Empty Path

Mac Mini Core Duo

2006-03-07T12:59:00.000+10:00

I have taken a dive into a new mac-intel. More specifically I have bought the new Mac Mini Core Duo. Even though I have yet to received the order, I am excited to finally set up the Mac Mini as my media centre. When the original Mac Mini first came out I had already thought it would fit in perfectly for my media solution, but it was just short on a few things like speed and lack of a good media interface. The new version changed all that.

It has all the things I need and it will fit nicely into the decor for any lounge for that matter. The wireless connection to the network and web, Front Row to drive photos, music, movies and DVDs from a remote control, DVI out for my DVI-ready plasma, great as an extra computer and fast enough for most applications I would use in the lounge.

I will give a full review once I have received my custom built Mac Mini. I have add a 1gb of RAM and up the hard disk to 100gb, so this delayed the order for 2 weeks. So stay tune in a couple of weeks for my insights.

A Moment for After Life

2006-02-16T14:26:00.000+10:00

Its often the case when people are dying they often recapture turning points in their life. John Maeda (one of my true heroes), posted this recently. Having also seen the movie After Life, which I also loved, I felt it really makes you think long and hard what your life is about. Maeda deftly describes the movie as ...

"When people die, they go to a place where there is a movie production company. There the staff interviews the new arrivals to get them to select the one memory that they can take with them as they pass on to wherever that might be. A movie is made of that one memory, that they get to take with them as how they remember their life."

I would love to know what mine would be. At this point in my life, I've only lived 30 years so I would hope better things are to come. But I do remember back when I was maybe 4 or 5 years old something turned me down to this path of creative life. During my first day of kindergarten, I was drawing as I used to do at home. My teacher back then was amazed at the quality I had produced for my age and commended me on it showing it to everyone. From then on everyone in the class was congratulating me and asked me to draw for them. From that early point in life, I started to focus on creative expression drawing on anything I saw and the rest is history.

It really gave the child that I was a sense of being and defining my contributing part in the world. That I think would be my little short film to take after I pass on.

Money - How much do you need to retire?

2006-02-16T13:54:00.000+10:00

How much do you need to retire?

I often wondered how much I personally would need in order to retire. Obviously the earlier the better. But after looking at the article, I'm more towards working more and retire later. Nothing worse than old and penniless. Go and check out this article.

Internet Explorer 7: Beta 2 Preview

2006-02-01T12:32:00.000+10:00

Internet Explorer 7: Beta 2 Preview

IE7 Beta is now out for public review. Great work for MS delivering a beta this early in the year. I am sure the final version is long way down the track, probably in the fourth quarter. Anyway, download it and give them feedback for goodness sake. Its our responsibility to tell them what you think.

REMEMBER, its a beta!

Four Things

2006-01-25T08:28:00.000+10:00

I blame Zeldman

Four jobs I’ve had

Cinema Usher

Junior Designer

College Tutor/Lecturer

Creative Consultant/IA/BA

Four movies I can watch over and over

Shawshank Redemption

The Professional

Fight Club

Castle in the Sky

Four places I’ve lived

Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

Gold Coast, Australia

Brisbane, Australia

Melbourne, Australia

Four TV shows I love

The Simpsons

Top Gear

Initial D Series

The Amazing Race

Four places I’ve vacationed

Tokyo

Hong Kong

Bangkok

Taipei

Four of my favorite dishes

Chicken Tikka Masala

Kyoto's Katsu Ramen

Kuala Lumpur's Curry Laksa

Mum's Slow Braised Duck

Four sites I visit daily

Engadget

Soccernet.com

digg

News.com.au

Four places I would rather be right now

Relaxing at Bora Bora

Travelling Europe

Hiking & Mountaineering at Nepal

Playing games at home

Four bloggers I am tagging

Molly

Roger Johansson

Jason Santa Maria

Eric Meyer

Comic Sans was a mistake.

2006-01-22T16:57:00.000+10:00

Connare: Art, design & typography:Type Designs:Comic Sans

Vincent Connare has blogged his design of Comic Sans as a resolution to a specific problem. The typography used for those annoying Word/Office Assistant animations, and not for systematic use of text typography.

It just amazes me how typographically powerful and influential Windows is, especially when there are only so many (limited) system fonts available. Comic Sans became used as an alternative to Times New Roman and worse, Arial. This is a great insight to typography development to GUI systems.

AnandTech: Intel's Core Duo Launch - Notebook Performance Revealed

2006-01-06T11:53:00.000+10:00

AnandTech: Intel's Core Duo Launch - Notebook Performance Revealed

AnandTech just reviewed Intel's Core Duo processor. Its better in performance and longer in battery life. Note, not as hot as well! Could this be a preview of what's to come at MacWorld next week? I'm salivating for more Apple PowerBook info.

