Start the Engine
Thursday, May 12, 2011
My life is very colorful now, so I declare that I will (try to) blog again.
First up, I will update my blogskin with up to date cool stuffs, namely all the fb/twitter link. Gosh my blog is so yesteryear. Time to learn programming.
First up, I will update my blogskin with up to date cool stuffs, namely all the fb/twitter link. Gosh my blog is so yesteryear. Time to learn programming.
Labels: Personal
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You're watching a world cup match at the comfort of your own living room with a bunch of family members or friends. All is well and Germany is steadily advancing into Argentina's field. Out of nowhere, loud roaring came from your neighbours' houses, from the Macdonalds outlet nearby and all around you. Your heart sank. It means that Germany is going to score in another 5 seconds on your Mio TV. Instant spoilers are being presented to you real time when you subscribe to Mio TV and Singtel aren't doing anything about it except blaming the football fans for their stupidity and loyalty.
The 5 seconds delay on present Mio TV setups are tremendously reducing Mio TV football fans' excitement when the rest of the world are receiving their transmission in real time. Singtel, however, is turning a blind eye to this problem and offering no form of compensation to the fans. Now that the world cup is already approaching the finale, the only relation Singtel has made to this problem was an irresponsible two liners amidst an article detailing its many Mio TV faults.
The quote is as follow:
Source: CNA
That was a sarcastic remark by CNA right? The advanced technology Singtel is using slows down the transmission when other technologies are gearing towards reducing lag time. This is not the point, however, as the spokesperson's comment is the dubious part.
A quick survey of a few households who signed up for MioTV just before the world cup reveals that they did not know of this delay neither "at the point of sale" nor during "sign up". Perhaps they are just addressing the media for the sake of saving their own face, just like how Odex chairman claims to be an avid anime lover forced by circumstances. If one looks at the comment from another perspective, the spokesperson is simply implying that these recently-converted Mio TV users are just being stupid for signing up for the slower service when Starhub is offering theirs without this delay.
Obviously something is wrong here, since nobody in their right mind will sign up for the slower service of the two if they are making informed choices. So, are the masses lying or is Singtel lying? I shall leave it to the reader's perception.
Singtel's late entry into this market segment has been fraught with many difficulties. Their challenge on breaking their perceived starhub monopoly has led to Singtel winning exclusive rights to broadcast the popular Barclay league on their fault-laden (refer to earlier post) advanced technology and at the same time, increased the cost to consumer by a whooping 400%. It does make one wonder whether monopoly is truly the lesser of the two evils here.
This post may be late, but I am sure Singtel had more than enough time to address this properly. To any readers, please make informed and wise choice next time.
The 5 seconds delay on present Mio TV setups are tremendously reducing Mio TV football fans' excitement when the rest of the world are receiving their transmission in real time. Singtel, however, is turning a blind eye to this problem and offering no form of compensation to the fans. Now that the world cup is already approaching the finale, the only relation Singtel has made to this problem was an irresponsible two liners amidst an article detailing its many Mio TV faults.
The quote is as follow:
| For SingTel's mio TV, the enhanced features and advanced technology of the Internet Protocol or IPTV platform require conversion of the original TV footage from video signals to IP packets, resulting in this delay. The spokesperson added that SingTel's customers are informed of this at the point of sale and sign up. |
Source: CNA
That was a sarcastic remark by CNA right? The advanced technology Singtel is using slows down the transmission when other technologies are gearing towards reducing lag time. This is not the point, however, as the spokesperson's comment is the dubious part.
A quick survey of a few households who signed up for MioTV just before the world cup reveals that they did not know of this delay neither "at the point of sale" nor during "sign up". Perhaps they are just addressing the media for the sake of saving their own face, just like how Odex chairman claims to be an avid anime lover forced by circumstances. If one looks at the comment from another perspective, the spokesperson is simply implying that these recently-converted Mio TV users are just being stupid for signing up for the slower service when Starhub is offering theirs without this delay.
Obviously something is wrong here, since nobody in their right mind will sign up for the slower service of the two if they are making informed choices. So, are the masses lying or is Singtel lying? I shall leave it to the reader's perception.
Singtel's late entry into this market segment has been fraught with many difficulties. Their challenge on breaking their perceived starhub monopoly has led to Singtel winning exclusive rights to broadcast the popular Barclay league on their fault-laden (refer to earlier post) advanced technology and at the same time, increased the cost to consumer by a whooping 400%. It does make one wonder whether monopoly is truly the lesser of the two evils here.
