Camera comparison: Nokia's new N96, N85 and N79 versus Sony Ericsson K800i This evening, I had a chance to play with the new Nokia N96, N85 and N79 phones up close and personal. I didn't get a chance to do as much as I wanted to at yesterday's media event for the Nseries phone launch, so this was a welcome treat. And since I use the camera feature quite often on my phone, I decided to put the camera-cum-photo feature to the test.And it was a simple test: what sort of photograph would I get from each of the phones? Given that the new Nseries phones are top-notch, my hypothesis was that they would have the best visual output (excluding image size, since they're five-megapixel cameras, while my Sony Ericsson K800i's camera has three megapixels).All photos were taken with the default camera settings under the same indoor conditions. I've re-sized them here to fit this blog entry.First up, Sony Ericsson K800i.Next: Nokia N85Hmm, not too shabby.Up next: Nokia N79Err, a bit washed out?The Nokia N96 should be better.Wha...??? The photo looked as washed out as the N79! Okay, maybe it was this particular phone, so I tried another one.Slightly better than the previous photo. And its flash was bright enough to capture more of the dark background.But of the three Nseries phones, I think the N96 produced the best photo, though the photo looked over-exposed to my untrained eye. And, of course, this happened when the camera wasn't acting up. (Or maybe there were smudges on the lens? Ah, the benefit of a lens cover!)The Nseries-taken photos also came out slightly blurry. I attribute this to a poorly-designed camera button. I don't know if it was because these were prototypes, but their buttons were difficult to press. I had to use the tip of my finger to force the button down to take a picture -- and then hold the camera in place for almost a second to save the picture!I suspect that my hands would've shaken slightly during that time, resulting in the blurred pictures. While the K800i has about the same time lag, the picture looks clearer, which could be due to easier-to-use button and image processing.So overall, I wouldn't bother with the N79. The changeable covers are a novelty that would wear off quickly on me. The N85 looks like a decent package overall. As for the N96, I'll say that it's a matter of luck. While it's a feature-packed phone, as seen from the photos, the quality obtained from the features would seem to depend on whether I land a good one or walk off with a lame duck.--If you liked this entry, find more quirky content at Yuhui's Blogger! Nokia introduces one phone in three disguises - N96, N85, N79 Thanks to Nokia and Text 100, I had a chance to attend the media event for the launch of Nokia's brand-spankin' new N96, N85 and N79 phones... ok, "multimedia devices". Though I was probably the only blogger in a sea of journalists and editors, I wasn't complaining.It was held at House, and I'd actually walked up Dempsey Road to it from the bus stop. As a result, and because I departed late, I missed most of the spiel from Grant McBeath, GM of Nokia Singapore. I don't think I missed much of the proceedings though, except for the product videos. Oh, and a video that supposedly showed DJs Glen and Ros using the N96 in public. I would've preferred meeting Ros in person, but I guess that's another dream that'll have to wait.We were then given to try out the three phones around a small booth. The big screens showed how the phones were integrated with Nokia's Internet services, e.g. N-gage gaming, Ovi photo and video sharing, Nokia Music Store, etc.I played a Star Wars game on the N85 and I think the only outstanding thing of that experience was the OLED screen. It was well-lit, brighter than most other high-end phones that I've used. The colours were vivid, and the lines and details were clear. On the other hand, a screen that good was wasted on the small display.Oh, and the N85 is the first Nokia phone to supposedly have a dedicated USB charger. Err, I suppose that's useful somehow. I currently charge my Sony Ericsson K800i through USB too, though the phone-end is connected through the same power connection. So I wonder why there's a "dedicated USB charger" on the N85.The other phone I tried was the N79. Its distinguishing feature was its changeable rear cover, which would then change the phone desktop's theme. If I snapped on the green cover, the theme would turn green. If I replaced it with a red cover, the theme would change to red.This change-a-roo is done through little sensors on the cover and phone's innards, though it's no rocket science. On the other hand, after my experience with Sony Ericsson's Z600, I must say that I'm not the type who will change my phone's covers.I didn't get to try the N96 much, aside from listening to its speaker quality. Which, by the way, is a universally irritating feature for any phone. In a public place, I really don't want to hear whatever trance-techno music the punk next to me is listening to. That's what earphones were invented for -- to save others from putting up with your "music".Ok, but that's just my ranting. In addition to the seemingly good quality speakers, the N96 seemed more "solid" than its predecessor, the N95. So it seems like Nokia has also improved its manufacturing quality.DJ Glen Ong gave away some prizes later. I don't know what the winners won, since I'm not one of them. But I got a press kit, and the swag (free gift) is a Nokia USB charger (model CA-100). This is of no use to me since I don't have a compatible Nokia phone.Personally, I think of these three phones as the same model but with three disguises. That's because the majority of their specifications are the same. Same form-factor, same camera lens, same multimedia features, same connectivity.What differentiates the three phones are:N96: 16GB removable memory card, 8 free songs from Nokia Music Store, TV-outN85: 10 pre-loaded trial games, OLED displayN79: 3 snap-on coversThose are pretty much what I could glean from the specification sheets. And they don't seem like much. But I suppose they are trade-offs. Including an OLED display in all three phones would probably introduce manufacturing and cost issues. So would TV-out.And, err, I guess some people absolutely need to be able to change the look of their phones.