Which highlights that I'm looking to get another 17" PowerBook after it died last year *sob*. Damn you corrupted logic board!

Web Developer Extension 1.0

2006-01-04T08:46:00.000+10:00

Web Developer Extension 1.0 is out and its even better. The must-have extension on Firefox is you are interested in web development or design. So go get it now.

Google Zeitgeist 2005

2005-12-22T09:48:00.000+10:00

Gotta love Google and here is an annual reason why. Google Zeitgest 2005 is out and it give us amazing insights to activities highlighted and effected the web. I just love that the "The Force" is still winning over the "Dark Side".

You Me You

2005-10-15T21:18:00.000+10:00

Relaunching his website, good friend of mine, Desmong Leung has spread his design works and updated some of his latest creative ventures at youmeyou.com.tv . Go check out his motion graphics.

The Abuse of "Less is More"

2005-10-10T10:54:00.000+10:00

Signal vs. Noise's “Less is More” is Bullshit highlighted the problem with origins of phrases being mutated and abuse in the info-culture we drown in today. Here is the reply I posted;

From my understanding, the phrase "Less is more" comes from the Bauhaus movement in the 1920s. More specifically by architect Ludwig Mies van der Rohe to describe his aesthetic tactics of flattening and emphasizing the building's frame, eliminating interior walls and adopting an open plan, and reducing the structure to a strong, transparent, elegant skin. In essence creating a minimalistic space with more function.

I believe its more the people who adopt and abuse the phrase today that's the problem, not the original meaning. "Less is more" is not semantics or bullshite, but inappropriately used in all design related fields without much thinking.

Web Essentials 2005

2005-10-04T22:45:00.000+10:00

After a few days to take in all the inspiration, great ideas, new profound directions and amazing web speakers, I can finally blog about Web Essentials 2005. I just totally love the whole conference. If nothing else, it rejuvenated my love for the web and what it stood for.

Last year was a real eye opener, I can't remember since when did Australia had such access to these presenters. This year was totally different again, in a very good way. The "tao" of 2004 was opening the gates to many designers, developers and webbies. This time around we a lot more high caliber speakers such as Jeffrey Veen, Molly E. Holzschlag, Eric Meyer, Kelly Goto, Douglas Bowman and so many more good speakers.

John Allsopp and the rest of the fabulous WE05 organisers and support staff were great in so many ways. They made the event totally friendly, charged the audience with energy and made everything as seemless as possible. Even when there were problems, it would be resolved. The perfect example is the undue evacuation from the presentation by Tantek Celik on The Elements of Meaningful XHTML . Cheers to you guys. Great job!

Along the way I meet more people who were just as enthused as I was discussing the web and what we do to make things better. This was the invaluable aspect of the conference gather people across all states and internationally as far as Finland. I'm going to have catch with everyone I met hopefully join into a local Melbourne web scene.

To Web Essentials 2006, as I look forward to even better web standards, ideas and technology.

Web Essential 2005

2005-08-26T15:52:00.000+10:00

Yes, I am going to WE05, again. Last year, WE04, was a great event as it was the first time I've been to a fully focused web development conference. Semi-permanent, Flash, AGIdeas, and other design conferences often have a full spectrum of design and art side. WE04 was an eye opener that focused into the direction of web development, such as semantic HTML(XHTML), CSS, accessibility and future of web development and a host of other stuff.

The atmosphere was also great fun, with Dave Shae (CSS Zen Garden) and Douglas Bowman (Stop Design) as special guests the quality was certainly good. It really pushed me last year to go further in my web developments and improve my sites. This seemed to have exploded with guests like Eric Meyer, Douglas Bowman, Molly E. Holzschlag, Jeffrey Veen, Tantek Çelik, and a host more guests. All gurus of the current web and no doubt full of information on the road ahead.

So, I'd recommend this to anyone if they can get the last 10 tickets or so. See you there in September.

Google Talk

2005-08-24T15:34:00.000+10:00

Its out and its beta. If you haven't got it yet then don't worry. First you need a Gmail account for it work. It also needs a lot more UI development to go but I can see where its going. Google talk a has working IM and call function but without much additional chat tools. Emotive icons are not available as yet so many chats can't be emotionised. I hope its going to get much better. If you like download it and check it out.

http://www.google.com/talk/

Australian Broadband

2005-08-23T16:52:00.000+10:00

One of the discussion I have been heavily into at the moment is the current state of the Australian Broadband industry. The present monopoly of Telstra is, for all intent and purposes, a hinderance to broadband growth. For most other countries with competitive telecommunication industries, serious advances for end user access online have been achieved. Notables are South Korea, Japan in Asia, Finland, Sweden and other advance European countries, and of course, North America.

