The uMobile Diary: Ads

It's almost a month since I got my uMobile SIM, first thing that happened was, my FREE load got consumed without me knowing it. I found out that my HP iPaq 510 Voice Messenger was connecting wirelessly (which app I don't know) and eating up my load. So the first month load just disappeared. Now, I made sure that when the next month came, my phone is off. Lo and behold there's my P100 load and I was able to make my first call today. But I can't seem to send text messages.

Regarding the ads, well, still hasn't received anything.

PLDT Landline Plus Prepaid SIM

There's a problem in marketing when a product is launched but the availability is scarce. That's what happened with the PLDT Landline Plus Prepaid SIM. Even their business centers doesn't carry them.

It was just a few days after they've launched this product when I went to the Welcome Rotonda PLDT Business Office, I told that they have it but doesn't have any stocks (what a way to put it right?), anyways, I tried looking for the SIM at "dealers" but this elusive SIM is not to be found.

Today, I went to the Pasay City Business Office to check if they have the SIM, but lo and behold, I was told that they don't have it anymore and that they're not selling it in their office (even when there's this big tarpauling advertising the product), that I should check out the dealers. YEAH RIGHT, looks like this very promising product was outed very early to provide confusion and congestion on the network, since it's really a GSM SIM with some limitations to it.

myGlobe iPhone

Globe has customized postpaid plans for you to enjoy and maximize the features of the iPhone 3G. Globe's iPhone 3G Plans include free call minutes, free text messages and free internet both mobile (using Globe's network) and Wi-Fi (using WiZ Wi-Fi). You can get the iPhone 3G for free at Plan 4999! This comes with 100 hours of mobile internet and unlimited access using Wiz Wi-Fi.

The 8GB and 16GB are available under the Prepaid Kit offer. The 8GB retails for P41,899 and the 16GB retails for P48,899. While the price may be steep, the price is a result of increase in dollar exchange rate as well as tax. This is why Globe is giving you P1,000 worth of load for every purchase. Plus, you even get P1,000 discount when you are one of the first 1,000 who avails via reservation!

myGlobe iPhone

Will you look at this, the hype is too much and so is the Price! Too much!

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Chain Emails

It's unfortunate that chain letters did not stop when snail mail became obsolete. They're still here and taking the form of legitimate emails from families and friends who still fall prey to these kinds of belief, that bad luck will come if you don't pass it on.

I was thought in my religion class that this can be a form of false idolatry. But what's more worrisome is that they apply it even on real prayers. People! God does not anything in return when He gives. Neither will he punishes you if you don't pass forward a prayer, though you will definitely be blessed.

Home : Globe Corporate

Home : Globe Corporate

I read an article the other day stating that Globe is lacking some improvements on their services. I agree 100% Nothing exciting has been released from this telco for some time. Things are getting boring. And it spans to all it's subsidiary...Globelines, Innove, Handyphone, TM etc.

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Be Funky

Here's a very easy way to "cartoon-ize" your picture. It's an online app that will transform your pictures into cartoons. Check it out.
www.befunky.com

Mozilla addons

I think I found a good addon for Firefox3, gives me easy access to blogging within the browser. Now that I have this ScribeFire, blogging is a lot easier.

I can do this before with the Flock browser, but I use Firefox more often. I can even update my Twitter account with the TwitterFox addon.

Globelines

Globelines

Globelines has not updated their speeds for more than a year now. Their maximum speed is 3Mbps on a data only package and 2Mbps on a data + phone package.

But let me just emphasize that my 2Mbps connection has been stable for more than a month now. Consistent speed and uninterrupted connection. I just hope that this is not a dream.

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Globe Visibility Now on Prepaid

Phone Tools : myGlobe

This is inevitable. If Smart has their SmartBro Prepaid, this is Globe's answer to that. Basically the same price, Globe just made the price "affordable".

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ASUS EeePC 1000H sale on Taiwan

Engadget
The ASUS' 10-inch Eee PC 1000H on sale this soon after being introduced at Computex is like a breath of fresh air. NT$18,988 (or around $625).

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No PowerPC Snow Leopard

Engadget

Mac user's of PowerPC processors are surely disappointed that they will not be able to upgrade to the latest Mac OS 10.6 since it will only support Intel processors.

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Sony Ericsson's Cyber-shot C905

Engadget

Sony Ericsson's Cyber-shot C905, codenamed "Shiho." It has an 8.1megapixel camera with both xenon and LED flashes (for still and video capture, respectively), GPS, TV out, DLNA certification, and HSDPA . The screen's just QVGA, to be released some time in the 4th quarter of this year. Nice!

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iPhone 3G is finally official, starts at $199, available July 11th - Engadget

iPhone 3G is finally official, starts at $199, available July 11th - Engadget

Thinner edges, full plastic back, flush headphone jack, and the iPhone 2.0 firmware. Obviously 3G is at the forefront, but they're also making sure it's available all over internationally, works with enterprises, runs 3rd party apps... and does it all for cheaper. Battery life 300 hours of standby, 8-10 hours of 2G talk, 5 hours of 3G talk, 7 hours of video and 24 hours of audio. GPS is also a go. Apple is using A-GPS, which supplements regular satellite GPS data with info from cellular towers. WiFi data is also worked into the mix, which should give users a pretty solid lock on where the heck they are on this planet. Unfortunately, there's no front-facing cam. Apple hopes to launch in 70 countries this year. 8GB is available for $199, 16GB for $299 -- and the 16GB comes in white.

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Avantgo today

New Palm Centro, meaning reminiscing of old Palm softwares that are kept up to date, and one of them is Avantgo. As I logged on to my account (good thing I remembered my userID and password), I am now contemplating if I will install Avantgo into my phone or not. Hmmm?

To iPhone or not to iPhone

Lately, a lot of my friends have been asking about how good the
iPhone is, is it worth buying or not. My answer is, it depends.

The iPhone is surely a head-turner. The Omph factor is definitely
there. But after a while, it goes away. I mean, yeah I would like to
get one but perhaps, not the current generation.

Weeks ago, I was in a dilemma too, as to what my new phone should be,
and I ended up picking usefulness against, form. Same with the
iPhone, if you're wanting a phone (PHONE), then get the iPhone, it's
very classy and the wow-factor is very much there. But that's as far
as you can get. Use it as a phone, to dial and converse with people,
because if you go beyond calling, then the frustration sets in. Why
do I say this? You see, the input option for the iPhone is mainly (or
is ONLY) thru the touch screen, thru the "multi-touch" that Apple has
been bragging since day 1 of the iPhone. That means, no tactile
feedback, but, again, if you're after the interface, then the iPhone
is the way to go. The display and the UI is very amusing and
attracting at the same time. Again, it all ends there. Because when
the device tries to guess what letter you're trying to press and the
errors are up there. And that's even if the predictive text is off.

The point? Well, the iPhone is a very nice phone, nice feature-set
but for practicality, nah! If you're a person who uses his/her phone
mainly for text, DIFFICULT! At the moment, ebooks (e.g. novels,
medical books, etc) cannot be installed. Applications are still on
their way.

For me, I'm definitely getting one, but not yet! I will still go on
using my Palm Centro. Maybe when they have a much better feature-set
that will suit my needs, then and when the local telcos support it,
maybe then, but again, NOT YET!

Globe Visibility Time-based Pricing

This is Globe's new offering on their wireless broadband service, the time-based pricing of their Visibility service. Still comes with the Huawei E222 usb modem, works with Windows, Macs and Linux.
Tempting but I don't know if it's practical or not.

Phone Tools : myGlobe

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Palm OS SkinUI

I tried this and didn't like it. It made my Centro sluggish. But for
a freeware, it's something to be thankful for.

Palm Centro Files: the Email client

The Palm Centro is a very capable phone, without considering that the
operation system is aging, it gives you most functionalities and use it.

