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Windows Phone 7 – A deal breaker or just another desperate attempt?

September 18th, 2010 No comments

windowsphone-everything-top-1 
It’s been a nightmare for Microsoft in the last few years with their mobile operating system, Windows Mobile. The real battle began back in 2007 when iPhone was released to public and despite the popularity of Windows Mobile, Steve Jobs (CEO, Apple) has outwitted Steve Ballmer (CEO, Microsoft) and Windows Mobile has started to lose ground quickly. iPhone was taking the lead and outselled Windows Mobile almost immediately.

 

Just a year later (2008 A.D.) another bomb shell was dropped on the smartphone arena with the release of Google’s Android operating system and the intensity of the battle begun to rise. Google was working hard on improving Android as updates were being released more frequent on Android than iPhone. By the first quarter of 2010, the tide of war has shifted towards Android and for the first time it managed to outsell iPhone. By June of the same year, iPhone 4 went public but it failed to gain popularity like its predecessor.

 

But wait! Microsoft was holding ground under radio-silence and planning to counter-attack with the latest technologies their engineers have managed to develop. The preemptive strike has begun when Microsoft unveiled Windows Phone 7 in Mobile World Congress in Barcelona and technologist around the globe got excited about this upcoming revolutionary mobile operating system. Some went as far as saying that that’s a deal breaker!

 

The mobile OS battle is not a fight between evil and good, like republic and separatist, Jedi and the Sith Lord, Batman and Joker. People will not go and choose sides; it’s more like a survival of the fittest were people will pick up the best smartphone out there, and the one that sell the most is the winner. So I’m quite convinced that all three companies have worked hard and squeezed their juicy expertise at best, although I’m having my doubts about Apple as they tend to release new iPhones and other products but not with the latest technologies – yes, the press exaggerates all the time with “latest technology”!

 

Without further ado, let’s compare the three mobile operating systems:

 

iPhone OS 4.0

Android 2.2

Windows Phone 7

Multitouch

Yes

Yes

Yes

Multitasking

Yes + Push

Yes

Yes but not third-party applications + Push

Copy Paste

Yes

Yes

No (Initially)

Keyboard

Virtual

Virtual + Physical

Virtual + Physical

Music Store

Yes, iTunes

Third party

Yes, Zune

Music Streaming

Third-party apps

Yes

Yes

Navigation

Third-party

Google Maps

Bing

Games

Tons on the App Store

Not as good as iPhone

Xbox Live

Gamers Social Network

Yes

No

Yes

Office Suite

Yes

Yes

Yes

Flash

No

Yes

No (Initially)

Silverlight

No

Yes

Yes

Customization Home Screen

Yes, third-party

Yes

Yes

Applications

170,000 +

50,000 +

Not launched yet

User friendliness

2nd best

3rd best

Best

Sync Game Online

No

No

Yes

 

windows phone 7 xboxOkay, so that’s a raw  comparison between the three players. We could dive deeper and see how Windows Phone 7 can be integrated to your Xbox set or your PC, and how with some upcoming games you can play it in your Xbox 360 and then go out and continue the game in your Windows Phone 7 device from the same point where you left the game on the Xbox 360.  And the list of features goes on…

 

But hey! Windows Phone 7 is still not out there yet, and if you’ve seen the developer framework capabilities you’d be amazed with what you can do with it. Microsoft is releasing an OS with amazing capabilities and an awesome developer tools for the developers’ community to make great applications and shine as a rock star.

 

There are still some issues remaining, as iPhone and Android has already gained solid ground, Microsoft will have to convince consumers to ditch their current technologies and immigrate to Windows Phone 7.

 

“Microsoft has a challenge in getting phone vendors to support Windows Phone 7,” said Jack Gold, the principal of J. Gold Associates, to the IT Business Edge. “Motorola is not going to do it. HP just bought Palm and the webOS, and it is very unlikely they will do it. HTC probably will make a few, but they are going down the Android path very quickly. Samsung may do Windows Phone 7, but how much effort will they put into it?”