Most think we do not have the population base, city density or handicapped with our huge land mass per capital. Of course, these are all valid points to the slow growth of broadband. But surely we need to advance and face these challenges. The biggest limitation lies on the mess that is Telstra. Those who do not live in Australia need to understand the huge monopoly it has and control the telecommunication industry. Telstra, a former government operation as Telecom, has over 90% of all Australian telecommunication infrastructure. This means they have a huge hold on the market.

Competition like Optus, AAPT and others may have smaller networks of their own but still mostly access to Telstra lines for its networks. This was made possible by government intervention and legislation by Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) and Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA). The possibly for change is presently changing as Telstra is going forth to its full sale next year. It will be interesting to see what will change, if at all, to the broadband industry then.

Death of a PowerBook & Podcasting

2005-08-22T14:50:00.000+10:00

First thing. I have been a total lazy bug. My blogs have been totally out and stopped for a month since I wrote my last piece. Total apologies. You will know why it took so long soon.

So what have I been doing all this time? Part of it is my time has been the death of my 17" 1.33ghz PowerBook I got in December 2004. It was devastating to lose my favourite laptop after something out of my control. One minute I was in a meeting and when I return to my desk its dead. The beautiful 17" LCD screen was totally scrambled. After much testing and advice from authorised Apple repairers, the logic board has VRAM corruption. It now scrambles all my video output (yes that includes all video-out).

OK, I'll try and fix it. Maybe not. The cost of repair is over $2000 Australian dollars. Total shock and disgust with the 4-figure cost. There is no way I am going to fork out $2000 for a fault appearing totally out of thin air. For that money I might as well buy a new one or put it into a investment account to buy the planned Apple-Intel PowerBook. So now I have no working Mac since I also sold my G4 6-months ago. Now, I've been force to go back to my old PC and wait until next for the new PowerBook. Sad, sad predicament for a creative and lost of respect and dissappointment with Apple hardware.

On a lighter note, even without my PowerBook, I have been enjoying some great podcasting. Audio-on-demand is such a good idea. Its like blogging but with audio and anyone with a decent recording gear can doing. Here are some of the stuff I've been listening to;

If you've got iTunes, you can start straight away and subscribe to them. Find it in the Music Store under Podcast.

If you too are listening podcasts. What are your favourites? Let me know as I would love to check out other cool podcast.

Return of the Blogger, Relationships and Melbourne Life...

2005-07-18T13:55:00.000+10:00

Firstly, please let me apologies for non-blogging for so long. I have been out of touch with many people after my move. Things have finally been settling down for me and my partner. The place we are renting has had many issues but is now finally sorted. My ADSL issues is also solved with much increase in speed due to iiNet's DSLAM access. Otherwise, I have been busy organising home, especially this is the first time I have moving in with my partner. Hence merging two lifestyles is a challenging prospect.

Overall its been good to finally work on our relationship and create a life together. People say that when you get married, I say that happens as soon as you get together with someone. To some extend, all relationship start on the very first meeting and grow (or not) from that point. I have to admit there have been difficult challenges but we work on it and openly discuss issues. None of us are perfect so I won't expect any relationships to be either. Its all about understanding and communications, but commitment and sacrifices are keys to many resolutions.

The move to Melbourne also made a big shift for me. The weather for one takes getting used to. I have accepted its chaotic cycles and extreme temperatures, but my partner is still struggling with the dry cold winds. Might take her much longer to accept the weather as she has to endure more public transport than I do. But one thing that we really like about Melbourne is the diversity of markets and foods. Our lives revolves around cooking, eating and shopping for food. Everything here has good standards and competitive pricing makes most things affordable.

Finally, as I am starting to get back into swing of things, expect a lot more blogging.

Apple, Intel inside

2005-06-07T11:53:00.000+10:00

Wow. Rumours are true. Unbelievable. Apple has gone Intel for the processors. I am feeling numb and tingling sensations in the tips of my toes. For you all Mac users out there, I am sure you are feeling the same way. Its like two worlds merging and colliding. Link here

On the move to Melbourne...

2005-06-02T16:48:00.000+10:00

I am finally in Melbourne. I haven't been able to blog as I still haven't gotten online much. My car is shipped down as well. All in tact with a weeks worth of dirt on it. I can recommend http://www.cartransport.com.au. They have been quick and good pricing as well. At this stage, my friend has generously let me temporarily at his cool apartment. Its got the lot and very close to the city. So what have I been doing? Getting lost while familiarising the roads here (which are easy to learn, more on this later) and house hunting. House hunting is not my favourite hobby nor will it make the list. The past week that I've been here there were hardly any place I liked. I'm still hunting and hopefully get a place in a week or so. The property agents are mostly not information or have no clue what they are advertising. This makes my life all the more difficult. Imagine going to a place and find that its not as described and dissapointing.

