Thursday, December 19, 2002

One thing I've realized after I read Kalamari's blog today was that us humans have become less forgiving over the past 2 decades or so. How saddening.

Only yesterday, when my brother was bringing me back from work, did I get to see just how fatal this flaw could get.

It was a rather rainy evening, sometime after 6:30 p.m. Malaysian time. My brother was driving, listening to the radio (on full blast, as usual...).

Inevitably, we ended up in a minor traffic jam (due to the weather, no doubt...) on a rather narrow road. Things were inching by...

Until some idiot attempted to overtake our car (and force us onto the sidewalk) and SUCCEEDED in getting past us. Although I was momentarily annoyed by that guy's actions, my brother did the UNTHINKABLE.

HE PURSUED THE GUY AND PROMPTLY GAVE HIM THE BIRD! NOT ONCE, BUT TWICE!

Ignoring his own safety, and mine as well.

Now, I've had my share of idiocy in the past. Some idiot of a motorcyclist (with girlfriend in tow) chased me after I nearly bumped into him (although it was HIS FAULT for coming through the other side of a one-way road!). When I stopped on one side of the road, he came up to my car, slapped me, and nearly broke my windows too. I've been cursing that guy with a Death's Curse ever since that episode, which happened in 1999.

But that does NOT compare to what my brother did yesterday. Had he gotten into anything unexpected, both of us might have had to pay dearly for it.

How idiotic of him!

Anger is a dangerous emotion to carry around. If it is not controlled well enough, it may spell the end of many a good relationship.

Which is why I prefer to avoid nasty confrontations. Officially, I was a bit aggrieved at one person's comments on her blog when I genuinely offered assistance, yesterday. But I believe that she had her reasons, so I sincerely apologize.

However, I do wish she'd control her anger. For a person to reach the blessed status of being properly human, he / she must control his / her anger, and only use it when the situation calls for it.

Ah, well, I'm rambling by myself again. Although not many people visit this derelict home of a hermit...^_^;;

"Humanity may have gained lots of knowledge over the years, but wisdom is still lacking in most of them, even now...." - Saviour-Crisis-V.

Wednesday, December 18, 2002

The art of flattery is a delicate art. As is the art of true praise. Both are hard to distinguish, and are frequently misunderstood.

A pity. But such is the nature of most humans; they tend to focus on what they see, and fail to sense what's inside of what they see.

I pray that I don't become one myself. At times, there are cases when I tend to hurt / injure people indirectly, and for this, I sincerely apologize.

But I'm only doing what I believe is right. Or, at least, is right according to the One above.

Even though I sometimes have the impression that He's a nasty cosmic joker....hmph.

Ah, human nature. How utterly unpredictable. That's what makes our lives such a mess.

Finding the perfect specimen amidst the rubble is difficult to say the least. That's just the way it is.

We strive for perfection, failing to realize that we ourselves are purposely flawed to begin with, and are, thereby, doomed, never to reach that perfect 100% in our lives. Yet, we ignore that, and continue on.

What we should be doing is to strengthen our weaknesses, and stand up together as a whole unit. If it were only THAT simple.

You can tell that some things in life really aggravate my emotional stability, at points.

Guess I should've listened to my Dad and kept my advice to those that really DO want to hear it. But I have my reasons for acting the way I am.

Perhaps, I too, wish to achieve perfection. A way to improve the lives of humanity. A utopia to govern the earth, if I ever live to create and rule it.

Many people fought for this dream in the past, with many variations. Even Hitler. Misguided one, though he may be.

I just hope that the One above grants me enough wisdom to prevent such calamities from re-occurring.
Shh...you hear that?

That's the sound of pure silence. Precisely what happens when your own brother finishes off your handphone's credit.

Also occurs in games such as Final Fantasy, Seiken Densetsu 3 (Japanese version of Secret Of Mana 3), and Parasite Eve.

Hurts lots.

The ability to convey what one's feelings are towards his / her friends and family is invaluable....once that gift is gone, only memories will remain. A gift that I value even more than usual, ever since my sister passed away this year.

And yet, there are those that prefer not to appreciate such gifts. People who say that these gifted people are "patronizing" and such.

Is it wrong to offer assistance to anyone? I most certainly don't think so. Although care should be exercised, nonetheless.

Just my 2 cents against a particular someone....thou knowest best what thou art, comrade...your eyes say it all!

And now, to focus on other issues. The recently ended Comic Fiesta 2002 was a relatively interesting event. Perfect for gathering contacts for future reference.

Perhaps we might be able to produce our own Mr. Yoji Shinkawa on our shores. Such talent should not be wasted. Talent that many people, including myself, could use.

No sign of any Athena Asamiya cosplayers, though. And just a reminder, folks. Athena Asamiya's got a relatively average history for a game character, but in KOF 2002, she's got more effectiveness than several issues before.

Plus a new look, and a Goddess form that emphasizes a fact from long ago...take it from a game historian, like myself.

I've joined Xaph's message-boards and I'll say one thing about 'em; they lack activity. That might be due to our activeness in other boards / other things.

Still need more materials, funds and information to create that Elemental Generator that I've been thinking about so far...could use a few URLs to good research sites.