There are phones that offer users new functions, but very seldom will
users be able to use it. One of the reasons why I chose this phone
instead of the Sony Ericsson P1i, because with the Palm Centro, I can
use the features that come with it.

One of these features is the capability to send and receive emails.
Though I've done it with my Sony Ericsson M600i, I don't know if I
can replicate it again on the P1i.

But with the Centro, it's very easy. Just input the email address and
the wizard will help you with the settings. And it simply works.

iPhone in RP by Globe

According to Globe's website, they will be bringing in the iPhone to the Philippines. This is a fairly good news especially to Apple die-hards.

At the moment, there are plenty of iPhones in the Philippines mostly from the grey market or from relatives from the US, either way, all of these iPhones in the market does not enjoy any official support from Apple. With this development, many people who have been holding off in buying their own iPhone will surely dig deep in their pockets to enjoy the rich interface of the Apple cellphone.

Microsoft XP to continue only for budget notebooks

While Microsoft has seen it fit to keep XP around as its "relatively non-bloated OS" alternative to the Linux that has dominated this new category of "ultra low-cost PCs" (ULPCs), they're certainly not giving away the farm. Microsoft doesn't want this version of XP Home creeping into mainstream laptops and desktops, where it might compete with Vista sales and high-margin machines from PC manufacturers. To that end, Microsoft is setting the limits for ULPCs at 10.2-inch screens, 80GB of storage, 1GB of RAM, 1GHz processors (with some exceptions) and no touchscreens. The upshot is that licenses for XP will go for $26 in developing nations and $32 elsewhere.

Engadget

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Smart Broadband seeks NTC nod for expansion into Internet TV

Smart Broadband seeks NTC nod for expansion into Internet TV
By Mary Ann Ll. ReyesSunday, May 11, 2008

Smart Broadband Inc. (SBI) is seeking additional frequency bandwidth from the National Telecommunications Commission (NTC) for the expansion and enhancement of its wireless broadband services, including a planned foray into Internet protocol television or IPTV.IPTV is a digital TV service which delivers television content to the viewer, not through traditional broadcast and cable formats, but through the technologies used for computer networks such as IP.For residential users, IPTV is often provided along with video on demand and may be bundled with Internet services such as Web access and VoIP (Voice over IP). The commercial bundling of IPTV, VoIP and Internet access is referred to as “Triple Play” service.

Philippine Star - Articles - -

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iCall - FREE calls to the US

When I was searching the net for cheap ways to call people from the internet, I stumbled upon, iCall, it's a VoIP type of calling that uses the broadband connection of the user. What set's it apart from the other VoIP services like Skype and Gizmo, is that, it offers free calls to any type of phone to the US and Canada. No fees required.

But I was disappointed when I used it tonight for the first time. The other end cannot hear me, or if we were lucky enough, the line was choppy. I could have ignored the delay, but a choppy line would be unacceptable. I will still try to call other numbers since I just called a New York number, hopefully I will be lucky with other numbers.

Hyundai i800

Looks familiar? It's because it the Hyandai Grad Starex. Introduced abroad as the i800. The i800 sports captain's chairs up front with two three-passenger benches out back. That makes a grand total of eight seat belts thanks to its totally accommodating third-row. Hyundai's big van is powered by a 2.5L four-cylinder CRDi diesel engine, so we expect acceleration is an afterthought in this cavernous cruiser. The i800 does, however, feature a coil-sprung rear suspension for a more minivan-like ride than some of its commercial transport competition.

Autoblog

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Price of the MSI Wind

I've been waiting for more details on the MSI Wind to come out, and I guess it's starting to trickle down, sketchy reports are saying that it will sell at $610 dollars, that's roughly P25T. I don't know if it's worth since I haven't personally seen it, but if they are going after the eeePC market, I don't think it's the way to go.

Recent specifications are a 10-inch screen, 1.6GHz processor (supposedly an Atom), 1GB of RAM, an 80GB disk and XP. I think they're going after the HP mini-note rather than the eeePC

Engadget

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Camera Phone

It's been a while since I used a "usable" camera phone. Now, I don't have to worry about filling up my phone's memory. a 2GB expansion card (microSD) is more than enough to store a days worth of fun pictures.

 It's a very good way to document things as they happen during the day. Here's a link to where the pictures are posted.

Check it out here.

Palm Centro Files: Battery Life and Charger

I don't know if it's because I didn't charge the battery for more than 8 hours in the first charging from the box, or it's really the battery but the battery life on my Centro does not reach the whole day. I mean, half way through the day, I'm already on my half power on the battery, makes sense?

Well, I have to bring the charger with me all the time to make sure that the batteries don't drain out on me mid of the day.

Oh and speaking of chargers, I don't like how it looks like. I like the charger for my Palm Zire 72 better. It looks like the charger of my cheapo portable DVD player hehehehe.

Palm Centro Files: Phone re-starts after Hotsync

I've upgraded my Palm Desktop to 6.5 and I've noticed that every time I hotsync, the phone part of the Centro turns off or the whole unit re-starts. Is this a bug or what?

Also I've noticed that the Hotsync log, always reports that there are errors during syncing but I can't seem to find the errors.

Palm Philippines - Products - Palm Centro Smartphone

With the launch of the newest Palm OS based smartphone, people are asking, what's wrong with Palm, and some are answering, it's because Palm is dying if not dead.

Hmmmm, it's been years that people have been saying how stupid Palm is for not listening to what people wants. Because Palm lacked the new features found in newer smartphones, I would like to agree with them, with one observation.

HEY Palm is still here!

Palm Philippines - Products - Palm Centro Smartphone

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eeePC 900

The eeePC 900 will be launched anytime this week, it's an upgrade of the very famous eeePC 701 just with a bigger screen, a bigger hard drive, bigger RAM, bigger trackpad, but still with the small, cramped keyboard. Oh and much more expensive.

I'm still not sold getting one. I have a 701, got it because of it's sweet price. But with the 900 coming out with a more than Php20T price tag, I don't think it will catch more fans. People would rather get a full-sized laptop than this one, except of course if they are after the size, most UMPC's available at the moment are very expensive and not so practical.

Engadget

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Microsoft Outlook

I am not a fan of Microsoft Outlook, but lately, I found myself using it more often. In fact for the past months, it has been my primary PIM application.

The frequency of using it increased when Google Calendar released a sync program that will let Outlook synchronize with Google Calendar. That was a great relief for me as it will shorten the process of putting my calendar entries into my mobile phone (Google Calendar is my primary calendar). And now that I have a new phone, a Palm Centro, instead of me synchronizing my PIM data on Palm Desktop, I am synchronizing with Microsoft Outlook. MS Outlook has become the center of my synchronization for my devices.

AVG 8.0 is out

Having a broadband connection opens up your computer to external attacks, including it's susceptibility to virus, trojans and worm attacks. Ever since I had broadband, I made sure my anti-virus software is always update and I make sure I scan my computer as frequent as possible. I've never had an infestation since then.

I have Spyware Doctor (the one from Google Pack), for my spyware protection, and I use AVG for my anti-virus software. AVG is as reliable as any other anti-virus software out there. Best of all, it's got a FREE version. Now, there's a new AVG in verison 8.0. Go get it from here.

The Centro files: Text input

It's a day after I got my new Centro, and it's a day of satisfaction and some surprises. I've never owned a Treo but I've had lots of experiences with a Palm OS device. There are differences of course on the thumb board layout from my previous M600i, but it's something to learn than to complain about. What surprised me was, I can't enter text using the touchscreen (or I think I can't, because I still haven't figured out how to), all text input (for the meantime) is through the thumb board.

Setting up the email was fairly easy (easier than the M600), so I think on this part, I've made a better decision on getting it than the P1i. But, I still have to get used to the smaller screen as compared to my Zire 72.

So far, I'm amazed at this phone, this is going to be a, exciting daily experience (hopefully not an expensive one).