--If you liked this entry, find more quirky content at Yuhui's Blogger! Two cups and a string -- Nokia event invitation I was pleasantly surprised when a small cardboard box was presented to me. It's wrapper simply stated: "Communication. Now made by hand. Nokia Nseries"Ooooookay. I shook it and heard a soft rattling sound. I hoped there was nothing fragile inside. At least I didn't hear any crackling of glass.On opening, I found a brown card, with this tantalising line: "From the simplest communication tool made by hand..."For all I knew, the contents could be two sticks, a firestarter and a small blanket.Opening that card revealed the actual invitation. Apparently, Nokia has some super-secret upcoming "multimedia computer", and I had been invited to the launch event! The tagline read: "The web. Now made by hand."And yes, I put "multimedia computer" in quotation marks, to be pronounced/used in the same way one would do the "air quotes" with your fingers to indicate sarcasm. Nokia makes handphones. Its Nseries line of phones is still far, far away from being truly usable computers, so I refuse to call it that. At least Apple doesn't call the iPhone a computer, and that device has freakin' Mac OS X (albeit a modified, slimmed down version) under the hood! (And if this opinion gets me kicked out of Nokia's exclusive invitation list, so be it.)Anyway, yes, I was elated to find the invitation. But then... it's at 3pm? On a weekday??? Gah, for a full-time employee, that means I'd need to get time-off to attend. Oh well, I guess I'll have to pass on this.But back to the invitation. Instead of glassware or wooden sticks or some such, there were two paper cups and a nicely coiled-up string. Yup, the earliest communications device was two-cups-and-a-string (though, fortunately, not two women and a cup*).It came complete with instructions on how to set it up. And to make it easier to assemble, the cups already had tiny holes in their bases. Hmm, interesting and fun! Of course, it'd be more fun if I had kids to play this with. I think we adults are more used to our fanciful gizmos... and whatever Nokia has coming this week.* Two women and a cup -- if you don't know what this refers to, look it up. But be warned: it's grossly Not Safe For Work!--If you liked this entry, find more quirky content at Yuhui's Blogger! Social Media Breakfast 3 at Asian Civilisation Museum On a bright and sunny Saturday morning, I went down to the Asian Civilisation Museum to attend the third Social Media Breakfast. This must be the swankiest venue ever for such an event. The previous SMBs were at small cafes, so this was definitely a leg up, especially in terms of first impressions to new attendees.Aside: the ACM could do with better signage to tell people that it is the friggin' Asian Civilisation Museum. I only confirmed the location because of a small sign that had a write-up on the history of the building (complete with a dried-up bird dropping on it).I arrived half an hour late, though still fashionably early for a Singaporean event. I chatted with a few familiar folks and met new ones, November and "Min-tea". There was also food galore, and I helped myself to egg sandwiches, chocolate swiss roll and grossly diluted bandung.At about 11am, things kicked off... in a manner of speaking. There was a round of introductions from Daryl, the organiser, and Walter Lim from the National Heritage Board. Then, the theme of the day was recapped, which, if I remember correctly, was about how and why bloggers could be engaged for mutual benefits.Or something like that, because things didn't go according to plan. So people just went back to doing what they did at previous SMBs, i.e. chat and mingle and eat.BTW I wonder if anyone has the contact of the girl at left (without glasses)? Her name is Emily, but I didn't get her contact information. (And yes, I'm an idiot for not doing so.)The only on-topic conversation that I had was about the relationship between blogs and old media, i.e. newspapers, TV, etc., and how/why blogs could rise above the noise. And I was also advised to start using Facebook "like the other 90% of people".I didn't really notice the time till I saw that chairs were being stacked up. People had already started leaving at around 12:30pm. An hour later, there was just a handful of us left. Those who attended could supposedly tour the museum for free, but I chose to skip it. Besides, Chinese propaganda doesn't really appeal to me... though on hindsight, it should. (I've since found out that the finalists of the Omy blog awards had a guided tour, those lucky "devils".)I think it's a good development that such so-called "social media" events attract the turn-outs that they do. One person mentioned: didn't these attendees turn to new media because they value their anonymity? I think that's a myopic over-generalisation. We "social media" blokes are human beings, and human beings are, at their core, social beings. While some people can live their lives as hermits, the greater majority of us still yearn for human contact.New media simply makes it easier to create and maintain such connections. I personally would never have met any of these people if not for the connections built up through Internet services. So I don't see anything wrong with identifying ourselves publicly, if it helps to foster greater social connectedness among individuals.Read about the first Social Media Breakfast, held at Frujch.--If you liked this entry, find more quirky content at Yuhui's Blogger! Nokia invited me to WOM World... but I can't go! I saw a curious email this evening. It came from "womworld" and the subject read: "Invitation to Nokia Workshop in Helsinki". Intrigued, I opened it up to see what this was all about.Turns out that it was an invitation to attend Nokia's WOM World event in Helsinki. It's on 11-14 September. Attendees would get a free trial device and other goodies.And get this: free travel and accomodation!Alas, I already have plans for that weekend that I cannot avoid -- and it's highly unlikely that I'll get to skip it! This is so frustrating!Okay, the free trip was definitely an incentive to go. But just once, I'd also like to get a European customs stamp in my passport. It seems that I'll have to wait a wee bit longer to make that wish come true.Anyway, here's the email from Nokia:Hi,As a quick intro, I’m from the WOM World / Nokia. We’re a Nokia-sponsored blog covering what’s being said in the social media about Nokia devices and services.We sometimes help Nokia run events involving participants from social media, like bloggers and forum members. The latest being a new annual workshop that hopes to involve an eclectic mix of the online community in a discussion of what the future holds for everything from mobile technology to media creation. It’s a three day event in Helsinki and we’d like to invite you, flights and accommodation paid for.It’s taking place in September between the 11th and 14th, and will be the first of its kind hosted by Nokia. We’re contacting everyone from creative’s, designers, video producers to open source software bloggers and mobile tech pioneers. There will be a number of workshops that’ll see discussion with participants, and with Nokia guys, about the future of different online arenas and mobile technology. Workshops that we hope you’d like to join in with and make yourself heard.Like we mentioned, Nokia will cover expenses, including return flights, accommodation, food etc, we are flexible on return dates, if you’d like to come back on the 13th that’s fine. You’ll also be provided with a ‘trial pack’ that will include a Nokia device and other things for trial prior to and during the event.So, please email back or call us on +44....., if you’re interested, and please bear in mind we’re on Greenwich Mean Time.In regards to the flights, Nokia are obviously very