Some help in troubled times

Due to the current financial crisis, there will surely be some casualties - retrenchments, cessation of business, family fortunes in the stock and property market being wiped out, and so on and so forth. What's worst is that you have mouths to feed, and many loans to pay. Depressing indeed.

If you happen to be a victim of the financial crisis, and have school going kids, I'd like to recommend this program that an ex-colleague of mine is handling. It's called "NEU PC Plus", by the Infocomm Development Authority of Singapore. This program applies to all Singaporeans and its permanent residents.

Just by paying $285 for a Desktop Package or $730 for a Laptop Package, you'll get computer, together with broadband connectivity, anti-virus software and even Microsoft Office installed! Of course, terms and conditions apply. To apply or to find out more, do check out this link.

Of course, the worst thing that you can hear upon presenting the computer to your kid is, "hey, why isn't this the latest Macbook Pro?!?!"

T-Mobile G1 with Android OS

Over the past few weeks or so, one of the biggest tech news that came out was the launch of T-Mobile G1. Of course, the big attraction for the tech community wasn't the handset, but it was the Android OS in that mobile phone.

Again, I'll have to bitch about the fact that here in Singapore, we don't get to experience the look and feel of the device. I can only "sense" it via pictures and videos on the Internet. My immediate reaction was, "geez, that looks pretty ordinary". But after watching the videos posted by Google engineers, well it certainly looks promising indeed.

Check this out:


My personal opinion is that the Android will take off, and make a sizable dent in the mobile phone OS market. Why? I'm just inferring from current trends.

1. Convergence of functionality into a mobile phone
We used to have a separate MP3 players, a digital camera, a mobile phone, a folded map, PDA, etc etc. Now, we have everything onto 1 device, that is the mobile phone. Advancement in technology has brought us much convenience (in small and sexy packages no less). Seems that the mobile phone is our window to the world, and we can't really live without it. This consumer demand benefits not only Google or Apple, but the entire mobile phone industry. This brings me to point number 2.

2. Increased demand for personalization and customization
If I am so reliant on the mobile phone, I would want applications on it to work for me. An iPhone/GPhone guitar tuner application will be useful for me, a classical guitarist, but probably not for somebody who can't differentiate a "do" from a "re". In other words, I would want things to be personalized. One notable example is the Firefox browser. In contrast to Internet Explorer, you can choose from thousands of addons and install them into Firefox to suit your lifestyle. This, I feel, is the secret sauce to their success. If Android is as "open" as they claim to be, together with a critical mass of independent developers, the possibilities are endless.

The final factor on why I think Android will be a success is that fact that unlike the iPhone, the OS will be compatible across manufacturers. Now, Google has LG, HTC, Samsung and Motorola into the "Alliance". Perhaps in the future it can get other manufacturers such as Nokia and Sony Ericsson on board. What does this mean? If I had previously used a Motorola phone with an Android OS, I can switch to a Samsung phone with the same Android OS, and have more of less the same usage experience. All my personalized settings and applications are still there. No need for convoluted porting processes or lengthy conversions. I assume this is what the Alliance is for. Otherwise, then what?

I can't wait to get my hands on an Android powered phone. But hey, I also want an iPhone. Google, or Apple? Whatever it is, it's great for us consumers.

4 Mums Origami Stroller

I saw this video via a post on CrunchGear and man, I was simply amazed.



Well, I don't have any kids, but I did brought my niece and nephew out while they were toddlers. Parents out there will definitely agree with me that folding and unfolding these prams can really be a handful.

As mentioned by Matt Burns in his post, "The best part is that the mechanism’s power comes from a small generator that recharges with every 300 feet instead of utilizing pricey batteries."

Wow. I'm all for renewables because over the long run, not only does it saves money (over batteries), but it saves the environment as well. The US$650 price tag is not exciting to me though.