This post may be late, but I am sure Singtel had more than enough time to address this properly. To any readers, please make informed and wise choice next time.
Labels: Singapore, Singtel, World Cup 2010
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My take on MioTV for the world cup.
Sunday, June 13, 2010
| The air horns in the background are really irritating. Plus, on friday, the jitters were really bad. I heard people exclaiming but hey, my screen FROZED. After HALF AN HOUR of automated calls and call transfer and waiting, the singtel guy on the phone told me that everybody without HD TV are experiencing that problem and that they will fix it by the next match. I didn't check because I wasn't interested in the next match. Then come Saturday. Voila, I couldn't get any image for the first half of the S.Korea match. I thought it was the modem warming up so I waited. After 10 minutes, I figured something was wrong. First thing I did was to call the technical helpline again. This time, in addition to the automated calls and waiting, the lady over the phone REFUSED to transfer the call for me. I kept going "Could you transfer the call for me?" and she kept going "Please call 16881(blahblahblah)" which is precisely what I did to get to her. Okay, I admit, I may have pressed a wrong number somewhere because I couldn't wait for the automated voice to finish announcing all the choices. Seeing how useless this is going, I called again, while fiddling with the set up box. I got to the correct guy after another 5 minutes but he was more concerned with getting my particulars right than helping me solve my problem. Frustrated, I pulled out the power cord and plugged it back, essentially doing a hard reset. Next comes the infamous 3 minutes to switch on, 2 minutes to warm up waiting time and in the meantime, I was filling that guy in as requested with my name, the number I was calling from, whether I was calling from the number mioTV is connected to, whether I am using Singtel internet services (which I am not), etc etc, and finally the state of the box (i.e. colours of the light). Finally the screen came on and I told that guy I fixed the problem on my own already. Damn, I should have done that in the first place. The saleslady confirmed with me that their "new enhanced MioTV layout" won't have such problems too. I only asked this after it is set up though, since I was kept in the dark by my parents until to my horror, a dubious white box appeared near the computer and an evil twin appeared beside the Starhub box and I see a hot pink screen (it still looks hot pink no matter how the technical guy insists its magenta). Thankfully the internet light on the white box wasn't blinking as well. I regretted telling my parents to fully utilise the new box and buy World Cup package from MioTV though. I wonder if it's better if I stuck with the green camp. Good job Singtel. Excellent CRM. :thumb2: EDIT: BTW, I did not know that we were informed that there is delay in footage receiving "at the point of sale and sign up", contrary to what Singtel spokesperson claimed. |
Labels: Singapore, Singtel, World Cup 2010
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sturdy SSD
Monday, February 8, 2010
Solid State Drives (SSD) is a relatively new technology that uses non-moving parts and proves to be potentially superior to the current hard disk in many aspects. Current hard disk uses a spinning disk and a mechanical arm to read data which makes it relatively fragile compared to SSDs. SSD also has higher read speed than HDD but the main characteristics of an SSD is usually the low read latency, which implies faster loading times. Right now this technology is still expensive and glitched though, so we'll have to wait a year or two before it gets refined into a beautiful product.
Anyway, kingston proved it's sturdiness in the video below:
It's said to be able to withstand a G-shock of 1500 G, whatever G-shock means. Couldn't find it on google, but it simply means the product is very resistant and hard to spoil. =D
That being said, a hard disk of this level of resilience would mean that your data would still be there after you drop your laptop, but it's very likely that the other parts, especially the LCD screen would be damaged beyond repair such that you won't be able to do anything to it anyway. ^^". But preserving data is probably more important, isn't it?
More of such videos at KingstonSSDNow Youtube channel
source
Anyway, kingston proved it's sturdiness in the video below:
It's said to be able to withstand a G-shock of 1500 G, whatever G-shock means. Couldn't find it on google, but it simply means the product is very resistant and hard to spoil. =D
That being said, a hard disk of this level of resilience would mean that your data would still be there after you drop your laptop, but it's very likely that the other parts, especially the LCD screen would be damaged beyond repair such that you won't be able to do anything to it anyway. ^^". But preserving data is probably more important, isn't it?
More of such videos at KingstonSSDNow Youtube channel
source
Click to read entire content!
The behaviour of little Lee Kuan Yews
Monday, February 1, 2010
After The Online Citizen broke the story of homeless people camping out at Sembawang Park, all hell seemed to have broken loose. The authorities which, with all their resources could have helped these homeless people, instead seem bent on making life more difficult for them.