Anyhow, I'm going to blog as much as I can. Setting up ADSL and cable might take awhile at the new place. Hope get stablised soon.

E3 & Smoke and Mirrors - MS style...

2005-05-20T13:06:00.000+10:00

With all the hype and excitement surrounding this year's E3. I have been avidly following the big launch of Xbox 360, PS3 and Nintendo Revolution. Being the owner of all previous three consoles, I definitely will only be purchasing two of these new console, maybe even one. These HD, terafloppin' console are way and beyond the power of the current PCs, which makes future gaming even more exciting. Killzone 2 for PS3 looks particularly amazing, and some have argued that its a fake.

Xbox 360's so-called demo box was revealed to be running on 2 Apple G5 and a desk fan. Big smoke and mirrors here as the least they can do is hide it better. Geez...

This is still pretty funny, since when have MS been a touted user of Apple desktops?

Rich Communist

2005-05-10T17:07:00.000+10:00

The black and white differences of capitalism and communism is getting blurred. We now have China, a proud communist country out "capitalising" its opponents. It is simply distorted the views of pure utopia ideology of socialism and bridge the booming capitalistic economic to be the factory to the world. I bet no one can't say they have nothing made from China. Now as a twist of communist evolution, some chinese people are reaping the benefits as a community. In China's richest village, peasants are all shareholders now - by order of the party

Moving Post No.2

2005-05-10T15:27:00.000+10:00

The move is getting more and more complex. The cost is also getting more expensive as well. Think about it folks. Packing all the belongings and limiting which ones to keep or trash makes moving all the more difficult. I have limited my move to 15 boxes not including furniture. Believe me, 15 boxes is quite limiting after 28 years of living. Simple living have never been so complex. For example, I have so many books I need to keep (professionally and personally) its not funny. Other items like clothing can be managed and reduced by donations.

I think it gets harder and harder to move as you get older. Last time I moved was 5 years ago and it was much easier. Major difference is that I had less stuff. This time around, I am having to decide what to move, trash, or store. Can your life be packed into a number of boxes?

Darth Side

2005-04-27T16:36:00.000+10:00

If you haven't heard, Darth Vader has his own blog. Its probably one of the most entertaining blog out at the moment. Make sure you check out the comments as well. The interaction from the public is hilarious.

http://darthside.blogspot.com/

Blog review: ***** (Five stars)

Moving Post No.1

2005-04-18T10:41:00.000+10:00

Moving from one state to another is a big change. The biggest move for me is moving countries when I was a kid. Now it seem kind of similar.

My move to Melbourne next month would probably seem easy to most people. I am not bring much furniture, mostly boxes of stuff I deem important or practical. But nonetheless it will make things interesting. There are so many things you need to organise and plan that a checklist is necessary. Does anyone have a moving checklist? If so, what have been your experience with moving?

Time for change

2005-04-07T16:08:00.000+10:00

In the next month or so I will be moving to Melbourne permanently. The path seem unclear but one thing for sure is that its a change. Changes are good for the pure reason you will gain something from a different environment. One fact that I really live on is the Buddhist view on impermanence. Nothing in life is permanent. Absolutely nothing. Once anyone understands that, then they can be a bit happier and move on.

People move all the time. For work, education, love, family or just for the sake of moving. I tend to stay at a place and feel content. But that contentment is a mere illusion as change wheels around you. Everyone needs to grow and keep evolving, otherwise time leaves you by the way side. Just like when we are kids, we want to grow older and free to live our own lives. By the time you get to the next stage, another appears before you and again you will strive for it. As you can see, changes can be in your control but sometimes its out of your control.

Now, when I talk about change, its not just about moving. It can be emotional, mental, relationships or social. Its whatever your next stage of change that lies before you. I feel I am at the point of that stage. The need to change further has many reasons, but for me its the wheel of time that pushes me. For those who are thinking of change, whatever form it maybe, do not delve on it. Take hold and embrace change, as you will see the gain more than the lost.

Sprae.com Redesigned

2005-03-30T14:42:00.000+10:00

After 24 months of delays, design changes and hibernations, I have finally managed to revamp Sprae.com to a more CSS-valid, browser friendly and more refreshing creative website. Go to the Sprae.com's contact page and give me some feedback as a website is living breathing beast that evolves and grows.

