriented. It is very obvious UOB has put much thoughts into this and must have done their field test first with their customers' subsets. They understand that there may be instances whereby customers may have no means to access any sort of tokens but still would like to login with minimalistic rights to do minimalistic activities. They must also have consulted with their security consultants to make sure all security points are covered to finally propose this capability. Excellent thinking and a definite A+ point in design and usability with a fine engineering compromise that many companies can learn from.

In the past few months, I have recommended my customers / friends / colleagues who are here doing business to set up their bank accounts with UOB. I have also moved the bulk of my transactional funds to my UOB account so I can better work when I am overseas, with only my mobile-phone.

Good work, UOB ! DBS and the other local banks have a lot to learn from you, in terms of being customer-oriented and customer-focused.

I have spent the last couple of months getting up-to-speed on Microsoft Sharepoint Portal Server (MOSS) 2007 and I must say - I AM IMPRESSED.

A recent article in Wall Street Journal by By ROBERT A. GUTH on the April 24, 2007; Page B1 sums it up really nicely and I quote a couple of sentences from there:

Microsoft Embeds Sleeper in Business Software (I, personally, think the 'Business Software' bit is a bit of a misnomer)

 SharePoint is now Microsoft's contender in an emerging battle over collaboration software with companies from a cross section of the technology industry ...

To date, largely unheralded, Microsoft has sold 85 million licenses to the enhanced version of SharePoint across 17,000 companies. No marketing campaigns are in the works

Read the full article here.

I say it takes a lot, besides features and functionality, to be able to sell without any marketing blitz. Really, what today comes free (pre-installed) that offers Web 2.0 features and functionality (RSS, Blogs, Wikis, Suverys, Sites, Discussion Forums, Document Library), right-out-of-the-box ?

And - We are not done. MOSS 2007 SP1 will come with additional features and functionality that will anchor it as probably one of the best-kept secrets and sleeper Microsoft products of all time that will really make it hard for anyone (customers, partners, communities, alike) to ignore.

Watch out in the blogsphere or here for those announcements.

This one got me laughing in stiches. Not so much about how ridiculous it seems, but with the latest acquisition Google has made, who knows - maybe they will value and acquire MSFT Corp at USD120 billion.

I would probably put money on them that they would also probably be the first to be able to value the Internet. Well worth a read.

Over the years, I have seen a lot of FUD regarding technologies, targetting at specific vendors and platforms. I used to be a big fan of the MicrosoftWatch site as it really does a good tell-it-as-is from a very neutral and unbiased point of view, especially from Mary Jo Foley. She does good research and frequently engages my friends and peers from all over the industry to hear stories from all sides before putting the rubber to the road. When she left to join ZiffDavis, the industry was left wondering who would be covering for her and will MicrosoftWatch be the same again.

Yes, granted - I am a long-time Microsoft advocate but it is also well-known among my friends that I will also tell-it-as-is as well which is why I am a big fan of Foley at her new place here. Well, MicrosoftWatch is not the same anymore. Joe Wilcox is not really doing too good a job taking over Foley. Granted, it is all his opinion and we should all respect that BUT I have recently found his recent posts doesnt have too much research done behind it. I mean, this is NOT your own personal blogging site, it is MicrosoftWatch. There must be certain responsibilities that one *should* carry.

Take this recent post by Joe Wilcox, for exampe. What a whole load of FUD !!! I will just take a comment off from there and post it here:

 Do you actually take the time to research and understand what you write about? It sure doesn't seem that way, especially when you make comments that imply that .NET developers doing web work don't utilize AJAX or JavaScript and that they are the sole purview of the Adobe/MacroMedia/OpenSource world... Meanwhile, you are aware that Windows Vista is not a prerequisite for applications using WPF? You can run it today, on your Windows XP machine, all it takes is the .NET 3.0 Framework runtime.

My thoughts exactly. I have better things to do than spend my breakfast time reading that *crap*. If I wanted crap, I would have gone to buy tabloids.

Buck up, Joe and do your homework. It seems that Foley also took all her industry contacts with her to ZDNet as well. If number of comments is anything to go by, MicrosoftWatch is slowly but surely losing its popularity.

I am deleting the MicrosoftWatch feed off my RSS reader and just sticking with ZDNet.