This article is an account of what took place on the ground after The Online Citizen’s revelation of the Sembawang Park homeless on 16 January.
The Minister for Community Development, Youth and Sports (MCYS), Dr Vivan Balakrishnan, was reported to have visited both Sembawang Park and Changi beach. We were told he did not speak to any of the homeless at Sembawang Park but he did take time to chat with those at Changi. Both times, he was accompanied by a posse of officials from Nparks and MCYS.
The homeless from Sembawang Park were told to dismantle their tents and were issued summons. They were also ordered to leave the area immediately. After TOC suggested that they be given more time, the officers from MCYS promised to give them a further three days to leave the park – this despite some of the campers having valid camping permits. (You can read a more detailed account of what happened here.)
The campers had, on that following Monday, gone to the MCYS office to discuss the matter of alternative accommodation with the officers, as previously arranged. After the discussion, they returned to Sembawang Park to pack up their belongings. They were greeted with the presence of workmen at the camping area who apparently were there to seal off the site. Indeed, Nparks seem eager to have the homeless leave the area as soon as possible, given how swiftly it had arranged for the workers to be there. The day after the campers left, the camping area at the park was cordoned off for “maintenance”.
Over at Changi beach, the homeless were treated just as badly. After the minister of MCYS’s visit, the campers were harassed for days, sometimes two or three times a day by Nparks officers, the campers told us. It is believed that these officers included those from other Nparks branches, such as East Coast, who were roped in to help rid Changi beach of the campers and the homeless, apparently.
The verbal threats by these officers were more blatant as well. “I do not want to see your face [here] anymore,” one lady was told by an Nparks officer. She was there to visit her friends who were fishing. She refused to oblige and has continued to visit Changi beach.
The “rules and regulations” and conditions as laid down by Nparks officers which the campers had to adhere to seem ridiculous at times. The campers were told that they had to be by their tents when Nparks officers come round to conduct their checks – at any time of the day. If they were not by their tents, the officers threatened that all their belongings would be confiscated, including clothings, tents, fishing equipment. If they wanted to retrieve their confiscated belongings, which would include children’s clothings as well, they would have to go to the Nparks office and pay S$300, the campers were told.
“How can we be by our tents all day waiting for them?” asked one of the men who was there to fish. “I told them to let us know what time they would come round to conduct their checks and we would be here to meet them,” he said. However, Nparks officers rejected this and insisted they did as they were told. “How can we go out and fish then?” the man asked. “We can’t even go to the toilet like that,” he added.
On one occasion, three Nparks officers demanded repeatedly that he packed up and leave immediately. “We told you to leave right now!” the officers kept shouting at him.
According to the men, other “rules” issued by Nparks officers were that it is illegal for the campers to leave anything outside of their tents and also that children were not allowed to be inside the tents, even if they were taking shelter from the rain.
On another occasion, one of the fishermen had booked a permit at the AXS machine which was located just outside the Nparks office at Changi beach. When the officers demanded to see the permit, the man told them that the machine had run out of paper and was not able to issue a paper permit. He asked the officers to check with the machine and they would see that his application was approved. The officers, however, refused and ordered him to pack up.
The Nparks officers also issued summons even to those who had valid camping permits, we were told.
One of the most puzzling and outlandish abuse of authority perhaps is the action of Nparks officers unzipping the tents of these campers without permission or warning. This have riled the campers, which included women. “How can they do this?” asked one of the men. In the past, the campers would use locks to secure their tents whenever they went out to fish. However, after they found their locks were cut by, they believe, Nparks officers, they no longer lock their tents.
Several of the campers believe that they have been “blacklisted” by Nparks when it comes to applying for permits through the AXS machine. One of them has been trying to do so for the last six months without success. Some of the homeless campers at Sembawang Park have also told TOC of similar experiences.
Yet, these may not be the worse that the homeless had faced.
One of them, a seven-month pregnant lady, had approached MCYS for help earlier, before we came to know of her plight. She told TOC that when she was at the MCYS offices, she was, quite incredibly, told to put up at a hotel in Geylang as it was “cheaper”. This pregnant lady, who has two other small children and a husband who had quit his job so he can be with her at the park to ensure her safety, held back her tears and her anger. After hearing what was told to her by the MCYS officer, she got up from her chair and walked out of the office.
