Flight of the Conchords - The Humans Are Dead

Hyperdrive makes its debut on Australian TV
Wednesday June 27, 9:30 PM, ABC.
Thanks Narky

Apple's iPhone getting initial great reviews

.. a weekend in Singapore ..

Well, it was a bit of a whirlwind trip, but our weekend in Singapore was awesome fun. We arrived by Aeroline bus at about 1am and one of the efficient friendly and super clean Toyota Crown's that form the majority of Singapore's taxi fleet quickly whisked us away to Geyland, where our (small & cheap) hotel was.

The room was small, but functional, and we didn't really care as we were only spending an hour or so either side of sleep there anyway. The neighbours were friendly too, seemingly our street being entirely populated by Singapore's lovely (and not quite so lovely) ladies of the night.

Actually, 'ladies of the night' is not quite the correct term because Saturday morning, 10am there were a couple of enthusiastic proponents peppering the footpath, with umbrella's to protect against the sun, of course. I'm not sure who exactly is looking to secure the company of a call-girl after (or before!) a Saturday breakfast, but hey, when in rome, something something something.

As we were going to be leaving at 2:30pm the next day, we knew we didn't have too much time on our hands, so after a casual sleep in we hit the road, first stop: Sentosa island and the aquarium. We caught the cable car from the Harbour front across to the island, which was actually a lot quicker journey than I expected it to be.

Before I go on, one thing I noticed about Singapore was that it seemed a reasonable amount hotter and less humid than KL. I'm not sure if that's a regular thing or just happened to be this weekend, but I can say that I deeply regretted wearing jeans on that first day. I was driven so mad by the heat that I was forced to purchase a solar powered fan-hat. Worth every cent, even though it barely works.

Anyway, so where was I? Aah yes, Sentosa, ok, so we made our way to the Aquarium which was thankfully largely underground. Actually enjoyed the aquarium more than I thought I would, and I was expecting it to be pretty good. A really nice collection of exhibits with very little along the boring model of sea animals line.

Highlights: surprisingly, perhaps the jellyfish.

Ok, so cable car back to the 'mainland' of Singapore, can't remember what we did for lunch, but not long after this alleged meal, we headed north, via taxi, to the zoo.

Singapore zoo is often spoken about in hushed tones amongst the zoological fans, and with good reason. This is a great zoo. We unfortunately only had about 90 minutes to see what was recommended to take twice as long, but I think we made a good go of it. Amazing place, can't wait to go back and do it all again.

Highlights: the Orangutan's? The huge crocs? Oh don't make me choose.
Lowlights: perhaps we were a bit late and some of the attractions had gone for a lie down.

This is not one of them, this is a worker sleeping in the back of a moving truck on the highway:

Dinner was a great wanton noodle soup (Peilin, please help, what was it called again?) and then completely unnecessarily followed by satay sticks. In my rush to get out of work on Friday I forgot the print the details of where we were actually catching our return bus from the next day, so probably the next hour was spent hunting down an internet cafe so I could check. Thanks Chills Cafe, job well done in true Singaporean style... clean, quiet, minimum fuss.

Taxi back to the hotel (Peilin remarking that maybe one of the ladies was going swimming because she was wearing a bikini top). Aaah sleep, sleep, glorious sleep.
Sunday morning, another sleep in, then over to east coast park for a nice bike ride along the water then lunch at somewhere exotic..Burger King.

Just quickly, on the topic of taxis.. the whole scale of economics is a bit different here in KL, and taxi rides are often laughably cheap, even paying the gwei-lo rates. Singapore is much closer to Sydney in terms of exchange rate and prices, yet still the taxi's cost about $S15 for 20 minute trip. And we're talking a really nice taxi experience here too. Why are Australian taxi's so damn expensive per km?

Hmmm... Anyways... After lunch back into the Harbourside again, a nice amount of time wandering around 'Candy Empire' (we spent how much in there?) Then back on the bus to return to KL. Phew. I think that's got it all.

I will miss the long, rolling green avenues of you Singapore, and your clean, organised ways. .. ...But we shall meet again.