Windows Home Server will be one of the better well-kept secret products that will be ultra-cool once its released into the wild. You can go here for a brief animation overview. The official Home Server Team blog can be found here and the forums here.

Some of the interesting briefs include:

 This is not a product based on the Windows Server 2003 codebase. It's a consumer-oriented product that is quite similar to Media Center Edition, in that it's less of an "edition" of Windows Server than it is a special application (like Media Center) that runs atop a version of Windows.

There are, of course, many features on this server but what I love best about it is placed on emphasis here:

• Expandable Drive space - Add as many Hard-Drives in gigs, teras and petas as your hardware allows. (No problem with the hard-disks I have lying around. I could easily squeeze 6 SATA suckers into this once I can find the supporting muthaboard ...)
• Remote Access - Access your photos, music, videos from any computer with a WWW connection. Even give restricted access to your cronies through your free, customizable Live Web Site.
• Automatic Backup - It stores only a single copy of every file, remembering which computer had what and saving your drive space - Hard Disk Storage Space Virtualization, anyone ? (this is just music to my ears ...)

I dont know about you but my living room is ready ...

With so much advances in game controller technologies, such as the ultra-cool Nintendo Wii , it really is no surprise that the Xbox controller has found its way into a "real" battlefield.

Kinda gives new meaning to the phrase: "First Person Shooter", doesnt it ?

Might go down as one of the chapters in the Technology History Books of the future:

http://www.wired.com/news/wiredmag/1,72497-0.html

 Terry Semel was pissed. The Yahoo CEO had offered to buy Google for roughly $3 billion, but the young Internet search firm wasn't interested. Once upon a time, Google's founders had come to Yahoo for an infusion of cash; now they were turning up their noses at what Semel believed was a perfectly reasonable offer. Worse, Semel's lieutenants were telling him that, in fact, Google was probably worth at least $5 billion.

This was way back in the summer of 2002, two years before Google went public. An age before Google's stock soared above $500 a share, giving the company a market value of $147 billion -- right behind Chevron and just ahead of Intel.

As Semel and his top staff sat around the table in a corporate conference room named after a Ben & Jerry's ice cream flavor (Phish Food), $5 billion sounded unacceptably high ...

Many people today still looks at the mistakes and what could-have-beens. I am still willing to bet that there are many more correct decisions that went unnoticed. It is just human-nature <consolatory_tone /> to glorify mistakes and forget achievements. Still, with a scale of a potential boo-boo as such, it is really not easy to forget.

I believe that both are still in the game. There are just too many WHAT-IF statements. Just like most things in today's world - and please pardon my non-deterministic stance and cliche here - There is really never a winner or a loser. It is all relative. It is a matter of leads, trails and of course, catch-ups. It still remains to be seen whether that decision (or non-decision) would come back to haunt them one day. Who knows - It may be the best decision they have made.

This is obviously the buzz that has occupied most the bits on the wire and water-cooler conversations recently.

While there have been many opinions about it - for me, it is always functionality over form. The way I dress sums that statement up well.

The fact (right now) that is doest support 3G is not important to me (yet) BUT the biggest obstacle is that I cannot believe their batter if NOT removable. Every PDA/phone I buy, the first accessories I buy are the extra cells - and I always asked for the higher capacity ones. I do use my PDA well.

Having ONE cell only, since it is not removable, is a NO-NO for me.

However, I dont know if all is cast in stone yet. This is the era of Web 2.0 and you, as the Time Magazine Person of the Year 2006, are very powerful in casting your vote in earth-shattering decisions.

That said, I have always said I take my hats off to the marketing geniuses of the iPods. Now, I am hearing the flight captain over the airwaves: "Please turn off your iPods, mobile phones and personal computers..."

6 months down the road, what would it be ? "Please turn off your iPod, iPhone, iMac. Period" ? Nuff said.

Having said that, features and functionality aside, Microsoft seems to be latching on correctly as well. I remember coming across a video interview with Steve Ballmer back when Zune was released.  He mentioned that he would have tried to brand Xbox as the "Windows Game System". Now, let us all heave a sigh of relief it didnt happen and he is CEO and not CMO for a reason.