My New Phone

Ok, so I've finally gave in to my cravings, and bought the Palm Centro. Forgetting about the higher camera resolution and wifi from the Sony Ericsson P1.
What turned me off the P1 was the difficulty in accessing the local wifi signal here at work, and how difficult it is to configure settings especially how Gmail would work.
I will be back to write on my experiences on this new toy of mine.

Posting simultaneously to Twitter and Pownce

If you're like me who has both Twitter and Pownce account and is wondering how you could simultaneously post on both accounts? Worry no more! Use Hellotxt, it's a web-based service where the user can post one update to a different micro-blogging networks such as Twitter, Jaiku, Pownce, Facebook, MySpace and Bebo. The also have a mobile version. Try it, it works!

P1i vs. Palm Centro

If I'm going to get the Centro I will have one less clutter in my pocket because I will ditch my Zire 72 (which holds my ePocrates Drug Database, MedCalc, Archimedes Med Calculator, Merck Manual), but I won't have any WiFi capabilities. While if I get the P1i, I will have the familiar QWERTY thumboard (no more learning curve), and Wifi (less charges for the DATA from Globe), but will not lessen the load in my pocket. Hmmmmm Dammit!

Twitter on the Left Sidebar

I've added my Twitter updates on the sidebar. It's a small version of my Blogs, it's simple.

Torn Between the Sony Ericsson P1i or the Palm Centro

A year has passed since I got my SE M600i, I like it, it's still stylish even today. But the SE P1i, the M600's successor has it's price down, and I'm eyeing to get it. But then, Palm has released the Centro, at the same price point as the P1i. Now I'm torn between the two. With the P1i, it's got WiFi and a camera with of course an expansion card, and a touchscreen, the problem I have with the P1i (actually with the UIQ interface), is that I had a hard time to make the JAVA softwares work! Heck, I didn't get it to work. But with the Centro, it uses the aging Palm OS, and it doesn't have WiFi! But the Centro got lots of softwares that I can use for work. Now that's my dilemma.

Well, you can't have it all huh?!

Connecting to a Linux Box from Windows XP

All the while I thought that using Linux would be easier, especially if I use it as a server, but then again, I was wrong. I can't seem to see my Kubuntu box from my WinXP machine. Now I am forced to transfer files from XP to Kubuntu manually, as in, putting files on a flash drive and then moving it into the Kubuntu box. What a way to network machines huh? I guess, multiplatform network is not yet as easy at it looks, not time for mainstream yet!

Connection is acting up again

Torrents are back, I guess, shooting went back after the writer's strike was called-off. Anyways, this means that I'm back to downloading TV series. Well, after filling up my torrent client with downloads, my DSL connection started to act up. The frequent disconnection problem is back. Called Globelines Broadband hotline and they confirmed it. I was told to observe and the problem is a "remote" problem, meaning it's not on my side.

Before this, I noticed that my connection would slow down after some time of being connected, but a restart of the modem would bring me back to the speedier connection.

Globe's Version of Wholesale Data

For some time now, SMART has been offering it's subscribers a way to surf the net wirelessly either thru the mobile phone browser or using the phone as a modem. They are charging P10 for every pulse of 30mins. That's P20 for an hour, pretty good for an area without any WiFi hotspot. But don't expect blazing speeds as it will use whatever data signal is available, and at the moment, it can vary from GPRS to EDGE to HSDPA (still unconfirmed).

And now, Globe went and splashed their way into the wireless broadband arena (I've been waiting for this, actually I've been itching to get the SMART's plug-it prepaid version of their SMART Bro wireless broadband). Though I am still contemplating in getting one of these, convincing myself that I need it. My connectivity needs is actually complete, broadband at home and in the hospital. No gaps at the moment. But hey it's cool to be connected anytime I want to.

Globe's version, charge P5 for every P15minutes of usage. But then again, if you're going to look at it, it's just the same as that of SMART's. But the advantage I see with connecting thru Globe is that, Globe does not block ports, unlike that of SMART's.

My New Switch

I've set up my own network at home. I have my wireless DSL modem/router (PROLINK H9300G from Globelines) then two LAN cables run down to the basement connected to my VoIP adapter and to my desktop PC. When my desktop PC conked-out, I replaced it with a new one (no problem so far), but I was able to fix the busted box, I installed Linux on it and hooked it up to my HDTV hoping to make it my Media Center PC. So now, I need another connection to it. Then, one of the LAN cables became food for the rats. That's why I decided to get me a switch.

I bought it from PC Express. Actually I bought a crimping tool, a cable tester (both from CD-R King) and RJ45 jacks (from PC Express).

The challenge I thought was how to arrange the tiny wires to fit in the RJ45 but after a wrong wiring and wasting one RJ45 jack, I was able to make, I think, 4 LAN cables hehehe.

Ok now with the switch. Why Dlink? Well, I was looking for a cheap switch, there were two brands under P1000, a Cnet and Dlink. Logic dictates I get the one with the better branding, and that's Dlink, it's actually P50 more than the Cnet.

Now, instead of running more cables across the house, one cable from the router will be enough, and the wirings will be split in the basement.

G.I.Joe the movie - Snake Eyes

Feast your eyes on Snake Eyes! From the live action movie GI Joe! Looks like I'm going to bring out my action figures! Hehehe I'm getting too excited on this.

G.I.Joe the movie - Page 8 - Philippine Macintosh Users Group

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SMART Bro Plug-it Prepaid

SMART has just announced the prepaid version of their Plug-it Smart Bro. This is basically a USB data card that connects via UMTS (3G), GPRS to a Smart Cell tower. The charges are the same, it's just like connecting a 3G capable handset to a mobile PC. P10/min which is reload-able pretty much like those prepaid mobile numbers. It uses a SIM card that is data-enabled, which also means, it's not capable of voice and SMS. A P300 load is good for 900 minutes or 60 days. The initial outlay is P4500.

I think I'm going to get one, just for the heck of it.

More details here

EeePC Bundle in Globelines promo

Globelines is offering a promo where they are bundling an ASUS EeePC surf to their DSL with Landline package. At P1620/month, it's quite a deal, especially for those who doesn't have a notebook computer yet.

Details here

Wireless Landlines - tempting

The problem with someone living in the outskirts of the city is that, everything that promises cheap communication to the city is always a tempting deal (aside of course for the technophobe in me).

I got myself a Bayan Wireless Landline prepaid a couple of months ago. Yup, it serves it's purpose. I can call Manila with ease, with some choppy bearable calls. I can call it free, no long distance charges because it's got a Manila area code, heck, I'm even thinking of getting a handheld type. The problems that I have with it at the moment, well, it's hard to find call cards for it. So far, I can get it from the agent that I got it from, but I can't expect him to sell me cards forever. And the next place I could get it is at SM Manila Bayan Center. Regarding the load, well, as long as reload before the expiration day, I get to keep the unused loads. The other problem is the signal. I was so happy with it the first time I tried it because I got a strong signal all the way home from Manila, but the signal dropped as soon as I entered the house. Right now, I have it near a window where I get a fluctuating 2-3 bars.Still, it's usable.

Now remember I was thinking of getting a handheld wireless landline? Looks like I'm getting one, but not from Bayantel, PLDT has just officially launched their own wireless landline prepaid service, the postpaid plans has been out for some time now. What's nice about the PLDT thing is that, it uses SMART's own cellular signal, which means, wherever there is a SMART signal, the PLDT wireless. But the caveat is, even though there's a signal, if it's out of the local area (e.g. a Manila SIM will only work in Manila), you cannot use it anymore, as in, no incoming and outgoing calls. But what's exciting is, I can use the SIM on any openlined GSM mobile phone, as it's just a cellular service in the guise of a wireless landline. I'm more inclined into getting one anyways. I'm just waiting for the regular work to resume and a visit to a business center is at hand.