Singapore trip
Singapore trip

Hi everyone. I'm heading down to Singapore tonight for a weekend that will probably contain a way too small subset of : visit Singapore zoo, the night safari, sentosa island, aquarium, bike riding, temple visits, great food & shopping.

Have a great weekend all. Next update will be Monday night, or Sunday if I can still keep my eyes open.

Singapore trip!

Islamic Artisans Constructed
Exotic Nonrepeating Pattern

500 Years Before Mathematicians

Medieval Islamic artisans seem to have developed a procedure for creating jigsawlike mosaics that ultimately led them to an exotic pattern that mathematicians would discover nearly half a millennium later.
Researchers report that 15th-century buildings in Iran feature tiles arranged in a so-called quasicrystal, which is symmetric but does not repeat itself regularly.

"Here is evidence it [the pattern] was being used, if not understood, 500 years ahead of when we had any idea what was going on with [it] in the West," says physics graduate student Peter J. Lu of Harvard University. Lu began poring over photos from Iran, Iraq, Turkey and Afghanistan after seeing hints of the pattern while traveling in Uzbekistan. The Islamic artisans seem to have spun a wide variety of symmetric traceries from a set of five shapes, according to a report Lu co-authored, published online February 22 in Science.

Medieval Islamic mosques, palaces and other buildings were routinely covered in ornate tile work, called girih, that inscribes stars and other shapes. Scholars believe that workers drew many of these patterns with compass and straightedge. But some of the shapes could only have been accurately constructed using a set of five "girih tiles," Lu and Princeton University physicist Paul Steinhardt, a quasicrystals expert, say in their study.

.. read on

MOBILE in-room work pods, personal robotic butlers, voice-activated smart rooms where curtains are opened and lights turned down on command, air-permeable windows where fresh outdoor air is filtered through a smart window, a room that can morph into different configurations and environments at the touch of a button and virtual video conferencing so you can enjoy dinner with family and friends in other locations from the comfort of your hotel room.

Welcome to your room at tomorrow's inn, at least that's what those involved in the Hotel of Tomorrow (HOT) project, a US-based group of experts envisioning the future of hotels, say.

An industry-spanning initiative put together by Hospitality Design magazine and Gettys, a Chicago-based design firm, HOT participants says that future hotels "will be multifunctional and intelligent, combining imagination with efficiency", and that future guests will be able to create the type of room they want according to their wants and needs on the day.

In its first year, the HOT project built to prototype stage several design concepts including a bathroom that doubled as a day spa with space-age shower/tub/steam room and automatic body-drying system; a "living wall", creating sustainable and renewable in-room energy; and mobile, wireless self-contained in-room work pods that fold up when not in use.

Andrew Loader, national director of sales and marketing for Sofitel Hotels and Resorts in Australia, says he believes the future is about "smart" guest rooms that cater to the guest's personal preferences.

Loader believes that while the latest technology will continue to have an important role in hotel rooms, it will be more about enhancing the comfort of guests, rather than office-style functionality.

"Wellbeing is emerging as a primary theme for future hotel design and concepts," he says.

"Future designs are also starting to incorporate the idea of oversized bathrooms and holistic spa room rituals, the option for in-room fitness programs with specialised sports kits and work-out gear as opposed to communal gyms."

But it seems that our hotel rooms of the future will not just be about bells and high-tech whistles. Sustainability and eco-sensitivity will be one of the most important features of future hotel design, says Glen Hiemstra, founder of Futurist.com.

"Climate change and sustainability will be dominant in 25 years, even more so than today," Hiemstra says.

"Hotels and rooms will strive for maximum energy efficiency and sustainability. This means on-site energy generation - solar and wind, hydrogen fuel cell and nanobattery - high levels of water recycling, and the use of natural and organic products in the room."

Nick Baker, executive general manager sales and marketing, Voyages Hotels and Resorts, agrees.

"Tomorrow's holiday-makers will have very different needs and requirements to today's tourists. Carbon-neutral hotels will become the norm, rather than the exception and discerning travellers will want to blend in with their environments, rather than stand out. Participating in ways to replenish their local environment - such as planting trees in areas of the rainforest, or participating in programs such as our Coral Watch program on Voyages Heron Island to monitor the impact of coral bleaching - will and should become a prerequisite for future holiday-makers."