 

Microsoft has managed to create a revolutionary simple “hub” centric interface and will definitely change the way people use smartphones as various technologies integration was achieved to some degree. Whether it will succeed or not we do not know. Only few days left until the release of the first Windows Phone 7 based device, and the decision is all up to the consumers to go for iPhone’s boring interface, Android’s openness, or the easiness of WP7. But of course, Microsoft wouldn’t want Captain Jack Sparrow (1) to repeat his own words to Windows Phone 7 “Up is down. That’s just maddingly unhelpful. Why are these things never clear?!”

 

 

 

 

 

This article will be published on next the issue of Al-Islamia Magazine.

– The writing style is intentional, to make it funny and inviting for youth readers.

Zune for International Users

April 7th, 2010 1 comment

So you are now one of those people who found out about Zune and got really turned down by Microsoft for preventing us to access the device and the Marketplace just because we do not live in the US? Don’t worry because I have the ultimate workaround.

zunesoftware

Since the released of Zune Software 4.0 and the integration of Zune Marketplace to the Xbox 360, Microsoft has stepped a big leap forward into the Music and Entertainment industry. The Zune Software 4.0 is user-friendly and much more responsive than its competitive the iTunes in the Windows platform and the Zune HD device is awesome and feels much more robust than the current iPods. And thanks to the Zune Pass, the Zune Marketplace now provides unlimited number of music at the tip of your hand to listen to or download, of course, with DRM lock. The Zune Pass cost only $15 USD monthly but the problem is that if you are not based in the US, you won’t be able to enjoy the Zune Marketplace, heck, you won’t even be able to buy Zune. To be fair to the Microsoft folks, I think those roadblocks were necessary for license music in the Marketplace whether the Zune team really wanted to block international users or no.

In this article I’m going to talk about how to own a Zune HD and get yourself hooked up with the Zune Marketplace with the full features of Zune Software 4.0 just like living in the states.

Get the Zune HD

Officially the Zune HD is supported and sold only in the states but you could find sellers in ebay that would happily sell it and ship it to your country but for an extra profit.

Zune HD

Another alternative is to buy Zune HD through Amazon or any other retailer and ship it to a “shipment forwarder company” in the states that ships anything they receive under your name to your home address. Basically, those types of companies will provide you with a US mailbox and an address, and if anything is mailed/shipped to that address it will be forwarded and shipped to your home. I personally use Aramex’s Shop&Ship but if you cannot use Aramex for any reason, you could always use DHL since they provide a very similar service. This kind of shipping service is available in my country and I’m not sure if it is available everywhere.

Grasp the Full Potential of the Zune Marketplace

Zune HD can play all music and videos in that’s already in your hard disk and playable by Zune Software 4.0. Now, here what really made me ditch iPod and iTunes, it is the Zune Marketplace. The main reason I made the move from iTunes to Zune Software is that I can get unlimited music with Zune Pass as I mentioned previously.

Now it is time to do some changes in your computer. Follow the next instructions before opening the Zune Software for the first time. You can download Zune Software from here.

Accessing the Zune Marketplace

zuenmarket In a typical non-US computer you won’t see the Marketplace & the Social tab in Zune Software, however, you could easily solve this by setting your location to US. To do that, go to Control Panel –> Clock, Language, and Region –> Change location, then select your location to “United States” [Windows 7].

Now you should be able to see the Marketplace tab after restarting the Zune Software.

Get a Windows Live Account

Now you need to register for a Windows Live ID which is the generic account for all Microsoft services, or you could just grab a new Windows Live or Hotmail email which is also considered as a Windows Live ID. You could use your existing Live email.

Just ensure that in your profile your home address is set to US. You could use any US-based address you want. Heck, you can use any of Microsoft offices address 😀

If you followed previous instructions you should be able to browse the Zune Marketplace and play with it. But wait! We are not done yet. Follow next instructions if you want to be able to buy Music and download them.

Note: To login successfully in your Zune Software, your PC location has to match the location in your Windows Live profile which should be US by now.