Golf + Technology makes me happy

If situation permits, I would never turn down a game of golf. I love the wide open spaces and the lush greenery. Whether you have an excellent game, or one where your ball slices into the jungle 90% of the time, you do forget your troubles back in the office or home.

When I see technology marrying with golf, wow, double whammy. Gets my blood pumping to the right places....that is the brain. Problem is, I've always read about them, but never had the chance to actually use them. Nifty golf gadgets are hard to find here in South East Asia. Just take the uPro for example. This device, well, on paper, is way cool.
From the product page, it does the more obvious job of gauging distances to the greens from your position, as well as location of hazards, bunkers and what-have-yous. What is more interesting is that, it even provides "a video flyover that allows the user to see the layout of the hole from an aerial perspective". Awesome!

And for the more pro-level golfers, there is SmartView, where "users are always shown pertinent information based on their current location on the course. Three different views allow the user to plan out the perfect shot." Hmm. For Mr-scores-100+ (that's me), it's practically useless because my balls seldom land where I'm aiming.

Anyway, I'd be really interested to bring a device like this to the course, and see how accurate it can be. Or, you can use it to irritate your caddy by pointing out how inaccurate his distance gauging is. I like the fact that there are no subscription fees attached to it. It's a purchase once, get-all-the-updates-and-courses-for-life kind of package. But the unit costs US$400. Not very techmiserish if you ask me.

If you guys are still interested, do check out uPro's website here

Yes, Google has taken over my desktop

Internet browsing to many people is simply a functional chore. You get an Internet connection, launch Internet Explorer, and the proverbial"world is at your fingertips".

Along comes Firefox, boasting of a more secured and customized browsing experience. Mozilla developed a browser that sparked an innovation war between itself and Microsoft, getting around 25% of the Internet browser market in the process. Of course there are other players in the field such as Apple an its Safari browser and Opera.

4 browsers, all free, each satisfying its legions of fans. Excellent!

Then Google decided to join in the fun and introduced Chrome. The reviews have been mostly positive, lauding its speed, minimalistic nature, the Omnibar and the Incognito feature - surfing for porn has never been more discreet!

What really got me thinking is the fact that Google has taken over my desktop. The OS has become somewhat irrelevant.

Say, I'm running a small business. I will typically:

- Log into my Gmail

- Check my Google calendar for upcoming appointments

- Use Google Document to write my business proposals and prepare my presentations

- Use the spreadsheet to sort out my finances

- Take a break by logging into Google-owned Youtube and watching online videos

- Keep my friends updated of my life via Google's Blogger

- Research further into my competitor's products and trends using none other than Google's search engine

- Advertise online using Google's adwords and adsense

- And so on and so forth. You get my drift.

All done via Google Chrome! Which is probably programmed to streamline all of Google's applications and services. For some weird reason, my gmail loads incompletely in Firefox, making me hit the F5 everytime I log in. Chrome on the other hand, loads my gmail in an instant. Hmm...

Anyway, give it a shot and see what you think. Most importantly, it's absolutely free!

Download it here

A typical work day at ....

iPhone = My object of desire

Hola! The TechMiser is back!

One piece of gadgetry that really caught my interest is none other the iPhone. I'm not a big Apple fan, but I do love a well designed piece of equipment that makes the user feel great. Pound for pound, according to my geeky friend, iPhone loses out to its competitors like Samsung's Omnia or the HTC Diamond. The camera has less megapixels, screen resolution, the size is bigger, it's heavier, there are a lot more applications for the Windows Mobile platform, content is more varied, and so on and so forth.

However, the thing that really stood out for me is the fact that, the iPhone is simply much more sexy. I've tried to navigate around the menus of the Omnia and the Diamond, but they are just uninspiring. Those 2 that I've mentioned have great looking industrial designs, but it's ruined by the Windows Mobile-based interface. In addition, the accelerometer and true multi-touch interface will inspire plenty of creative applications and of course, they will be available easily via the iPhone application store. And, web browsing is the best I've ever experience on a mobile phone. It's sexy, and it's intuitive.