keen on keeping things as Green as possible. The trial device that you will get will come pre-installed with We:Offset. If you’ve not already head of it, it’s a Nokia application that allows you to offset your carbon emissions via the handset and a small donation. You will be expected to offset your trip yourself, more details on how revealed closer to the time, or read up on the app at: http://www.nokia.com/environment/weoffsetAlso, feel free to tell your community that you’ve been invited; we’ll soon be introducing the event website that will include participatory media for you and anyone else to join in with.If you’d like to know more about us, our blog is http://www.womworld.com/Nokia Alternately you can see some pics of previous events we’ve been involved with at Flickr. This recent set shows us at a Nokia launch event in London. We took a group of five online community members with us for the handset launch.http://www.flickr.com/photos/womworldnokia/sets/72157605792942953/We look forward to hearing from you.Kind regards,Donna and the WOM World / Nokia teamSo sad, right?--If you liked this entry, find more quirky content at Yuhui's Blogger! easySafe - Your unique key to security Note: The following is a sponsored post that was not created by me. It's my first such post, so there's no precedent for it here. Like it? Don't like it? Leave a comment. Or maybe no one will. I get so little traffic anyway.---FAST easySafe is the only hardware cryptography product available in the market with unique features. It protects all sensitive information in your computer, external hard disk, USB flash drive, SD card and etc.Although the design is compliant to FIPS 140-2 standard with PKI technology, FAST easySafe, as its name implies, is rather easy to deploy and use as compared to other sophiscated security products that require dedicated IT specialists for deployment and maintenance.Fast And Safe Technology Pte Ltd (FAST)FAST easySafe can be purchased at the following locations:-*E2000 shop at Funan #05-02.*Tec-Drome Technology at Sim Lim Square #05-78 and #06-74.*IMM Challenger L2-49.Ads by BLOG2u--If you liked this entry, find more quirky content at Yuhui's Blogger! McDonald's auto-upsizes meals? Since when did McDonald's start automatically upsizing its meals?There I was, at the Bugis Junction outlet, ordering my lunch. I had in my hand exactly enough coins so that I wouldn't need any coins back. I placed my order, the cashier rang it up...And the bill was 50 cents more!I quickly pointed out the discrepancy. The cashier, Shafiyah, who was dressed in a supervisor's red uniform, said that she had upsized my meal. Why? So that I could get the free Olympics glass.Firstly, it was bad enough that I had chosen indulgence over health by eating at McDonald's. I didn't need the extra calories to "super size me".Secondly, I had thought that it is usual practice to ask the customer if he wanted his meal to be upsized. Or is the practice now to get the customer to say that he wants his meal down-sized?Thirdly, who decided that it's better to assume that all McDonald's customers want a free Olympics glass?At least my story had a happy ending: I got my regular sized meal, saved 50 cents, and didn't have to worry about adding to clutter with another glass that I don't need.I don't know if McDonald's will reply to me about this. But I hope that this was a one-time phenomenon. Customers certainly wouldn't be lovin' it if they have been constantly cheated!--If you liked this entry, find more quirky content at Yuhui's Blogger! Going offline for the next 10 days No phone, minimal Internet, 10 days. Wooo....--If you liked this entry, find more quirky content at Yuhui's Blogger! Durian seller fired his assistant for bad durian It had been a long time since I last patronised my usual durian seller, so I decided to pay him a visit today. It just so happened that, when I arrived at his stall, he was yelling loudly at one of his assistants.As his assistant left the stall, dejectedly with his head down, I plucked up the courage to approach the still-fuming durian seller. He saw me walking towards him and quickly cooled off. With a wide smile, he welcomed me into his shop."What happened?" I asked him.That simple question started a long tirade from him. Apparently, the assistant had given away a bad durian. When the customer ate it, naturally, he became sick. With customers being what they are here, he demanded compensation and further demanded that the durian seller stop selling durians.Of course, the durian seller wouldn't do that. Not because of his loss, but the loss to his other customers. If he stopped selling, where would they buy their durians from? Who else sold top quality, XO grade durians that were guaranteed to be soft, sweet and fleshy? Also, no other seller could match his high standard of service (for an additional fee, of course), which was what customers demanded routinely.Besides, it wasn't his fault that the bad durian got away, so why should he be fired? The correct person to take the fall was the assistant. And that's why he was shouting at the latter when I had arrived: he had just fired him.I listened intently and supportively. It sounded like my durian seller had done what he thought was right. Though the bad durian was out there, he had taken the necessary steps to ensure that such a mistake would not occur again.And all of that without needing to fork over any compensation.Accepting his explanation of the incident completely, I bought two durians, instead of my usual one, to partake with much satisfaction and enjoyment.--If you liked this entry, find more quirky content at Yuhui's Blogger! Recap of Vinton Cerf's presentation at Suntec City I went to the presentation by Vinton Cerf today. It was quite a geeky moment to hear from such an influential person. It wasn't at the same scale as when I heard Bill Gates nearly 10 years ago, due to the size of the crowd (big auditorium then vs. small room now). But then, the small size made for a more intimate presentation. And Mr Cerf can be amusing too.Since I'd done a "live tweeting" during his presentation, I'll just copy my tweets here, instead of rewriting the entry from scratch.BTW my first tweet, which says "about 5 hours ago", was sent at around 7pm.Waiting for the Vinton Cerf talk. He's apparently stuck in traffic. about 5 hours agoMr Cerf is here. The programme begins. about 4 hours agoIntros by The Digital Movement and Google. about 4 hours agoJames Seng is introducing Vinton Cerf now. about 4 hours ago"Internet in 2035". But he admits he's no prophet. about 4 hours agoAbout 10 devices per person by 2035. It's already 3-4 now. about 4 hours ago10 billion hosts! I can't even imagine 10 million. about 4 hours agoPervasive, dynamically configuring wireless infrastructure. about 4 hours agoNeed for standardisation of applications, services, protocols... about 4 hours ago He's extolling the virtues of cloud computing and virtual environments interacting with real devices. about 4 hours ago No more URLs. Permanent names will be used to identify processes