Kylie – Age Four and a Half

Google, how you twist my heart…

Dear Google,

Like everyone else I ‘google’ on Google, map my routes on Google Maps, and use Google Calendar. I store some important portable files like my resume on Google Documents, but unlike everyone else, I don’t use GMail. Instead I rely on Yahoo! Mail, which is excellent, although it’s been sent to the wayside by GMail (That’s why Yahoo! introduced RocketMail and YMail accounts in stupid desperation. You also tempted my beloved Yahoo! to deal with the devil, Microsoft/Carl Icahn, curse you Google).

The real reason I’ve never really been a huge fan of your products and services is that, although simplistic, they never seem polished enough for me. You put out a disclaimer out that these services are all in BETA form, but seriously, does anyone really believe it’s BETA still?

You cajole and you tease, giving me free IMAP access through GMail, but you still refuse to take away the BETA. Now, you give me Chrome, and I love how fast it works. But you know what? Chrome is definitely still in BETA form; that I can say for sure. I downloaded it in hopes that this product would be the one that would capture my heart. But it didn’t. Instead, it spies on me, and renders my words hideously. You tried to be controlling with that EULA, before we had you change it.

But what really led me to write to you is this — make your own products to run correctly on your own company’s browser! Whenever I run a YouTube file, Chrome turns into rust, turning sluggishly on every thread. When I open Google Calendar, the To-Do items seem to never render within the lines!

Get your act together Google! I want to be a believer. I want to be like one of your mindless zombies, checking GMail on Android, scheduling meetings on Google Calendar via Android, watching YouTube on Android, uploading to Picasa on Android, blogging on Blogger through Android, buying stuff through Checkout on Android, and finding my way back home through Google Maps on Android. But you know what, I can’t. I just can’t.

RIght now, we can’t close our relationship. I still love Yahoo! and through all these years, I still can’t live without Microsoft. If you want us to be mutually exclusive, you need to show me something real. Stop giving me this BETA crap. I’m sick and tired.

– prolix

The Hunt for a Quality Camera Backpack

I went to Camera Street (博愛路 [Bo Ai Road] and surrounding streets, near the main Post Office) in Taipei last week to look for a quality camera backpack. Because I was going to be doing a lot of walking in Taiwan, I figured that I would probably find use for a nice, sport-oriented backpack or sling bag. Like a good, resourceful consumer, I did my research beforehand, hitting up all the big brands on the internet, like Lowepro, Tamrac, Tenba, Domke, ThinkTank, Kata, etc. Once I narrowed down the choices, I hit the streets and this is what I found:

1. Kata — I was really keen on Kata ever since I saw their 3N1 series sling bags. They just have really sleek designs that actually have purpose to them. Plus, they seemed to be well constructed (Kata also produces body armour for the Isreali forces).

** 3N1-20 **

Comes in three sizes, S, M, L. Note to Goldilocks: The large is too big! The small is too small! The medium is just right.

The 3N1 is probably going to be a really popular bag in the near future. It just came out this summer, so prices are still up there (although I think that Kata prices are reasonably priced for what they offer, compared to Tamrac or Lowepro). Most of the shops I looked at only carried the small and large versions (3N1-10 and 3N1-30, respectively) but the last shop I went to, which was an official Kata dealer in Taiwan, carried one 3N1-20 bag. Like I mentioned, Kata bags are great. They’re well made from top to bottom and well thought out. This bag almost gave me too many possible configurations to play with, that I nearly confused myself. You can see an in-depth preview here. The one thing I wasn’t keen on was that it was impossible to put a camera with a 70-200 f/2.8 attached, which I really wanted out of a slingbag. Only the large version was able to fit that in, but the 3N1-30 just looks heavy. Granted the side access of this type of slingbag, whether it be this, Lowepro’s Slingshot series, or Tenba’s Shootout, just doesn’t allow fitment of long lenses unless it is the largest version, impractical for a city-going daypack. Plus, they’d just look strange on my relatively small 5′ 8″ frame.

I also, at the same place, stumbled upon the Kata T-212. It was a bit small for my needs, but well designed, and looked like tactical gear for the Navy SEALs. I later found out that there was a larger version, the T-214, that would probably suit what I carry around.