Purchasing Music from the Zune Marketplace

xbox point cardTo purchase Music from the Zune Marketplace you’re going to need Microsoft Points which is the currency being used for the Zune Marketplace and it is also the same currency being used for the XBox 360 Marketplace. You can purchase Microsoft Points online by the Zune Software but the problem is that Zune Marketplace only accepts US-credit cards. Fortunately, I was able to overcome this roadblock with the Xbox point card.

You can purchase an Xbox point card by either asking a friend from US to buy one for you and send you the card code, or you could head to ebay and buy one. Some sellers in ebay will just email you the card codes regardless of your location which is perfect for a fast solution. I personally buy from GSG online retailer because I’ve bought several Microsoft Points from him already so I trust him, and he usually send the code in less than 24 hours.

Now that you have the card codes, launch Zune Software in your PC then go to Settings –> Account –> Redeem code. Enter the code and you’ll be redeemed with Microsoft Points which can be used to buy anything in the Zune Marketplace.

You could also use those points to purchase videos on the Zune Marketplace but you’ll need to workaround it more to download videos. I’ll talk about it later.

Zune Pass

Want to enjoy the ultimate experience of Zune? Then Zune Pass is your salvation.

zuenpass

Again, the Zune Marketplace will not accept a non-US credit cards so you won’t be able to purchase Zune Pass on your own. It took me a lot of Googling (Bing suck!) to figure out alternatives which is the Zune Pass Anywhere retailer. It provides you with a Zune Pass but for a higher price and they will need to access your account so you’ll have to submit your password. Basically, they will access your account and buy a Zune Pass.

Alternatively, if you have a friend in the states you can ask your friend to buy you a Zune Pass card from Best Buy for $15 and email you the card code.

Videos

So far you should be able to download music yourself with no problem. The experience is not complete without the ability to purchase videos from the Zune Marketplace or downloading it. Easy, get a VPN (aka Virtual Private Network) for as low as $40/year from some firms.

I use Witopia but there are many other companies that provide VPN and you probably could even find lower prices. But you have to ensure that the VPN is based in the states. By the time I write this article it seems that the video download works even when the VPN service provide you with an anonymous-IP.

As soon as the video starts downloading, you won’t need VPN anymore. If your VPN connection is slow, you could pause the download then disconnect your VPN connection and resume the download with your regular connection.

After doing the first download, it doesn’t seem to need VPN anymore to download any additional videos. I don’t know the actual reason behind it but I can guess that because I have already purchased a Zune HD and linked it to my account.

Finally…

What Microsoft has done with Zune HD and Zune Software 4.0 is really incredible. If you were one of those lucky people who own a Zune HD and Zune Software, you officially own the modern device and software. They are both much user-friendly, easy to use and feels much more modern than the iPod-like interface. If you are a tech-savvy you are probably bored from the iTunes and iPod interface which feels really out-dated. You would also notice the big gap in performance with Zune Software 4.0 compared to iTunes 9.1.

You can connect to my profile:

Happy Zunning!

Building a Gaming Rig – Kuwait – December 2009 (Part 1)

December 26th, 2009 No comments

(I’m sorry I won’t be able to continue with the next post)

I’ve decided to buy a high performance PC for gaming and heavy tasking that would last as long as possible and could play the latest games with the highest graphic settings. And since I’m from Kuwait I have limited choices as the online markets are off-limit because of the customs here and the extremely slow mailing system. After purchasing all parts and finish building  the PC all by myself, I’ve decided to share my experience for whoever is looking to buy a new gaming PC in Kuwait.

Since I went to college my need for better and faster PC grows at a greater pace. For the second year of college (2005) I bought my second laptop which is Fujitsu Siemens M4348G for the pure purpose of gaming. It was a big mistake because it was heavy and bulky and it is pain to carry even for short distances venturing within the college walls. And the 17 inch laptop looks stupid on me since I’m a short guy.

The year after that (2006), I’ve learned from my mistake and bought an Asus A8js which was the best laptop performance and graphic wise within the 14 inch range and it weights around 5.5 pound which is considered great for travelling or, in my case, the need for the laptop almost all the time in college. I was able to stick with this great laptop for 2 years which is the average age of laptops nowadays.