Something Silly

2005-03-30T14:09:00.000+10:00

Last Good Friday, I caught up with quite a few people at a dinner. A friend had came up from Melbourne and we booked into a nice Vietnamese restaurant. The whole night was all good food and nice conversations until someone told a story about seeing an episode of Ed where he drank a whole bottle of maple syrup from a $10 dare. So there I was thinking that is highly possible and said I could do it too.

What happend next was pretty obvious. After several dares, betting stakes and brief rules were sorted out, a bottle of 375ml "artificial" maple syrup was presented to me. By that time many disasterous thoughts came to mind and with much hesitation I acted out my claim. It was straight forward. I drank the whole bottle in a single long, gulping effort. Everyone was staring at by that stage with pure amazement, disgust or both. It was not that bad at all. It was sweet and man was it filling. By that time I have had a full banquet of food and by downing a bottle of syrup at the end really top it off. I was so full but what mattered was I won the dare and proved my claim. I probably wouldn't do it again and I don't recommend it to anyone else either, but I stood by my words prove it and, more critically, survived.

Bangkok Photos

2005-03-22T21:13:00.000+10:00

Finally picked a few photos to share with you all. Some amazing place and incredible food. It was fun until I got sick. Anyway, enjoy the photos.

2005-03-22T21:09:00.000+10:00

Amazing palace wall painting

2005-03-22T21:07:00.000+10:00

Grand Palace Roofs

2005-03-22T21:06:00.000+10:00

Bangkok Skyline

2005-03-22T21:05:00.000+10:00

Bangkok at night

CSS Zen Garden

2005-03-21T10:53:00.000+10:00

Thanks to Dave at CSS Zen Garden, my CSS design for "Zen" theme was published. You can have a look at it here.

On my virus front, I am getting much better now. There is still a few coughs left in me so hopefully I can get fit soon.

All out GT4 Craziness

2005-03-17T11:27:00.000+10:00

While I am recuperating from my virus, I have been enjoying the fun of my old PS2 again courtesy of GT4. There is arguably no other driving game as deep in playability or as real as GT4. The sheer number of cars available (700 plus) is immense. As you will find, I have posted two of my GT4 car photos. This bonus ability alone gives it more icing to the already excellent game. Check out my Flickr GT4 photo set here.

On another note, the travel photos will be coming thick and fast this coming few days. The selection process is rather slow as I am obviously not going to put every single photo online.

GT4 Photos - Honda CITY Turbo II

2005-03-17T11:12:00.000+10:00

My favourite Honda CITY Turbo II 1983 in Shibuya, Japan.

GT4 Photos - NISSAN 350Z Concept LM

2005-03-17T10:00:00.000+10:00

My tuned up NISSAN 350Z Concept LM Race Car '02 with 947bhp

Holiday ends with Fever

2005-03-10T09:12:00.000+10:00

I have been sick. Very, very sick. In fact I am still recovering from a cough. It all started in Bangkok two weeks ago. During the day trip to the beautiful Grand Palace, I had a heat stroke. I feel unwell but it did not stop me travelling on. By the time I got back to KL two days later, the fever began to heat up. I went to see a doctor getting medication for fever, antibiotics and others so I might get better. It was going to get worse. The next day I was so hot, I swear my brains were boiling. I was hallucinating and sweating by the time my temperature peaked. I had to go back to the doctor and getting a fever injection. That reduced the fever and started recovering.

By the time I got back to Brisbane, I had developed a bad cough coming from my inflamed throat which started the initial fever. The third trip to the doctors here gave me my current rounds of antibiotics and cough medicine. I am recovering very slowly, and all this time I felt totally lethargic and weak. The fact that now my girlfriend is also sick with an inflamed throat and had a fever meant it is infectious. She looked after me from KL to Brisbane, so she had the greatest contact with me. I am now worried if she will recover soon. It pains me to see that I have some how inflicted my suffering to her as well.

Alas, the lack of posts is due to these unfortunate events. I will update my travels as soon as I get much better.

Malaysian butterfly

2005-02-17T23:48:00.000+10:00

Using a Sony T1 digital camera. Just got my Canon Powershot G6, hence there will be more updates soon. So far the camera is meeting my expectations although its more technical than the Sony T1. Its more a case of more control the better.

Penang Trip

2005-02-15T01:08:00.000+10:00

Just returned from hot Penang. After travelling for 3 days and 2 nights, we ate many local favourite foods. Here is a photo from the Burmese Buddhist temple. More updates coming soon.

Hello from Kuala Lumpur

2005-02-11T09:05:00.000+10:00

Its Chinese New Year here and they have paint the town red with all sorts of decorations and colours. This picture was taken while we were having lunch at a Shanghai restuarant in the Marriot Hotel. The lion dancers were quite good and played a great festive part to the start of our travels.