Like many big multinationals selling products, it is always been part marketing and another part management making these branding decisions.  Robbie has been instrumental in convincing others within Microsoft to step outside that comfort zone with names like Xbox and Zune.

According to this story, there is a Zune phone in the works. Now if there is, let us put some creative marketing algorithms around this:

Zune = Z + Tunes (-T or +Last 3) ? So, would

Zhone = Z + Phone (-P) ORZone = Z + Phone (+Last 3)

Now, who wants to bet if this would happen: "Please turn off your Zune, Zone, Zile. Period" Now, wouldn't that be something ? 

One of my server's (Vulcan - I named all my machines after Gods) innards. This is used to run my Microsoft Exchange Server as well as other virtual machines.

See the 2 SATA II HDDs (250GB / 7200RPM / 300MB/s SATA II) ? A third one is on the way as well. More space for more Virtual Machines.

Close-up on one of the 2 SATA II HDD

The heart of Vulcan - Intel Dual Core XEON Pro 5140 2.33GHZ 4MB L2 cache 1333MHz FSB - Woodcrest Chip. It is a dual-socket server. I took the other one out temporary for some other purpose. Just for information: As of to-date, none of any offerings of the same class from AMD has anything to match up to the Woodcrest of Intel. In fact, the Woodcrest has whopped Opteron's ass and has taken the Opteron to school in terms of speed and power efficiency. Trust me - this Woodcrest processor IS FAST !

Can you spot the 667MHZ ECC 2R Fully Buffered DIMM (FBD) Memory ?

I had just broken my own budget this year already (and therefore I am not getting me or anyone anything this coming Christmas) ... Too bad ...

After rounds of spec'ing and phone calls with my special DELL contact, I officially accepted the quotations ...

Like I said here, I am going all out this time around as most of my machines had run its 3+ year course and I am getting it all ready for Vista as well as the upcoming Longhorn, or Windows Server 2008, or whatever PLUS the High-Performance Computing (HPC) of Virtualization Technologies (VT), etc.

So, what kind of goodies did I end up with for being much poorer (even though I got a great deal on DELL for the pricing) ? Here it is - all X64 bit Chips (Core 2 Duo and a Dual-Processor Dual Core XEON Pro)

• DELL LATITUDE D620
  CPU: Intel Core 2 Duo Processor T7200 2.0 GHZ - Merom Chip
  Integrated 4MB ON-DIE L2 Cache, 667HMZ FSB
  + the works ...

• DELL POWEREDGE SC1430 Server
  CPU: Intel Dual Core XEON Pro 5140 2.33GHZ - Woodcrest Chip X 2 Processors
  4MB L2 cache, 1333MHz FSB
  RAM: 4GB (4 x 1GB) 667MHZ ECC 2R Fully Buffered DIMM (FBD) Memory. Max Support: 16GB FBD
  + the works ...

OK - Now that I have the metal, now its time to look at some nearby (I dont think I can afford the gas to travel that far ...) banks for a quick heist for the greens.

Just been given an invitation to test out the new SoapBox (Beta) on MSN. Therefore, I thought I upload one of my favourite commercial clips here. So far, so usable. Fast and smooth as well. Now it becomes a marketing battle to see who gets the better content and more eye-balls. More importantly, its who that can cannabilizes those eyes-balls that wins and laughs to the bank. As usual - The consumer wins. .

Video: Tall Person

In reference to my post here, plus my very early post here, I have always try NOT to be drawn in all the hype, fluff and marketing innuendos designed to drive FUD and irrationality.

I try to focus on what users really want and that really is all that matters.

Coincidenally, bu showed me this Foxtrot comic strip today and it looks like Bill Amend has also echoed my exact thoughts.

OMG - Spare me. You have got to be kidding ... Lets just move on.

I remember it was very late last year / early this year when I had a conversation with Martin Kulov, who is the Director .NET Development of the National Academy for Software Development in Bulgaria.

Basically, Martin pinged me and we talked about his idea and dream of bringing a PDC/TechED-style event to the Balkans, where he sees an increasing demand.