** T-214 **

T-214. Looks and sounds intense.

So then it was off to look at other options. I saw a pack from Jenova, which the sellers claimed was an Italian brand manufactured in China. However, I was pretty sure some random company from HK decided to buy the rights to the brand name because the construction was pretty mediocre. Overall, the organization and the ballistic nylon wasn’t too bad, but what really raised question marks was the construction of the plastic buckles. They just seemed to reek of cheapness. I looked online and could not seem to find a picture anywhere.

Search for a New Laptop, Part 2

HP Pavilion dv4, originally uploaded by HP Malaysia.

It’s a good thing I didn’t completely set my heart on the Dell and Lenovo models I mentioned before, since the new laptops from HP are almost certainly perfect for my needs.

For the longest time, I retained a huge aversion toward notebooks from Hewlett-Packard (although I am a big fan of their printers, although I no longer own one from them; switched to Canon PIXMA), and for no real reason, other than the fact that I thought too many people had them and the fact that they were extremely bland.

Well, HP went along and took care of the biggest problem I had against their mobile products — the looks. While I wouldn’t say I’m completely in love, the updated HP design philosophy is clean and professional looking, far better than the amateur look from before, what with the matte chrome plastic and the ugly decals. To some degree it is still chrome plastic and etched decals since the new look is merely an evolution of the old, but it just seems more refined. The HP Imprint 2 etching is much less commercial and much more workhorse — a change I welcome greatly. It is amazing how such subtle changes can alter the entire feeling of a product line.

With the move from casual user to serious worker in terms of its look, HP has certainly also turned up the intensity in the performance portion as well. HP is one of the two largest computer manufacturers in the world, and certainly has the buyer clout to secure the latest technologies from Intel and the best prices. That purchasing power certainly translates to a great value for the consumer. Aware of that fact, I promptly began fiddling away at the customization specs on HP’s website, expecting a well-appointed computer for relatively little coin.

When I first laid out my requirements for replacing my Inspiron 700m, I decided I wanted a 14.1″ notebook with a curb weight of less than 5.33 lbs and a thickness of 1″ or less. The only requirement the HP Pavilion dv4t series notebook could not meet was the one on thickness, coming in at 1.34″ at its thinnest and 1.57″ at its thickest. Not terribly impressive, but I thought I could forgive it if it had more of the features I wanted in a laptop.

Good thing the HP had everything I needed technically in a laptop and more. It’s the first consumer notebook line from a major manufacturer to ship with the Montevina chipset. It has eSATA (which I actually use) and HDMI 1.3 out (which I fully intend on using on my family’s HDTV). The little things are pluses as well, such as an extra stereo miniplug for a friend to listen to something simultaneously, the requisite integrated webcam/microphone, remote control in the PCMCIA slot, and an empty shell that when replaced for the DVD drive can lower the weight from 5.18 to 4.82 lbs. That weight, of course is when the laptop is fitted with the LED backlit screen, another option that was surprisingly affordable at only $100 above the standard screen.

The price was perhaps the most attractive part of this computer. I customized a well-appointed dv4t with a Penryn P8600 and 3 GB RAM and all the other bells and whistles I mentioned for only about $1200 after an instant rebate. However, I do know of stackable coupons and student discounts that can very well send this system well south of $1000.

I have only a few minor gripes:

- No option for 1440×900 display, although that would not come with an LED backlight; 1280×800 is plenty good for 14″
- No 7200 rpm HDD option; I don’t need lots of storage space, just speed
- No DisplayPort? OK, I’m stretching a bit. It’ll be years before DisplayPort plugs are popular

HP Pavilion dv4, originally uploaded by HP Malaysia.

HP Pavilion dv4, originally uploaded by HP Malaysia.

HP Pavilion dv4, originally uploaded by HP Malaysia.

I appreciated the fact that Yahoo! Sports used ‘Taiwan’ in the country column during the Olympics instead of ‘Chinese Taipei’

It might be because Jerry Yang is the CEO… just maybe…

I wouldn’t be surprised if the PRC banned all Yahoo! USA pages.

