No child's play

(Specially for my Dunman students)

Lack of parental support and academic guidance did not stop Jason Chionh from realising his dreams.

IT WAS his teacher who inspired Jason Chionh to pursue a career in video games, but not in the way you would expect.

While doing his final-year Computer Science project at Victoria Junior College, Jason was discouraged from proposing a games-related one. According to his teacher, his design could 'never compete' with the commercial games that are in the market.

'I didn't do a games project but it got me thinking that maybe I can do something in the future,' recalls the 33-year-old, who grew up playing Wing Commander, Monkey Island and Ultima role-playing PC games.

After receiving a computer science degree from the National University of Singapore (NUS), he followed it up with a Master of Science, all the while dreaming of entering the fledgling game industry.

'There were no game-related studies but I knew what I wanted to do and was prepared to move overseas if I had to.'

There was also the fantasy of creating his own game with a few friends, if no one would hire him.

All this while, he kept his aspirations from his family and friends, knowing that job opportunities were scant, with gaming still considered mere child's play.

In 2002, he applied through the Economic Development Board job attachment program to work with noted Japanese games company Koei but was not selected.

He found a job as a full-time teaching assistant at NUS and tried again the following year. This time, he was accepted by Sega, another noted Japanese games developer and publisher, and went on an 18-month stint.

What he found really useful was the on-the-job training and experience he gained from working on console games.

One title he worked on was Altered Beast for the Sony PlayStation 2 console.

He worked on all the programming aspects for implementing the fight scenario, the artificial intelligence behaviour of the boss character, the visual effects and the sound and animation of the characters, to name a few.

Upon returning home, he took on a job with G-Gadget, a local start-up working on games for the Nintendo DS-Lite platform.

His parents, however, did not like his job because they felt that game piracy limited any possible success in the industry.

Things took a positive turn when industry giant Lucasfilm of Star Wars fame announced that it was setting up an animation and games arm here.

Jason successfully applied to Lucasfilm Animation Singapore and soon found himself surrounded by his childhood movie and game heroes, from the Jedi masters, Indiana Jones to Guybrush Threepwood.

'I heard they were hiring and you don't question yourself if you want to join Lucasfilm,' he said.

As a games software engineer, he is currently working on several unannounced game projects. He already has one title under his belt - last year's Jedi Alliance game for the DS Lite.

His involvement in this game was more extensive, as he worked on programming both the engine for the game and the game systems, including the sound, visual effects and combat systems.

His parents have also come around and accepted his chosen profession.

For Jason, his long-time dream lives on. Although he is part of a large team working on several games, he still wants to create his own video game one day.

To turn that dream into reality, he realises it is going to take more hard work at Lucasfilm.

'What I find most valuable is to be able to work with a very talented pool of people here. We are able to openly discuss ideas and bounce these ideas off one another,' he said.

'Because of this, I have learnt a lot and I feel there is so much more that I can learn.'

Source: http://www.straitstimes.com/vgn-ext-templating/v/index.jsp?vgnextoid=c6ad31f5ae830210VgnVCM100000430a0a0aRCRD&vgnextchannel=d884758920e39010VgnVCM1000000a35010aRCRD

I Love my iPHONE!

Face it!!! I'm converted! I love my new phone!

1) It's coolz

2) It enables me to be connected to the latest news. (I can finally read the papers regularly with this new power phone. No more complains of not being able to sit down & read the papers cuz I need to rush out of the house

3) Some of the iPhone apps are really useful and fun. E.g. TransGuide, Dictionary, Bejeweled2 etc

But then again, there are also downside and dangers with such a power phone.

A) Parents don't blur blur just get the phone for your kids. Some of the apps are adult-content and not suitable for children. *shake head*

B) My new Singtel plan is TOTALLY EXPENSIVE....................SOBS....................... 1st bill is already a shocking $112...

So there are always pros and cons. Do your research first before jumping in to the iPhone craze!!!!

The Vendor Client relationship - in real world situations

This is hilarious! People who want it all yet so GIAM!!! Thanks to JW for the link! :)

It's the only way I can get the kids to take notice!

OMG!!! This is so funny! :)

Then again, I really empathize with parents these days. With their children on "machines" e.g. PSP, computer, DS-lite, mobile phone etc etc... It's not easy to get their attention.

Children: Your parents wants to connect with you!!