He then proceeded to invite me to present in this conference in Sofia, Bulgaria this year. I cannot tell you how honoured I was to receive this invitation. However, I had to put this on hold due to heavy work and family committments. Lest you dont know, while Sofia is generally only 2 spots below Singapore in the usual Country dropdownbox due to its alphabetical legacies, both countries are very spaced apart geographically. To compound this, airlines dont usually fly direct between these 2 countries and therefore, the end-2-end flight map (that routes you to so many different places) will be a lot more mileage than what it appears on a point-2-point straight line on a map. Ultimately, this trip for me alone will cost the National Academy for Software Development in Bulgaria a lot of money and cost me a lot of time (which still equates to money)

I am a person trained and educated in Economics and this, obviously, doesnt make much economic sense. It is not like they have that much money in their coffers anyways since there were no sponsors. So I told him that if I could hook him up with other influential speakers nearer his region, it makes much more sense. With great content comes great value for the participants and that ultimately means that it will be a well-attended event. Who knows - someone may come along and drop their golden coin to sponsor it.

I then proceeded to ping my peer Microsoft Regional Directors / Speakers I know who would be interested in speaking in the Balkans. Of course, there were many. Sofia, is afterall, a beautiful city, so I was told. People like Richard Campbell, Stephen Forte, Ted Neward, Goskin Bakir, etc gave their full support.

My wonderful friend in New York, Stephen Forte, deserves full mention as an ultimate leader who was passionate enough to make sure this event becomes a success in the Balkans. He tried all ways, including trying to negotiate with the airlines for a cheaper fare in exchange for more travel awareness to the Balkans. In the end, his passion and hard bargaining and negotiation skills shone through and he won over MSFT Corp to be the main sponsor for this event by convincing them that this is THE event for Microsoft in that part of the world and this is THE time.

With Microsoft declaring themselves to be the main sponsor, other vendors, like Telerik, follow suit as well and voila - We have the birth of DevReach in the Balkans.

If you are interested, you may want to sign up here. The PR of this event can be found here.

I believe years later, when I move on to a new career path and DevReach becomes the de-facto PDC/TechED of the Balkans, I will look back at this episode and smile. I had a big hand to play to make this event and dream come for Martin and all the wonderful people of Bulgaria. The bulgarian software industry will grow, develop and mature and keep abreast of time and everyone is better because of it.

How did this happen: Through 2 friends who have never met (one in Sofia, the other in Singapore), using the power and the reach of the global community at work (and MSN Messenger), through extensive and collaborative networking, this event became a concrete reality.

Dont underestimate that power of reach and the community - It may make or break you.

Now, if you ask: "How did you and Martin know of each other again?"

Easy - through another reach for the community by the community, via my article on MSDN, he posted a comment on this blog (another collaborative community-driven tool) and we hooked up. The rest is history.

Martin, I am happy for you. You have done a great deal for your community and it is only fair that you see this dream of yours come true.

Make some time for me, I am sure we will catch up over coffee in beautiful Sofia one day.

So, after a massive HDD upgrading exercise, it is time to take stock of my own internal machines of notebooks and desktops and see how it fits into the arrival of Vista and Longhorn later.

Lunch with some folks from Intel and Dell last week in Malaysia revealed some interesting lookouts for me. I am told to wait for the Dell Intel Core 2 Duo machines. This is unlike the Duo Core Intel chips that Dell is selling right now. The Core 2 Duo(s) are a lot better as one of the world's best processors and is a lot more powerful and power-efficient than the Duo Core ones.

The main difference lies in the chip architecture, obviously. As put in the simplest way: "Duo Core chips are essentially 2 chips put together physically. The penalties (and constraints) lie in the bond that welds them together. Whereas, the Core 2 Duo chips is actually a single physical manifestation that is cut into 2"

This will explain how much better, faster and efficient the Core 2 Duo chips are going to be.

However, I was told during lunch that the Core 2 Duo chips are not available the DELL (APAC) online site yet - so I would have to wait.

Through seo, now many web hosting companies are expanded this one business opportunity beyond the conventional dedicated servers.

However, I am well-known to be impatient and so decided to try my luck with my own special Dell connections back home in Singapore. As luck would have it, there are specific desktop and notebook models that are already equipped with a Core 2 Duo Intel chip. It is just not available online yet and the only way to get it today is to know someone in HELL (ooppps, I mean DELL) who can get it done for you.