By 2008 I’ve decided to buy the Vaio Z laptop which is according to my research, it is the best suitable laptop for me! Great specification for such a small laptop (13.3 inch). Decent graphic card, 6 hours of battery life, very lightweight, core 2 duo and 2 GB of RAM… what more could I ask for? Luckily I was in Toronto, Canada, that time and they do sell new Vaio PCs early at a good price compare to Kuwait’s prices. I grabbed a laptop from the store few days before it was displayed in the store… and I lived happily ever after!

By December of 2009 I was about to explode of anger due to performance problem I’m facing playing new games and with my regular usage of a computer. I’ve decided to get a new PC and my aim was to use it for the following:
 

  1. Gaming, thus I need a better graphic card.  The Geforce 9300 GS for my Vaio Z laptop wasn’t able to play even some of the old games with decent graphic settings which really suck. I’m a heavy gamer and I love games and my laptop isn’t nearly enough to satisfy my appetite for new games. After playing Dragon Age: Origins for awhile tweaking settings and all it wasn’t a pleasant experience. The bad frame rate even with the lowest settings and it still go for 10 FPS or less. I had to go for a new PC with better graphic card, I don’t want to play the upcoming games like Supreme Commander 2, Command and Conquer 4 and Final Fantasy XIV with low frame rate.
     
  2.  Browse smoothly! Nowadays websites are more complicated and requires more resources than old days with all the Flash, Javascript and rendering duty it perform. Google Reader is a performance hug when there is hundreds of articles awaiting in the stack. Working with multiple browsers is required for an I.T. professional.
     
  3. Multimedia. I can’t complain about Vaio Z when it comes to play HD content even in stamina mode. I’m an HD freak and I watch every show and movie in HD and Sony geniously created this laptop to fit a heavy multimedia user. Amazing HD playback capabilities, built-in Toslink/Optical audio output, decent speakers and full HD HDMI output port.  The only drawback is that I only have 240GB of HD space which get filled with the basic applications and music files that I install as soon as I format my machine. So, with the new PC I need to go up one more level of home entertainment with enough amount of disk space.
     
  4. Virtualization… RAM killer! Virtual machine eats a lot of memory and when you’re only with 3GB of memory, you won’t have enough memory left to work within the main OS smoothly. Windows 7 comes with a new feature called Windows XP Mode which allows you to run Windows XP on top of Windows 7, it could be helpful when you are running applications that are compatible with Windows XP only but you’ll need a chip-level virtualization which is supported in the Vaio Z.
     
  5. I’m a programmer. Programmers and web developers generally do not need cutting edge CPU and high amount of RAM except in some situations, however, a smooth working environment for a programmer is certainly a big plus. It is not like I’m developing a game or something big but it feel more comfortable to work when you run your website on a GlassFish or MAMP local server and it executes fast enough to do a fast testing and get done with your work quickly. Some big IDEs like Netbeans and Visual Studio 2010 requires more resources when you start developing a mid-sized applications because of all the background processes happening during the development period. I know some programmers still uses Pentium 3, but I’m not really patience when my fingers start writing codes.
     
  6. Designing. I use Adobe Flash, Flex, Photoshop and Swift 3D. Photoshop is pain in the ass when I start creating posters and flyers. It starts getting slow when I go to large designs and as deep as 300 DPI and beyond. Certainly a memory of 3GB is not enough with all other applications working on the background. Also rendering is freaking slow on my Vaio Z which is another drawback.

 

To be continued…

Silverlight 3 Tools Installation – Unable to Detect Visual Studio 2008 SP1

November 7th, 2009 10 comments

I’ve been trying to install Silverlight 3 Tools for Visual Studio 2008 but I keep getting a message saying that I don’t have SP1 installed even though I do have it installed, and it won’t allow me to install it. I tried to uninstall everything and reinstalled Visual Studio 2008 and updated it to Service Pack 1 but the same error keeps showing up whenever I executing the Silverlight 3 Tools installation. Here’s the error message I keep receiving:

Installation Requirements:

Build 9.0.30729.XX of Visual Studio 2008 SP1 or Visual Web Developer 2008 SP1 must be installed before installation can continue.  See <A HREF=”http://go.microsoft.com/fwlink/?LinkID=122094″>http://go.microsoft.com/fwlink/?LinkID=122094</A> for download information.