On the gaming front, I finished off Alien 3 for the Sega Genesis. On a ROM. Tough game on Hard difficulty, but entertaining.

I wonder why I can't get the same high from the Alien VS Predator (by Fox Studios, not Capcom) series.

Ah, well. Wish me luck in my endeavours, especially in my studies. And in my workplace, too.

Monday, December 02, 2002

To quote a few lines from Santana:

This life ain't good enough....

Comp's in the repair shack, for causes that have gotten much worse than a simple fan-cleaning...

Not a single chance to play / review a good game....

Not a single ounce of new technology to sight / use at all...

This is starting to get mighty boring. Will someone toss a PS2 / GameCube / X-Box my way, please?

Before my circuits start going haywire.....^_^;;

Monday, November 25, 2002

We interrupt this program to bring you a Public Service Announcement:

Have you cleaned up your computer's insides, lately?

Yes, Virginia, that was THE reason why my Athlon 550 sounded like it was going to die in 6 hours. Turned out that the internal cooling fans were overclogged with dust and grime. Yours truly had an infinitely heraculean task to fulfill.

Never has 2 years of dust measured so much on a piece of technology....^_^;;

The Comic Fiesta's coming up soon, but I might not make it, due to a little trip I might be on. Melaka seems like a good place to be this time of year...^_^;;

And progress with the ClinicBase application (as mentioned in my last entry) has been restricted to mere EYE-CANDY.

Must....train....more!

Monday, November 18, 2002

Exams are over, but I need some help.

Anyone good at Java and JDBC? I need to construct a clinical management system for my Dad.

Hand me a few JDBC code snippets, if you can. I'd appreciate it.

Monday, November 11, 2002

Drat. Things just got worse. Just checked out one particular site...

Popular Science has an article concerning the reverse engineering of underground bunker-busting bombs.

Apparently, the Bush Administration is looking at a possibility of upgrading its B61-11 nuclear bunker-busting missiles' earth-penetrating ability.

Should this resolution be passed by the US Government overall (especially by the Senate), we'll be looking at a dark age of ruin before long.

Check out the full article, and draw your own conclusions. Anyone want to bring the idea down before it becomes a dark reality?

I really have a bad feeling about this whole thing.
A word to the rare visitors of this blog:

Although I don't update as frequently as I should, do remember that I've got a few issues to take care of.

Especially exams, the last of which is this 14th. I've got to study hard for it, as you might assume.

Of course, come round and feel free to bombard my comment-space and Tag-Board; if you're lucky, I might just happen to be there, and I'll answer any questions / requests you have.

And now....for the rest of this blog entry.

Jace Barret has been kind enough to let me install a game or two from him...and considering that my gaming skills have seen a NASTY drop recently, it came as a welcome addition. The guy's thinking about establishing a webcomic, in a non-similar fashion to our comrades at MegaTokyo.

In other news, I've been to a seminar on C#, entitled "Unleash The Power Of C#", organized by the Damansara Heights branch of APIIT. Relatively interesting....especially since the .NET framework makes portability issues (e.g. migrating from Java to C#) a bit easier on the mind.

Plus some more interesting news. The Nov 2002 issue of Popular Science highlighted two major things:

1. The revival of the scramjet (supersonic combustion ramjet) technology. With luck, if most issues are resolved (especially heat, combustion, and pressure issues), we'll see planes and missiles cruising through the air at Mach 8....roughly 5000 MPH (haven't converted this to KMPH yet!). And this technology is not really new; research occurred around 1961, plus after the Challenger space shuttle accident. However, this tech was scrapped several times due to monetary and political issues in the past, so hopefully, things should change now.

2. The honouring of 10 scientists, whose work is as of now, relatively unknown to the Nobel Prize committee. One of them has found a way to synthesize electrical component materials (semiconductors, for example).....using viruses to create the materials. Another has found a way to synthesize human tissue. By combining these two methods, it may be possible to create an automatic healing mechanism of sorts. Although I'm not sure how.

Review these links, for they might be useful.

Now, I'd better get back to my books.

Hang on, forgot to wish all Muslims around the world "Eid-ul-Mubarak" (Have a blessed Eid!). The fasting month is quite trying, notably in some places I know.

Ganbatte kudasai! (Hang in there!)

Tuesday, October 29, 2002

I think that our government's spending too little on the Royal Malaysian Air Force's budget.

Either that, or the passengers of a CERTAIN army chopper are just plain voyeuristic.

Sometime around 11:00 a.m. Malaysian time, I was rudely woken up from my sleep by the sounds of that chopper. Went outside, looked up, and noticed that it was doing a few rounds in the skies above my house.

At close range. The noise was, needless to say, deafening.

After several minutes or so, the chopper finally left. One of our neighbours mentioned that they made the same patrol for 2 previous nights in a row.

If I had a loudspeaker / bullhorn, I'd really give them a piece of my mind.

(Thoughts if THAT happened:)

Me: Ground to Unidentified Aircraft, state your business! If we do not receive any answer, we'll send a rocket up your tailpipe!
Chopper Pilot: Unidentified Aircraft to Ground, we're just doing a routine patrol....
Me: Get your accursed chopper out of there. You can do your patrol elsewhere!

(End of thoughts)

Mum mentioned two things afterward. One was about the 2 remaining gang members of a robbery gang that preyed on VIPs. "That," she said, "might explain the chopper's actions."

The other thing was concerning the possibility that the chopper could actually land in our back yard....it's quite large, by the way.

"If they use our back yard, I'll charge 'em RM$10,000 just for parking there," remarked Mum, a grin on her face.

To which i replied, "Make that RM$50,000 for ruining my beauty sleep."

I REALLY HATE unwelcome interruptions.

Tuesday, October 08, 2002

Same ol' story....morning glory.

Although it's 20:10 here in Malaysia.

Got a shot at a few games recently. Still trying to understand Gal's Panic S3's system.

You get a bit of the first one (Showtime DX for a 100%) but then there's the E-X-T-R-A coins (from Gal's Panic S2) that come round if you keep up the fight long enough. I suspect that the C-H-A-N-G-E coins that accompany the E-X-T-R-A ones are also available in this version...which might possibly mean that I'll have to play longer to get those to appear.

Gal's Panic S2's EXTRA CHANGE mode was quite something; one moment you have 25% of the girl's silhouette cleared, the next minute, you get 55% because of the newest pose she's striking....nice touch there, Kaneko! ^_^;;

OK. Enough of the ecchi / hentai quotes.

On more serious issues, my Object-Oriented Programming & Software Engineering projects are almost due....got to pick up the pace and simultaneously revise. However, my comrade-in-arms, Jace Barret, has just handed me a stumbling block.

Still, I find the subbed vids of Mahoromatic and ZOE: Idolo to be worth my time. Finished them in 3 nights.

Relatively touching. Kudos go to both Gainax and Konami for their excellent efforts.

Damn, I'm not concentrating again.

Still, maybe I should ask myself this: Should I really go for something that seems to be a push in the right direction, when all other signs point elsewhere?

If I can answer that, maybe I might just have enough motivation to continue this life of mine, sans the hypocrisy I usually use when my Mum checks on me.

Or maybe I should get a few more friends, especially the female ones. Can't stay as a lone wolf for too long....^_^;;

Monday, September 23, 2002

Phone line's still offline.

That's enough to keep me from downloading the 2 trailers (in Japanese AND English) of Anubis: Zone Of The Enders (a.k.a. Zone Of The Enders: The Second Runner).

And in APIIT (where I'm studying) things are not going too well today....can't seem to download both properly. Plus, the movies are quite choppy, possibly due to network constraints.

There are points where life tends to mess up badly, and TODAY is one such example.

If anyone can pick off the vids from Konami's Tokyo Game Show 2002 pages (the Japanese and English ones) I'd be extremely grateful.

On a lighter note, I've picked up a few FAQs from GameFAQs and I think they'll be useful.

Oh, and before I finish, here's the links to Konami's TGS 2002 reports:

(English)

(Japanese)

Look for the "ZONE OF THE ENDERS" link on either page, and after clicking that, click the link above the one that says "Windows Media Player".

Or right-click to save each trailer to your hard drive; they're about 28.2 MB each. Let me know if you've got them.

Monday, August 05, 2002

Damn.

August 2nd, 2002.

And I still haven't gotten over my only sister's death.

Seems like I can't even force myself to do the things I'm supposed to do, like studying and training to become someone of substance.

I hate Fate. Fate was what separated me from my little sister's last moments....and it torments me still.

Dedicated to Siti Aisyah bt. Izzudin, died May 6th, 2002, at 3:27 p.m., aged 15.

Thursday, July 25, 2002

Well, the phone line's still intact, thankfully.

But I'll have to be careful about going overboard....yeez.

Anyway, one thing that I could use right now is a VERY STRONG English-to-Malay Industrial / Engineering Terms Dictionary....I've got one now, but I need a stronger one to do some proper translation work.

So, does anyone have one?

Friday, July 12, 2002

I've only one word to say right now.


Damn.


Courtesy of my younger brother's late-night phone calls and chat sessions, which have resulted in a massive phone bill recently....

...OUR PHONE LINES HAVE BEEN SET TO CALL RECEIVING INDEFINITELY!!!

Needless to say, updating both my site and this blog will be nigh impossible now.

Curses also go out to Telekom Malaysia...for imposing high telephone charges on both Internet and normal use.

Cut-throats...>_<

Wednesday, July 03, 2002

I'm currently trying to improve this place....I've picked up some code from Enetation and I'm STILL trying to get it to work.

Wednesday, June 26, 2002

And speaking of NASTY, some idiot nearly managed to pass off as me, and leave me with a massive phone bill, to boot.

Fortunately, that idiot didn't make it. He missed on some important points......but he nearly came close.

Saviour-V shudders at the thought...

Saturday, June 22, 2002

Well, this is the beginning of things...after 3 nasty exams, and a day at KLCC.

But I digress. Life's begun in more than several ways....it's just that I haven't given much notice to them.

Oh, well.

Apart from this minor observation, life flows on by, oblivious to us all.

(Let's just say that I'm rambling for a start...^_^;)