Now, the thing is to actually own one of these sexy beasts. Being techmiser, I'll wait for prices to go down even further.

Real Player version 11. Downloads videos off YouTube!

The long forgotten Real Networks has emerged from the woods with the release of Real Player version 11. It's currently in Beta, downloadable free at www.realplayer.com.au

Apart from the usual media library management, Internet radio and playback features, the most compelling improvement is that it can download videos off any video sharing site. Free videos to keep! I wonder how they manage to go around the legal issues, as Youtube restricts the downloads of its videos.

Anyway, here's how it works:

Say, you visit Youtube on an Internet browser, and if the video has no DRM, real player can download it. Do notice the "Download This Video" button.


Once you click that, the download starts. The status can be seen from its download manager


After it has complete downloading, it'll be imported to your video library


You can then watch it offline in Realplayer or a flash video player of your choice.

The format of the Black Sabbath clip from youtube is in FLV. In order to convert it to friendlier formats, an upgrade to RealPlayer Plus is needed. It's a one-time payment of US$29.99.

Additional notes:
- This feature works in both IE and Firefox
- It should work on all video sharing sites. I've tried it on youtube, dailymotion and metacafe. It worked on all of them
- The Download This Video button appears up even if Realplayer is not launched.
- Real Networks has its own video site embedded within the player. Non DRM-ed videos can also be downloaded from there.

Antbuster - A really addictive game

I know free games on the internet are aplenty, but this one in particular really got me hooked.

You're supposed to defend your cake against an army of ants. The weapon of choice? Cannons of course. You can fry em', freeze em', poison em', and blast em' back to mother nature. Military strategy aficionados can even test out the 10 principles of defense in this game. Most importantly, it's FREE!

Link

Oppo V5H MP4 Player

The Oppo V5H MP4 player, also known as the Luna, is a breath of fresh air compared to other portable players from China. I’ve always had the impression that Chinese-branded players are made with the lowest cost possible, which equates lousy packaging, minimal bundling of accessories and using low-quality material, but the Luna is different.


First impressions – impressive!

The Luna fits nicely into my pudgy palms

The thing that strikes you immediately about the Luna is that it has a slim design (only 1.1cm thick), small enough to fit into your palm, and has a widescreen LCD.

The Luna’s thickness the similar to the Creative ZEN Stone

The finishing is refined, such that nothing juts out obtrusively. I suspect that the player’s back is made of anodized aluminum, which is great as it can prevent scratches and wear.

Brushed metal back of Luna

The finishing is refined, such that nothing juts out obtrusively. I suspect that the player’s back is made of anodized aluminum, which is great as it can prevent scratches and wear.

Touch-sensitive buttons are used instead of the usual tactile ones. While it makes the player sleeker, these buttons can be a bit difficult to use. I’ll elaborate more about the controls later on.

Linear User Interface

The UI is presented linearly. Meaning, you must navigate sideways to get to the desired task (as opposed to a grid-based layout). The icons are in 3-D and are quite detailed. As a typical consumer (not a full-fledged interface designer), I find them aesthetically pleasing and well designed. The “reflecting surface” seems very much Apple-inspired.

Main User Interface

Going into the menus, the Luna is similar to the Windows Explorer. Using the touch-buttons, you can move the cursor and select the file to play. Selecting a folder will go into it.

Windows Explorer-like navigation

On the whole, navigating around the player is OK. Anybody who is familiar with Windows navigation will have no problems with the way the menus are structured. However, there aren’t any sorting or ZEN hierarchy features, so you may get lost browsing through thousands of media files in this 2GB device. Interestingly, the files are not alphabetically listed. The last transferred file will be displayed at the bottom of the list.

Controls – Touch-sensitive buttons adds form not function

As mentioned earlier, the touch-sensitive buttons gives the entire unit a very sleek look. However, it takes time to get warmed up to them.