More Ebi-chan Worship…

A_l, originally uploaded by jccchou.

I want a Shrimp Burger from McDonald’s

Yup, Ebi-chan has that kind of effect on people!

Redondo Pier

Redondo Pier, originally uploaded by tomscy2000.

Time for another picture review. I was at the Redondo Pier at sunset early February of this year and thought I could get some nice sunset shots. When I first shot this, I wasn’t really into it. It might’ve been because the camera simply couldn’t get all the color in the sunset. The pixel depth of the S3 IS is only 8-bits, and the camera cannot shoot in RAW. Thus, the dynamic range of the scene simply could not be captured accurately. Additionally, because any shots over ISO100 on this camera are nasty, my shutter speed was restricted to 1/6 of a second at f/5.6. Luckily, the S3 has some relaible image stabilization.

The original shot was a bit bland. The sky was muddy, and thus I chose to pull up the shadows to make the pink/maroon sunset come through. However, this resulted in blowing out the highlights. HDR would’ve helped immensely for this shot. The only redeeming part is that blowing out the highlights actually improved the uniformity of the shot, with the white part being largely a horizontal portion on top, not really affecting the important parts of the shot, such as the pier and the water. The upper right corner shows some un-blown out portions of the sky due to slight vignetting, which in hindsight I probably should’ve painted over in white.

I was quite surprised when multiple people told me they really liked this shot. I guess I was worried too much about the technical aspects and afraid people would wonder about why the sky was so white, but the natural beauty of this scene really saved it. The water was deep blue and sparkling that day, and the purple cast was gorgeous, serving as a great backdrop over the silhouetted pier.

I’d imagine taking this same shot again with my 40D and bracketed from -2 to +2 EV would significantly improve the quality of this shot, from sharpness to color gradation to dynamic range.

Focal Length: 6mm (36mm Full-Frame FOV)
Aperture: f/5.6
Shutter: 1/6 sec
ISO: 100
Exposure: Manual

More Olympic Stuff…

Six gold medals with twelve total, and six world records in all six events thus far. Of course, that’s the story with the biggest headliner of these Olympic games. Not that I’m diminishing his achievements, but Phelps is overexposed and I prefer to highlight the achievements of others. Besides, he’ll probably have his biggest challenge tomorrow, when he swims that 100m fly. Michael Cavic, as much as I think he’s being an annoying attention whore, is really giving Phelps a run for his money. I’ve never really seen Phelps swim super fast at the 100 fly. Sure, he held the world record five, six years ago, but he’s never swum better than 50.80-ish, I believe. Without Crocker swimming well, I thought Phelps had this event locked up. Along comes OC native and Cal product Milorad Cavick, swimming a 50.76 for Serbia (not Serbia-Montenegro nor Yugoslavia anymore). I still think Phelps will out touch him in the final, but that will happen only if Phelps swims a near perfect race, takes it out fast, and holds on.

Lost in the shuffle is USC’s Rebecca Soni giving it to Leisel Jones in the 200 breast. Jones is no longer that annoying, petulant little baby who bitched during Barcelona in 2003 and Athens in 2004, but I think she got complacent this year when she thought no one could challenge her speed in the breaststroke events. While keeping up in shape for the 100, she probably didn’t train to endure the 200 as much. I know the 200 hurts a million times more than the 100, and Rebecca Soni really did something special, breaking Jones’ WR in the process.

Today was upset day, as Ryan Lochte dethroned backstroke king Peirsol in the 200 back and then got too tired to challenge Phelps in the 200 IM. This was not surprising at all, though, since Lochte already did this at Melbourne last year. I just thought Peirsol would’ve made it more interesting at the finish, since he is so strong closing a race.

Natalie Coughlin, of whom I’m a big fan of, won her 10th Olympic medal today with a bronze in the 100 free. She matched her personal best (and American Record) with a 53.39, but was disappointed probably because the entire field wasn’t swimming as fast as it could have, and she definitely had a chance to out touch Steffen or Lenton (I prefer her maiden name over Trickett). At least she won the 100 back. Still, I feel bad for Kirsty Coventry, who is swimming so well, but just always has that one person ahead of her. I blame Robert Mugabe and their ten million dollar bill.