Peter Hook, of the Accor hotel chain, believes that when it comes to future hotel design it is the basics that count. "The gimmicks will always get attention, but I think the biggest innovation is that guests staying in the mid and economy sectors of the market can expect many touches that they previously would have expected in five-star rooms."

2027: A HOLIDAY ODYSSEY

Here's how your hotel of tomorrow could look:

* A touch-screen unit that lets you single out hotel rooms the way you pick airline seats.

* Nano-painted walls that provide voice-activated on-demand electricity exclusive of cords or cables.

* Biometric monitors that adjust lighting, temperature, and humidity based on your health needs and personal preferences.

* Self-cleaning, nano-fibre linens and light-emitting pillows for late-night reading.

* A combined bed/bath unit in which the sleep surface can be retracted to make a bathtub and shower.

* Floor pad to monitor guests' health through their feet and a mirror to display the data.

* Fashion-consulting system, which would take your plans (work, exercise, a night on the town) and personal preferences into account and then display appropriate clothing from local retailers.

See http://hot.gettys.com.

THE WORKS

* There are two underwater resorts under construction: the Poseidon Undersea Resort in Fiji, and the Hydropolis in Dubai, both due to open in 2009. See http://www.poseidonresorts.com.

* The Aeroscraft, a 400-tonne blimp designed as a flying hotel, will accommodate 250 passengers. It's still in the prototype stage, but the designers hope to have it ready to fly by 2010. See http://www.aeroscraft.com.

* The first hotel on the moon could be up and running by 2050, says designer Hans-Jurgen Rombaut of the Rotterdam Academy of Architecture in the Netherlands. He is calling it the Lunatic Hotel. See www.rombaut.nl.

.. from smh

cool images I've stolen from this site

Wind-Powered mobile changer

Cellular network operator Orange will be showcasing its wind-powered cellphone charger next week , where the prototype will be able to harness the power of the wind in order to provide some much needed juice to exhausted batteries that are often a common occurence among cellphones these days.

The operator commissioned the prototype, which weighs just 150g and can be mounted on a tent, as part of its sponsorship of the Glastonbury festival.

The unit is designed to generate and store power during the day to allow charging in the evening.

Orange worked with the University of Texas to develop a charger that would take advantage of the English climate 'to ensure a constant energy source.'

Don't expect to see them in the shops yet, as the research is still in its infancy and the turbines are expected to be developed further before a commercial launch.

Coming lifestyle technologies

Robotics

The future: Your house is full of robots. Some look after the housework, others take care of maintenance. Most are utilitarian in appearance, although you can opt for a designer housing, or skin, if you have the money. Whatever the task, there is now a robot to help you get it done.

Huh? Robots of the future aren't quite going to be what we saw in The Jetsons. The idea of humanoid robots was nice for science fiction but task-specific bots are much more efficient. Instead, there will be embedded and free-roaming robots in the home. Examples that are already available include cleaners such as iRobot's Roomba ($599) and Electrolux's Trilobite ($2999) and Friendly Robotics' lawn-mowing Robomow (about $1400).

Joseph Engelberger, dubbed the "father of robotics" and now aged in his 80s, wants to see robots that help the elderly made a priority.

Companies including Toshiba have been working on "life support partner" robot projects since the start of the decade and several Australian universities are world leaders in robotics research.


Mind-controlled interfaces

The future: Gamers are sitting back, eyes flitting across the screen.

Little more than blinks and twitches indicate their involvement while on screen their avatars zoom about, acting on every thought.

Huh? With the help of a piece of headgear that reads electrical activity in the brain, you will be able to think left, right, up, down, shoot, jump, and you will do it in the game. Recent demonstrations showed early success in creating such an interface. One recent start-up, Emotiv Systems, has a bicycle helmet-style controller, Project Epoc, that monitors brain signals and converts thoughts into game movements. Honda Research has demonstrated mind-control technology for moving the fingers of a robot hand. Important applications of this technology will allow the severely disabled to use their minds to break through the barrier of physical impairment.