and services that run for years. about 4 hours agoPredict trends based on historical Google searches. Example: knowing when an epidemic starts. about 4 hours agoInternet = mass media + social groupings + barrier removal for information sharing about 4 hours agoInternet += avatar interacting in the real world + tremendously reduced costs about 4 hours agoBandwidth will continue to increase. File transfers will be the norm, not streaming, and at high speeds. about 4 hours agoAn advertisement is a thing that interrupts our enjoyment of media. Information is its opposite. about 4 hours ago10 billion mobile devices by 2035, working as remote control and information delivery. about 4 hours agoMulti-touch and gestures, and haptics to replace typing and mousing. about 4 hours agoInformation will be real-time, geographically indexed, and always available. about 3 hours agoInternet devices of 2035 will include clothes, wine corks... and they're all programmable with standard languages. about 3 hours agoQ&A session now. about 3 hours agoMergers aren't a problem. Inhibition of creativity and access are the bigger headaches. about 3 hours agoVinton would want to expand TCP/IP from 32 bits and strengthen authentication / trust. about 3 hours agoWe need protocols for broadcast interaction, not point-to-point. about 3 hours agoLarge quantities of computing power may not result in intelligence. Eg. Helen Keller understood language through experience. about 3 hours agoInteraction with human sensory systems are already a reality today. Future devices could enhance the human body dramatically. about 3 hours agoAnd it's over. Applause. about 3 hours agoVinton Cerf's talk: thought-provoking and entertaining, but cautious, not as visionary as expected. about 2 hours ago--If you liked this entry, find more quirky content at Yuhui's Blogger! This woman gets on the lift... I was in the elevator going up to the 20th floor. Another lady was in the lift and pressed the button for the 12th floor. We went up, then stopped at the 9th floor. A lady, who was busy thumbing on her phone, stepped in and pressed the 16th floor button. And up we went to the 12th floor. The first lady got off. The second lady, without looking up from her phone... ...also got off! I expected her to realise that she was in unfamiliar surroundings and hurry back into the lift. But as the doors closed, I watched her walk further and further away, still jabbing on her phone.Moral of the story: Typing an SMS can be hazardous to the proper use of an elevator.--If you liked this entry, find more quirky content at Yuhui's Blogger! Announcing: Social Events calendar I've started a public calendar, Social Events, to list all social media-related events in Singapore. It's free to use, hosted on Google Calendar, publicly accessible and "subscribable". Check it out! Better yet, subscribe to it with your iCal-compatible calendar.Here's a sample:Social Events is not actually my idea. That distinction belongs to... err... oh rats, I forgot his name! (At least I do know that he's the webmaster of SYINC... right?) Anyway, at the first Social Media Breakfast, he mentioned about how there were all of these really fun and interesting social media-related events in Singapore. The problem was that they tended to clash at the same day and/or time!That made me think about my personal experience. My exposure to such events is limited to Facebook invitations and the occasional email. There is, to my knowledge, no central public repository of social events.So I thought: why not build a calendar? Which I did... initially. Then I remembered that there's already the Google Calendar platform. Why rebuild the wheel? Besides, I could add like-minded people to manage the calendar too, and thus build it into the repository it should be.And lo, a local social media calendar was born! Now, all it needs is more events! Right now, it's skewed heavily to geeky, technology-oriented events, like the monthly PHP meetings. Hey, I only know of what I'm exposed to!As such, I really, really, really could use some help in beefing it up. I'll be adding a few people to get things going, but if you want to join, please don't wait for an invitation. Leave a comment with your email address!After all, a social media calendar should have user-generated content, right? *wink*And in case you missed it earlier, that's Social Events.--If you liked this entry, find more quirky content at Yuhui's Blogger! Nominated for Singapore Blog Awards I received an unexpected email today. No, it wasn't another query for something sex-related. Rather, it was a notification that my blog had been nominated for the Singapore Blog Awards! When I went to complete the nomination form, I found that I'd been nominated in the "Most Insightful Blog" category. Gee, that's quite an honour, especially when you consider that the footer for every entry in my RSS feed says, "...find more quirky content at Yuhui's Blogger!" That puts me up against blogs like "Cool Movie Poster Slogans", "Sam's Thought", and "Full Time Mother". See the full list of "Most Insightful Blog" nominees.omy, I've never heard of any of these blogs before! That puts me up against a group of dark horses, which means I've no way of gauging my chances. At least if there were heavyweights like "SimplyJean" and "Unique Frequency", then I'd know where I'd stand, i.e. far, far, far below.The hardest part of filling in the nomination form was figuring out which three entries best represented my blog. That's a tough one. Should I submit those that were controversial? Or strongly supportive of Singapore? What about the ones that seemed moderately insightful to me, but may not be to someone else? And how far back should I go? In the end, I picked "Whither Singapore's Internet grassroots organisations?", "377A will be repealed one day, just not today", and "Some statistics on homosexuality".I'd known about these inaugural awards for some time, but didn't bother to submit anything. But now that someone had taken the effort to do so, I certainly couldn't disappoint him. So thanks, Alvinology, for the nomination! Appreciate it lots.--If you liked this entry, find more quirky content at Yuhui's Blogger! Yuhui, the go-to guy for sex... huh?? Two amusing events happened in late April that prompted me to wonder if my online persona had taken on a life of its own.About two weeks ago, I received an email from some guy called "Macho dude" asking if I had news of any upcoming sex orgies. Apparently, he wanted to attend one quite eagerly. He had approached me after reading my entry about the orgy notice on Sammyboy. He thought that I organised such parties!I would like to state categorically that I DO NOT ORGANISE ORGIES. However, some other people do, like this guy who posted an invitation on Sammyboy for girls to join his "intimate companions" gathering. The message thread has probably been removed by now.I didn't think much about Macho dude's email till I received another unsolicited one a week later. This time, it was from "Janice Lee" asking if I had the nude pictures of Adeline, the FHM girl. She too had come to me because I had written about someone stealing the private nude pictures from a photographer's online gallery and posting them in publicly accessible forums. I didn't understand why Janice wanted the pictures, till she said that she was lesbian and wanted to get off on looking at Adeline's body.I would like to state categorically that I DO NOT DISTRIBUTE NUDE IMAGES. Oh, and Janice (and other readers), if you thought that I'm a girl, please read my about page.Having said all that, if you still believe that I am the sex-and-porn authority that you believe me to be, please continue to send me your unsolicited emails. I always enjoy a good laugh.