The nice thing is that most of the British Commonwealth isn’t doing as badly as Zimbabwe, like Australia for example. I actually like Eamon Sullivan. He’s a pretty boy, and he looks tiny compared to other sprinters (have you seen Alain Bernard? He’s a giant!) but he’s just so efficient in the water and just seems like a good bloke. It’s too bad Sullivan didn’t get the 100 free gold, but he still has a chance in the 50. Plus, if he can stay healthy, he still has a lot of swimming in front of him.

Kirsty Coventry is worth hundreds of billions of dollars in Zimbabwe!

Search for a New Laptop

Vostro 2510, originally uploaded by Dell Digital Media.

I’m currently using an Inspiron 700m. I’ve been using it ever since it came out fall of 2004. While I love the portability of the little guy, it’s been aging on me and even with a massive memory and hard disk upgrade, it’s slowly unable to perform the tasks that I’d like it to do, such as running 720p video smoothly, processing Photoshop routines quickly, amongst other things. I also wanted to take the plunge into VIsta, which may be either a really smart or stupid decision.

Furthermore, my mother has been carping at me to get a laptop with a larger screen, since she’s very concerned with my eyes. She insisted that I get something that was at least 14 inches large. I was reluctant at first, since I love the portability of 12-13 inch notebooks, but I didn’t want to go against my mother’s word. I decided that I would go for the smallest possible size. The size/weight requirements that I set personally for my laptop were as follows:

Screen Size: 13.3-15.4″, preferably 14.1″
Weight: 13″, under 4.66 lbs. 14″ under 5.33 lbs., 15″ under 6 lbs.
Thickness: 1″ or less

As you can see, I put some pretty stringent weight requirements because I will undoubtedly be carrying this laptop around with me everywhere. I assumed that any laptop offerings fulfilling these requirements would be good enough to run anything I throw at it. I’m not a big PC gamer, and even if I did want to game I’d just build a custom desktop rig. Notebooks for me are a workhorse type of computer, and with that in mind, I wanted something that looked professional, yet had style to boot.

While I’ve hated the way Dell desktops have been built in the last few years and swore to never ever buy a desktop from Dell again, I had a decent experience with their laptops. They’ve gotten more and more full-featured, with better design elements with every iteration. Their recent XPS and Studio offerings looked good. While the XPS laptops looked really nice, I was flummoxed by the weight and thickness of the Studio laptops. I’m reluctant to go for the XPS m1330 and Lenovo IdeaPad U330 because I fear my mother’s wrath,

After careful consideration of which laptop to buy next, I’ve zeroed in on the Dell Vostro 2510. I had been waiting for the E-Series Latitude notebooks to come out, but they’ve kind of disappointed me. I thought they were going to be better built and nicer looking. The trim, while probably built like a tank, looks kind of cheap. I’d rather go for the Vostro, which is less well built but no less full featured, and a lot less expensive (ditto on the XPS m1530, which is similarly expensive with the Latitudes). The processor choices are plenty for me, with Penryn cores available to choose from, as well as standard 1440×900 screen, which allows me to run 720p media without going into full screen and to edit 1280 px width pictures at 100% view. It has a slot loading optical drive, which is a nice touch. I wish Dell would allow us to choose different color trim, however. It’s currently only available in red, although it’s not a bad color. I just prefer black — easier to manage dirt and scratches. On the technical side, I kind of lament the lack of HDMI out and the lack of Centrino 2. Adding some Magnesium to the case wouldn’t hurt either. And if only Dell introduced a Vostro 2410; I’d snatch it up in an instant, since 15.4″ is a little large for my tastes. For the price, this offering is a great value. Although not mind blowing, it fulfills my weight/thickness requirements at 5.72 lbs. and 1″ thick.

Still, I’m not completely sold yet on the Vostro 2510. I’m also considering the Lenovo IdeaPad Y430, which is yet to be released, much like the U330. Obviously, since neither Lenovo notebook has been released, I don’t know much technically about them. They do look good, however.

IdeaPad Y430, originally uploaded by Lenovo Photo Library.

IdeaPad U330, originally uploaded by Lenovo Photo Library.