The specifications given to me looked awesome and the "special" price quoted to me by my own Dell connections take the cake - so it looks like I will be one of the first in my part of the world to own a Dell Latitude D620 / D820 that comes armed with a Core 2 Duo chip and the price I am getting for that is just sooooo GOOD !

With that in tow, x64 Vista - Here I come, baby !!!

One of the topics presented during the Architecture Track in the just-concluded Microsoft TechED South East Asia 2006 was done by IASA.

It was done via a very interactive session with the floor questioning the panel from the IASA Malaysian chapter about the value of being an architect and topics of the like.

One of the questions from the floor was: "Do you believe that architects should be writing code ?"

It seems that 3/4 of the panel members agree. Some even going on bragging that he is still doing it in assembly, C++ language. hmmm ... In the interest of keeping the session on time so that that the attendees can get home on time amidst the KL jams - I kept my mouth shut.

Let me open them now.

Architects shouldnt code. Period. My thoughts. Period. To prevent myself from rambling, which is what I always do when I have a strong opinion on something, let me list them in point forms.

The term "architect" is a very nebulous term. The hype around it with all the wannabees printing it in bold font on their cards out there (I know a couple of them in Singapore who does them with no shame), who have no idea what is the difference between horizontal and vertical scaling, doesnt make it any better. For better or worse, I only believe in one type - and that is the all-emcompassing solution architect.

Afterall, aint what all customers want is a solution ? Do you think they really care what is underneath the solution more than that this solution works well, is kept within their budget, perform effectively and efficiently within the constraints of their environment ? Therefore, in this context, I will speak in the context of Solution Architects.

• To those ppl who said that "How can someone who never writes a line of code be responsible for how that code will be written?", again, I am talking about a solution architect. In any case, an architect can code, sing, dance before, for all I care. They shouldnt be doing it in their role as solution architects now. Read on.

• In the past, code influenced architecture. The limitations of written-code in a chosen-platform in a defined-era is the damning evidence of the limitation of the architecture. VB3 anyone ?

• Biasedness based on preference. A solution architect that has a decade long experience in writing code is usually one that doesnt see the other side of the fence, doesnt know that there are better solutions and worst - refuse to want to see it. Most of the people in this category are usually skilled in one platform over the other and it is very hard for people like that to sit down and analyze a problem without a pre-conceived notion in mind in a very neutral manner. Because of this, the likely solution they are going to propose will have the same limitations of the platform they have been so comfortable with. I dont question the depth. Where is the breadth ? These guys should remain what they are good in and be experts in their domains and probably be paid better than a solution architect. For those who argue that they are equally well-versed in both sides of the fence - Good for you. Stay there. It is very likely you are drawing a lot more than an architect. If you are not, you just need to sell yourself better.

• It is all about the business. Solution Architects bridge the gap between (the returns of) the business with the (returns of) technology. So, yes, they should be just as apt with the Finanical Calculator as much as an Integrated Development Environment or a Installation Panel or Console. They understand the entire depreciation cycle of an enterprise solution much better than the differences between a thread and a process. So yes, the higher the level the language they used to code in (I am talking about 4GL), the better. Bragging how much you still do your work today in First or Second Level Programming Lanaguages doesnt do you any good. In fact, it makes you look bad. It shows the lack of touch you have with your business, how it is run, what are the constraints and the entire business and revenue model. Writing performance drivers, assemblers, kernels, runtimes has nothing to do with a company's business model in a world where Moore's Law still rules.

It is all about the business, still.

Almost 2 years after I upgraded the HDD of all my machines in my own internal network (2 Servers, 3 Desktops, 3 Laptops), I decided to do some HDD shopping and do another upgrade exercise at Sim Lim Square (Singapore) to replenish the dwindling space I have been noticing in my network.

This time, I came back with:

• 2 x 500GB/7200 3.5''
• 1 x 320GB/7200 3.5''
• 1 x 120GB/5400 2.5''

I now have almost 3TB !!! of HDD running supporting all my machines - all run within a one-man-operation. Armed with all my data backup and an amazing Acronis TrueImage Enterprise Server software for cloning all my old partitions for restoring to my brand new shiny disks, I should be able to get all the new data transitions and migrations going in no time.