--If you liked this entry, find more quirky content at Yuhui's Blogger! Nokia Music Store - comes with disappointment Nokia launched its Music Store in Singapore today. I got the news through a press release in my emailbox, so I thought I'd check it out. It's always fun to check out new digital initiatives in Singapore, particularly in this case, especially since the juggernaut, Apple's iTunes Store, has yet to even appear on the radar. Alas, my enthusiasm evaporated when I saw this roadblock: Oh my stars and garters! Nokia banned me from entering because I don't use a "supported" browser! Nightmares of the 1990s flooded my mind, you know, that period during the browser wars when websites would only work with one browser or another. Fortunately, I had access to a Windows computer, so I fired up Firefox and loaded the Music Store... oh, silly me, it works only with Internet Explorer. Fine, I'll do what it takes. As Britney Spears sang, I'm a slave for you...But then, curiosity kills the cat, right? As a consumer, one of the first things I noticed, besides the user interface and featured songs, was the price. Nokia charged $2 per song download. That sounded about reasonable, since Apple charges US$0.99. But $2 is actually a wee bit pricey in Singapore, where an average CD costs less than $20 -- and it contains more than 10 songs! And there's artwork and DRM-free music too.Ah, digital rights management (DRM), that was another sticking point. The Music Store relies on Microsoft's DRM service through its Windows Media Audio (WMA) format. Since my primary computer is a Mac, WMA would be useless to me. I won't get into an argument here about whether WMA is crap compared to AAC. To a non-audiophile like me, both have sound qualities that are similarly good. So, suffice to say that with its reliance on WMA, I would be even more hard-pressed to justify buying music from Nokia.So I guess that's it: no Nokia Music Store for me. In baseball parlance, that's three strikes, i.e.It can only be accessed through Internet Explorer on Windows computers.Each song costs $2.It uses WMA for its music format.Nokia, seriously, I try really hard to give you some love, but you just keep beating me back on my brow. I wanted a cool phone, but your N95 was so bug-filled that I'd rather stay as far away from it as possible. I was greatly excited when you provided free Wifi on public buses, but suffered from too many dropped signals when those buses were moving, which vehicles are supposed to do.Now, when I contemplate browsing your music catalogue -- and maybe even making a purchase or two if I find those hidden gems, you whack me upside-down with this silly error. Thank goodness, you're still in "beta" version... though I wonder why you'd announce with great fanfare like it's the real thing. Oh, you're treating your users as guinea pigs? Hmm, sounds familiar in the mobile phone industry.Oh, and with the Music Store launch, I wonder if Nokia will bring its "Comes with Music" program to Singapore. You know, that harebrained idea of giving your customers free lifetime music with every new phone purchase that is likely to bankrupt your company.--If you liked this entry, find more quirky content at Yuhui's Blogger! Hypermiling: Save fuel -- and money! -- while driving I came across this fascinating website today: Hypermiling. It lists six tips for saving fuel while driving. Which could save a significant amount of money during these times of constantly rising fuel prices.Some of the tips are commonsensical. Others need you to wrap your head around. But ultimately, I'm pretty sure that all of them are feasible in Singapore, land of traffic jams, aggressive drivers and ERP.Here's my summary of the tips:Know your mileage. Remember: knowledge is power.Try not to apply the brakes. Braking means surrendering speed that was provided by fuel.Minimise time spent in a stopped car. Accelerating towards a red light burns fuel unnecessarily for moving and braking (see tip #2).Keep moving in a traffic jam. Slow down, use buffer space.Slowly accelerate after stops. When possible, use a rolling start.Use cruise control to accelerate slowly. If you don't have one, then just accelerate slowly with the pedal.Aside: For some reason, I kept reading it as "hypermilling", and wondered what milling or a mill had to do with driving!--If you liked this entry, find more quirky content at Yuhui's Blogger! Crowd mentality and the lack of ideas I don't understand something. Why do highly respected organisations always jump on board the same boat? I would think that there are enough intelligent and creative individuals in there who would be able to "shake the boat", to extend the metaphor's use.Case in point: an upcoming website has -- wait for it -- another photo-uploading service! Oh my goodness! How many such services are there already? And more importantly, why is this particular website including it? The response was that the future plans call for it to be used toteach people how to use other photo-uploading sites, andbuild a photo library to be used for, err, research.Granted, part one of their rationale sounded logical. A lot of photo services, like Flickr and Picasa, may be too complex for "the other 60%". So maybe there is a point in this exercise. You know, instead of just teaching them to use Flickr.Aside: And why are organisations always quick to say it'll be too difficult to form partnerships, e.g. with Yahoo! Flickr? Did anyone actually pick up the phone to ask? Or send a friendly e-mail?But assuming that this website's version is easier to use, which it is because of its stripped down capabilities. And assuming that it succeeds at the second part of its rationale, i.e. as part of a, err, catalogue. Further, let me assume that it has successfully targeted at the 60% to use its service. The issue then is:Does this 60% own digital cameras or have access to one, including mobile phones?Do they own computers or have access to one?Do they know how to upload the photos to their computers?I have a nagging feeling that the organisation is going after a very small, very inaccessible group.On the other hand, a small part of me is quietly confident that the muckamucks have done their homework and found that this is, indeed, a viable market. In addition, these muckamucks have done their research about their partners' capabilities in using its photo library for educational efforts, e.g. making use of the photos in projects, instead of assuming that their hypothesis is correct.Will Singaporeans bite? In this, I am actually very confident that they will. The Straits Times' STOMP is proof of it. It has successfully made a viable market of making very public use of amateur photos, and no one has apparently batted an eyelid. Perhaps that's another cue that this organisation took.