Monday, July 27, 2009

M&M&Ms

Yesterday while I was getting a haircut, the friendly auntie started to chat, asking me about the usual stuff, "Finish army? Going to uni? Which uni? Study what? When starting school? Now doing what?"

Then she said, "Study uni very good hor, got qian tu (future)".

Naturally I just smiled and agreed.

Then she looked at me in the mirror, stopped her scissors and did the rubbing fingers sign, "Really got qian (money) tu hor!"

That got me laughing. Luckily she wasn't wielding a powered-on razor, otherwise I'd have gotten a bald strip.

Come to think of it, going to University to get that degree simply boils down to money, money and more money. Get degree for what? To get a good (paying) job. Score honours for what? To get a good (paying) job. Chiong CCA for what? To get a nice-looking resume and a good (paying) job. Whack internships for what? To get a nice-looking resume and a good (paying) job.

Or at least thats the common view of us practical Singaporeans. Or rather, our parents. Its hard to blame them. As my dad likes to candidly put it, I'm his long-term investment, and I'd better give him solid returns. And why not? After all they dumped so much capital on us (school fees are a killer!) without any guarantee that they'll get back at least the principle amount.

Really respect those who chose their courses based on their own passions and interests, not just the $ sign.

Me? Mixture of both la :D If can save the Earth and make $$$ at the same time, why not man? Hoot 2 birds with 1 wind turbine.

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2 weeks to school start! Wonder what's in store for me. What do I see...

Wa kua si mi...

Tuesday, July 21, 2009

Pikachu! (th)Undervolt!

And so the quest to save the Earth, reduce global warming and some money ends.

No I haven't been joining some Green Peace movement or something (wish I did, the stuff they do is brilliant. Check this out: Mount Rushmore Stunt)

I've been trying to undervolt the CPUs of both my laptop and PC.

Which, in a nutshell, is trying to force the CPU to suck less energy and produce the same amount of processing power. This works wonders for laptops - not only do they run cooler, the fans run slower producing less noise, plus you get increased battery life!

A Guide to Undervolting

I haven't tested out the effects on my battery life (My battery is currently in cold storage collecting dust), but the temperatures are waaaay cooler than the normal voltage. Just FYI, I went all the way to the lowest voltage the program would allow me to go. Same goes for my PC.

Looking forward to lower electricity bills already =))

To round up the recent deluge of techie posts, I finally took the plunge and reseated my CPU heatsink, new thermal paste and all. Can't say it was easy, I was so scared that I would crack my motherboard from the force needed to push the securing pins in. Dumb design. But it was well rewarded - 61C at full load! That's a whole 10C decrease! I guess PCs need a nice "spa" treatment once in awhile.

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Finally, the hall allocations are out. Me in Hall 6, anyone else the same?

Saturday, July 18, 2009

Laptop BBQ (Zhng my PC/laptop part 4)

I am utterly sorry to say that this will be my 4th "Zhng my ___" post in a row.

But I promise it will be the last!

Until I start Uni, that is.

Problem: Laptop processor runs at a flamin' hot 80C when running >50% for long periods.
Apparently my zhnged cooler fan configuration wasn't working. (fail T.T)

Solution:

Step 1: Clean!

I opened up the laptop until I managed to reach the fan (but not the heatsink though, it was blocked by this piece of plastic that refused to budge. Killed some dust bunnies, although I suspect many more hiding in my heatsink. -0.5c (fail)

Step 2: Zhng some more!

I love DIY =))

I constructed a fan duct out of some old cardboard, duct tape, aluminium foil, paper clips and good ol' cable tie.



It doesn't fit perfectly, especially once I open the screen (it blocks the exhaust! dumb design), but it does a relatively good job! -2 to 3C

Step 3: Undervolt!

No its not some Pikachu technique of striking from below, its reducing the power supplied to the processor so that it'll run cooler. Plus I'll be able to squeeze out more battery time =)

Still in the process, but I hope it'll give good results!

Wednesday, July 15, 2009

Around the world in a single day!

Mix a poor, jobless geek at home together with lots of time to spare and what do you get?

Its not hard to guess, just look at the previous 3 posts =.=

Alternative answer = MMORPGs!

I've been playing Rappelz until recently, largely due to the fact that KY was also playing so we could party dungeons together (definitely more fun than mindlessly killing monsters on your own - sure to encourage anti-socialness)

While Rappelz was a not-so-bad MMO, with its nice graphics, pet system and stuff, it got pretty repetitive after awhile.

Other than going all hardcore and playing TF2/L4D the whole day, I started to source for new games to play. And this is what I chanced upon:

Atlantica Online (Wiki)

While at first glance it seems like just any other Korean-produced game (like Cabal/Rappelz/Granado Espada), the actual gameplay and mechanics are worlds apart.

First thing I noticed was the combat - not the typical single avatar running around smashing skulls - but a party of characters that you can customise to suit your style of playing. Plus a turn-based style of battle brings it that much closer to a RTS game.