Firstly, they’re not very obvious. When I first got the unit, I couldn’t determine where the buttons are because they weren’t lit up. To light them up, I had to tap the top of the player. Then, it simply goes off after a few seconds. In my opinion, this on-off LED system is simply annoying.

Now you see it

Now you don't

Then, there’s not much space between each button, so tapping one button may cause the other to be tapped as well. As a result, the cursor either stays still or goes the unintended way. It also won’t work if you tap a little off the “sensitive” areas.

Typical scenario: While looking at the screen, you tap the buttons and nothing happens. Naturally you’ll adjust your fingers to tap the correct buttons (while still looking at the screen). Consequently, other buttons are accidentally tapped, and the cursor goes all over the place.

“M” is like the “Enter” key on the keyboard. You tap it to enter menus, play songs, etc. Now, who would have thought of that? To me, “M” stands for “Menu”.

Performance and features

For music, it does what it is expected to do. It plays MP3s and WMAs, and also supports lyric display. Simply give both the music and LRC files the same name, and they’ll work together when played on the Luna.

The vibrant LCD is excellent when displaying photographs. Most details of the pictures are nicely reproduced. Colors are vibrant as well. My main complaint is that it stretches every picture automatically to fit the widescreen. Human faces look disturbingly stretched. Even if you format the pictures to a widescreen format, it’ll somehow stretch the photos as well.

Original photo

As seen on the Oppo Luna

Getting videos into the player is something that I failed to do. Oppo included the video converter with the player (stored within the flash memory). But, I could not unzip the rar package. Then, I searched through the forums, and found out that the converter can be downloaded via the company’s website. After downloading the 12MB package and launching the exe file, I get this:

So, I went to download relevant tools to extract the information of the sample video, with the intention of using 3rd party converters to convert videos for the Luna.

The sample video (OppoMP4.AVI) has the following:
Video: XviD codec, 320 x 240, 20 fps
Audio codec: MP2, 44.1 KHz, 128 kbps

I followed the exact specifications and converted some video files. But, NONE of them worked on the player. I’ve tried different converters recommended by the forummers and used different source video files. Sadly, the hours spent troubleshooting yielded nothing.

Apart from media playback, the Luna has an eBook reader, FM radio, a sound recorder, calendar, and even a stopwatch feature.

Final Thoughts

Almost everybody (including me) who has seen the player for the first time thinks that the ID is very attractive. It’s slim, has a solid build, and an impressive widescreen LCD. My visual designer colleague also praised the player’s interaction menu, complimenting the detailed icons in particular. Extra features such as the eBook reader and FM radio give the multi-media player an added dimension. However, the touch-sensitive controls that are located at the top of the player are quite difficult to handle. Some don’t even realize that the buttons are there when the LEDs are off.

What personally I didn’t like was the fact that pictures are automatically stretched to fill the screen regardless of the resolution. This results in stretched faces and unnatural looking human beings. Also, video conversion was really painful. It’s disappointing that the video conversion software (both in the player and from the company’s official website) failed to install. It’s even more disappointing that none of my converted videos (using 3rd party applications) using the exact specifications of the sample video failed to work. To give Oppo a bit of credit, at least they’ve provided a converter, unlike most China branded portable media players.

In a nutshell, the player looks great and the screen is nice, but the controls can be more obvious. I also wish that more video formats can be supported.

The Oppo v5H MP4 player is a real steal at slightly over US$100!! Check out Oppo's official website here (it's in Chinese though)

Radio Station Made by You, for You

It's been a while since I've posted. Well, that's because there's nothing free that is worthwhile for my review (there's always an excuse isn't it?). Anyway, through my work, I stumbled upon this site called Pandora Internet Radio. Now, before you think "well, that's not new, Internet radio has been around for so long", Pandora is different, really different.