Parents: Don't give up!!! Keep on engaging your kids! Look at the cartoon, that's the extent the guy took. All because he love his kids!!! When there is a will, there is a way!!!!

My latest toy

"The Samsung YP-S3 weighs under 2 ounces and measure 1.7 by 3.7 by 0.4 inches. The controls on the front of the player are backlit, touch-sensitive buttons that seem to disappear when not in use, an effect that Samsung has used before on some players but that's particularly cool here. The typical navigation arrows and Play/Pause/Enter button are complemented by a control that takes you back to the previous menu and the extra features button for various options, depending upon the menu you're navigating."

My big problem is I tend to tune the volume up to the "near max" sometimes. Not very healthy la.

It's coolz to have music to chill out now and then,. But I need to remind myself not to be a social recluse at the expense of enjoying music. In office, there are many times I didn't hear my colleagues calling me or saying goodbye as the phones are plugged in. Sorry, I'll remember to tune it down .....unless I'm really really REALLY STRESSED!!!! :)

Eight Crazy Email Hoaxes Millions Have Fallen For

Taken from http://tech.msn.com/products/articlepcw.aspx?cp-documentid=9637938

by Nick Mediati and Anne B. McDonald, PC World

E-mail fills our in-boxes with come-ons to see celebrities naked and to get rich quick. Even though we know deep down that these are fakes, why do we continue to think, 'Maybe?'

Congratulations, you won the lottery in a country whose name you can't even pronounce! A wealthy oil executive in a far-off land wants to give you millions of dollars, right now! Sexy girls want to meet you!

Now let's be honest. If someone came to your door and told you any of those things, you'd tell him to get lost. So why do people still fall for this stuff when it's in their e-mail, as if a poorly written message made a weird-sounding pitch any more legitimate?

The saddest part is, the only reason annoying e-mail keeps filing your inbox is because it works.

No matter the number of reports detailing e-mail hoaxes gone bad and tales of spammers taking people for all they're worth, people just keep on clicking.

Why? It's the law of percentages. The response rate for snail-mail spam is between 0.5 and 1 percent. That might not sound like a lot, but if you apply it to e-mail, it means a spammer can send 1 million messages -- without the cost of paper and postage -- and 5,000 to 10,000 people will answer. In fact, a study out this month indicates that nearly 30 percent of Internet users confessed to purchasing something from the Internet.

Here's PC World's list, in no particular order, of the top e-mail hoaxes that have come through inboxes and fooled millions.

1) Raise bonsai kittens in bottles

It's amazing how many people were willing to believe this e-mail about a breeder in New York who raised kittens in bottles.Actually, it started as a fake Web site, Bonsai Kitten, the product of MIT students. The idea was so outrageous, it spread like wildfire via e-mail.

2) Sign a petition to ban dihydrogen monoxide

E-mail alerts outlining the dangers of dihydrogen monoxide swept the Internet in the late 1990s and still pop up today. Well, let us tell you one more thing about dihydrogen monoxide: It's more commonly known as water.

3) Extreme technophobia: Pop popcorn with cell phones
With all the talk of cell phone dangers, the idea of radiation from them being powerful enough to pop popcorn doesn't seem that far-fetched, at least on the surface. So why wouldn't you believe the swarm of e-mail telling you to look at the incredible video of friends popping kernels of corn with their mobile phones?

Unfortunately, as you might expect, it was all fake. A company called Cardo Systems made the video to promote its cell phone headsets. Abraham Glezerman, Cardo's CEO, told CNN that the phones were real and the popping popcorn was real, but the video was a composite, with the footage of the popcorn heated over a kitchen stove digitally dropped into the video of the folks with their phones.

4) Bill Gates wants to give you money
Although Gates is being very generous with his fortune now that he has retired from day-to-day work with Microsoft, you can get some of it only by applying to the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.

5) Launch a nuclear strike from your PC

In 2002, Symantec supposedly issued an advisory about certain e-mail messages flying around the country about an "important virus to look out for." The antivirus-software maker, which does issue warnings on real viruses, allegedly instructed Internet users not to open any e-mail with the subject line "LAUNCH NUCLEAR STRIKE NOW." If you did open that e-mail, you would inadvertently end up sending nuclear warheads winging their way toward the former Soviet Union.

Needless to say, the virus isn't real, Symantec didn't issue such a caution, and it should be painfully obvious that this one is a hoax.