Personal networking

The future: When you meet someone new, shaking hands won't just be an exchange of pleasantries. You'll also share data directly through skin contact or wireless transfer. Your personal network will then share the information with your mobile devices.

Huh? Yes, your skin can transmit data - just like an electric shock, but without the zap. It's a nice trick that researchers are looking to put to good use. Japanese telecommunications giant NTT DoCoMo has achieved data rates of 10 megabits per second over skin. Devices including wristwatches and pens are also potential hubs for personal networking, with Hewlett-Packard demonstrating such concept designs in Sydney recently.


Smart buildings

The future: The walls really could have ears now. All glass and painted surfaces are doing a lot of extra work in the home and office, not least of which is reducing power needs. Windows automatically shade occupants as the need arises while generating power through invisible solar cells. Not only are robots living in the walls but the walls are doing their part, absorbing impurities from the air.

Huh? Big architecture is combining with small particles to achieve many things. The biggest is the possibility of smart systems embedded in glass-walled skyscrapers. SmartGlass International is already selling electronically controlled glass panels, with glass of varying opacity to control lighting, temperature and privacy. Solar cells can be embedded in window glass.

The Carvist Corporation is turning glass facades and roofs into solar energy systems capable of generating most, and perhaps all, of a building's power needs.

Smart paints are also ready to do their part for the environment. Not only can you buy kitchen and bathroom paints that prevent mildew, such as Perma-White (four litres for $78), you can cover a building in Ecopaint, from Millennium Chemicals, which absorbs smog-producing molecules, specifically nitrogen oxides.


Smart fabric

The future: Dry cleaning? That's for vintage. Now your jeans stay clean of their own accord. They're also more comfortable than ever, and waterproof - even bulletproof, if you like. If you're lost, just turn down the embedded music player and ask your jacket for directions. Oh, and then there's that invisibility cloak.

Huh? Already there are high-performance clothing lines with nanotechnology in the fibre. Nano-Tex fibre is being used in clothing and furnishing textiles to make them resistant to wrinkles, fading and stains with the capacity to cool or warm the wearer.

The list of fabric advancements is huge. LumiGram is a company making fibre-optic fabrics that radiate light. Tablecloths (from $571), tops ($325), cushions ($408) and bags ($211) are being made of this material. Sportswear makers are designing outfits to house your portable technology. Burton ski wear has teamed up with Motorola to create the Audex jacket ($899) with embedded Bluetooth systems for control of phones and iPods, with speakers and microphone. Even GPS is coming to such outfits soon. DuPont has launched tops containing Kevlar to protect against knife attacks.

Military applications of smart fabric will include embedded systems that monitor the whole body, diagnosing wounds and treating injuries. MIT has opened an Institute for Soldier Nanotechnologies to develop suits with superhuman properties - flexible yet highly protective, with muscle-enhancing properties, light-refraction for near-invisibility and sensors for constant medical feedback.


Where's my flying car?

So much of the future is hard to predict, even the brightest minds can get it wrong.

"Everything that can be invented has been invented."Charles H. Duell, Commissioner, US Office of Patents, 1899

"I think there is a world market for maybe five computers." IBM chairman Thomas Watson, 1943

"Computers in the future may have only 1000 vacuum tubes and perhaps weigh 1 1/2 tons." Popular Mechanics, 1949

"640K ought to be enough for anybody."Microsoft chairman Bill Gates, 1981

"(By 2000), near space will be fitted with pharmaceutical factories and penal stations."Thomas Keneally, 1986

"Early in the next century, gym memberships may decline as the weight- and waist-conscious no longer need treadmills to burn off their favourite fast foods. All that will be required ... is to pop a fat-destroying pill."Wired magazine, 1996


The future of bio-technology

DON'T WORRY about that family history of heart disease, because gene therapy will soon clear all that up. Artificial limbs or an exo-kit will have you run, jump and lift like an Olympian.

Genetic research is already quite mature, although ethical debates will shape how it can be used. Will we get embryonic gene therapy or will genetic problems be treated only after birth? Best-case scenarios could include growing new organs from our own tissue and the arrival of vaccinations for cancer. The world's laboratories are tackling such areas as a matter of urgency, and one of the leaders is the gene therapy research unit at Westmead Children's Hospital, in Sydney.