Blog update: I have setup my dad's online connection. 56k modem is definitely hell for a ADSL user.

Come Fly With Me...

2005-02-09T14:09:00.000+10:00

Like old Frank sang, I'm getting ready to fly way. Everything is packed and checked. I am excited.

I don't really get why so many people hate flying or airports. No matter how many times I fly (at least 3 times a year), I just love going to the airports, going through the long queues, carrying one ton luggage, waiting patiently for delays and beware of all your belongings. Long or short flights gives you time to relax and catch up on reading, movies, games (Nintendo DS only baby!) and iPod your ears. Plus I don't mind travelling with others or alone, but the more the merrier. You are probably thinking I am mad, but let me explain.

I've had missed flights, long delays, bad in-flight services, poisonous food, lost luggage and items, ridiculous custom checks, endless cries of sleepless babies, and rough turbulent rides. So why do I still get excited? I love the process that you are going somewhere no matter how arduous. You are going to new places or revisiting ones which you know quite well. Holidays and work trips have their pros and cons but the travelling process gives you something to experience and gain a better insight of something different. I believe you gain more than you lose every time you fly. Anyway, this will be my last blog before my flight. I will try and update my travels as much as possible.

By the way...

Happy Chinese New Year! I wish everyone a happy and healthy year of the Rooster.

Today's Highlights

2005-02-08T13:50:00.000+10:00

Doug Bowman, CSS guru and designer (Stopdesign.com), has just written a great and easy way to secure wireless access to personal email. I would highly recommend anyone to read this article.
This new Sony Ericsson mobile phone (K750i?) is looking pretty nice. Might get this if reviews are good. By the way, I'm a big fan of Sony Ericsson.
Battery-less remote. Do you want one? I certain do. Here it is.
Future of computing is coming. It takes three big heads to do it though namely IBM, Sony and Toshiba. I can't wait to work harder and faster. Maybe not.
You think your camera has the greatest resolution? Maybe you should have a look at this article from Wired.com. The 4-Gigapixel camera is amazingly clear and virtually puts any professional cameras to shame. Go directly to the Gigapxl Project and check out the gallery.

Travelling Blogs

2005-02-07T10:24:00.000+10:00

I will be blogging to you all on my travels for the next 3 weeks. The blog will be covering my visits in Malaysia and Thailand. The main focus of this travel is to eat and shop. There are a lot of food there that I love and hope to share it with my girlfriend.

The obligatory photo grabs will happen with the use of my new Canon Powershot G6 (after I purchase it that is). I hope to setup the online access with my dad's laptop and blog from there. Otherwise I will try the online hubs where I can find them. I can't wait.

Chinese Relationships

2005-02-04T11:20:00.000+10:00

Recently I have been thinking of moving in with my girlfriend. Its a complex issue especially if you are from a Chinese background. We both are quite traditional in the sense that we should be engaged or married before living together. But we both know its not likely to happen soon as we both believe marriage and engagements should be properly held, which would incur large sums of money. Hence we need to share our resources and start saving by living together. We believe we can save up for our future much easier this way.

But there is the problem of our parents, who may not like the idea. If our families were western, that would not be an issue at all. Traditionalistic Chinese parents are more like to judge and god knows what their relatives and friends are going to gossip about. Its not so bad for the guy, but my other half will be seen as not doing the right thing and lesser than she was. I feel its wrong but there is nothing we can do about it. Here you go, a nano-insight to the complexity for Chinese relationships.

Myth of Buddhist Diet

2005-01-28T10:33:00.000+10:00

There have been varying myths of Buddhist vegetarian dietary needs and its restrictness. First and foremost, it should be known that Gautama Buddha, the Buddha commonly known, had always ate whatever he was given. The interpretation of vegetarianism in Buddhism really originated from his teaching. The first lay precept in Buddhism prohibits killing. Many see this as implying that Buddhists should not eat the meat of animals.

However, this is not necessarily the case. The Buddha made distinction between killing an animal and consumption of meat, stressing that it is immoral conduct that makes one impure, not the food one eats. Monks in ancient India were expected to receive all of their food by begging and to have little or no control over their diet. During the Buddha's time, there was no general rule requiring monks to refrain from eating meat. In fact, at one point the Buddha specifically refused to institute vegetarianism and the Pali Canon records the Buddha himself eating meat on several occasions.