The Knight Rider

Just watched the whole Pilot episode of the New Knight Rider. Hmmm well, the plot was not that good. Perhaps, biased for the original episodes with David H., but then again, the scoring and the story telling has improved. About KITT, well, it's the voice, it's really not KITT without Anthony Daniel's voice (also the voice of C3PO). Lots of loopholes, since they are continuing the story of Michael Knight. Why did they just used the old voice and the old memories. Looks like KITT is a totally new car, in a sense. And the morphing is a bit pushing it too far. Reminds me of a Knight Rider knock-off, VIPER. Otherwise, pwede ng pagtyagaan.

Sync Google Calendar with Outlook - Google solution

I've been using Google  Calendar since it came out. It's a pretty nifty application. I was very happy when I was able to synchronize iCal with it. But had problems with synchronizing Outlook. All the third party applications available for Outlook-Google Calendar synchronization cannot seem to do a very good job.

At last, Google has released it's own synchronization software and it worked! It will, by default synchronize both ways, but has options to do it one way.

I never did use Outlook before as my centralized PIM, but now, it seems that has to change. Now, I synchronize my Sony Ericsson M600i, Palm Zire 72 and HP Voice Messenger 510 with Outlook. A centralized software to do all my PIM jobs.

My Kubuntu Media Box

As a resident physician, a weekends off is just like summer vacation
for students. It's a time that is relished and loved.

It's my weekends off and I'm not letting anyone take it away from me.

Anyways, I decided to fine tune my Kubuntu box, I installe KDE 4 into
it and it looks very sleek on my HDTV. But since I installed it, I
can't seem to figure out why the fonts are too small. I tried
adjusting the fonts from the Appearance option but a small increase
of the font size reflects a very large increase on the display. Just
when I was about to shift back to KDE 3, I tried one last option, by
checking on the force font size to 120dpi and that fixed it. The
fonts and the display are awesome.

Then I transferred AVI files to it and officially made it my Media Box.

Linksys WUSB54GC

It's been a long time since I wanted to buy a USB Wireless Adapter. I
was thinking of just buying one of those cheap adapters but decided
to do otherwise.

I bought a Linksys WUSB54GC because I wanted the security of a
dependable product. I actually have different Linksys product such as
a compact router (WRT54GC), a signal repeater WAP54G (I think).

Kubuntu on HDTV, Finally!

I replaced my aging Pentium 4 CPU who suddenly cannot recognize a re-install of WinXP. So I decided to install Kubuntu into it. Why Kubuntu and not Ubuntu? Well, I've gotten used to KDE, because this is what's in Xandros in my EeePC. Anyways, I didn't want to throw away the CPU, as it still has a good processor, I think the problem is the RAM, a PC266 RAM, which is hard to look for nowadays. So, I said I would use the CPU as a Medica Center type of computer, I hooked it up to my HDTV, and because it too has an nVidia Video card (it's AGP so I can't use it on my new CPU which uses PCI Express), I think I can use it to my advantage.

At first, I bought a Linksys WUSB54GC USB Wireless Adapter. Which I can't seem to make it work with Kubuntu, even with the updated repositories. And since I only have 2 LAN cables running in my basement, this became a dilemma. I have 3 units, that will be using the LAN cables. Two computers and one VoIP adapter. So, I decided to move the LAN cable to the Kubuntu unit and used the Linksys adapter to the WinXP box.

Now everything is running, except for audio, I have to route an audio line from the Kubuntu unit to my HT amplifier, at the moment, I don't have a long audio cable that could reach the AV receiver, hopefully, I would have time tomorrow or this week to get one and I'm off, right now, I'm downloading HD content from Tekzilla and Diggnation.

Next project is to get a NAS to store all the media that has been downloaded to be available to all the computer users in the house.

Everex Cloudbook - Disappointing

A couple of unboxing pictures of the Everex Cloudbook is already out in the net and so far it's synchronous in saying that the EeePC competitor SUCKS! The trackpad alone is useless for one hand operation. And the price is waaaaay farther than that of the ASUS.

Gizmodo, the Gadget Guide

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Office for Mac 2008

I just installed this software on my Mac. It took sometime to launch
initially but launches pretty quick on the succeeding start. Even
though I have iWork 08 installed, I still use a lot of MS Office. For
one, Excel is still unbeatable in the worksheet category. But I must
admit that Numbers produces one nice work area. I still have to find
the best way in it to replace Excel. Overall, I like having both on
my notebook pc.

Asus rolls out Eee PC in Japan, Windows XP standard

It's taken a while, but it looks like folks in Japan can now finally get their hands on Asus's diminutive and eminently-hackable Eee PC, although not exactly the same models we have 'round these parts. Dubbed the Eee PC 4G-X, the Japan-centric laptop is apparently identical to the regular 4G model, with the notable exception that it now comes pre-loaded with Windows XP Home Edition as standard instead of the usual Linux OS. That, of course, takes up a hefty chunk of the 4GB of internal storage, so Asus has thoughtfully 4GB SDHC card with the laptop as well. Look for it to be available in your choice of black or white for ¥50,000 (or about $468), with free access to NTT's WiFine hotspot network thrown in for good measure.

Engadget

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Apple - MacBook Air

Apple - MacBook Air

This is what I call, salivatingly YUMMY! I want one!

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Bayan Wireless Landline

I finally got one today. I chose the prepaid option, because all I
need is a Manila number here in Cavite. You see, whenever I call any
Metro Manila number, it's already considered a long distance call.
With this service from Bayantel, I now can call anyone from Manila
for just P3/call and they can call me without the long distance charges.

I don't have any plans to discontinue my Globelines account though.

I got the wireless landline phone ACBEL AX320, they don't have the
ZTE handset (looks better than the ACBEL) available for the Prepaid
option. Funny thing was, on my way home from Quezon city, the phone
was beside me all the time, checking for the signal deviations. I was
so happy to see full bars of signal along Aguinaldo highway. But was
slightly disappointed to get only a couple of bars inside out house.
But good enough, to get three bars in the bed room near the window.
Though I get full bars in the carport.

The phone kit comes loaded with P90 worth of load (around 30 calls)
good for 7 days, and a P100 prepaid card good for 10 days.

I will test it tomorrow by trying to call it during my overnight duty
in the hospital.

HAPPY NEW YEAR to all!

Let's all be thankful for the blessings we've received in 2007 and let's prepare for the showers of gifts that 2008 will bring! God bless us all!

No more disconnections from Globe

After calling hotlines from Globelines, I don't get that frequent disconnections that we read a lot in the forums. Unfortunately, I can't say the same with the Selective Browsing problems. Although, it's not as frequent, there are still websites that takes forever to load up. But is resolved by simply restarting the modem/router.

Chronicles of a new HDTV owner

An HDTV is always in one of the wish lists of people who are really into watching TV and movies. That's why when the opportunity to get one arrived, I did not hesitate and decided right away to buy myself the TV.

The Samsung 32" LCD HDTV completed my home theater set-up. Less than a year ago, I bought a Yamaha 5.1 Home Theater System. Now it's all complete, and of course the make-over of our basement/den/home theater. Although there are still some small details missing, the immersion to the movie experience is complete.

DAY 1:
I connected the HDTV (I really can't call it a simple TV anymore), to my DVD player and my Home Theater System. I expected the regular cable signal not to have that Hi-Def feel, then I popped in a DVD into the player (Transformers the movie to be exact), but was disappointed to see that the details didn't come out as I expected. The pixels where so huge that details are not lost perhaps in a deserted island. I thought maybe, it was my connection, I thought perhaps I need an HDMI connection between my player and my HDTV, as I am currently using a COMPONENT connection. But then I realized that there is such thing as PROGRESSIVE SCANNING and it's printed right in front of the DVD Player. I researched a bit about it and dug up the user's manual for the DVD player. Lo and behold, after reading the manual, I was able to change the setting of the DVD player so it will output a progressive scan of the disc and should deliver a clearer and crisper picture to the HDTV. And to my liking, when I played the same DVD again (this time the PROGRESSIVE icon is lighting up on the player), the details were coming out as expected. Now, I told myself, this is High Definition experience. Even the DivX shows have improved a lot since I tested it a couple of hours earlier.