Prosthetics already use amazing technology, with both realistic and high-performance options. Performance prosthetics, in particular, have a "cyborg" edge, offering users potential benefits over their original limbs. One Japanese company will next year offer an exoskeleton, the HAL-5 ($713 a month) for those who want to enhance their lifting capabilities.


The magic of nano

Arthur C. Clarke once said, "Any science or technology sufficiently advanced is indistinguishable from magic". Molecular nanotechnology is the science that will bring us closest to this magical future.

We have mentioned some textile and architectural uses for nanotechnology but it is in the engineering of true machines and systems on a molecular scale that nanotechnology promises to change the world in amazing ways.

We could see Star Trek-style replicators, with nanobots that build whatever we want, including food, out of ambient atoms and molecules.

Our blood could be infused with machines that fight disease, heal wounds, and maintain a healthy level of fat in our systems.

Another possibility is a "utility fog", a cloud of networked nanobots running errands in the air around us, whether related to health or business.

While nanotechnology is still in the theoretical stages, it is close enough to prompt scrutiny of its ethical implications. Expect to be living in a very different world by 2050.

from smh

Breakthrough in boosting low-light photo quality

A year from now, capturing a crisp, clear image of a candlelit birthday party could be a piece of cake - even with a camera phone.

Eastman Kodak said it has developed a colour-filter technology that at least doubles the sensitivity to light of the image sensor in every digital camera, enabling shutterbugs to take better pictures in poor light.

.. read more here

Just watched 'Hot Fuzz', the latest action, comedy, crime, mystery from the makers of 'Shaun of the Dead' and loved it. It was good to have a bit of a relaxing night as I was at work until 1:30am yesterday to help with a database change.

One interesting thing I noticed was that even 24 floors up, and in the middle of the building stairwell, there are still gecko's and ants. It's a long crawl up. I wonder how many generations they've lived there? I wonder what the gecko's eat, besides the ants?

Reminds me of that line Jeff Goldblum's character has in 'Jurassic Park' - 'Nature finds a way'.

Anyway, here's the trailer for 'Hot Fuzz', highly recommended from me.

.. the Wireless charging stations are coming ..

There are three basic technologies for wireless charging: radio, resonance and induction.

Radio charging is well suited for charging low-power devices at long distances -- some 30 feet away. This technology is ideal for trickle-charging advance RFID chips affixed to, say, palettes loaded with products in a warehouse.

Resonance charging makes sense for robots, cars, vacuum cleaners and other applications that require massive power over minute distances -- essentially making contact with plastic, but not metal.

Toothbrushes now, and random gadgets will very soon, use inductive charging. This technology uses a coil to create an electromagnetic field across a charging station surface. The device then converts power from the field back into usable electricity, which is put to work charging the battery.

(Meanwhile, researchers at MIT said this week they have come up with a way to wirelessly supply power that could lead to the development of gadgets that don't require batteries at all.)

.. A world without chargers? More details here.

21st century cities

good collection of articles on Forbes.com about the future of cities.
(you may have a brief bit of advertising before it redirects)

19th-century weapon found in whale

A 50-ton bowhead whale caught off the Alaskan coast last month had a weapon fragment embedded in its neck that showed it survived a similar hunt — more than a century ago.

Embedded deep under its blubber was a 3 1/2-inch arrow-shaped projectile that has given researchers insight into the whale's age, estimated between 115 and 130 years old.

... read more

Beer + Sunshine = Hot Water

A Chinese farmer has made his own solar-powered water heater out of beer bottles and hosepipes.

“I invented this for my mother. I wanted her to shower comfortably,” says Ma Yanjun, of Qiqiao village, Shaanxi province.

Ma’s invention features 66 beer bottles attached to a board. The bottles are connected to each other so that water flows through them.

Sunlight heats the water as is passes slowly through the bottles before flowing into the bathroom as hot water, reports China Economy Network.

Ma says it provides enough hot water for all three members of his family to have a shower every day.