A couple who had approached their Member of Parliament for help, told us what this MP advised them: “You can go sleep at the beach since there are many people doing that.” [Update - 1 Feb 2010, 13.23 hours: TOC has contacted the MP in question and received this reply from the MP: "I would never ever reply to anyone who comes to seek help in that manner." ]
On one occasion last week, the Nparks officers were again doing their rounds and were particularly demanding that a couple packed up and left Changi beach. When TOC came to know of this, we asked to speak to the officer in charge of the group, over the phone. When he was told that “Andrew from The Online Citizen” was looking to speak to him, the officer could be heard saying dismissively, “Ahh! We don’t entertain!” It was the same answer we got when we tried to speak to another officer by the name of Anthony whom we believe is in charge of the Nparks office in Changi beach.
1927 350250TOC wrote to the Chief Executive Officer of the National Parks Board, Mr Ng Lang, and to its Chairman of the Board, Mrs Christina Ong, on 27 January. Our email was copied to Dr Balakrishnan as well.
Our email asked for clarification on the rules and regulations regarding the use of public parks in Singapore, particularly those which were issued by Nparks officers to the campers at Changi beach. Since these rules were issued by Nparks officers, it was only natural that the public should be made aware of them. Thus, it was a matter of public concern.
Nparks has not replied to our query.
It would seem that the authority given to Nparks officers on the ground are either extensive – to the point where they can issue arbitrary and ridiculous orders – or that the officers on the ground are abusing their authority and powers, along with their blatant and rude behavior bordering on contempt for the poor and homeless.
Nparks officers, and indeed all public servants, including those from MCYS, must keep in mind that they are public servants and not “little Lee Kuan Yews” in charge of their own little domains – issuing orders and rules and regulations according to their own fancies. Public parks in Singapore belong to Singaporeans. Nparks officers are merely custodians of these parks.
But what really gets your goat is that the authorities have known about these homeless people for months. At least one MP, as mentioned above, had actually recommended that the couple set up home at the beach. Yet, why did the authorities, especially the MCYS, not do anything until TOC reported the situation?
And when it did finally do something, it was with a posse of officials, policemen and the minister himself descending on the parks in an ostentatiously threatening manner – with police cars and officers issuing summons and barking orders to the homeless.
“I am a Singaporean, you know?” one of the campers told TOC. “I come here to fish. What is wrong with that? Why they treat us like this?”
Source: The Online Citizen (TOC)
Sharing an interesting article since I haven't been exactly active. :P.
This article is an account of what took place on the ground after The Online Citizen’s revelation of the Sembawang Park homeless on 16 January.
The Minister for Community Development, Youth and Sports (MCYS), Dr Vivan Balakrishnan, was reported to have visited both Sembawang Park and Changi beach. We were told he did not speak to any of the homeless at Sembawang Park but he did take time to chat with those at Changi. Both times, he was accompanied by a posse of officials from Nparks and MCYS.
The homeless from Sembawang Park were told to dismantle their tents and were issued summons. They were also ordered to leave the area immediately. After TOC suggested that they be given more time, the officers from MCYS promised to give them a further three days to leave the park – this despite some of the campers having valid camping permits. (You can read a more detailed account of what happened here.)
The campers had, on that following Monday, gone to the MCYS office to discuss the matter of alternative accommodation with the officers, as previously arranged. After the discussion, they returned to Sembawang Park to pack up their belongings. They were greeted with the presence of workmen at the camping area who apparently were there to seal off the site. Indeed, Nparks seem eager to have the homeless leave the area as soon as possible, given how swiftly it had arranged for the workers to be there. The day after the campers left, the camping area at the park was cordoned off for “maintenance”.
Over at Changi beach, the homeless were treated just as badly. After the minister of MCYS’s visit, the campers were harassed for days, sometimes two or three times a day by Nparks officers, the campers told us. It is believed that these officers included those from other Nparks branches, such as East Coast, who were roped in to help rid Changi beach of the campers and the homeless, apparently.
The verbal threats by these officers were more blatant as well. “I do not want to see your face [here] anymore,” one lady was told by an Nparks officer. She was there to visit her friends who were fishing. She refused to oblige and has continued to visit Changi beach.
The “rules and regulations” and conditions as laid down by Nparks officers which the campers had to adhere to seem ridiculous at times. The campers were told that they had to be by their tents when Nparks officers come round to conduct their checks – at any time of the day. If they were not by their tents, the officers threatened that all their belongings would be confiscated, including clothings, tents, fishing equipment. If they wanted to retrieve their confiscated belongings, which would include children’s clothings as well, they would have to go to the Nparks office and pay S$300, the campers were told.