Instead of picking a station, say, "ABC FM" and listen to the songs from that station whether you like it or not, Pandora Internet Radio streams music that YOU like. Take for example, I like the band Garbage. I like the fact that it has some electronic influences, it plays rhythmic rock music, and the vocals of Shirley Manson. So, Pandora actually picks out all the songs from its database that are similar to the ones that Garbage plays. Most of the songs have electronic influences, is rocks rhythmically, and sung by a female! Remarkable!



In addition, you can refine your radio station by telling Pandora if you like or hate the song that you're listening to. There are also options to buy the CD via Amazon or iTunes.

I think that this really is a great service as you're getting free, personalized music. However, HOWEVER, you can only an enjoy unlimited supply of songs if you register. AND, you can only register IF you are a US resident. That sucks isn't it? Well, if you are a US resident, do check out Pandora Internet Radio here.

Google Docs & Spreadsheets

Going by the trend of my posts, you can see that I'm bit of a Google fan. So what if they are going to dominate the world? As long as they continue to provide easy-to-use, free services, I really wouldn't care less.

A couple of weeks ago, Google came up with Docs and Spreadsheets. Obviously, you can use it to write a document (with Docs) or create a spreadsheet to keep your finances intact with erm, Spreadsheets.

Let's first take a look at Docs.

Docs looks like what you'll get if you log on to Google's own Blogger. You have your typical cut/copy-n-paste buttons, the undo/redo buttons, alignment setting buttons, bullet points, numbered lists, spelling checker, etc. Pretty standard fare for a word processor. I wouldn't expect anything less.

The standard array of word processing tools in Docs

The compelling feature of Docs, apart from the fact that it's free, is that you can invite “Collaborators” to edit the document with you, in real time. I can see this being very useful for group projects, where the group needs to come up with a single report. In addition, you can publish the document directly to Blogger (which is what I'll be doing). It's good to see features and services from the same company work seamlessly together.

Update: Sigh..I spoke too soon. I tried, but couldn't publish it to Blogger.

An Error occurred while publishing this document to Tech Miser

If you don't have a blog, you can simply to publish it online. Google will give it a dedicated URL, then anybody can view it online.

Invite people to edit your document (in real time) in Docs

It's a pity that Google didn't incorporate Google Talk or any chat function into Docs as most probably, you'll need to talk to your project mates to tell them why you decide to edit the document this way or that.

While the "Docs" don't have a chat feature, Spreadsheets has one. This only shows that Docs and Spreadsheets are done by 2 different teams. But I'll expect Google to sort them out sooner than later.

Similar to Docs, you can invite Collaborators to edit your spreadsheet in Spreadsheet. Apart from that, you have the usually array of "spreadsheet" functions, and a decent amount of formulas. I don't really use spreadsheets other than doing comparison reports where you need neat tables, but from the looks of it, the typical accountant should find the features sufficient for his or her calculations.

Google Spreadsheets: Pretty mean set of calculation tools for a web-based application

It's good to note that Docs and Spreadsheet, like a lot of things now, are web-based. In other words, there's no need for messy, HDD space occupying, registry cluttering installations. Another great thing about it being web-based is that you can use Docs and Spreadsheet as long as you have a browser and an Internet connection.

Docs and Spreadsheet's portability, ease-of-use and the fact that it's free ranks high on my list of recommended "software". In fact, I'm going to write all my blog entries using Docs starting from this post onwards. I will even skip MS Word and Excel (as they cost money) and Open Office Writer and Calc (as they're sluggish) altogether!

Try out Docs and Spreadsheets, here

Apple iTunes 7

One compelling reason why the iPod is way ahead of its competitors is simply iTunes. Users love it for the simplicity, looks, and the embedded online music store. With just a couple of clicks, you can seamlessly purchase and download music for your iPod.

Apple recently released version 7 along with the new matchbox sized Shuffle, the updated (and more colorful) Nano, and the improved version of the iPod (with Video). Now that the software is in its 7th iteration, what else can Apple possibly offer?