DAY 2:
I connected my Playstation 2 to the HDTV and, again, to my dismay, the pictures where again, pixelated. Though, of course, this is because I was using the regular AV cables that came with the console. So I decided to look for a COMPONENT cable that is compatible with the PS2.

It was on this day too that I tried to hook it up to my notebook pc's. I really wanted to hook it up, permanently, to my desktop PC but was constrained with not having a VGA cable that was long enough to connect the two devices. So I just connected an iBook and an ASUS eeePC to the HDTV, and again, to my utter liking, both gave out a stunning picture on the HDTV.

DAY 3:
I went to the mall to look for the PS2 Component cable, and of course, I wasn't able to find one. All the stores in the neighborhood mall had were Component cable for either the PS3 or the PSP. So, I guess I have to be contented with what I have at the moment and just pray that somewhere, on a different mall, I will be able to find that elusive cable.

DAY 4-5:
Were just days to appreciated the beauty of both the HDTV and the movies that I watched from it. These days were also spent in contemplating on either wall-mounting it or just leave it on it's stand.

DAY 6:
Finally, I was able to find a COMPONENT cable for the PS2. Good thing I tried to browse around the toy store even after the sales girl told me that they don't have the said item. She even insisted that it was for the PS3 and not for the PS2, even though it was clearly written on the packaging that the cable is compatible to both. Though I was still not sure if the PS2 and the PS3 has the same type of connectors, I still bought the thing.

When I got home, I right away hooked the cable to the console and the HDTV and gave a sigh of relief after I saw the high definition pictures come out on the HDTV from the PS2.

DAY 7:
People from Samsung came over to "install" the HDTV, then I decided to have it mounted on the wall. Now I've got enough space on the table for other stuffs.

The eeePC + an HDTV

I got this new HDTV for Christmas, and every time I have a new toy, I make sure I know how to squeeze out the full potential of the product. This time I tried to connect my ASUS eeePC to the flat tv, and it worked! The small notebook was able to handle the massive resolution output of the TV, which means I was able to fully utilize every pixel of the set. It was beautiful, now I have a 32" external monitor for my tiny eeePC.

Target #1 Achieved! -- Target 1 of 3

This is my target #1. My newest toy, a SAMSUNG 32' LCD TV. And I'm liking it. Now my home theater is complete, and watching DVD movies is a blast.

Hmmmm I wonder how Blueray Discs or HD DVD would look like on this TV? Hehehehe

Merry Christmas!

Season's Greetings to all! Merry Christmas!

GizmoCall

After installing my new VoIP adapter and trying it out with a couple of different solutions, I have discovered a faster way for others to reach me without the hassle of downloading an application into one's computer.

It's GizmoCall! GizmoCall is another extension of the Gizmo Project. But instead of installing an application on a PC/Mac, it uses the browser for that. What the user will just do is to install an applet into the web browser, and type in the Gizmo number or the Gizmo Username and it connects flawlessly to the other line.

In fact, when I tested it, the Gizmo Call made a much better line resolution than from that of the stand-alone Gizmo client.

Linksys PAP2T Out of the Box

I got this today, the Linksys PAP2T VoIP Analog adapter. I will be using it to call our home in the province. This will definitely bring down the long distance charges for our frequent calls. The only cost will be from the MSF of our broadband connection.

I spent around 30 mins to check from the interweb the correct settings to make this thing work. I used Gizmo Project's SIP settings on it. I was successful to call from the hardware (PAP2T) to a Gizmo Softphone and vice versa. There was a slight echo but overall the line reception was very good. Although I am not sure if I place the other PAP2T on a slower broadband connection since I am using a 2Mbps line.

Microsoft hit with $2.4 million copyright suit in the Philippines

In an unusual situation for a company so vocal about protecting intellectual property rights, Microsoft is being sued for allegedly distributing material copyrighted by a Philippine college -- despite the fact that the material in question seems to have only been given to fellow educational professionals. Southeastern College in Pasay City is suing Microsoft and Microsoft Philippines for 100 million Filipino pesos ($2.4 million) for handing out at least 700 CDs in 2005 and 2006 containing the 379-page "SEC Microsoft Office XP Manual," which had been copyrighted by SEC director Conrad Mañalac in 2005 (although work on it reportedly began in 1999).

Engadget

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iPhone integral part of Land Rover LRX concept

In a press release issued by the automaker, it notes that the concept vehicle will boast a couple of touchscreens, one of which is used to "control the LRX's iPhone facility." Additionally, you can catch an iPod docking station and a set of removable speakers on the tailgate, though we can't say that's the most convenient location we've ever heard of for such a device.


Engadget

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Vista gets wrangled onto the Eee PC

it already seems pretty clear that there are few OSes that won't at least be attempted to be installed on the Eee PC, and it now looks like you can chalk up another of the big ones in successful column, as one fearless user has managed to squish Vista onto the diminutive laptop. To accomplish that feat, Paul O'Brien used the vLite tool to cut out as much bloat as possible before putting the custom disk image onto a USB stick, after which he then installed the OS on the Eee PC and, perhaps most notably, moved the Side by Side (or SxS) directory onto an 8GB SD card, freeing up some much needed space on the laptop itself.

How-to is found here.

Engadget

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Engadget

Fresno schools buy 1,000 Eee PCs, Asus launches 2G Surf modelPosted Dec 14th 2007 5:07PM by Donald MelansonFiled under: LaptopsThe OLPC and Classmate PC may be getting most of the attention these days with their attempts to win over as many schools as possible, but it looks like Asus' Eee PC is starting to make some moves of its own, with the Fresno Unified School District recently snagging 1,000 of the laptops in an attempt to boost student scores. As The San Francisco Chronicle reports, the schools also went the extra step of getting the laptops pre-installed with Windows and other Microsoft software, which apparently brought the total cost to $464 a seat. Also according the Chronicle, it seems that Asus has officially launched its $299 2G Surf model a little ahead of the January date we first heard about, although it still seems to be nigh impossible to come by, at least at the moment.

Engadget

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DivX is offering DivX Pro for Free

DivX is offering their DivX Pro software bundle as a free download just for the holidays. So head on up to their site and start downloading the software.

Fire in Canada disrupts Smart’s Blackberry service in RP - INQUIRER.net, Philippine News for Filipinos

MANILA, Philippines -- A fire has damaged Research in Motion (RIM)'s Blackberry e-mail server link in Canada, affecting the push e-mail services of Smart Communications, the local mobile operator said in an advisory.

"The incident has affected the leased line connecting RIM's e-mail server in Canada to Smart's GPRS platform in the Philippines, which continues to operate normally," the company added.

In the Philippines, only Smart's Blackberry service has been affected.

Smart said the problem was detected Wednesday morning. The company added that RIM's technical personnel are currently working to re-route traffic and expects normal services soon. Another advisory said that Smart and RIM are testing a solution to bring the push e-mail service back online.

Fire in Canada disrupts Smart’s Blackberry service in RP - INQUIRER.net, Philippine News for Filipinos

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ASUS Eee PC is America’s Most Wanted Christmas Gift

The ASUS Eee PC is once again in the limelight. This time, it has been billed as America’s most wanted Christmas gift among notebooks products. Several large American shopping websites have started investigating what the average American would want as a Christmas gift in lieu of the fast approaching Christmas buying season; and the result from the American Amazon shopping website and CNET based on 14th of November unanimously places the ASUS Eee PC at the top spot on the wish list.

ASUS | Eee PC

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Internet kahit saan? Just plug it - SmartBro's New Product

Smart has launched a new product under their Smart Bro line. Smart Bro is a series of wireless broadband offering, riding on Smart's 3G services.