6) Nigeria Scam

The e-mail suggests that your help is needed to claim an abandoned sum of money in a foreign account, or something similar. The message typically promises that you will receive a large amount of money if you simply send a smaller amount of money now.

These convincing missives, which may or may not be from Nigeria, are known as 419 scams (named after a section of the Nigerian criminal code that deals with fraud). Not only will you not get rich, but you'll also have a very hard time getting back any money you wire the sender up front.

7) 'Video: Watch Angelina Jolie's lips explode!'

People kept clickling on dangerous and fake attachments that purport to be interesting photos or videos but actually turn out to be damaging viruses or Trojan horses.

8) Work Virus

Several resources can tell you whether an e-mail claim you're interested in is a hoax. One is Hoax-Busters.org, which describes itself as the Big List of Internet Hoaxes; another is Snopes.com, which specializes in urban legends and hoaxes, and a third is Hoax-Slayer.com. Check out any of these sites before you forward that next petition, chain letter, or crazy photo.

Hoax-Busters also has a list of the "5 Telltale Signs of an Internet Hoax" that might useful.
1) The e-mail will have a sense of urgency about it, and probably a lot of exclamation points in it.

2) The e-mail will insist that you tell all your friends.
3) The text is adamant that this is "NOT a hoax.

4) It will earnestly inform you that there are dire consequences for not participating.
5) It probably is full of >>>> marks, showing that it has fooled a lot of people before you, and has been forwarded all over the planet. Don't add any more!

***********************************************

Kermit's Thoughts: When I as a teen I was taken in by some of these too. Well just be careful. The harmless ones are fine, but some of them comes hidden with dangerous viruses that kills our computer when we open the attachments. For me, I simply refused to open any attachments files sent via email. Hahah! It works! I have a healthy computer :)

Girls, beware of perverts on MRT

Reference from AsiaOne Digital 20 July 2008 (Kelvin Teh ) Click on link to see article

The next time you take public transport, be suspicious if you find any handphone that seems to be mysteriously trained on you. Someone can very well be filming or taking pictures of you.

A few mornings ago, as I was taking the MRT to work in an irritatingly-packed train, I glanced up from the magazine I was reading and noticed the man standing in front of me.

Dressed in nondescript T-shirt and jeans, he was holding up his handphone as one would when messaging - except that he was not busy pressing away on his phone.

Instead, he was holding it there in his raised hand while occasionally shifting his hand position slightly. To most people around him, it seemed like he was looking at text messages.

I next trained my sight on where his handphone was pointing to and, immediately, my suspicion was aroused.She was a pretty young lady, conservatively dressed in office wear. She was also dozing, unaware of the scene unfolding before her.

My curiousity aroused, I leaned forward and, true enough, the man was secretly filming the woman with his handphone.

My first instinct was to glance around to see if anyone else had noticed, but everyone was oblivious. I waited a while more, just to ascertain that the pervert was filming her.

And then, I felt rage.

I gave the man a hard shove in the back, pushing the shocked fellow aside. Next, I woke the woman up gently and whispered to her that she was being filmed.

She was stunned and her first reaction was to look up at the fellow, who immediately exclaimed in Mandarin: "I don't have hor. I was just playing with my handphone ok!"

Yeah, right.

At this, the woman folded her arms protectively around her chest but refrained from saying anything.

To avoid embarrassing the girl further, I did not confront the man. In the meantime, the bewilderment on everyone's faces was palpable.

Although I have heard and read accounts of cameras hidden in changing rooms and perverts secretly filming under the skirts of ladies, to witness this personally is shocking.

That person being filmed could very well be my sister or one of my female friends. That a perverted stranger is storing pictures of someone you know - that is a disgusting thing.

But, then again, I guess I am not surprised. Too many such stories have surfaced all too often.So girls, just look out for yourself.

*******************************************

Kermit's thought: Girls out there, two things from ms cyber wellness

1) DO SOMETHING & dun be afraid to speak up. Don't suffer in silence should u be in a similar situation. The pervert is more scared & more to lose if he is caught. Suffering in silence will only encourage he to target more gals in future!!!!! *JUST SCREAM FOR HELP*! Or ask the person beside you for help.

2) Can we just give the skimpy FBT shorts & short mini skirts a miss. Exposing so much flesh will turn other men on unnecessarily & u might find yourself in DEEP S***!