--If you liked this entry, find more quirky content at Yuhui's Blogger! This little kitten mewed loudly As I approached the bus stand, I heard something loud and raspy, like that of a loud mynah or crow. It turned out to be this little kitten, looking no bigger than a stuffed toy. It was so loud and distinctive that it could be heard over the din of traffic.Link to videoWhat was even more intriguing was it had fixed itself on me! At first I thought it was walking in a normal, random pattern. But as I shuffled from one end of the pavement to the other, breadth-wide and length, the little thing followed me as well! I figured it was because I had stood still for a few moments to admire it.Sensing that I was harmless and lacking any parental figure nearby, it must have thought that I was "safe enough" to be its surrogate parent. It was quite amusing to see it walk ever closer and closer to me, finally daring to walk between my feet!(BTW I don't remember if "fixed" is the correct word. I remember learning about it in introductory psychology. The classic example given was of a professor who managed to get some baby geese to think that he was their mother!)Unfortunately, I had to dash off when my bus arrived. I hope that move doesn't make the kitten feel a huge sense of abandonment. Hopefully, its mother arrived soon.--If you liked this entry, find more quirky content at Yuhui's Blogger! Commemorating Earth Hour during Green Drinks This evening, I joined a few fellow volunteers from ECO Singapore to commemorate the first-ever Earth Hour. We trooped down to the office of Yolk, which was also the venue for the monthly Green Drinks session. We arrived at 7pm and were disappointed to find out that the food we were promised to partake in consisted only of free drinks. Nonetheless, I helped myself to a beer.Earth Hour is a grassroots effort (i.e. no official governmental support) encouraging people of the world to turn off unneeded lights (and other electrical devices) for one hour from 8pm. The idea, if I got it correctly, was that our minute individual contributions would add up to an enormous savings in terms of greenhouse pollution.Green Drinks, on the other hand, is a monthly networking session to bring together like-minded individuals. For tonight, it was held in conjunction with Earth Hour and also the launch of the second edition of Harboiled Magazine, an online magazine on social causes, which are not necessarily about the environment (though this issue was dedicated to that topic). Apparently, it's the brainchild of local digital agency, Yolk, which office was also the venue for Green Drinks.I chatted with a few people (okay, I mostly listened to others) and was also interviewed later for MediaCorp Radio's NewsRadio 93.8. Questions included what I thought about Earth Hour and why it was such a relevant cause.His most critical question was probably about why there was no apparent support by government or businesses, unlike in Sydney where the city was in darkness for an hour. My response, which I thought was the most sensible explanation, was that this was a grassroots effort that depended entirely on whether people wanted to make the effort or not. My implication was that Singaporeans still have a long way to go, and we require baby steps that can be agonizingly slow.By 10pm, most of us were tired and hungry, so we left the party. Overall, I thought that this Green Drinks session wasn't as successful as expected. I suppose the free drinks and relationship of the attendees to Yolk also affected the outcome. As a fellow volunteer said, most people were there either to drink free beer or pick up chicks. Hopefully, subsequent Green Drinks will have better results.--If you liked this entry, find more quirky content at Yuhui's Blogger! Social Media Breakfast at Frujch Early this morning, I went for something called the "Social Media Breakfast". It was held at Frujch at Singapore Management University. It was scheduled to start at 9am, so I courteously showed up (relatively) on time. Of course, the bulk of the attendees turned up half an hour later. I shouldn't be surprised.I met a couple of familiar faces, but also some new ones too. Also reacquainted myself with one other person whom I had met on a professional setting previously (and reconnected through Facebook just a few days ago). We had a good time chatting about Internet usage across the region. Fascinating and insightful stuff!Breakfast turned out to be brunch, and consisted of sandwiches, lemon-orange squash and some cakes. Some of the others also played air hockey and pool, but I spent my time chatting and checking out some sites.The weird thing of the event -- to me anyway -- was that we were given small stickers with which we could "tag" others. It worked the same way that online tagging does, except that this was in the physical world and we had to write the tags in pen! I didn't tag anyone, but was tagged twice.I don't know if this will become a regular affair or was a school project for SMU's "Social Media" course. I think such networking events are good practices, but require organisation and location.--If you liked this entry, find more quirky content at Yuhui's Blogger! Charting Britney Spears' song, "Sometimes" Just toying around with Google Chart.--If you liked this entry, find more quirky content at Yuhui's Blogger! Need $30 sponsor for Yebber party I got the invitation to Yebber's first anniversary party in my email. "Oh cool," I thought, "they still remember me in spite of my inactivity." I clicked through to the site and proceeded to sign up.Then, wait a minute, what was that about "payment mode"? And "payment reference"? Aha, the registration form was at the bottom of a longer page. I scrolled up gingerly. Alas, the party costs $30 per person!Smart of Yebber! First you pay your members some money for their reviews. Now you take back the money for the party! It's a classic winner-take-all situation!"Please pay me to celebrate my birthday with me." Hmm... I've heard jokes like that, but never really seen it happen in real life. I guess there's always a first time for everything.So, err, as much as I'd like to attend, you know, because I figure the same circle of friends will be there too, I can't see the logic in paying to celebrate someone else's party. Even National Day Parade tickets are free.