And more than 10 families in the village have already followed suit and installed their own versions of Ma’s invention.

from weird Asian news

Home invaders attack man with swordfish snout

A man has been attacked with a swordfish snout in a home invasion in central Queensland, police say.

Police said two men let themselves into an occupied caravan in Bundaberg, about 11.30pm (AEST) yesterday.

They then attacked the 40-year-old male resident with a swordfish snout, described as cartilage with a row of serrated teeth, before fleeing.

The man was treated by paramedics for cuts to his back, hands and arms.

.. from smh

Sin City Breakfast Taco's

housing from cargo containers in London

I think this is a great idea. I would definately give living in one of these a go. Not sure if there'd be room for you to come and stay though. Sorry about that.

.. from inhabitat

Worlds fastest speaking woman

Chaos in KL after 5 hours of rain

KUALA LUMPUR: A five-hour deluge caused flash floods which wreaked havoc in the city last night.

Thousands of people were left stranded in parts of the city when Sungai Klang burst its banks around 9pm.

Dataran Merdeka, Kampung Baru, Masjid Jamek, Masjid India, Air Panas in Setapak, and the city side of Jalan Ampang were under 1m of water.

Two women were injured when they were trapped by the branches of a tree that fell near them after the downpour. Kamala Devi, 46, and her daughter S. Thanaletchumi, 20, were outside the Royal Selangor Club in Dataran Merdeka when the incident occurred at 11pm.

They were accompanying Kamala’s husband, the club’s chief security officer L. Selvarajah, 48, who was checking the building after the heavy rain.
Both women were trapped for half an hour while firemen cut through the branches to get to them.

Kamala broke her right hip while her daughter suffered minor bruises.

At a fast-food outlet in Jalan Tun Perak, two women and a man were injured when a passing bus sent the flood waters crashing into the outlet’s glass entrance at 10.30pm.

Several vehicles at the underground car park in Dataran Merdeka were submerged while the Putra LRT’s Masjid Jamek station had to be closed.

Even the Jalan Maxwell fire station in Sentul was not spared, trapping several members of the Fire and Rescue Department.

PM FUMES OVER FLOODS: Abdullah raps Drainage and Irrigation Department

KUALA LUMPUR: Prime Minister Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi has expressed dismay at the capital’s inadequate flood control measures.

He turned a few faces red when he rebuked the Department of Irrigation and Drainage (DID) for failing to deal with the rising waters that hit several areas in the heart of the city yesterday, despite costly projects such as the much-hyped RM1.93 billion Stormwater Management and Road Tunnel (SMART).

The department’s deputy director-general, Ahmad Fuad Embi, then fumbled as he tried to explain that the construction of the dual-purpose tunnel was on schedule and the rainwater channel was only projected to open by next month.

"Can you speed the work up?" a visibly displeased Abdullah repeatedly asked at the Dewan Bandaraya Kuala Lumpur briefing on the city’s flood preparedness.

"Mobilise all resources. River widening and building of water retention ponds must be given priority. Floods are no longer seasonal and can strike at any time," he said.
"Yesterday, rainwater rose 720mm, nine times the average rainfall of 80mm while 89 people from Kampung Periuk had to be evacuated. We may not be able to predict the next heavy rainfall but preparations have to be in place to prevent flash floods," he said.

Meanwhile, Federal Territories Deputy Minister Datuk Wira Abu Seman Yusop said the SMART tunnel could only divert excess water from the Klang river.

"We have started flood allevation projects for the Gombak, Batu, Sri Johor and Kerayong rivers," he said.

The Jinjang river retention pond to be completed last month but work has been delayed due to a "design dispute" and the new completion date is sometime next year.

from New Straits Times

This was just around the corner from my work. It's strange to see this happen quite easily right in the city like this. But then again, everyone does throw their litter down the water drains.

~ Chinese Foooood ~
.. from 'Dude where's my car'

.. my (chinese) girlfriend said 'and then' to me in passing conversation last night... after I laughed and showed her this scene, I'm pretty sure she won't do it again.

'..And then..and then...and thennnnnn'.....