What does all these HDD space support ? Besides the usual VPCs for my cutting-edge demos, disk-images for clones, I have also tons of pictures, videos and music media for my jukeboxes. If I tell you the other operations my HDD is supporting, then I would have to kill you .

Here I am, hearing the hum of all the spinning HDD spindle motors at work. Ah - The sound of geek heaven.

So ...

Mr. Setag goes over to Mr. Nezihc's little cafe-library called "Cafe Eboda" in Tonmeerf and bought a cup of coffee. Mr. Setag then sits down with his coffee and proceeded to pick up some publications to read from the Cafe's Library. He was, however, abruptly stopped by Mr. Nezihc who refused to allow him to read those in-cafe publications unless Mr. Setag pays for it.

Mr. Setag was taken aback. Arent those magazines free to read. Everyone else here is reading it and I dont see them paying for it. Isnt this an open library ?

"Well, yes", Mr Nezihc replied. "But because your wallet is bloated, I think it is only right that I charge you if you need to read those publications."

"That is absurd", Mr Setag retorts. "It is not my fault that my wallet is bloated. In fact, given anyone else, they would love to have my bloated wallet as well, or try their very best to empty it through some legal means. This has nothing to do with the fact that I used to be your boss before, right ?"

Mr Nezihc: "No, like I said - I am charging you only because your wallet is bloated. The rest of the folks here are not as rich as me, therefore, I dont charge them a single cent ..."

Mr Setag: "OK. I will just bring in my papers to read then. How about that ?"

Mr. Nezihc: "Nope. You have to use ours and you have to pay for it ..."

Ridiculous ? Only happens in undeveloped countries ? You say ?

Well, if you believe the content here is true, then I dont think this is any different.

Jonathan Zuck of Association for Competitive Technology (ACT) sums it up real well with the following quote:

"Adobe seems to be realizing that open standards have costs as well as benefits.  While opening its technology to the world helped Adobe to spread Acrobat far and wide, it also limits its potential business models and incentives to continue innovating.  The problem for Adobe is that they can't put this genie back in the bottle"

---

The Association for Competitive Technology (ACT) is an international education and advocacy group for the technology industry. Focusing on the interests of small and mid-size entrepreneurial technology companies, ACT advocates for a "Healthy Tech Environment" that promotes innovation, competition and investment. ACT has been active on issues such as intellectual property, international trade, e-commerce, privacy, internet policy and antitrust. ACT represents more than 3000 software developers, systems integrators, IT consulting and training firms, and e-businesses from around the world.

I came across this story:

While I could be mean and say that the instances and circumstances are different or the moral of the story is to ask your 3-year old son to shuddup as well - that is not the point. I have got to remember this story.

Although, I will stop short when my father (or even my son) asked me more than 2 times what are namespaces in XML ...

I will be one of the first to admit I am a private person. Very few people know me well. And even lesser know that I am so NOT an arachnophobic

I have loved spiders since I was a young boy in school and has always breed and kept champion Asian Black-n-White fighting spiders (see figure below).

One of the things that Singapore is not so well-known for is its nature (or lack thereof). While I would not argue with that fact, there are a few places in Singapore that still spouts unspoiled nature, if you know where to find it. The problem is that, nature-lovers will not tell you where to find it since they would want to maintain the unspoiled bit of it.

I have spend almost every weekend for the last few months combing our sunny island-state for nature. While I would say we lose out to our neighbouring country for that, there are still some treasure spots.

I came across this nice spider that is getting really fat and big off its feeds from its perfect web in a mosquito-infected nature spot which I came across while hunting.

I wasnt able to get too up close to this lovely. But I believe it is this beauty:

Ah ... the glorious sight of nature. I really need to get away from the computer a lot more.

Have anyone of you signed in to Mobile Passport on your PPC ? The above screenshot is what I see on mine.

Some people would argue that so it is to make it easier to get right typing it in multitap the first time or that it is easier to prevent people from prying eyes on a PDA.

I beg to disagree. Isnt that one of the reasons why there is "Remember Credentials" ? It is like saying - If you cannot type and you have a sucky memory, please dont type. In fact, there is a new option called - "Always ask for my username and password" in the defacto Passport mode for the security conscious :)
 
I just find it too much of a drastic change to remove all these options (in the mobile mode) and NOT use masked passwords instead. It gives the sense that the teams creating these logins are so disparate and so different in thinking and there is not a single philosophical approach. Arent we talking about People, Technology, Integration and Seamless Experience recently ? 
 