Silverlight 3 Tools installation error

I’ve done much research to resolve this problem but I couldn’t find any helpful information. However, I’ve been able to find some hints here and there and I’ve came up with the solution after playing around with it for awhile. But first I should clarify few things before I continue with the solution:

  • I’m using an early version of Windows 7 Professional since it was released 3 weeks ago by the time I’m writing this post.
  • I have Visual Studio 2008 SP1 Professional Edition and .NET Framework 3.5 SP1 installed.
  • The VS2008 build is: 9.0.21022.8 RTM which is the latest update I can get from Windows Update and it cannot detect any more updates for the VS2008.
  • I have Expression Studio 3 already installed.

Okay, so now to overcome the installation error of Silverlight 3 Tools follow up these few steps:

  1. Download Silverlight 3 Tools for Visual Studio 2008 from here. The download file name should be: Silverlight3_Tools.exe by default.
  2. Download WinRar from here. Winrar will be used to extract Silverlight3_Tools.exe since it is an archived file. The reason I mentioned Winrar here is because I’m not sure if there is any other application that supports extracting EXE files. Feel free to use any other app that could do the job.
  3. After installing Winrar or any equivalent application, right click on Silverlight3_Tools.exe and extract the archive file.
  4. Finally, go to the location where you have extracted the file and execute the file VS_SilverlightTools_Setup.exe to install the Silverlight 3 Tools.

Lesson Learned From Imagine Cup 2008

June 6th, 2008 No comments

I watched this video on Channel8 and I figured out to write what I have learned from Imagine Cup 2008 Gulf region contest which was held in Jebel Ali resort, Dubai. I might even wind up being glad that I have failed! Failure is the first step to success.

For those who does know what is Imagine Cup, it is an annual competition from Microsoft aimed to solve world’s toughest challenges by using technology. Software Design is one of the categories in this competition. We have to use .NET technologies for this year’s theme, which is the environment.

Lessons learned from Imagine Cup 2008:

1- Don’t wait until the last 2 nights!

That’s my first mistake. We haven’t done the video nor practiced well for the presentation. Never ever delay anything until the last two days before the presentation. You will not have time to do anything because you’ll be totally booked for all the trips and events happening the day before the contest.

2- Eat well! But not much…

I was shocked when I woke up just 1:30 hour before the presentation. I had to jump off the bed and rush to get ready. There was no time at all to eat breakfast. But I could at least eat a 1 minute snack!

3- Bring business card

We met lots of people there from different countries and different universities. We also met a lot of people from the press and Microsoft. I think if we brought a business card it would make life easier to keep in touch with some of those individuals.

4- Be prepared

Always be prepared and have a backup plan! I had everything prepared before the presentation and I even hibernated my laptop rather than totally shutting it down just to make sure it will directly open  with my slides ready on the screen. But after going on the stage my laptop’s touch pad suddenly – and for the first time – stop responding. I was like "Hell no! It never happened to me before… why now?!". Damn it was a funny situation in front the camera and a hall full of audience.

5- More practice

The more practice you do the less mistakes you’ll make. I was shitty nervous in the stage. I was even shaking and I felt totally blocked out. It was like I can’t see anything, my vision was blocked… saying wrong words and grammar because I was extremely nervous. However, after the presentation my friend told me that I did very well and it was like one of the best presentations in the contest and he told me that I didn’t look nervous at all. To be honest, we did our practice just the night before the presentation from 12:30am to like 2:30am. I’m sure if we had practiced days before the contest, we would do much better in the contest’s presentation.

6- Video!