In the today's world, attitudes toward vegetarianism vary by location. In Southeast Asia and Sri Lanka, monks are bound by the vinaya to accept almost any food that is offered to them, often including meat, while in China and Vietnam, monks are expected to eat no meat. In Japan and Korea, some monks practice vegetarianism, and most will do so at least when training at a monastery, but otherwise they typically do eat meat. In Tibet, where vegetable nutrition was historically very scarce, and the adopted vinaya was the Nikaya Sarvāstivāda, vegetarianism is very rare, although the Dalai Lama has recently made several comments encouraging its adoption. In the West, of course, a wide variety of practices are followed. Lay Buddhists generally follow dietary rules less rigorously than monks.

Many of my friends have always asked me if I eat meat or not. I do eat meat but not those which is directly killed from my requests or needs. I am trying to eat less meat and practise no beef in my diet. The point Buddhism tries to educate is the compassion for all living creatures no matter how insignificant. It is not Buddhism to refuse food or waste it. At this point of my practice I believe, its not reasonable to ask hosts or others to cater speficially for my needs. I do not belief I should effect or give hardship to others simply because I have a personal choice. It is best, as I have found, to be flexible and practise Buddhism as pragmatic as possible.

Climate Changes Future

2005-01-25T13:04:00.000+10:00

Please read this news first.
http://news.independent.co.uk/world/environment/story.jsp?story=603975

Interestingly, we all probably knew about this in our minds. I have always believed the "point-of-no-return" was past years ago. So plan your long-term (in 10 to 20 years time) future if you are really thinking ahead as sea-level rises.

I decided to have a look the world after sea level rises above 200 metres. So I went to here LDEO ClimateGroup DATASETS WORLDBATH where you can generate your own topology map of the world.

Here is something I prepared earlier...

This is a topology world map with light blue hightlighting 200 metres above sea-level.

Its looking like a very different world as we know it. Most of Europe, Eastern seaboard of USA, Amazon, Australian coastlines, and most islands are all gone. Fortunately, its probably going to happen very slow, or at least I hope it doesn't accelerate. Future is looking more like a bad Kevin Costner movie.

Pre-release Betrayers of Kamigawa

2005-01-24T13:58:00.000+10:00

I went to the pre-release of Betrayers of Kamigawa (Magic: The Gathering) on Sunday. Pretty happy with the outcome and only ran out of luck at the second last round. I still came 6th place which is the highest I've gotten. Either I've gotten better or riding on my luck.

I found the new set brought in even more tricks and strategies in the Kamigawa block environment. I quite liked the non-mana pay cost (rare) cards, as its almost impossible to know if the opponent can do any thing even after they are tapped out. Ninjitusu is fun too. Personally, I would rate this current block better than Mirrodin. Hope the next set will make Kamigawa even better.

Where are you Tyler Durden?

2005-01-22T13:09:00.000+10:00

Brad Pitt maybe getting divorced, but Tyler would certainly have not gotten married in the first place. The idealistic entity that is Tyler makes anti-consumerism, anti-globalisation convincing to many. Charismatically leading a life of statement which was focused and direct seem to attract followers. Although fictional there are others real historical figures which are "Tylersique", namely people with strong believes and in a time when they have the alternate answers to the system. Mao Zheng Dong, Che Guevara, Albert Einstein, Vladimir Lenin, George Washington, Jesus Christ, Buddha Shakyamuni, Prophet Muhammad, Alexander the Great, Qin Huang-Di, Genghis Khan, Plato and the list goes on.

Good or evil, these people all have strong beliefs that brought them followers and support. They may not have been the historical figures we see them now if it weren't for their charismatic, idealistic and determined character. Revolution; whether in culture, nations, beliefs, politics or science, came from alternate ideas that challenge embedded systems. Government do not like changes, corporations do not like changes, and most people do not like changes. Therefore, without revolutions, some changes cannot be brought forward. So where are our Tyler Durdens today? Its not George W. Bush nor is it Osama Bin Laden. Where are you Tyler Durden?

Harder to find Emptiness

2005-01-21T23:11:00.000+10:00

The more I work in these creative industries (Having worked in advertising, video games, Internet, and branding), the more I feel I have moved away from my beliefs. Every year I need to upgrade my Mac and PC with better performance or newer models. Then there is the monthly in take of design magazines, industry publications, plus other creative fuel. Not least, there is my need to keep up with personal technology. I have all the gadgets and more.

As I have so clearly stated, these are all materials I do not need to live or be good at what I do. So why do I keep consuming? I don't really know. Maybe its a guy thing or maybe I am sucked up in the lot of advertising jargon I help develop. Who really need a branded Louis Vuitton hand bag costing thousands? Why buy a 17" Apple Powerbook when a generic Dell laptop PC can do relatively the same job for less? DVDs, iPods, Xbox, PSP, plasma TV, digital cameras and the list goes on.