In a few words, its actually Heroes of Might and Magic meets Final Fantasy meets World of Warcraft.



Next was the setting - not some fantasy world but real life places around the world back in the medieval times - I started off in Sapporo, teleported to Beijing, walked on the Great Wall to Shanghai, teleported to Rome and walked to Angkor Wat, all in a day. The storyline is a bit dodgy, but who cares when you can marvel at the epic rendering of the ancient buildings and landscape. Graphics are great for a free game, comparable to Granado Espada.


Isn't that St. Basil's Cathedral in Moscow?

The whole game revolves around its players, and there are lots of opportunities for interactions and PvP, mostly without penalties and the prospect of losing exp and loot. I spent most of my game time competing in the free league where I was matched up against other players of similar level. I certainly used up much more brain juice trying to outsmart opponents and shifting character formations than just grinding away at AI monsters. The game also rewards players for socialising, its way of encouraging social interaction.

The only reason why I decided to try it out was the rating given to it by most MMO sites - it was ranked no. 1 for many. And so far I'm not disappointed =)

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MMORPGs have come a long way. I still remember when I started on MMOs with Runescape (oh, the horrid graphics and those chickens!) and Ragnarok (still one of the best!), followed by MapleStory (I wish I didn't) and Rappelz.

I wonder what I could have done if I didn't play any of those. Maybe I'd be rich by now =x

Monday, July 13, 2009

100 Essential Skills for Geeks (and Zhng my rig part 3)

100 Essential Skills for Geeks

My personal skill set?
  1. Properly secure a wireless router.
  2. Leech Wifi from your neighbor
  3. Work from home or a coffee shop as effectively as you do at the office.
  4. Wire your own home with Ethernet cable.
  5. Understand what “There’s no Place Like 127.0.0.1” means.
  6. Benchmark Your Computer
  7. Identify all computer components on sight.
  8. Know which parts to order from NewEgg.com, and how to assemble them into a working PC.
  9. Use any piece of technology intuitively, without instruction or prior knowledge.
  10. Install a Linux distribution. (Hint: Ubuntu 9.04 is easier than installing Windows)
  11. Remove a virus from a computer.
  12. Dual (or more) boot a computer.
  13. Boot a computer off a thumb drive.
  14. Protect your privacy when using a public computer.
  15. Surf the web anonymously from home.
  16. Transcode a DVD to play on a portable device.
  17. Build amazing structures with LEGO and invent a compelling back story for the creation.
  18. Understand that it is LEGO, not Lego, Legos, or Lego’s.
  19. Build a two story house out of LEGO, in monochrome, with a balcony.
  20. Be able to pick a lock.
  21. Assemble IKEA furniture without looking at the instructions. Bonus point if you don’t have to backtrack.
  22. Origami! Bonus point for duct tape origami. (Ductigami)
  23. Play any SNES game on your computer through an emulator.
  24. Whistle, hum, or play on an iPhone, the Cantina song.
  25. Solve a Rubik’s Cube.
  26. Know the difference between skills and traits.
  27. Explain that the colours in a rainbow are roygbiv.
  28. Know the difference between radiation and radioactive contamination.
  29. Understand the difference between a comic book and a graphic novel.
  30. Be able to explain why it’s important that Han shot first.
  31. Know why it is just wrong for Luke and Leia to kiss.
  32. Stop talking Star Wars long enough to get laid.
  33. Cite Mythbusters when debunking a myth or urban legend.
  34. Have a documented plan on what to do during a zombie or robot uprising.
  35. Talk about things that aren’t tech related.
Guess I'm 35% equipped to be a geek? I'd probably fail a geek job interview.

Star Wars jokes aside...

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Zhng my PC (part 3)

This has less to do with my PC than it has to do with my laptop.

I recently bought a relatively cheap Cooler Master (love that brand!) laptop cooler to, uh, cool things down. My antique Compaq laptop could fry an egg on its wrist-rest area (conveniently located just above the red-hot hard disk drive).

Today I took another look at it and discovered how badly it matched my laptop - it has 2 fans, one on each side, while my primitive laptop has its air intakes ONLY on the LEFT. Being the cheapskate, recent-DIY rampaging me, I decided to shift the right fan over to the left.

Simple sounding enough? It required some ripping apart, drilling, filing and most importantly, cable tie-ing =)

Before:



After:



Note the tiny little almost invisible cable ties popping up through the grill in the left photo =))
Had to remove the bottom cover as well as raise the entire pad to accomodate the lower fan, but I suppose its better that way, more air to circulate underneath.

I probably voided the warranty, but what the heck.

Friday, July 10, 2009

A Geeky Update! (Zhng My Rig Part 2)

Guess what?

I decided to go 1 step further.

When my dad suggested we go someplace in Little India for dinner, my mind immediately thought - Sim Lim Square!

And so I zipped in, bought a Cooler Master 120mm casing fan, complete with Benged-out LED lights and zipped out as fast.