--If you liked this entry, find more quirky content at Yuhui's Blogger! Moving on... slowly... It's been more than two weeks since I moved on. Firstly, thanks to everyone who asked about me after I announced that I'd quit. No, it doesn't mean that I spend all day twiddling my thumbs.Err, actually...Okay, so I did spend some time doing nothing. Vegetating in front of the television or surfing the Web randomly can be tremendously therapeutic. But there came a point when I said, "What's the point?"So a few days back, I really moved on. Getting out, meeting people, doing stuff. It's nice to be able to arrange get-togethers by saying "whenever you're free!"More free time also means being able to do out-of-the-blue things. Like giving a handphone pouch as a birthday gift. Sure, it set me back a few dollars and is really no big deal. And she seemed to like it, so it's all good. I'd hate to give something that's unappreciated.More stuff lined up, which might mean less time to blog. Oh well. "Opportunity cost."--If you liked this entry, find more quirky content at Yuhui's Blogger! Beijing Olympics web site blatantly copies game! There are a few things that the mainland Chinese are good for. Inventing rockets. Exploring the world.And piracy.(Oh yeah, and hacking super-secure computer networks.)Take the latest case. As noted by Slashdot, the official Beijing Olympics website features a game that's a blatant rip-off of another game. Compare "Fuwa Fights the Winter Clouds" with The Pencil Farm's "Snow Day". Check out the screen shots:Fuwa Fights the Winter CloudsSnow DayI've played both for a bit and the game play is exactly the same! Only the graphics and scoreboard are different. And Beijing Olympics lets you pick different characters.*Sigh* One billion people and this is the best that they could come up with? I guess that's what happens when you repress people with an iron fist.--If you liked this entry, find more quirky content at Yuhui's Blogger! Aye-aye - the ugliest creature in the world is endangered When I showed the picture of the aye-aye to a few people, they all responded similarly: "Ewww!" Which is a pity because I think the little critter is quite a remarkable creature, especially after I learned more about it. To me, its most fascinating trait is its middle finger. No, I don't mean that it goes around "flippin' the bird" at other animals. Rather, it's the way its finger has evolved into a tool to help it get food. Monkeys are known to use sticks to prod at tree trunks to dig bugs out. Some birds also use twigs to extract juicy fruit to eat.Similarly, the aye-aye uses a tool to pull worms out of tree trunks... except that it doesn't need any twigs or other implements. It just uses its scrawny but long finger! Who needs twigs? Watch it in action!Unfortunately, this creature from Madagascar faces extinction because of the ignorant human population. According to this Slate article on saving animals from extinction, it notes that the locals kill it on sight because they regard it as a bad omen.Is it still possible to save the aye-aye and other ugly animals from man?--If you liked this entry, find more quirky content at Yuhui's Blogger! I quit Quit today. Moving on tomorrow.--If you liked this entry, find more quirky content at Yuhui's Blogger! A bee on my keyboard For some reason, this bee decided to rest on the side of my keyboard for most of the night. It had been buzzing around the lamp and banging into the wall for a while before settling on its current location.After the pictures were taken, it crawled around on the keyboard, then the table... wobbily. And now it's fallen to the floor.Its life is probably flashing before its compound eyes now...--If you liked this entry, find more quirky content at Yuhui's Blogger! Ping.sg gathering at De Coder's Cafe I met up with a few folks from Ping.sg at De Coder's Cafe at Balmoral Plaza. Though I arrived half an hour late, I found only four other people there: Uzyn, Sekling, Tian Hong and Chillycraps. Singapore time never ceases to amaze me! We started with Blokus, where the other three teams (Uzyn and Sekling teamed up) started attacking one another from the start. Which left me alone to focus on building up my little corner. And then they started attacking me, but I managed to either block them off or expand into their territories. It helped that I got lucky twice too. In the end, it was I, the quiet and unaggressive one, who won. Am I boasting? Well, sure, why not? *maniacal laughter* Now if only real-life conflicts could be solved similarly.Others arrived and we moved to a larger table. We tried playing "Right Turn, Left Turn", but it was too brainy for a Sunday afternoon. So we ended up playing this dinosaur card game, "Jurassic Jumble". It's somewhat similar to "Hard Attack", in that you're supposed to collect a set of nine cards of the same dinosaur by trading cards with the other players. The twist is that you also have to collect a "bone" as soon as someone takes one. Since there is always one more player than bones, the loser is the one without a bone.My strategy was simple (and others can use it too, copyright-free): Let someone else win. Trade enough similar cards to ensure that someone will win. Why? Because you should always keep your eye on the bones. Those are what determine the loser, not the cards. As soon as one goes missing, grab a bone.Like numerous other shops that have sprouted all over Singapore suddenly, De Coder's Cafe is a place to pay to play games, usually board games. It also serves food and has two Internet kiosks, but the main business driver is the games. Which makes me wonder about its business model. Why would people go there instead of the more popular Settler's Cafe? Even today, if not for us (and another small group), the place would be dead quiet. It doesn't help that it's located in the dingy basement too.--If you liked this entry, find more quirky content at Yuhui's Blogger! Chinese New Year dinner at Hua Song The company held its annual Chinese New Year dinner at Hua Song this year. When we saw the venue, most of us went "huh???" We'd never heard of this place before, let alone know that there was even a restaurant inside Haw Par Villa!And we found out that you could even drive inside, where there was a car park near the restaurant-cum-museum!The private hall was freezing when I entered, but I acclimatised quickly enough. The hot Chinese tea and red wine helped. Some people started that new year tradition: gambling. Money exchanged hands, but mine stayed safely in my wallet.As expected, people enjoyed tossing the yu sheng. At one table, half of the yu sheng ended up on the table instead! The food itself was average, nothing really spectacular... until the third-to-last dish. It was a dish of something covered in lime green cream. I looked at it with amazement. It was the greenest non-vegetable dish I had ever seen. It turned out to be a prawn dish, and the cream was made from diluted wasabi. Which actually made it quite delicious! Some people didn't like it, but my tastebuds enjoyed the tingling sensation.Dinner ended early before 10pm. While others adjourned elsewhere, I decided to head home, as I was feeling tired.