The worst thing is that - the Masked Passwords (*) are so commonly accepted these days that it is becoming some sort of "self-imposed" standard. Thousands of sites, mobile or not, are using this "standard".
 
Why is Microsoft one of the first (if not, the first) to change that ? I hardly think making it correct the first time typing is a good enough reason to change that and this cannot be categorized as innovation.

MSN and Hotmail are all social sites which means that it is catered for people like my parents and grandparents and such and not for the geekiness. The bulk of the people dont really know what the S in HTTPS stands for and dont really care and would never want to care how it works.
 
To them - The masked passwords is really part of the secure experience although we know that it is more of a placebo more than anything else.
 
I wonder how will the masses react when they see that their passwords are not masked anymore, even though there is still an S in HTTPS.

I remember running a test before on a workshop on consistency, standards I conducted a while back. In this test, I reversed the order of the username passwords inputs of the (HTTPS) Login screen to the effect of this:

Password: ________________
Username: ________________
Login Button

The strange thing about the whole result is that: Most people will stop after entering the first character in the Username field. They will rub their eyes to make sure they are NOT seeing things. Besides the fact that they realized they are prompted for their password FIRST - which is NOT consistent. Most of their responses will be "Why is my password NOT secured ?" Of course, if you are reading this, it is likely that you know that the little stars (*) have nothing to do wih security or encryption. In fact, more often than not, it gives people a False Sense of Security. Many people will still post their passwords, thinking it is secure, when it is masked with little stars (*) and there is NO HTTPS.

My point is that - whether or not security is involved here - it mars a user's perception and his or her experience.
 
I just tested it with my wife and she refused to login - thinking it was "one" of the bugs on a Microsoft site. - And Yes - she is the normal one in our marriage :)

I had a good Aussie friend of mine test this on his accountant wife as well and this was the conversation:

He: Would you use this screen on your phone?
She: Why are you asking?
He: Just curious…Would you use this screen on your phone?
She: Where are the little stars for the password?
He: Dunno
She: No way… something is wrong
(He did not influence her answer)

Does this mean that the masses are normal or that I am just a prude ?

Is this *really* intended behavior ? The least I would do - is to offer this as one of the options as part of personalization.

To add to this, I am recently in the market looking to upgrade my current ADSL package running at 1500kbps and I came across an ad saying this ISP will give a free ADSL2+ Wireless modem if I sign up for a 10mbps package. Sounds good. I proceeded to call.

Pleasantries exchanged...
Me: "So, you are giving me a free wireless modem, correct ?"
She: "Yes"
Me: "Is it just plain wireless ? I mean is there a wired option ?"
She: "The 10mbps ADSL Transmission speed will only work with a wireless modem..."
Me: "huh ?"
She: "Yes, because the speed is too fast, we can only use this wireless modem."
Me: "What has the ADSL Upload/Download speed gotta do with how I connect the modem to my router?"
She: "I am sorry, Sir - you *HAVE* to use the wireless modem ONLY"
Me: "Wait - I dont think I am getting this. I know I need a ADSL2+ modem for the blazing speed of 10mbps, but if it only comes with a wireless option, how do I connect to an existing network of computers, routers that are NOT wireless-enabled"
She: "In that case, I recommend you to get a Wi-fi card. These are cards that ... ... ..."
Me: "Wait, I dont need an education in Wi-fi. I just need to know what do you tell your calling and interested customers who wants this blazing 10mbps speed and accepts they need a new ADSL2+ modem BUT has no Wi-fi network, equipment to play with or tap-on"
She: "I told them - Sorry Sir/Madam. Our advanced ADSL speed requires a wireless option. If you dont have one, it wont work at all and you have to go for a slower ADSL speed. Sorry."
...

I decided to check the ADSL modem brand that is given to subscribers and went into the manufacturer's site to look at the specs ...

"...All our ADSL2+ modems comes with a wireless option PLUS 4-Ethernet enabled RJ45 Ports ..."