This new product is in actuality, an extension of Smart's 3G services on their cellular phone products, but is purely for data. At the moment anyone with a Smart SIM card and a 3G capable phone can use this service by simply attaching their phone to their computers, either thru USB or wireless such as Bluetooth or InfreRed. At the moment, Smart is charging P10 for every 30 minutes, which for me is a very good deal, (as long as I get more than dial up speed, compared to the P100/hour in WiFi Hotspots).

Using a device called a USB modem that can easily be plugged to a laptop or a desktop computer, users will be able to access the Internet with speeds ranging from 384 to 768 kbps. This latest offering of the wireless broadband subsidiary of leading wireless services provider Smart Communications, Inc. (SMART) is initially available under Smart Bro Plan 799. The plan includes Internet usage of 60 hours per month, and P10 every 30 minutes in excess thereof.

The kit comes with a data modem, PC software and a user guide in a DVD casing and a cool denim sock for storing the modem. The modem will work in Windows 2000 and XP. Before the end of the year, the modem will be compatible with other operating systems.

As of end-September 2007, Smart Bro has over 259,000 users, adding about 138,000 new subscribers in the first nine months of the year. Smart now has 2,678 wireless broadband-enabled base stations providing high-speed Internet access to over 625 cities and municipalities nationwide. Smart Bro is an integral part of the PLDT Group’s strategy to be at the forefront of “broadbanding” the country

I would love to get this and use it with my ASUS eeePC and have total wireless connectivity and mobility.

4GB lang? EeePC

4GB lang?! This is the top remark I get when I tell them about my new toy. "Ang liit naman ng capacity?" and "walang windows?". This makes me laugh.

Everytime someone asks me what a good notebook computer is, I always ask them back, "what you going to use it for?". Unfortunately, most of them would rather buy an expensive notebook pc, without considering the different factors. Most would be looking at the processor. They would like to have the "best" the "newest", "kailangan Core2Duo!", yeah right! "Tapos dapat Windows Vista" or "why not buy a MacBook?" oh ok! "You should get the one with the biggest hard drive capacity" said one, "oh and that wide screen is much better to look at" said another.

Ok so you bought that spanking new notebook PC with Core2Duo, 1GB RAM, 160GB hard drive, Windows Vista Home Premium, glossy 15 inch screen. Ok what now? What are you going to use it for? Uhm, let me see, oh ok, update my Friendster and Multiply account, I have to blog my "new" notebook. Hehehehe HELLO! OK KA LANG! CORE2DUO and the first thing you'll be doing is to update your profile?! nyahahaha

Then what? "Oh and I have to install iTunes, I now have a laptop to sync my iPod with" ok, then? "Uhm, oh! I have a report on Thursday, I can show my classmates my new computer while I use PowerPoint for my presentation!" Yeah right! Hehehe I would bet that that Microsoft Office didn't come with your new notebook? Ha! Huli! hahaha

Ok then, let's say, let's meet up at Starbucks in Greenbelt, just to hang out, and did I mention that's a hotspot? Yeah, you can bring your laptop and we can talk and surf there. I'm ok with my ASUS EeePC, it fits in my backpack, heck, I can even bring it as it is, no bags, because it has it's own sleeve. How about you, will you bring your notebook as is, not inside a bag? You wish! Most notebook PCs at the moment are heavy, plus you have to carry around that very BIG power brick! Excuse me, my power brick is small and light, I'm using a MacBook. Yeah right again! The EeePCs power adapter is as small as a cellphone charger, beat that!

The point, most people consider the features a big factor in buying a laptop, and yet, they don't utilize the features at all. Most would just be using a web browser, powerpoint and document editor, oh and picture viewer and that's it! And yet they want the latest and most expensive notebooks out there. Just like what they do with mobile phones, they want the most expensive, but as them what they do with it, it boils down to texts and calls (that is kung may load! Nyahahaha nakakahiya, worth P35K ang phone mo tapos naka prepaid ka lang? SHYET! Smart Buddy pa! Nyahahaha what JOLOGS!) hehehe oh and taking pictures of me in the car with my teeth and tongue out! Hehehehe galing.

Notebooks are meant to be portable, mobile, easy to carry and light. The ASUS EeePC is all that. If you don't edit videos and pictures, why get an expensive laptop that will be obsolete in 6 months time (this reminds me of the early adapters of the MacBook, in less than 6 months, there gadgets became obsolete with the coming of the Core2Duos at the same price NYAHAHAHAHAAHA!).

These laptops, mostly has 13, 14, 15 inch screen size are HEAVY! Not too portable. Eh excuse me, I have a car so I don't worry about the weight, yeah right AGAIN, then what, most of the time you leave it in the car because it's heavy. With the EeePC, I can replace it in 6 months to one year, because it's not that expensive. Heck it's cheaper than my mobile phone.

So stop being a prick and drool over. If I'm a student, and laptops are not allowed in the library, I would just get this one and I can sneak it in and enjoy surfing and updating friendster and multiply inside the library. Take that hahaha

Modifying the OS of eeePC

This is very fun. Much fun than when I first tried UBUNTU. I now have modified the ASUS eeePC Easy Mode to the Advanced Mode (desktop).


The EASY Mode is the default screen of the ASUS eeePC. I understand ASUS for doing this, to stick to the gizmo's motto EASY to work, EASY to Learn, EASY to Play.
Anyone who has used a mobile phone will find the icon based user interface of the eeePC, very useful. But for serious users, this is a bit boring. They want more usability. Thus, being Linux the base architecture of this operating system, in just a few days, users now have figured out how to transform the icon-based EASY MODE to the typical desktop ADVANCED MODE. Much more, users can shift from one user interface to another.


I warn you though, it's not that simple and some newbies have "broken" their units (which was recovered simply by pressing and holding F9 after pressing the power button), doing the process. Although just like me, when the process is successful, there is joy felt all throughout (what a geek nyahahaha).

For detailed instructions on how to do it, just click here.

Wow! SRP for the EeePC Locally from ASUS

"Asus Philippines Sales Manager Peter Chua said the Eee PC will be targeted at extremely mobile executives, students and home users who have neither the space nor budget to have a notebook PC.

Chua said the Eee PC comes in 2 Gb, 4 Gb, and 8 Gb models. The 4 Gb model will be rolled out in the market in November and will be priced at 19,800 pesos. The other models will be introduced in early 2008." -- Inquirer.net

If this is the case, then I guess I got mine at a very good price. It's going to be a grand more than I got it. Hopefully PC Corner will not change their prices. It will still be a deal.

Resigned on Leopard

After convincing myself to upgrade my lowly iBook to Leopard (Mac OS
10.5), I never thought I was up for disappointment.

I always end up with an error saying that the "ESSENTIAL FILES" or
something like that cannot be found from the install disc. Which led
my iBook to loosing all it's data (good thing I did a back up before
the procedure), even my TIGER. Which means that I have to reinstall
TIGER after the series of failed LEOPARD UPGRADE.

Even the TIGER reinstall was tiresome. Because I had to re-install my
applications and the worst thing was the updates!

Then I found out that I was not alone (no thanks to the local very
"helpful" mac users group, all I saw was all praises for LEOPARD
without any hitch, YEAH RIGHT!), from apple forums around the world.
There were installs that led to bricked macs. The reason that they
are pointing to is the dual layer disc of LEOPARD, looks like, some
old mac (running PowerPC processors), it's optical drives, have some
issues accessing the 2nd layer of data from the DVDs.

Still, up to the present, APPLE has not issued any resolution on this
problem.