Are we as a society become so driven to status and self-satisfaction? I'm sure Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs helps explain some part of our psychological behaviourial needs and wants. But what I fail to understand is that why most of us (me included) fail to control our needs to basics. Just because we can doesn't mean we should. Nor is what I want I shall attain/own/beg/borrow/steal. I cannot halt my consumption as I am a hipocrite. My plans of purchasing a new digital camera, holidaying overseas and eating the best foods are the proof of my hipocrisy. Just maybe we are all too self-satifying for our own good. Back to watch Fight Club again then.

Digital Camera Hunt, Part 2

2005-01-21T16:04:00.000+10:00

Getting really close to choosing the Canon Powershot G6.

I had a look at it last night at a couple of camera shops (Harvey Norman & Ted's Cameras) and the lowest price there was AUD $1000. Kinda off my budget if I had to buy it here. I believe I could get the price under AUD $600 when I'm in Malaysia next month. If so, I will be extremely happy.

Change of Empty Path

2005-01-21T08:59:00.000+10:00

Update: Just recently renamed this blog to be more relevant as no one knows what Spraed Words was. Empty Path is more relative to what the content is about. Path to Nothingness.

Digital Camera Hunt

2005-01-20T14:52:00.000+10:00

I am current looking for a new digital camera which I'll be buying during my holidays next month. I've been trying to sort out which ones to buy and have narrowed down to either Canon or Sony brands (Purely because I used both before and liked their quality, Nikon would be my preference if I had the budget!).

My requirements are basically portability (actually fits into my pants pocket), high quality images and good manual function (for creative purposes). After going through several digital camera specialist websites for info (imaging-resource.com is pretty good), the models I have in my range are;

I'm going towards either S70 or P150. The G6 is actually the camera I want but the size makes it to cumbersome for anywhere-type usage. Does anyone have any recommendations?

The Book of Five Rings

2005-01-20T02:30:00.000+10:00

Just been reading The Book of Five Rings by Miyamoto Musashi (recommended translation by William Scott Wilson). Written for samurais in the 1600s, this short book uncovers the Way to achieve true goals physically and psychologically. Its by no way easy as it pretty much strictly describe as the lone path. Musashi never lost a fight in over sixty bouts within the age of 16 to early 30s. That alone must prove something. Let me know if you have also read the book.

Musashi's very Zen Buddhist approach is difficult and harsh but I can its rewards. I highly recommend this to those passionate about their work. Its an uncomprising yet positive approach to attaining the ultimate goal.

Step 1. How to create a faux nebula

2005-01-19T15:58:00.000+10:00

Step 1. Start an new file with white background and a new layer. Use a larger faded brush and stroke diagonally and applied with Cloud first and then Difference Cloud to create the nebula cloud effect.

Step 3. How to create a faux nebula

2005-01-19T15:51:00.001+10:00

Step 3. For the background space, make sure a black layer is create beneath the first layer with Monochrome Noise added and darken to achieve the image step above. Play with Transparencies of the cloud layers and fine tuning it.

Step 2. How to create a faux nebula

2005-01-19T15:51:00.000+10:00

Step 2. Add new layer on top. Again using the brush to shape and apply Cloud/Difference Cloud to achieve this. Apply Difference Cloud several times to get that "nebula look", but don't over do it.

Step 4. How to create a faux nebula

2005-01-19T15:50:00.000+10:00

Step 4. Apply colours with Hue/Saturation and add additional layer colour overlays for desired nebula type.

Step 5. How to create a faux nebula

2005-01-19T15:49:00.000+10:00

Step 5. Insert some white dots in varying sizes to simulate stars and galaxies.

Step 6. How to create a faux nebula

2005-01-19T15:29:00.000+10:00

PhotoShop Nebula - Final image with overlayed blur copy of itself to remove sharness for that "Telescope-Look".

Belate French Dinner Photos

2005-01-19T13:49:00.000+10:00

Here are some very late 2003 photos at Le Classic, French restuarant. Appréciez.

2005-01-19T13:33:00.001+10:00

A Very Belated Post - Nina and James

2005-01-19T13:33:00.000+10:00

A Very Belated Post - James at his "best"

2005-01-19T13:32:00.001+10:00

A Very Belated Post - Kain, Yandra and Nat

2005-01-19T13:32:00.000+10:00

A Very Belated Post - 2003 French dinner with friends.

My First Blog

2005-01-19T13:05:00.000+10:00

Hello Blog-World! Since this is my first blog, I will differentiate this blog site and my own website. This is a personal blog site and the Sprae.com is my creative/professional site.
I'll see how often I get to blog/sprae my thought.