--If you liked this entry, find more quirky content at Yuhui's Blogger! Make a CNY music video and win a hamper! Make a music video and you could win a $50 hamper!A contest by SimplyJean and Yuhui's BloggerDo you love to make videos? Enjoy funny and satirical music? Better yet, need something extra to celebrate Chinese New Year? Then this contest is just for you!All you have to do is create a music video of the Chinese New Year parody song. The winner of the best music video gets an exclusive hamper worth S$50!How to enter? Just follow these 3 simple steps:Film the music video.Upload the video to a public video hosting site, like YouTube or MetaCafe.Submit your entry by leaving a comment here with your name and valid email address.So whip out that camera and let your creative juices flow! Closing date is Sunday, 10 February 2008.All participants in the Chinese New Year parody music video ("music video" or "video") contest bound by the following terms and conditions:No pornography, disgusting or other objectionable content is allowed. As a guideline, videos should be rated NC-16 at most.Each submitted video must contain all five verses of the entire song. Lyrics must be clearly audible without requiring mechanical adjustments. The video must be made publicly available to view by anyone.The contest is open to all persons residing in Singapore. Corporate or other entities are not eligible to participate in the contest. No person under twenty-one (21) years of age shall be eligible to enter the contest or win a prize unless his or her parents or legal guardians have jointly and severally consented and agreed, in such form and upon such terms as prescribed by Jean and Yuhui ("Organisers"), to the minor's participation in the contest.All information submitted must be true, accurate, complete and up to date. Entries that do not meet this requirement will be disqualified.Participants may submit multiple entries as long as each entry conforms to the stated requirements. The Organisers reserve the right at any time in their absolute discretion to decide whether the content of the entries are acceptable.The Organisers reserve the right at any time in their absolute discretion and without prior notice to participants:To cancel or modify the contest;To make changes to these terms and conditions, whereupon all participants shall be bound by the terms and conditions as varied by the Organisers; and/orTo substitute, withdraw or cancel any prize without disclosing any reason therefor and without any payment or compensation whatsoever.The closing date for submissions is 10 February 2008. A total of one (1) winning entry will be selected in one or more selection rounds to be held by the Organisers. The contest winner will be selected by 21 February 2008 and announced on the Organisers' websites at http://blog.simplyjean.com/ and http://yuhuibc.blogspot.com/ (the "websites") by 22 February 2008. Subject to paragraph 8, the contest winner will be awarded a hamper worth up to $50.The contest winner will also be contacted by email. The winner must claim his or her prize by 15 March 2008 from the Organisers. All unclaimed prizes shall be forfeited or disposed off accordingly.All prizes are non-transferable, non-refundable and non-exchangeable for cash, credit or benefit in-kind and are not inclusive of taxes and/or foreign duties (if any) and other related expenses, all of which are the sole responsibility of the winners. The use of vouchers is subject to the terms and conditions of the vendor.The Organisers' decisions on all matters relating to the contest, including but not limited to the eligibility of any entry, the selection of any winners and the award, forfeiture or disposal of any prize, are final, conclusive and binding on all participants, and no correspondence will be entertained.By entering the contest, participants consent to the public disclosure by the Organisers of their names and identification/passport numbers, and the reproduction, adaptation and translation into any language and publication by the Organisers of all or any part of the videos submitted, or such adaptations or translations thereof. Participants agree that the Organisers are not required to use any videos submitted.Each participant warrants and undertakes to the Organisers that he or she is the producer of the videos submitted as his or her entry to the contest and that nothing in the entry shall infringe any right of intellectual property or any other nature of any person or be obscene, blasphemous, libellous or defamatory. Each participant hereby assigns to the Organisers all intellectual property rights in and to the entry to which the Organisers are now or may at any time in the future be entitled by virtue of any law in force in any part of the world including all renewals, reversions and extensions. To the extent permissible by law, each participant waives all moral rights or rights to be named as author in relation to the entry or any part thereof. Each participant shall, if required by the Organisers, sign such documents and do such acts as shall reasonably be necessary vest in the Organisers the said intellectual property rights, and perfect the above assignment and waiver.Participants further agree to participate in, at participants' own expense, prize presentation ceremonies and all other publicity events in Singapore or elsewhere in relation to the contest, without payment or compensation. In addition, to be eligible for the prizes, the winner shall give the Organisers to use his or her name, picture, image and voice for publicity purposes connected with this promotion without payment or compensation and without requiring an affidavit of eligibility, release of liability, publicity release.The Organisers shall not be liable for any claims, damages, losses, injury or inconvenience arising out of or in connection with the contest, any entry to the contest or any prize, including without limitation any loss or disqualification of any entry and any delay in, or failure or omission to provide the contest or any prize.Each participant (including his or her heirs, executors and / or administrators) hereby agrees to indemnify and hold the Organiser harmless from and against any and all claims, losses or damage arising out of or in connection with the contest, any prize or any breach of any obligation or warranty set out these terms and conditions and hereby releases and discharges the Organiser from any and all such claims, losses and damage.These terms and conditions are governed by the laws of the Republic of Singapore, and all participants and winners submit to the non-exclusive jurisdiction of the Singapore Courts in the determination of any matter or dispute arising in connection therewith.Where a summary of these terms and conditions are prepared ("Summary") and in the event that the Summary conflicts with the provisions herein, the provisions herein shall govern to the exclusion of those provisions found in the Summary.These terms and conditions are not intended to confer rights on any third party, whether pursuant to the Contracts (Rights of Third Parties) Act (Cap 53B) or otherwise, and no third party shall have any right to enforce any provision of these terms and conditions.--If you liked this entry, find more quirky content at Yuhui's Blogger!