Cover Flow

One of the most impressive element of version 7 (visual-wise) is what they call, Cover Flow. It's actually just a neat way of presenting the albums in your music library. Other music management software also lets you view and search for specific albums in the music library, but I guess iTunes made this simple functionality a whole lot cooler.

Here's my music library in the "Cover Flow" view:

In addition, iTunes updates your songs' album art for you. However, you need to have an account with the iTunes Music Store. Still a good feature nevertheless, since it's free.


Updated Source Panel

Another aspect that I liked about version 7 is the source panel. Previously, everything is simply cluttered under one heading. Now, there are distinct categories – Library, Devices, Store and Playlists. It's a whole lot easier to digest as in one glance, I can figure out how to navigate around the software.

The source panel in version 6. Notice how everything is cluttered together:
And here's the panel in version 7, with the headings:



Download Manager and Gapless Playback

Apple must have somewhat got inspired by Bit Torrent clients by adding the download manager into iTunes. The Download Manager gives a nice summary of the download status of your music, videos and podcasts. As you can see from the screenshot, it tells you how much more is there to download, as well as the approximate time needed to complete the download. It's not the most original feature, but it's a nice and thoughtful one to have, just like the Gapless Playback feature.

Gapless Playback, also available in Creative MediaSource and Windows Media Player

Download Manager, also available in most BT clients

Conclusion

You can read up the rest of iTunes 7's features here. I'd recommend iTunes 7 for its nice visuals, great user experience and overall feel-good factor. Having said that, I still feel that the way podcasts are displayed can be better, as it can be quite messy if you've subscribed to tons of podcast channel. But as a music library and media acquisition software, it's really a class above the rest.

Download it for free here.

CE

Creative and its ZEN patent

I've been asked quite a number of times about Creative's ZEN patent, and its US$100,000,000 windfall courtesy of Apple Computer. Well, I personally think that it's a win-win situation for all that are involved.

Even though Apple paid a large amount of money, they should be happy. Now, they can avoid all the legal hassles and concentrate on their development and marketing efforts. They can release another awesomely cool and iconic iPod without the fear of “willfully infringing the ZEN patent”, potentially paying more money in the process.

Sim Wong Hoo and his management team should be happy, as this little episode gives him the ammunition to sue other companies such as Samsung, iRiver, Sandisk and even Microsoft. If Mr Steve Jobs drops all his counter suits, acknowledges the ZEN patent and pays US$100,000,000, I cannot fathom how the other “smaller” companies can fight against Creative if they get sued.

The employees in Creative should be happy, as this resolution will definitely give their flagging morale a boost. Apart from this piece of good news, it had always been “Creative's share prices are tumbling down”, “Creative still stays in the red”, “Creative losses big this quarter”, and so on. With the extra US$100,000,000 and the “Made for iPod” license, I guess it can roughly translate to more business opportunities for Creative, and better job security for the employees.

Creative shareholders should be happy. Once the settlement is announced, Creative's share prices soared. Well, it has kind of stabilized now, but I'm sure that investors are more optimistic, and will hopefully put in more money to ensure the continued growth of the company. Growth = profits = more dividends for shareholders.

See, everybody's happy!

CE

Asics Gel-Kayano XII

Warning: Frivolous post ahead.

I've just got myself a brand new pair of the highly acclaimed, Asics Gel-Kayano XII. There's nothing miserly about this as this running shoe cost me quite a bomb.

It has all the high-tech cushioning features - Impact Guidance System (I.G.S.®), DuoMax® Support System, Space Trusstic System™, GEL® Cushioning Systems, Biomorphic Fit Upper, Solyte™ Midsole Material.

So much technology in a single shoe! How do they actually work? I've got NO idea. I just know that the shoes are really comfortable.

Anyway, the coolest part about my shoes is the Optimus Prime color scheme.

Asics Gel-Kayano XII

Optimus Prime

A shoe that looks like Optimus Prime! Now, how cool is that?!