“How can we be by our tents all day waiting for them?” asked one of the men who was there to fish. “I told them to let us know what time they would come round to conduct their checks and we would be here to meet them,” he said. However, Nparks officers rejected this and insisted they did as they were told. “How can we go out and fish then?” the man asked. “We can’t even go to the toilet like that,” he added.
On one occasion, three Nparks officers demanded repeatedly that he packed up and leave immediately. “We told you to leave right now!” the officers kept shouting at him.
According to the men, other “rules” issued by Nparks officers were that it is illegal for the campers to leave anything outside of their tents and also that children were not allowed to be inside the tents, even if they were taking shelter from the rain.
On another occasion, one of the fishermen had booked a permit at the AXS machine which was located just outside the Nparks office at Changi beach. When the officers demanded to see the permit, the man told them that the machine had run out of paper and was not able to issue a paper permit. He asked the officers to check with the machine and they would see that his application was approved. The officers, however, refused and ordered him to pack up.
The Nparks officers also issued summons even to those who had valid camping permits, we were told.
One of the most puzzling and outlandish abuse of authority perhaps is the action of Nparks officers unzipping the tents of these campers without permission or warning. This have riled the campers, which included women. “How can they do this?” asked one of the men. In the past, the campers would use locks to secure their tents whenever they went out to fish. However, after they found their locks were cut by, they believe, Nparks officers, they no longer lock their tents.
Several of the campers believe that they have been “blacklisted” by Nparks when it comes to applying for permits through the AXS machine. One of them has been trying to do so for the last six months without success. Some of the homeless campers at Sembawang Park have also told TOC of similar experiences.
Yet, these may not be the worse that the homeless had faced.
One of them, a seven-month pregnant lady, had approached MCYS for help earlier, before we came to know of her plight. She told TOC that when she was at the MCYS offices, she was, quite incredibly, told to put up at a hotel in Geylang as it was “cheaper”. This pregnant lady, who has two other small children and a husband who had quit his job so he can be with her at the park to ensure her safety, held back her tears and her anger. After hearing what was told to her by the MCYS officer, she got up from her chair and walked out of the office.
A couple who had approached their Member of Parliament for help, told us what this MP advised them: “You can go sleep at the beach since there are many people doing that.” [Update - 1 Feb 2010, 13.23 hours: TOC has contacted the MP in question and received this reply from the MP: "I would never ever reply to anyone who comes to seek help in that manner." ]
On one occasion last week, the Nparks officers were again doing their rounds and were particularly demanding that a couple packed up and left Changi beach. When TOC came to know of this, we asked to speak to the officer in charge of the group, over the phone. When he was told that “Andrew from The Online Citizen” was looking to speak to him, the officer could be heard saying dismissively, “Ahh! We don’t entertain!” It was the same answer we got when we tried to speak to another officer by the name of Anthony whom we believe is in charge of the Nparks office in Changi beach.
1927 350250TOC wrote to the Chief Executive Officer of the National Parks Board, Mr Ng Lang, and to its Chairman of the Board, Mrs Christina Ong, on 27 January. Our email was copied to Dr Balakrishnan as well.
Our email asked for clarification on the rules and regulations regarding the use of public parks in Singapore, particularly those which were issued by Nparks officers to the campers at Changi beach. Since these rules were issued by Nparks officers, it was only natural that the public should be made aware of them. Thus, it was a matter of public concern.
Nparks has not replied to our query.
It would seem that the authority given to Nparks officers on the ground are either extensive – to the point where they can issue arbitrary and ridiculous orders – or that the officers on the ground are abusing their authority and powers, along with their blatant and rude behavior bordering on contempt for the poor and homeless.
Nparks officers, and indeed all public servants, including those from MCYS, must keep in mind that they are public servants and not “little Lee Kuan Yews” in charge of their own little domains – issuing orders and rules and regulations according to their own fancies. Public parks in Singapore belong to Singaporeans. Nparks officers are merely custodians of these parks.
But what really gets your goat is that the authorities have known about these homeless people for months. At least one MP, as mentioned above, had actually recommended that the couple set up home at the beach. Yet, why did the authorities, especially the MCYS, not do anything until TOC reported the situation?
And when it did finally do something, it was with a posse of officials, policemen and the minister himself descending on the parks in an ostentatiously threatening manner – with police cars and officers issuing summons and barking orders to the homeless.
“I am a Singaporean, you know?” one of the campers told TOC. “I come here to fish. What is wrong with that? Why they treat us like this?”
Source: The Online Citizen (TOC)
Sharing an interesting article since I haven't been exactly active. :P.
Labels: Article
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