The Largest island in a lake, on an island in a lake

Here’s a webpage where you can learn:

• what is the largest island,
• the largest lake,
• the largest lake on an island,
• the largest island in a lake,
• the largest island in a lake on an island,
• the largest lake on an island in a lake,
• the largest lake on an island in a lake on an island,
  
• the largest island in a lake on an island in a lake,
• and the largest island in a lake on an island in a lake on an island.
  

Aaah, just click the Link

Lip Dub

A fun lip dub video of Harvey Danger's Flagpole Sitta. The video is made by a company called Connected Ventures, a group of people who work for Vimeo, CollegeHumor, Busted Tees, and Defunker.

interactive tour of Dante's inferno

via Presurfer

hey Glenn, what have you been doing the last few days?

hurro hurro, welcome to my Sunday evening. Glad you could make it. It's been bucketing rain outside for over an hour, with the characteristic light & sound show that seems to be synonymous with rain in Malaysia. My girl and I are kicking on the couch, a configuration we have been in for several hours now, such is the whim and fancy that can grip us on such a lazy afternoon.

I've been chatting on pidgin on and off for a few hours. I'm now spending more time in ubuntu linux than I am in winxp, and am only really finding myself booting back into xp when i want to do something in particular, like use photoshop. For a general weekends tasks, listening to music, surfing the web, watching shows, ubuntu serves me extremely well. The fact that it's lightning fast and comes with some great software certainly doesn't hurt either.

Last night we went to dinner at Chris' & Veronica's new pad (you live there Veronica, admit it ok? hehe) which was great... rabbit and venison satay sticks, camembert and black olives and sliced cherry tomatoes for an apetiser. Looovely!


Friday night was Evan Donnolley's farewell back to the land of Oz. He's been here for 9 or 10 weeks, hopefully he'll be back soon too. We staked out the back of the little Havana bar with 15 or so of our closest friends and played pool and drank and laughed. There was also some hazy occurences of attempting to balance the pool queue on noses as well.
It was a close call, but I'm going to award the most entertaining person of the night award to Kirsha. If you don't know, don't ask because I won't tell. ;)

The wednesday day before was a fairly busy one at work, so when I left I invited Frank to come and have a quick drink at Havana afterwards. He said he would only have one or two, which suited me fine.
..Anyway, so it was close to 3am when we were drunkenly eating curry down the road wasn't it. hehe... a good night, but ouch my head the next day. There's few things that let you know just how hungover you are than sitting in air-conditioning after 4 hrs sleep and too many beers and need to write code.

Aah well, it's not something that I do very often, but I'm happy to inform you that I have not learnt any lessons at all from this.

Currently listening to my newly acquired (note: I do not say 'bought') Bonobo collection. Me likey likey.. maybe you likey likey too?

The Pasha Bulker

The east coast of Australia has been whipped by some ferocious storms this last week. Currently there are nine ppl dead, 4000 evacuated and 200,000 without power. My good friend Mick Ford, who now lives in Newcastle (about an hour or so north of Sydney), took these great pics and video of the 'Pasher Bulker' cargo ship which broke its' mooring and ran aground.

see more photos at Mick's Flickr site

This is Drivemocion. It’s a display system for your car that allows you to communicate simple messages to other road users. For example, you can say “Thank you” to the driver behind who has just let you pass, or "Where did you get your licence, in a pack of noodles?, you bloody idiot!"

Considering that most Malaysian drivers consider indicating left and right to be an optional extra novelty function of their car, it would be interesting to see if this caught on here.

I think this sort of inter-car communcation tool is a really good thing. I'd definately buy something like this.


The small electronic display unit is attached to the rear window while the remote control goes to the windscreen where you can easily reach it. They communicate via infrared.

Both the display unit and the remote control are fixed to the inside of the car window using power suction cups so they are very easy to install.

The main unit is powered by 4 AA batteries and they can last about four months depending on usage.

Depending on which version you purchase, (there are two, three or five message versions), the two-messages version comes with only two smileys — :) and :(. The five-messages version comes with :), :(, Thanks, Back Off and Idiot.

It’s possible to have four-letter words or other “customised” messages (you can’t do it yourself, you have to go to an accessories shop) but you have to know that these may not just cost extra but they will also increase your chances of getting run off the road.