My New Toy: ASUS eeePC sub-notebook

Every since they announced this last summer, I was very eager to get one. What tempted me from getting this was the price point. Then, it was announced to be in the area of $200, that's just in the area of P15T with taxes in. At first, they said it's going to be released sometime August, then it was postponed a couple of months more. Of course, I was not expecting it to be available locally right away (it's not like Apple you know). What made the wait more exciting was the fact that a local PC store kept on teasing me (website), of it's pending release. Add the fact that I kept on reading from the interweb that a lot of users are getting their hands on with their new EeePC and they are all liking it (DAMN what a punishment!). Although all these while, the prices have shot up to more than Php15T. I don't mind, as long as it's portable, and within my price range, it's all ok. One of the top factors I consider in getting a portable computer is, of course, portability. That's why, even though made obsolete by the new MacBooks and MacBook Pros, I am not thinking of replacing my iBook, because it's portable, at 12" wide, that's a deal.

Anyways, PC Corner's website said that the ASUS EeePC will be released on the 5th of November. But when I called them at their Gilmore store, they said that it will commercially be available on the 8th at 6pm instead. Considering the distance of the store from my place and the time, I opted to call the next day. And was very excited to know that it's already available. But having stuff to do on that friday, I opted to go the first thing in the morning on the 10th that's a Saturday. On my way to the store, I was praying that there will still be a unit for me. Good enough I was able to get one. Actually, it is available from the PC Corner website, for delivery, which will take two days, but I'm the hands on person, I want to experience holding the unit right away (I know pretty geeky hehehe).

Just like a kid with a new toy, I was so excited to use it. And just like what I've expected, the booting up is fast, and I was able to use it (surfing) out of the box (of course, that was after I connected to my wireless network at home).

At of the moment, only the 4G Surf is available locally and in white. With the following configurations to follow suit.

	Intel® Celeron® M (256Mb) / 02Gb Media Flash Drive
	Intel® Celeron® M (512Mb) / 02Gb Media Flash Drive
	Intel® Celeron® M (512Mb) / 04Gb Media Flash Drive -- 4G Surf
	Intel® Celeron® M (1.0Gb) / 04Gb Media Flash Drive
	Intel® Pentium® M (512Mb) / 04Gb Media Flash Drive
	Intel® Pentium® M (512Mb) / 08Gb Media Flash Drive
	Intel® Pentium® M (512Mb) / 16Gb Media Flash Drive
	Intel® Pentium® M (1.0Gb) / 16Gb Media Flash Drive

This is the simplified specifications of what I got

Model Name	Eee PC 8G	Eee PC 4G	Eee PC 4G Surf	Eee PC 2G Surf
Display	7"	7"	7"	7"
Intel CPU & Chipset	●	●	●	●
Operating System	Linux Windows XP compatible	Linux Windows XP compatible	Linux Windows XP compatible	Linux Windows XP compatible
Ethernet Communication	●	●	●	●
WLAN	●	●	●	●
Memory	1G (DDR2)	512 MB (DDR2)	512 MB (DDR2)	256 MB (DDR2)
S.S.D. Storage (Solid-State Disk)	8G	4G	4G	2G
Camera	●	●	-	-
Audio	Hi-Definition audio Stereo speaker Microphone	Hi-Definition audio Stereo speaker Microphone	Hi-Definition audio Stereo speaker Microphone	Hi-Definition audio Stereo speaker Microphone
Battery	4 Cells: 5200 mAh, 3.5hrs*	4 Cells: 5200 mAh, 3.5hrs*	4 Cells: 4400 mAh, 2.8hrs*	4 Cells: 4400 mAh, 2.8hrs*
Weight	0.92 kg	0.92 kg	0.92 kg	0.92 kg
Launch Date	End of November	10/16 Global Launch	Mid of November	End of November
* Specificatioin changes are subject to different models * Actual battery life will depend on actual operations and other settings. * Product contains software under GPL license agreement

A little review of the unit after a few days of usage:
IN THE BOX:
- the unit (pearly white)
- charger (a little bigger than an ordinary mobile phone charger, smaller than my iBook power adapter)
- Printed user's guide
- DVD of Windows Drivers
- battery 5200 mAh
- soft case/sleeve (black)

THE UNIT
It has a 7 inch screen. At first I thought, based on what I've read, is small and now resolution at 800 pixels only, but I was wrong, when I pulled up images, it came up as crisp and clear, colors are vivid and comes out much better than the larger LCD screens, this is perhaps to the compressed pixels.

The body is quite sturdy, with the buttons firm on the touch and push. This is much better from the buttons I saw on those NEO laptops. I did not hear any squeaking sounds when I slightly twisted the unit. The latch that attaches the monitor to the body is not flimsy. No latch that will lock the lid when close (pretty much like the other notebook pc's out there). The design is well, not like what I've expected. Personally, I have never been a fan of ASUS laptop designs, but this one is nice.

There is a removable panel at the bottom, from what I've read, when opened, it will expose another RAM slot for upgrades, but unusually, there is a warranty sticker that is blocking one of the screws. ASUS made it clear that they are not positioning this as a laptop replacement (yeah!), so if one wants an upgrade, he/she has to purchase another unit with a higher hardware specs (as if that will stop us right?).

The back is bare, because it's occupied mostly by the battery pack. The left side contains an RJ45 port (LAN), supposedly there's an RJ11 port beside it (modem port), but in my unit, it's blocked by a rubber stopper. From what I've read, there is a port and connections, but the modem or one of it's component is missing. One USB 2.0 port and jacks for headphones and mic. There are four LED indicator lights in front. Power, Charging, SSD and WLAN indicators. On the right side, there is a VGA port, two USB 2.0 ports and a card reader that can handle SD, MMC, SDMC.

The keyboard is the catch. Well, I don't think it is. It's small. But I was able to write this article from it, so I guess I don't have a problem with it. Maybe those peeps with humongous fingers will. The response is good and tactile feedback is impressive. The touchpad is responsive as well, though I'm used to the a single button touchpad (because the iBook has only one button), it's on the hard to press side. The layout of the keyboard is the standard layout albeit the small size.

THE OPERATING SYSTEM and SOFTWARE
It's running an ASUS tweaked XANDROS distro of Linux. Others might be turned off upon hearing that it's running on Linux, but believe me, even a 5 year old kid could use this computer. Using it is a no brainer. The applications are arranged into tabs (much like the cellphone that you're using) and in each tab, there are lots of large icons, that even people with Presbyopia will appreciate.

I'm not too familiar with Linux applications, but I will mention those that, I think, people will be using the most.
- Firefox - web browsing
- OpenOffice - counterpart of the usual Microsoft Office suit (Word, Excel, Powerpoint) and the good thing is, it's compatible vice versa
- Pidgin - it's a unified instant messenger where the user can enroll all his/her IM accounts from Yahoo! Messenger, AOL, MSN, Google Talk
- Thunderbird - for those who would rather use an email client in the computer than use the web counterparts
- Acrobat Reader
- Skype

It also has a PIM application, a counterpart for Microsoft Outlook. On the FUN tab, it has a photo viewer, media player (which can detect and iPod), voice recorder and a video recorder from the on-board webcam.

Most of the icons are just shortcuts to websites. There are icons for popular webmails such as Gmail, Yahoo! Mail, Hotmail and AOL. You will see a lot of Google-ish here, as there is a dedicated icon for iGoogle (which will just open up Firefox and bring you to Google.com/ig.

It's not unusual too that they thought of kids when developing this product. As there are lots of kid-ish applications and links available.

OVERALL
I like the product because of it's size, it's functionality and the price. I got it for almost Php18T. Hey, my mobile phone is more expensive than this hehehehe. It's so portable that you don't need to buy a laptop bag and virtually telling the world, go ahead and mug me because I'm carrying a laptop. Also, it's not that heavy. Laptop users (especially windows laptops) will have the power adapters to add to the weight of the whole thing. With this one, it's just like having a communicator in your bag.

I have an iBook, and (i know I'll get flack from Mac users), I only use it for surfing the web, and making my lectures and presentations. I like my iBook because of it's instant on, but now, the EeePC is challenging that.