Gosh. I wonder how many customers has she turned away with her knowledge that the ADSL Upload/Download speed is directly tied to the mode at which data is being transmitted from the modem to the connecting machines.

Polite as she can be, I admit, BUT if I have a sales force of people like that, I will NOT be able to make any money at all to pay them.

<sigh /> End of rant.

I remembered talking to someone on the Windows Communication Foundation (WCF, previously - Indigo) team before and the reason they chose [MesssageEncoding].MTOM instead of MessageTransmissionOptimizationMechanism is so that it could *at least* fit on a slide.

Well, that someone obviously didnt educate the developer who build the [MessageSecurityVersion]. WSSecurity11WSTrustFebruary2005WSSecureConversationFebruary2005WSSecurityPolicy11BasicSecurityProfile10 property. [Talk about a mouthful]

Not only is it hard to fit on a slide, it would be hard to mouth those words as well.

Besides "bug jail", "secure-programming courses",  "geography lessons", I would highly recommend Microsoft engineers and developers go for "Power-Point Presentation Etiquette 101" lessons as well .

Speaking of which, I just got handled an exception with a message like this:

The CLR has been unable to transition from COM context 0x1a0d28 to COM context 0x1a0e98 for 60 seconds. The thread that owns the destination context/apartment is most likely either doing a non pumping wait or processing a very long running operation without pumping Windows messages. This situation generally has a negative performance impact and may even lead to the application becoming non responsive or memory usage accumulating continually over time. To avoid this problem, all single threaded apartment (STA) threads should use pumping wait primitives (such as CoWaitForMultipleHandles) and routinely pump messages during long running operations.

Talk about being explicit. Exceptions should give a friendly message that enables one to have an idea where to start debugging and troubleshooting. The one just made me want to shut my machine down. .

Singapore has just announced an bold ambitious move to wire up the entire nation with a extremely high speed backbone that would move data in speeds beyond 1Gbps, or 500 times the common access speed of 2Mbps with the use of optical fibres or other technologies. Most of the crowded centres and streets would be "WI-FI"-ed by late this year.

My dream of having the entire nation being one BIG hotspot would be coming true in probably a couple of years time.

I have heard that the term "disconnected applications" will be thrown out of the window in Singapore very soon .

Ah - the wonders of living in a [garden] city-site.

I love the American Press News and Humour. I am here in Washington listening to NBC.com and you would never see "See Dick Shoot" or "American VP blows his friend away" as the news tagline in Singapore.

It would probably go something like "American Vice-President Richard Cheney shoots his friend accidentally" or something boring to the taste.

Dont get me wrong. I love my new PocketPC Phone on Windows Mobile 5. Some great reviews can be found here, here, here and here.

If you read all those reviews, it is with no doubt that everyone has their thumbs-up for this beauty and the common underlying praise is its Performance with a Samsung 400 MHZ Processor, which some suggests runs with the same cyclical power of a Intel 570 MHZ Processor, BUT outperforms even that of the Intel 624 MHZ that the Dell AXIM x50 has.

This is the only PocketPC Phone that I have test-driven successfully with Skype. And if you know how the architecture of Skype works, if it can run Skype, it can run everything. In fact, I have chatted with many people over Skype using this phone ... No-one knows that I am chatting with them via a PocketPC Phone ... and it really makes me wonder about why would anyone bother with these types ?

Anyways, while playing around with some of the softwares in there, I noticed a couple of boo-boos like those shown below

Giggles aside and it is a great conversation starter amongst geeks, I have always preferred functionality over aesthetics - Who really cares how the food and the cook looks when it tastes good (the food, that is ...)

I also fnid it fsacinatnig that the human brian is so cabaple of knowing and dceiphering the meaning, the intent, the samentics of these words, even though it is spelt wrognly.

Is this an exercise of the brain or is it just simply to carry on the great legacy of software typos ?

This is a long but great post (worth the time) comparing the presentation styles of Steve Jobs and Bill Gates. I must admit that I had fallen (almost) asleep hearing Bill present the last couple of times last year.

His presentation was designed such that the focus was on his power-point slides. This is wrong. People are paying money to see and hear Bill speak. Bill has to carry himself ... and just like what that post mentioned > "There was a lot of  images and a lot of text".

It was way too much.