CE

Google's Personalized Home Page

A couple of weeks ago, I gave my 2 cents on Window's personalized homepage service – www.live.com. This time round, I'd like to review a similar service, done by another tech giant, Google.

Well, the proverbial picture paints a thousand words. Here's a screenshot:


As you can see, the content is visually rich and inviting to use, which typical of Google's products and services. I can picture myself using this as my personal organizer. I can plan my schedules here via Google Calendar, add stuff to my To-do list, check out how my stocks are faring, be informed of any incoming mails and kept abreast of the latest news around the world (via RSS feeds), all from one page.

In addition, the controls and customization options are really easy to access. The visuals and layout made it fun to explore the various content that I can add to my home page. Google seldom disappoints with regards to user experience and rich visuals.



Inevitably, I would compare this to Live.com. In my opinion, Live.com appeals more to the techie. The look and view is rather “Microsoft”. It's laden with features, but compared to Google, it's presented in a rather uninspiring way. Having said that, I love the “tabs” feature in live.com, something that is not found in Google home page. Tabs allow me to categorize my RSS feeds, so that everything won't be cluttered up in one page. If I export all my live.com RSS feeds to the “tab-less” Google home page, it'll just mess up everything and spoil the overall experience.

For me, I use both services concurrently. I visit Live.com for my daily dosage of news updates and new blog entries, and I use Google for the strong suite of “personal” services – gmail, calendar, To-Do list, etc.

Try both and see what suits you best. I'd say, use both. They're great.

By the way, here's how you can get a personalized Google home page.

1. Go to www.google.com
2. Click “Personalized Home” found in the top right hand corner. I've highlighted the link in red.


3. Have fun.

Can't get any easier, right?

CE

RSS Feeds. What are they?

In my previous post, I talked about adding RSS feeds to your www.live.com home page, and how you can get the latest updates instantaneously from your favorite web sites.

I received some feedback, asking me what exactly is a RSS feed. Well, not knowing how RSS feeds work would make you completely clueless about my last post isn't it? So. Here's my attempt to explain what RSS is to the tech newbie.

A simple analogy is the subscription to a magazine. After you have subscribed to a magazine, when a new issue is available, it will be delivered straight to your door step. If you did not subscribe, you'll need to visit the news agent now and then, just to check if the latest issue is published.

Now, apply that analogy to the subscription of a RSS feed. If you subscribe to say, CNN.com, whenever CNN has a news update, the headline will appear “automatically”on your RSS reader (such as Mozilla's Thunderbird) or service (such as the reviewed www.live.com). But, if you did not subscribe to the RSS feed, you will have to log on to CNN.com, and hit F5 periodically just to check if there are any updates. Obviously, the first method of subscription is much more convenient.

So how exactly do you subscribe to a RSS feed? To keep things really simple, first, go download and install Mozilla's Firefox. I wanted to recommend Microsoft's new Internet Explorer 7, but it's in beta, and it screwed up my system's security settings. Install it at your own risk.

Anyway, after you've installed Firefox, just pay attention to right side of the address bar and look out for an orange symbol. I've highlight it in red, in the screenshot below.



If you see this symbol, it means that the website has a RSS feed that you can subscribe to. As you can see from the screenshot, my blog provides a RSS feed. In fact, this service comes automatic for all blogs generated by blogger.com. Click the symbol, and click “OK” on the ensuing dialog box.



Next, open Firefox's bookmarks by pressing CTRL-B, look for Tech Miser, right-click it and select properties.



The RSS feed is shown in “Feed Location”. Copy this, then go to www.live.com.



Assuming you have a page set up (if not, do read my previous post about setting up your own www.live.com page), click Add Stuff, followed by Advanced Options. Then, paste the RSS feed into the text box, highlighted below. Finally, click Subscribe to complete the process.



After you have subscribed to my blog, whenever I have a new post, you'll be the first to know. You can also catch my previous posts here.



Most websites would have RSS feeds by now. So when you see the orange RSS symbol, simply repeat my aforementioned instructions to subscribe to the content. Have fun!