I think the sub-20K price is the sweet price point. Because for me, once you cross the 20K mark, better get a full-fledged notebook computer instead. Besides, for less than 20K, it's easy to get another one after a year. Hehehehe I guess I've exposed my intentions.

Reinterating why I like the Mac

Why i like my iBook or perhaps all Macs, maybe because of OS X, focuses only on one reason, the immediate boot up. It's not techinically booting up since is just waking up from sleep. But it helps a lot. If I want to do something right away, I don't have to wait for a minute or two for my laptop to wake up. Windows notebooks have the same feature, it's called Hibernate, but it's not as fast the Mac OS does. This is the main reason I stay with Mac but other factors considered, I wouldn't turn my back completely on Windows.

Unboxing: HP iPAQ 512 Voice Messenger

I have a new toy, and it's in the form of the HP iPAQ 512 Voice Messenger. It's a Smartphone. Powered by Windows Mobile 6 with some HP additives.

I usually change phones in one or two year's time. I am also a solid Sony Ericsson fan (my very first Ericsson phone was an A1018). So why get a non-SE phone?

My current, er, "previous" phone sa a Sony Ericsson M600i, has UIQ for it's platform, white (goes with my iBook) and slim with of course the rocker thumboard. I had it for 6 months and I might say, I am well contented with it. Problem is, it doesn't have two functions that I want, a camera and WLAN (WiFi).

Then came the Sony Ericsson P1i. Of course, there's also the Nokia E61i, but I am not really a fan of Nokias (for the same reason that I don't like Windows Mobile, they're both SLOW and BUGGY!). Anyways, the P1i is still too expensive for my taste. I still have to convince myself to buy a phone worth more than a generic desktop PC or half a Flat Panel LCD 32" TV. Plus the fact that I'm looking for an OS (smartphone) that will accommodate my profession's applications (at the moment, only Palm has fulfilled that need).

Some will say, why not get a Treo or the latest Centro. Well, I've entertained both, then again, Palm handhelds still lack wireless (wifi) capabilities. I will grab a Palm phone right away (even if the OS is aging) once they have included WiFi capabilities on any of their products.

Now, why the iPaq line? Well, what really caught me was the price point. It's mid-range, with a very nice feature-set (I'm the type who wants to get the most out of a gadget). I also like how it looks like. The built (for having it for three days already) is solid. Although I'm afraid the paint will eventually erode as use becomes more frequent, especially the logos at the backside. The keys have good tactile feel, but coming from a thumboard, I had a difficult time re-adjusting to the one hand texting. Also, even if I don't have quite a big set of fingers, I often mis-press the adjacent keys.

The OS. Ok it's Windows Mobile 6. It looks good...on the Home Screen. But when you dig deep into the OS, it's a boring flat, no eye candy what so ever. Responsiveness? Nada! It's down there. Once I started to use multiple applications, the response is crawling. That's even after I closed all of the applications from the Task Manager. Also, multitasking, although available (since it's Windows Mobile), will definitely screw everything up. If for example, an application is open and a text message comes in, the processes will stop to almost to a hanging state. Heck this is the cause of most hangs with this phone.

The manual is not very helpful. It's more of a generalized user guide than a detailed one.

Let's go to the WiFi connectivity. It's supposed to be easy, but for some reason, I have a hard time connecting it to my network. It takes some time for it to get it's IP address. I also got a couple of errors with regards to DHCP. But once connected, everything is doing good. I have yet to try VOIP services on this phone. I used GIZMO settings.

Bluetooth? It has it, no problem with pairing with my Jabra headset. Though I experienced some problems with transferring contacts from my SE M600i in bulk to this phone. It did not accept it. Still on the process of test if file transfers (i.e. pictures, music, etc) from the iPaq 512 to another device.

Camera is so, so. Being it only a 1.5 MP shooter. It's mediocre. But it will do. I now am having a hard time looking for a FREE blogging client that will let me post the pictures I've taken to my blogger account.

The screen is ok, but not impressive. There will be some pixelations, but overall, it's ok.

So far, I have not experienced any problems with ActiveSync. It works! That's the surprising fact.

It did not come with a real charger, but instead, it has an USB adapter which is plugged into an electric socket and a USB cable is used to attach and charge the phone.

Voice Messenger:
This phone is being touted as a Voice Messenger. Meaning, a lot of functions can be started/used just by using voice. And what's nice about it is, it does not need any training. If I want to call Rob in my contacts, all I have to do is say "CALL Rob at MOBILE" then it will ask you to confirm. Pretty neat! I can also read back text messages (but with how Filipinos text, a simple message can take a long time to read out).

UPDATE: email set-up is a breeze in this phone. Email is integrated with the messaging client, together with the text messaging. Setting up an email through the built-in wizard was so easy that I was getting emails from my Gmail, Hotmail and believe it or not, Yahoo! Mail in less than a minute of entering the required data.

I have a rough time configuring my email client on my SE M600i a while back. Though I got it to work on the Sony Ericsson phone, configuration is not as easy as this one. Also, what's so surprising is that, I am now able to get Yahoo! Mail on this phone, even if my Yahoo! account does not have POP3 access.

The first thing I did was to enter my email address, then the second part was the wizard auto-checking for available configurations for the email, then it asked for, of course the log in details and the frequency of pulling email from the servers. And that's it! Email on the go.

Overall: I think I will still use the phone, but majority of the reason relies on the presence of Wireless access. But I don't think this will last me a year before I get a new phone. Oh and did I tell you that this is my very first WINDOWS MOBILE device. Yes it is.

Safari on Windows Faster than Firefox but...

Safari on Windows is really fast in loading wedpages than Firefox but, initial load of websites (right after opening Safari) is longer, way too longer than Firefox. After everything has loaded up and I go to other pages, it's a snap.

New Yahoo Mail Out of Beta, now with Text Messaging

Yahoo! has brought the new mail interface out of beta and it now includes the capability to send SMS (text) messages to mobile phones. At present, only four countries are included to have text messaging included in their Yahoo! mail, Philippines, US, India (I think) and Canada (or is it Australia). Will update if I have my facts straight already hehehe.

Globelines Down

Yesterday, when I got home, I wasn't able to connect to the internet. When I checked my modem (PROLINK Hurricane 9300G) the internet light was not on. So I did the routing on-off cycle to no avail. Then I decided to call Globelines. The guy told me that the modem is syncing with their servers, and that the problem is on my end, meaning the modem. He said he will send someone to look at the problem today. While awake I desperately tried to do the cycle but that LED internet light did not light up. So I accepted the fact that they might replace the modem.

This morning, it's more of a withdrawal symptom than anything else, I turned on the modem hoping the internet LED would light up, lo and behold, it did!

I'm wondering, perhaps the problem was not on my side, but there really was a problem with the Globelines network and the guy that I talked to did know it yet. Perhaps I'm one of the lucky ones that get good service from the company, although I think there are more dissatisfied customers with PLDT.

Nonetheless, I did not report that my internet is ok now, it's better for their people to check on the devices.

What's the use of PIM applications on the Desktop?

There are instances that one will need a PIM (Personal Information Manager) application in his/her lifetime and there are lots of them out there. In fact, there's one in every phone that comes out today, and perhaps there's one in your desktop or notebook installed.

Outlook is one of the most commonly used, especially in the enterprise arena. But there are people that use it even at home to help them organize schedules and events.

Nonetheless, with the advent of broadband connections and the widening coverage. The penetration to homes has increased, and the point is, it is the time to look at web-based applications, this time web-based PIMs. One advantage is that, it does not occupy a big space in the hard drive, and being on a remote server, it does not need that much processing power, meaning, the processing power can now be used for some other work.

Instead of opening multiple applications at the same time (e.g. web browser and PIM application), one has to do is to open only one, the browser. And with the popularity of tabbed-browsing it is not hard to shuffle thru different websites.

Try for example what Google has to offer. It has Google Calendar, Gmail, Google Docs, Google Photos. All under one account.