After some prying, monster strength and nimble screwing... Tadahh!





My 2 year old brudder has just been given a new lease of life!

And he's much cooler too! I shaved off 4 degrees Celsius off each of my 4 cores (about 5 degrees less when at full load). Now they're idling pretty comfortably at a nice relaxing (on average) 36 degrees.

Man I love DIYing.

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Not-so-famous geek quote, "If they can zhng their cars, why can't we zhng our rigs also? We also Ah Beng what."

Next project will be... A new graphics card, complete with side grille and fan! Which probably won't happen for another 2 years.

Cable Management, Module 1 (Zhng My Rig, Part 1)

Warning: Not for the faint hearted non-techies

I spent the whole of yesterday morning with the innards of my gaming PC (or "rig" as we call it)

Why?

I've been trying to figure out ways to lower down the temperature of my processor as well the entire system. Its quite terrifying to stare at the numbers climb past 70 degrees Celsius whenever I start TF2 or some other high-end game. It gets rather hot in the room on a windless day too. Try stuffing your feet next to the exhaust of my com after a few hours of intensive gaming. After a night of researching on Hardwarezone and VR-Zone forums, there were a few options:

1) Liquid Cooling (geez that's expensive)
2) More fans (cheap, but I'd hate to drill holes in my casing =x)
3) Tidy up those cables (free!)

Obviously the effectiveness decreases down the options but I decided to choose 3). Partly because I wanted to see whether it really did help. And its really the easiest and cheapest thing to do.


My brudder, before ripping it apart. Note the bloody mess inside.


First thing I did was stuff the unused annoying power supply cables at the top, above the CPU heatsink and fan. This took a bit of thinking as well as inspiration, I was stumped initially on where to stuff them, untill I realised they could be bunched up into a bundle. Twisties are my friend =) I saw some excellent pictures at the forum where they stuff the cables behind the motherboard, but that needed some drilling as well.


Next, I flattened the irritating IDE cable against the casing wall, bundled it together with the main power supply cable and cable tied it down. Cable ties are my friends too =)


The finished result. Amateurish perhaps XD But I managed to clear the pathway of the mega fan there, resulting in uninterrupted airflow.

Most importantly, I reduced the temperature by 1-3 degrees! w00t!

Ok sorry you had to sit through that. But damn, its really satisfying.

Tuesday, July 07, 2009

Om Nom Nom Nom...







Random.

Anyway the songs of the first and last vid is by Parry Gripp, a singer/songwriter who takes random words and phrases and turns them into cant-get-it-outta-my-head jingles. Don't say I didn't warn you!

http://www.youtube.com/user/ParryGripp

The middle one is a tribute to TF2's Heavy =)

Monday, July 06, 2009

A tale of 2 Michaels

I just realised I never did a proper dedication to that special guy, the guy who could walk backwards looking like he was walking forward, who could do gravity and friction - defying moves, and make grabbing crotches fashionable.

Michael Jackson - RIP.

While I wasn't really a big fan of him (my childhood idols were the Bee Gees and Take That, horrors), his music always seemed to stand out from the rest of the stuff that was playing on the radio. Who could forget the unmistakable opening basslines of Billy Jean? That, together with Thriller, Beat It and Bad became my favourite MJ songs.

Of course I never really saw the genius that was MJ until my dad brought home a hulking bulk of a LaserDisc titled - HIStory. It was the video version of the "best" album that was released at the time. Because that was before I had access to MTV, it would be the first time that I saw his dance moves and videos.

The video Thriller was actually quite hilarious to me, the bunch of dancing zombies surrounding that poor girl. It was MJ moonwalking on lighted tiles in Billy Jean that really made me go "WTF!!!!" (Of course being at such a tender age I probably went "WA LAO!"). Smooth Criminal was another video that made me feel as if I was watching a mafia movie, complete with white suits, top hats, flying billiard balls and the iconic Tommy Gun.

Sadly MJ slipped from my radar after that. His newer songs were nice and singable (Heal the World, Black or White) but never had that impact. Then the weird stuff started appearing in the news, the eccentric "Wacko" things he did, the child molestation etc. I never paid much attention to those other than a shake of the head "Tsk.. He kee siao liao..."

Then he died.
MJ will always be the King of Pop for my generation. Simply because Elvis and the Beatles were already dead when I was born, and nothing else after that can match MJ at his imba best. No, not even cry you a river Justin.

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Who's the other Michael?

Michael Owen.

I can almost hear the "CHEYY.." coming from you guys.

No he's not dead, he just joined Manchester United from poor ol' relegated Newcastle on a free transfer. Man, how cheapo can Alex get? Still, its a good deal! How can anything that you get for free not be a good deal?

I hope he teaches Berbatov and Anderson a thing or two about scoring.

Take that Liverpool fans!

P.S Any fellow Man United fans wanna camp along the Singapore River waiting for the Liverpool team to float by? Wearing the ManU jersey and waving fake BPL trophies at them? kekekeke