Every team has used videos in their presentation. We were the only team started the presentation without any video clips. You asking why? It’s because we didn’t have the time to do it and we ended up deciding to do it the day before the contest which again was a big mistake. Video is an essential part of the presentation to deliver your idea in another way and to convince judges. After all, we are marketing our idea and there is no limitation on what you should do when marketing your product.

7- Demo!

Believe it or not, we didn’t have a running program for the contest. Even though it is not required to have a running program in the regional contest, but it would be a big plus for our team. A program demonstration will show judges how far you’ve reached in developing the program and it is really a proof that your idea is implement and your software is working.

8- Sleep well…

Oh this is the thing which I’m not really good at. I rarely sleep well and I occasionally don’t care if I slept well or not. Guess what! I slept only 4 hours before the presentation… and maybe it is one of the factors that affected my mood in the presentation.

9- It’s not how good your project as much as how to deliver it to judges

We had a great and easy to implement idea. But the problem – in my opinion – was we weren’t able to convince the judges. I think they didn’t totally understand the concept behind our project and how easy it is to implement. After all, they did told us that their main focus was on selecting the idea which is good and easy to implement. Convincing is the keyword in this regional contest.

10- Marketing skills is much more important than a working application

I also learned that the presentation and communication is much important than showing them a working demo of the project. The regional Imagine Cup contest wasn’t aimed to show a demonstration of your project, it is aimed to communicate with judges and to convince them that you have the best idea and the easiest to implement. If you convinced them and won the regional, then you’ll move a step ahead and start implementing your project for the finals.

 

I think we, Super Coders team, did pretty well in the competition even though it was the first time for a team from Kuwait University and Kuwait to participate in this contest. Winning an XBox 360 Arcade at least it won’t let me feel I left Dubai empty handed.

My goal for Imagine Cup 2009 is to win the regional and win the final. Microsoft told us that next year (2009) will have a local competition rather than regional Gulf competition. The winner in Kuwait for Imagine Cup 2009 will go directly to the final contest.

I’d like to thank Dr. Thalaya Al-Fozan – our team coach, Kuwait University – Dr. Mohammad Ilyas – Gulf University for Science and Technology – for his effort and precious time he gave us on our project. Thanks to Microsoft and Lana Khalaf for their effort on making this great event. I really had fun there in Dubai.

Categories: My Writings, Myself, Others Tags:

2007 in Review – Part 11

December 24th, 2007 No comments

<< Part 10
Okay I promise this one is going to be the last one.

Happy Holiday

This post is supposed to be about politics and the world we live in. In fact, I have already written this post 2 days ago but I had my mind changed so I deleted it and I’m now rewriting it in just one paragraph.

It’s too hard to speak of all the sadness going around us in Iraq, Afghanistan, Chechen, Somalia, Sudan, Lebanon, Palestine, and all the bombing and terrorist attack all over the world. We are fed up of all the lies and deceptions from the Whitehouse and it’s making people all over the world raging. The misuse of military and economic power is not going to last forever, all this evilness will not last for long. So let’s hope and pray for a better future and better climate to stop this maniac consumption of Earth while we watch it bleeding and do nothing! I ask all people around the globe, especially the first world countries, to pressure their governments to at least join the Kyoto Convention.

Since it’s Christmas eve, I’ll end this long 11 parts topic with a video I saw in Keyframer blog:

We wish you a merry Christmas… we wish you a merry Christmas… we wish you a merry Christmas and a HAPPY NEW YEAR!

Oh god this song has been stuck in my head for days now including “Santa Claus is coming to town” lol!

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2007 in Review – Part 10

December 24th, 2007 No comments

<< Part 9
Best Blog

I’m registered to hundreds of RSS feeds from many blogs. The blogosphere is expanding and more blogs are showing up daily. However, I usually read IT and Tech blogs, therefore, I’m gonna select the best blog of them all… Aral Balkan’s blog. I had fun reading his blog and I really wish him best of luck with his SWX project.