And by the way, if you want a more detailed and technical article of what RSS is all about, do check out its wikipedia entry.

CE

www.live.com

Microsoft has always been made fun of, especially for the frequent crashes and virus attacks on their Windows OS. And partly due to Apple's influence and emergence over the past few years, Microsoft product's “user experience” is also often scrutinized and laughed at by both industry experts and casual tech consumers alike.

However, I feel that Bill Gates and his team has been trying really hard to dispel the notion that Microsoft only has difficult to use and unreliable products. It is evident in the upcoming Vista OS as well the new version of Office. Even as Apple and Linux are gathering momentum in terms of market share, they will find it extremely difficult to bring down the juggernaut that is Microsoft.

A new Microsoft “service” that impressed me quite a bit is www.live.com. With this, gone are the days when I had to open multiple instances of Internet Explorer, and log into each and every single website just to check if there are any new blog entries or news update.

www.live.com updates everything, and best of all, displays all the content neatly in one page.

Here's how you can get started:

1. Go to www.live.com, and click on the “Get Started” button.

2. To keep things simple, make sure all the check boxes are selected, and click “Next”

You'll be brought to your personal Live home page.

Each tab represents a main category, with the relevant contents in it. So, in the “News” tab, you have the head lines from MSNBC, BBC, NYT and so on. Click on any headline, and you'll be directed to the full story either in a separate browser or tab (if you use Firefox or IE7). If you don't like any preloaded “gadget”, just click the “X” button to remove them.

You can also add your own content by entering the RSS feed address of your favorite blog or news site. Click Add Stuff > Advanced Options.

Compelling features
New content will appear without the hassle of pressing F5, which in my opinion, is one compelling feature of this service. Another nice feature is its portability.

By logging in your hotmail or MSN or any Microsoft based account from any computer, all your settings and content will be loaded accordingly. So it doesn't matter if you are in some obscure Internet Cafe in Inner Mongolia, you'll still get to experience the same www.live.com service you enjoy back in the comforts of your home.

Conclusion
With live.com, Nearly everything that matters to you on the Internet can be conveniently accessed from one, single page.

Although the service is still in beta, I found it relatively stable, no big problems yet.

I think this is a great service and I log on to it everyday. Well, do try it out. You have nothing to lose as it's free of charge!

CE

New Canon 5 Megapixel Camera for only $200

Wow. With a stroke of luck, I managed to get a brand new Canon Digital IXUS i Zoom for only $200! The street price is around $599. Grand savings of $399!

Actually, I bought a 2nd hand Digital IXUS IIs from my boss for $200. But, that particular model has a CCD mounting problem (which he and I didn't know when the deal was done). The "glue" used is not suitable for the humid weather here in the tropics. Sure enough, after using the camera for a few months, the CCD came loose, and it couldn't pick up anything. To my horror, all the pictures taken on my short holiday were blank.

Luckily, Canon acknowledged the problem, and gave free repairs, no questions asked. I went to the service center in Febuary, they took in the IXUS IIs, and gave me a loan camera as a replacement.

Half a year later, they sent me a letter, saying that I can choose to keep the loan camera, or get back my old, repaired camera.

Let's see.....

• 3.2 MP vs 5.3 MP
• 2x zoom vs 2.4x zoom
• 2004 model (older) vs 2005 model (newer)
  
• Chunky vs Sleek

Canon Digital IXUS IIs

Canon Digital IXUS i Zoom

I think it's a forgone conclusion. The Digital IXUS i Zoom it will be.

There you have it ladies and gentlemen, a new Canon camera for 1/3 of the original price! So my advice is, get a cheap, 2nd hand IXUS IIs!

CE

Yes..I'm finally back

Hello.

Sorry for the hiatus. It's partly because of work, and mostly because of laziness. :P

Anyway, I'll be updating my blog more frequently in the future. So, do keep my blog in your live bookmarks and "favorites" folder.

C E