Best Poddy Cast

I always check for any updates for a several podcast I watch or listen. Hansel Minutes is really informative podcast with all the programming related shows I love it so much, and also GeekBrief.tv is one of the best video casts out there for computer gadgets nerds. In addition, PHP Abstract is a nice to listen to podcast for PHP developers. I really love to listen to Hansel Minutes and I enjoy it most of the time so I’m going to select it as the best podcast of the year!

Best Anime

Gundam? Bleach? Death Note? No, it goes to Romeo x Juliet. Shakespeare’s love and drama story turned into animation. The combination of love, sad, war, poor, and commitment all together in an innovative way to create a fantastic story. This story truly deserves our attention…

Funniest Website

Web2announcer.com. I don’t know about the rest of you but I see it’s a funny website because if you are using Internet Explorer, there is a warning message at the top: “Warning: You are using Internet Explorer”. LOL I’m really silly!

Warning using IE!

Best Video

Funnies video is the BBC news error. They interviewed a Taxi driver rather than an IT expert. The funniest of all is that the Taxi driver managed to give good answers!!!!!!!

But the best video goes to “Here Comes Another Bubble – The Richter Scales”!

If you like the last video, you might like this one and this too.

Next… Part 11 the last part.. I swear!

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2007 in Review – Part 9

December 24th, 2007 No comments

<< Part 8
Best Game

Games… Played loads of games through the year, PS3/2 and PC, and #1 goes to Supreme Commander! Hail O’mighty warriors of King Saleh, the chief commander of the Human army! Here’s a picture of some of the games I have been playing in 2007:

Games

Games 2
Click on the pictures to enlarge it.

However, if you read my previous post about FFXI, you’ll notice that I have been playing Final Fantasy XI Online since late 2003. It’s an addicted online game where you can have your own avatar/character online. Nowadays I’m starting to raise a chocobo!

FFXI boxes

There is odd gadget in that picture… the lights in top of the boxes. The lights react when there is sound or noise and its fun to use when the room is in dark. I bought it from UK few years ago from Electronic Boutique in Sunderland! It’s one of my favorite games shop. If I’m not mistaken, I think I bought it for 5 pounds.

Me, FFXI

That’s me! A picture taken few days ago. Trees are decorated as you can see in the background because we are celebrating the Starlight festival. It’s something similar to Christmas.

To come… Part 10

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2007 in Review – Part 8

December 24th, 2007 No comments

<< Part 7
Best Movie

Lots of great movies released this year such as Eragon, Transformers, Pirates of The Caribbean At World’s End, Spiderman 3, 300, Harry Potter And The Order of The Phoenix, The Golden Compass, National Treasure Book of Secrets, and many others. But I have to select only one for the best movie and it goes to Pirates of The Caribbean 3. Eh captain Jack Sparrow, savvy? Of course, it depends on my own taste of movies. Doesn’t it you evil Davy Johns! I won’t let you take my heart and keep it inside your stupid locker!

Best series is hard to select, I love both LOST and Prison Break. I still haven’t seen season 3 of Prison Break because it is still airing. I think I’ll select LOST as the best series. Of course, there are other good series such as Seinfeld, Less Than Perfect, According to Jim, 24, ER, Band of Brothers, Taken, Friends, and Grounded for Life, Monk, 8 Simple Rules, and many others. But they are all old series or there is no season released in 2007.

Upcoming… part 9

Categories: My Writings Tags:

2007 in Review – Part 7

December 24th, 2007 No comments

<< Part 6
Best Tech Release of the Year

Definitely with no hesitation at all, iPhone is the top release of the year. If you never heard of iPhone I can only imagine the amount of beer you have been drinking through the whole year. Too much attention this sexy phone got and I’m sure Steve Jobs is really happy with the result as it is now half way through the goal Steve has set which is selling 10 million pieces. Of course, it is not the best phone in the market as it lacks many features such as MMS and 3G technology not to mention the stupid camera quality, but the usability and ease of use it provides breaks all expectations and slaps all disadvantages it has. I wonder of James Bond will use iPhone on his next movie?! That would be awesome!

2007’s highest growing search term is iPhone as Google reported lately!
Help freeing the iPhone by watching this video:

Soon part 8!

Categories: My Writings Tags: