Technorati Profile
The Half-Blood Prince: Revelation
This post contains possible spoilers for the Harry Potter series. I'm too lazy to come up with the showing and hiding of divisions, so you can primitively use the mouse cursor to highlight the space below to continue reading.
Fans of Harry Potter have formed a plausible and rather well substantiated argument for the biggest shocker in The Half-Blood Prince. I must say the thought never occurred to me. Visit their site to find out more. Their domain name is pretty much a giveaway.
If the words flashed for a second before the white background could load and seared your unwitting retinas, please dial 1800-OBLIVIATORS.
Filed under: Entertainment, Books
Fans of Harry Potter have formed a plausible and rather well substantiated argument for the biggest shocker in The Half-Blood Prince. I must say the thought never occurred to me. Visit their site to find out more. Their domain name is pretty much a giveaway.
If the words flashed for a second before the white background could load and seared your unwitting retinas, please dial 1800-OBLIVIATORS.
Filed under: Entertainment, Books
Friday, July 29, 2005
Stone the Hippie
"I truly have the personality of a hippie. I am very centered and serious and thoughtful." - Sharon StoneThat's right. And unless you rescue your career, it'll also go the way of the hippie - virtually extinct.
Filed under: Entertainment, Doh!
Thursday, July 28, 2005
Trademark Virgin
CNN reports on tycoon Richard Branson's attempt to protect Virgin Enterprises by suing firms and domains using the word "virgin", claiming that it leeches from Virgin Enterprises' fame and reputation (via Boing Boing, Chilling Effects).
Amazing.
The word "virgin" brings to mind Branson and Virgin Enterprises just like how it brings to mind Anna Nicole Smith (i.e, not at all). Perhaps Branson and Co should look about suing people who use the term "Media Whore" as well. If Bai Ling doesn't countersue first, that is.
Better yet: I'm a virgin!
There. Sue me.
Filed under: Article, Humour
Amazing.
The word "virgin" brings to mind Branson and Virgin Enterprises just like how it brings to mind Anna Nicole Smith (i.e, not at all). Perhaps Branson and Co should look about suing people who use the term "Media Whore" as well. If Bai Ling doesn't countersue first, that is.
Better yet: I'm a virgin!
There. Sue me.
Filed under: Article, Humour
Wednesday, July 27, 2005
Wednesday's Linkfest
1) Create your own Xiao Xiao using Flipbook. Flipbook is a nifty site which allows you to animate your drawings. One up MercerMachine (aka NKF stickman guy) by making stick figures that move, dance or fight across your screen. Here's my stick fight. Warning: takes a steady hand, a patient soul, and lots of free time.
2) The brand new Windows RG (RG for Really Good). Comes with media player, paint and a word processor. And if you've really wanted to murder Microsoft Office Help Assistant before (that idiotic paper clip/ cat/ dog/ wizard that jumps all over your screen unless you set it to die), Windows RG will do it for you.
3) World's Most Irritating Website. Ever. You have been warned. (You can get out of it actually.)
4) A couple of bored guys playing with the... well, board.
5) It's the government's fault that youths are apathetic. That's right. Listen to this:
See?
6) A secret look behind the scenes of a game of Dungeons and Dragons. D&Dgeeks aficionados will find this somewhat familiar and oh so heart-warming. I tend to arm my characters with Sword of Everything-Smiting and Gem of Unlimited Reincarnation, myself.
7) Check out your international passport online! Is this legal I wonder.
8) The perfect stamps for your perfect office. My personal favourite:
9) A labour of love: The bible, in lego. (Parts of the bible anyway.)
10) Most Unlikely Winner of Mother of The Year.
Filed under: Internet, Entertainment, Humour
2) The brand new Windows RG (RG for Really Good). Comes with media player, paint and a word processor. And if you've really wanted to murder Microsoft Office Help Assistant before (that idiotic paper clip/ cat/ dog/ wizard that jumps all over your screen unless you set it to die), Windows RG will do it for you.
3) World's Most Irritating Website. Ever. You have been warned. (You can get out of it actually.)
4) A couple of bored guys playing with the... well, board.
5) It's the government's fault that youths are apathetic. That's right. Listen to this:
"People claim we don't know as much geography as our parents and grandparents, but it's so not our fault," Josh Beldoni, a senior at Fischer High School in Los Angeles, told the Senate Armed Services Committee. "Back then they only had wars in, like, Germany and England, but we're supposed to know about places like Somalia and Massachusetts."
"Macedonia," corrected committee Chairman Carl Levin of Michigan.
"See?" said Beldoni.
See?
6) A secret look behind the scenes of a game of Dungeons and Dragons. D&D
7) Check out your international passport online! Is this legal I wonder.
8) The perfect stamps for your perfect office. My personal favourite:
9) A labour of love: The bible, in lego. (Parts of the bible anyway.)
10) Most Unlikely Winner of Mother of The Year.
Filed under: Internet, Entertainment, Humour
Tuesday, July 26, 2005
Bidding Spree
It's that time of the year again. Time for NUS students to give in to the atavistic instinct of showing off. How else do you label the actions of those who happily dump 3000 odd bidding points into a module? Spoil market... I can hear their evil laughter from my desk.
I'm a final year, but all my programme points don't even add up to 2700 (see point 3 here). How on earth have these people been squirreling their points? Have they been earning interest of some sort?
Outrageous.
Hope I get my modules.
Filed under: Education, Personal
Monday, July 25, 2005
HARH?
From Wikipedia:
This makes as much sense to me as arcane Ukrainian lore. Somebody just shoot me.
Filed under: Education, Statistics
Cronbach's α (alpha) is a quantity defined in multivariate statistics. It has an important use as measure of the reliability of a psychometric instrument, since it assesses the extent to which a set of test items can be treated as measuring a single latent variable. It was first named as alpha by Cronbach (1951), although an earlier version is the Kuder-Richardson Formula 20 (often shortened to KR-20), which is the equivalent for dichotomous items, and Guttman (1945) developed the same quantity under the name lambda-2.
Given that a sample was measured on a set of k items, Cronbach's α is defined as the mean correlation across the items, adjusted upward by the Spearman-Brown prophecy formula by k. It is related to the outcome of an ANOVA of the item data into variance due to the individuals in the sample and variance due to the items...
This makes as much sense to me as arcane Ukrainian lore. Somebody just shoot me.
Filed under: Education, Statistics
News Headlines...
Friday, July 22, 2005
The Obligatory Harry Potter Post
I can't believe she killed ....
Just kidding. Actually, I can. The cries of sorrow and disbelief from rabid Potter fans all over the world easily allowed me to guess the person Most Likely To Die. The identity of the Half-Blood Prince, the namesake of the latest book from Rowling, also came as no surprise. Let's see... which adult in the series is good at potions? Well, duh.
On a more serious note, while I appreciated the plot twists and advancement (honestly, she needs to write faster), the various romantic entanglements in Harry Potter and The Half-Blood Prince didn't sit quite well with me. In fact, as I prudishly informed Intrepidette, these hormonally charged scenes in the story remind me of a Mills and Boon story, and mental images of heroes ripping off clothes and heroines getting ravished are probably inappropriate while reading about the exploits of Potter and Co. And no, I don't have a one track mind (I'm pretty sure it's dual-tracked at the very least), but heroes ripping off clothes and heroines getting ravished are what I associate with descriptions like "vertical wrestling match" and "thrashing around like a pair of eels". Hormone city anyone?
On a more serious note, Rowling moves further and further from her original style in Book One and Two with this book. Rereading her earliest installments, I can't help but experience a sense of wonder and innocence. Those are all but gone now, replaced by a gloomy and dangerous landscape. While there is no doubt that the series are good novels by themselves, I wonder if Potter can manage the immortality of predecessors like Aslan and Wonka, a battle that is sure to outlast the final showdown with Voldemort.
Filed under: Books, Entertainment
Just kidding. Actually, I can. The cries of sorrow and disbelief from rabid Potter fans all over the world easily allowed me to guess the person Most Likely To Die. The identity of the Half-Blood Prince, the namesake of the latest book from Rowling, also came as no surprise. Let's see... which adult in the series is good at potions? Well, duh.
On a more serious note, while I appreciated the plot twists and advancement (honestly, she needs to write faster), the various romantic entanglements in Harry Potter and The Half-Blood Prince didn't sit quite well with me. In fact, as I prudishly informed Intrepidette, these hormonally charged scenes in the story remind me of a Mills and Boon story, and mental images of heroes ripping off clothes and heroines getting ravished are probably inappropriate while reading about the exploits of Potter and Co. And no, I don't have a one track mind (I'm pretty sure it's dual-tracked at the very least), but heroes ripping off clothes and heroines getting ravished are what I associate with descriptions like "vertical wrestling match" and "thrashing around like a pair of eels". Hormone city anyone?
On a more serious note, Rowling moves further and further from her original style in Book One and Two with this book. Rereading her earliest installments, I can't help but experience a sense of wonder and innocence. Those are all but gone now, replaced by a gloomy and dangerous landscape. While there is no doubt that the series are good novels by themselves, I wonder if Potter can manage the immortality of predecessors like Aslan and Wonka, a battle that is sure to outlast the final showdown with Voldemort.
Filed under: Books, Entertainment
HP fires Alan Kay
Alan Kay, 2003 Turing Award winner, creator of Smalltalk, father of OOP and contributor to GUIs, has been fired by HP, presumably as part of the 15,000 job slash. Together with the move to disband 3 other research projects, this is probably the strongest signal that HP is going to focus more on "low-tech" consumer products. The current concensus on Slashdot, meanwhile, is that HP has lost its mind.
Many view this move with derision, labelling it as being contrary to HP's lofty ideal of "HP Invent". The more caustic remarks read:
Others have outright dismissed Kay as an academic, not suited to corporate America. Not entirely true or wise, if you ask me.
Filed under: Technology
Many view this move with derision, labelling it as being contrary to HP's lofty ideal of "HP Invent". The more caustic remarks read:
Actually, what they meant to say was "HP Invest." Just one letter. Simple mistake, really.
Actually actually, I think it meant to say "HP Invert", as in Rectal-Cranial Inversion, which is what HP has collectively accomplished with moves like this.
Others have outright dismissed Kay as an academic, not suited to corporate America. Not entirely true or wise, if you ask me.
Filed under: Technology
Wednesday, July 20, 2005
Drug Dealers vs. Programmers
Drug Dealers: Refer to their clients as "users".
Programmers: Refer to their clients as "users".
Drug Dealers: "The first one's free!"
Programmers: "Try it free for 30 days!"
Drug Dealers: Have important South-East Asian connections (to help move the stuff).
Programmers: Have important South-East Asian connections (to help debug the code or provide customer support).
Drug Dealers: Strange jargon: "Stick", "Rock", "Dime bag," "E".
Programmers: Strange jargon:"SCSI", "RFID", "JMS", "ODBC"
Drug Dealers: Realize that there's tons of cash in the 14- to 25-year-old market.
Programmers: Realize that there's tons of cash in the 14- to 25-year-old market.
Drug Dealers: Job is assisted by industry's producing newer, more potent mixes.
Programmers: Job is assisted by industry's producing newer, faster machines.
Drug Dealers: Often seen in the company of pimps and hustlers.
Programmers: Often seen in the company of marketing people and consultants (same thing).
Drug Dealers: Their product causes unhealthy addictions.
Programmers: Warcraft, Guild Wars, Diablo, Counter Strike.
Drug Dealers: Do your job well, and you can sleep with sexy movie stars who depend on you.
Programmers: Do your job well, and you can sleep with... ... damn! Damn! DAMN!!!
(adapted from flor.nl)
Filed under: Internet, Humour
Programmers: Refer to their clients as "users".
Drug Dealers: "The first one's free!"
Programmers: "Try it free for 30 days!"
Drug Dealers: Have important South-East Asian connections (to help move the stuff).
Programmers: Have important South-East Asian connections (to help debug the code or provide customer support).
Drug Dealers: Strange jargon: "Stick", "Rock", "Dime bag," "E".
Programmers: Strange jargon:"SCSI", "RFID", "JMS", "ODBC"
Drug Dealers: Realize that there's tons of cash in the 14- to 25-year-old market.
Programmers: Realize that there's tons of cash in the 14- to 25-year-old market.
Drug Dealers: Job is assisted by industry's producing newer, more potent mixes.
Programmers: Job is assisted by industry's producing newer, faster machines.
Drug Dealers: Often seen in the company of pimps and hustlers.
Programmers: Often seen in the company of marketing people and consultants (same thing).
Drug Dealers: Their product causes unhealthy addictions.
Programmers: Warcraft, Guild Wars, Diablo, Counter Strike.
Drug Dealers: Do your job well, and you can sleep with sexy movie stars who depend on you.
Programmers: Do your job well, and you can sleep with... ... damn! Damn! DAMN!!!
(adapted from flor.nl)
Filed under: Internet, Humour
Tuesday, July 19, 2005
Et tu, Colin?
AP reports that Colin Farrell is a follower of the film/fornication escapades of Paris Hilton. He is sueing a woman for "allegedly trying to distribute and profit from a sex tape he says the two recorded with the agreement they would never make it public".
They've got to be more original than that. Sex, lies and videotapes are desperately passe even by Hollywood standards.
What's funnier however, is the lawsuit. It states that the defendant's exploitative act "exceeds all bounds of common human decency". Common human decency exhibited by Farrell filming his private bedroom olympics no doubt. It further asserts that the release of the videotape will injure Farrell's reputation and career.
Noooo! We had no idea Colin Farrell was not a virgin! The shock!! As for harming his career, who knows, perhaps Farrell will get picked up by a professional adult director. The subsequent flick should make for more entertainment than the movies he previously starred in.
Filed under: Entertainment
They've got to be more original than that. Sex, lies and videotapes are desperately passe even by Hollywood standards.
What's funnier however, is the lawsuit. It states that the defendant's exploitative act "exceeds all bounds of common human decency". Common human decency exhibited by Farrell filming his private bedroom olympics no doubt. It further asserts that the release of the videotape will injure Farrell's reputation and career.
Noooo! We had no idea Colin Farrell was not a virgin! The shock!! As for harming his career, who knows, perhaps Farrell will get picked up by a professional adult director. The subsequent flick should make for more entertainment than the movies he previously starred in.
Filed under: Entertainment
Monday, July 18, 2005
An Act of Terror
So Intrepidette had to put in an extra day of non-compensated work during the weekend. Being the sympathetic sort, I decided to send some flowers to her office to perk her up.
I knew where to get the flowers (florist chain near my place), what flowers to get (sunflowers- for their cheerfulness), how many to get (three- because good things come in them... I think), where to deliver them to (no mean feat, considering my near legendary disregard for written addresses) as well as what time to deliver them (subtle questioning of her brother and herself).
Piece of cake right?
Wrong.
The delivery person called me up sometime later, telling me that he could not get into the office building and was stuck at the back gate. The florist, despite my earlier warning that security is tight, called me to complain that the delivery person was made to wait ignominiously outside the building. The delivery person called me again to tell me Intrepidette wasn't picking up her phone. The florist called me back to ask me what I wanted them to do, and then slyly suggested that I pay double the delivery charges for the delivery man to make a second trip back. Snowball's chance in hell, I thought but wisely did not add.
This was followed by a frantic phonecall to Intrepidette, hence ruining the surprise. Conversely, I was the one who was surprised when she told me she thought it was a real-life terror attack. (Gruff Man: Come down and unlock the back door! I have a secret parcel for you but the @#%$ security won't let me in! Yep. I can see where she was coming from.)
A half-assed attempt to explain myself ("Erm. Yes... It's from me. No... it's not a bomb. No... it won't trigger a security alarm. Yes- Just go down ok?") was then followed by two phone calls to the delivery man and florist to soothe their ruffled feathers. Those were subsequently followed by reassuring my parents (I was lunching with them and they only managed to catch assorted snatches of my side of the phone conversations so far) that no, Intrepidette's office was not hit by suicide bombers bearing deadly TNT parcels.
I'm not sure what the moral of this story should be, but next time you have the odious misconception that sending flowers to an office in Raffles Place is easy and romantic (the TV dramas and ads... they lie), you may well be surprised. Oh and hon, you're my favourite daydream too.
Filed under: Personal
I knew where to get the flowers (florist chain near my place), what flowers to get (sunflowers- for their cheerfulness), how many to get (three- because good things come in them... I think), where to deliver them to (no mean feat, considering my near legendary disregard for written addresses) as well as what time to deliver them (subtle questioning of her brother and herself).
Piece of cake right?
Wrong.
The delivery person called me up sometime later, telling me that he could not get into the office building and was stuck at the back gate. The florist, despite my earlier warning that security is tight, called me to complain that the delivery person was made to wait ignominiously outside the building. The delivery person called me again to tell me Intrepidette wasn't picking up her phone. The florist called me back to ask me what I wanted them to do, and then slyly suggested that I pay double the delivery charges for the delivery man to make a second trip back. Snowball's chance in hell, I thought but wisely did not add.
This was followed by a frantic phonecall to Intrepidette, hence ruining the surprise. Conversely, I was the one who was surprised when she told me she thought it was a real-life terror attack. (Gruff Man: Come down and unlock the back door! I have a secret parcel for you but the @#%$ security won't let me in! Yep. I can see where she was coming from.)
A half-assed attempt to explain myself ("Erm. Yes... It's from me. No... it's not a bomb. No... it won't trigger a security alarm. Yes- Just go down ok?") was then followed by two phone calls to the delivery man and florist to soothe their ruffled feathers. Those were subsequently followed by reassuring my parents (I was lunching with them and they only managed to catch assorted snatches of my side of the phone conversations so far) that no, Intrepidette's office was not hit by suicide bombers bearing deadly TNT parcels.
I'm not sure what the moral of this story should be, but next time you have the odious misconception that sending flowers to an office in Raffles Place is easy and romantic (the TV dramas and ads... they lie), you may well be surprised. Oh and hon, you're my favourite daydream too.
Filed under: Personal
HP Job Cuts
CNET reports on the approximately 15,000 job cuts that HP is poised to take.
What's more interesting however, is this:
More proof that large tech MNCs are looking towards consultancy work and solutions provision as a viable business?
Filed under: Article, Technology
What's more interesting however, is this:
Analysts, however, have been expecting HP's Technology and Solutions Group to be the likely recipient of most of the pink slips, as well as services and HP's research and development spending.
More proof that large tech MNCs are looking towards consultancy work and solutions provision as a viable business?
Filed under: Article, Technology
Thursday, July 14, 2005
NKF: The Aftermath Updates
The purpose of this entry is to make a personal directory of significant events (to me anyway) of the NKF saga, post lawsuit withdrawal on July 12, 2005. I've tried to loosely organize them by issues (see NKF: The Aftermath), followed by date.
Feel free to add on or make corrections by leaving a comment.
Previous Entries: The 600K CEO, NKF Withdraws, NKF: The Aftermath
Corporate Governance
July 14, 2005, 6.41 pm - Durai and NKF board resign (Business Times) so as to allow MOH to restore public confidence. Durai says he "strongly believe[s] in change" (reported in ST, July 15, 2005). Mrs. Goh Chok Tong also steps down as Patron for NKF to gain fresh direction (CNA) while Health Minister Khaw Boon Wan makes an effort to disassociate Mrs. Goh from NKF management (reported in ST, July 15, 2005). No word on whether "peanuts" will be distributed to angry monkeys in Singapore. According to Mr. Khaw, the new board will be appointed next week and is likely to include current board members as well for "a certain amount of continuity" (reported in ST, July 15, 2005) . Seems to me certain people have a warped definition of "resign".
Feel free to add on or make corrections by leaving a comment.
Previous Entries: The 600K CEO, NKF Withdraws, NKF: The Aftermath
Corporate Governance
July 14, 2005, 6.41 pm - Durai and NKF board resign (Business Times) so as to allow MOH to restore public confidence. Durai says he "strongly believe[s] in change" (reported in ST, July 15, 2005). Mrs. Goh Chok Tong also steps down as Patron for NKF to gain fresh direction (CNA) while Health Minister Khaw Boon Wan makes an effort to disassociate Mrs. Goh from NKF management (reported in ST, July 15, 2005). No word on whether "peanuts" will be distributed to angry monkeys in Singapore. According to Mr. Khaw, the new board will be appointed next week and is likely to include current board members as well for "a certain amount of continuity" (reported in ST, July 15, 2005) . Seems to me certain people have a warped definition of "resign".
July 15, 2005, 5.45 pm - IRAS steps in to prepare for audit (reported in ST, July 17, 2005)
July 15, 2005, 7.01 pm - NCSS president Gerard Ee named interim chairman and acting CEO of NKF. He will take over the running of NKF Monday onwards. The interim Board, expected to consist of at least six corporate leaders, medical doctors, and a lawyer, will be announced next week. (CNA, ST)
July 18, 2005, 4.21 pm - Gerard Ee begins interim CEO stint. Will not accept pay for his work in NKF.
July 20, 2005, 3.15 pm - New NKF board formed. Immediate priority to account for assets. (CNA)
July 25, 2005, 11.03 am - Professor Goh Chee Leok, Senior Consultant Dermatologist at the National Skin Centre, appointed interim CEO. (CNA)
August 18, 2005 - NKF interim board requests the aid of CAD to probe into "matters of grave concern". (CNA)
September 16, 2005 - 92 non-clinical staff laid off. (CNA)
Post Petition Effect
July 13, 2005, 9.30 am - Petition Count: ~400
July 13, 2005, 11.00 pm - Petition Count: ~16000
July14, 2005, 12.00 pm- Petition Count: ~26000
July 14, 2005, 8.30 pm - Petition Count: ~37000
Post Petition Effect
July 13, 2005, 9.30 am - Petition Count: ~400
July 13, 2005, 11.00 pm - Petition Count: ~16000
July14, 2005, 12.00 pm- Petition Count: ~26000
July 14, 2005, 8.30 pm - Petition Count: ~37000
July 15, 2005, 2.50 pm - Petition Count: ~41700
The closing date specified on the petition is July 14, 2005, 11.59 pm. However, the petition count is still increasing. I wonder if the new petitions are legitimate ones or just spam...
Legal Costs
July 15, 2005, ? - Durai to foot legal costs. "Bill of costs" up next to decide how much to pay. Expected cost is a few hundred thousands (i.e, peanuts). (Reported by CNA, July 16, 2005)
Public/ Ministerial Backlash
July 13, 2005, early morning - Vandals hit NKF HQ (Electric New Paper)
July 14, 2005, 10.39 am - Dr. Balaji urges for calm and calls for greater transparency (CNA)
July 14, 2005 11.00 am - NKF enters top ten most popular search at Technorati (via lancerlord)
July 14, 2005, 1.59 pm - Dr. Balakrishnan will monitor the situation, urges Board to do the right thing. Ominously promises to "nudge people in the right direction" otherwise. (CNA)
July 14, 2005, 6.41 pm - Active fundraising suspended
July 14, 2005, 7.30 pm - NKF Cancer Show III continues without promoting hotline
July 14, 2005, 10.07 pm - Mrs. Goh's definition of "peanut" sneaks into Wikipedia. Reads "They are a rare item in Singapore, where its value is estimated to be around S$600,000, which was confirmed by the Senior Minister's wife." Someone is severely narked.
July 14, 2005, 10.19 pm - NKF Cancer Show III only manages to raise $6800 (CNA). Donors show NKF what truly constitutes "peanuts"? N/b: Headline says $6800 raised during show, but main text says $6800 raised by 5pm, even though the show ended at 8.30pm.
July 14, 2005, 10.57 pm - Total number of donors who've cancelled their monthly donation hits 6800 (CNA). 6800 again... can someone say 4D?
July 14, 2005, 11.00 pm - NKF is most popular search at Technorati (logged at lancerlord)
July 15, 2005, 9.55 am - PM Lee adds his weight, welcomes the resignations, urges for calm and looks forward to NKF starting anew. Indicates that a ministerial statement will be issued during Parliament next week. Changes to the guidelines for VWOs are not expected. (CNA)
July 15, 2005, 10.30 am - Mrs. Goh's definition of "peanut" removed from Wikipedia... spoilsport.
July 15, 2005, 5.13 pm - NCSS president Gerard Ee warns against more regulations, but urges for transparency and proper communication with donors. (CNA)
July 16, 2005, 3.43 am (?!) - Total number of donors who've cancelled their monthly donation hits 10,362. Total number of ex-donors who've resumed their monthly donation hits 1. (CNA)
July 16, 2005, 3.43 am (?!) - Total number of donors who've cancelled their monthly donation hits 10,362. Total number of ex-donors who've resumed their monthly donation hits 1. (CNA)
July 16, 2005, 9.54 pm - In what I suspect is the closest thing to an apology the public will receive, SM Goh says NKF former patron Mrs. Goh regrets her "peanuts" remark. Clarifies that Mrs. Goh did not step down because of her words, but rather to allow NKF board to start afresh. (CNA)
July 18, 2005, 6.18 am - Ho Ching, ranked fifth by Fortune magazine as the most powerful women in business outside US in 2004 and wife of PM Lee, makes a balanced case for continued support of NKF. (CNA and ST July 18, 2005)
July 18, 2005, 2.00 pm - NKF drops to 10th most popular search at Technorati. Exit imminent. ("Harry Potter" is ranked first).
July 18, 2005, 4.21 pm - Total number of donors who've cancelled their monthly donation hits 15,000. Total number of ex-donors who've resumed their monthly donation hits 100. (CNA and ST July 19, 2005)
July 18, 2005, 2.00 pm - NKF drops to 10th most popular search at Technorati. Exit imminent. ("Harry Potter" is ranked first).
July 18, 2005, 4.21 pm - Total number of donors who've cancelled their monthly donation hits 15,000. Total number of ex-donors who've resumed their monthly donation hits 100. (CNA and ST July 19, 2005)
July 20, 2005 - MPs voice concern during parliament. (CNA) Mr. Khaw issues a ministerial statement (full text from Asiaone) and outlines six key tasks for new board (CNA).
July 21, 2005 - Mr. Khaw challenges NKF to be a pace setter and shining example to other VWOs. Reads out TT Durai's daughter emotional appeal to PM Lee. (CNA) Actually, spending too little time with the family does not necessarily imply that a man is totally devoted to his job, or even if he is, for the right reasons. If you ask me, Mr. Durai got off lightly where his "reputation and honour" was concerned. Restore his ego perhaps?
Foreign Press
The Star
Bloomberg
Financial Times
Reuters (Oddly enough, filed under oddly enough)
MSNBC (An article on blogstorms rather than NKF per se)
Filed under: Singapore, News, NKF
Thursday's Linkfest
Excerpt: ... Lonely, [Xenu] befriended a bull that he pulled out of his ass. And this bull let out one of the biggest ass explosions the world has ever seen. The Great Ass Explosion, as it was called, colored all of Tinseltown with a thick layer of bullsh*t. Today, this bullsh*t is called Scientology.
Plus, get to meet Xenu!
2) Definition of Courage
Plus, get to meet Xenu!
2) Definition of Courage
Excerpt:
Q: Explain the shape of the graph.
A: It's curvy, with a higher bit at the end and a rather aesthetically pleasing slope downwards towards a prety flat straight bit. The actual graph itself consists of 2 straight lines meeting at the lower left hand corner of the graph and moving away at a 90 degree angle. Each line has an arrow head on the end.
More politically incorrect and offensive gender slurs after the jump, including a suggestion of what constitutes absolute evil.
Q: Explain the shape of the graph.
A: It's curvy, with a higher bit at the end and a rather aesthetically pleasing slope downwards towards a prety flat straight bit. The actual graph itself consists of 2 straight lines meeting at the lower left hand corner of the graph and moving away at a 90 degree angle. Each line has an arrow head on the end.
More ways to fail an exam after the jump.
More ways to waste that advertisement money after the jump.
Find out which company, and why, after the jump.
More politically incorrect and offensive gender slurs after the jump, including a suggestion of what constitutes absolute evil.
NKF: The Aftermath
Now that the dust is settling from the somewhat farcical withdrawal of the lawsuit filed by NKF against SPH (previous entries here and here), several issues are on the top of my mind:
Corporate Governance
In an ideal situation, the board of directors exists to ensure that the CEO of an organization works in the best interest of its shareholders. The nature of NKF however, muddies this relationship. How does corporate governance operate in NKF? To whom is the board of directors representative and accountable? Is the board paid for their services (I assume they are) and who determines their renumeration? Is there a conflict of interest in the corporate governance of NKF? The NKF website appears to be straining under high traffic volume, and cannot yield any information at this time.
Court Fees
CEO Mr. Durai brought SPH to court on charges which he later admitted did not stand. Who should foot the legal fees? NKF, using donors' funds meant for lifesaving, or Mr. Durai, or SPH?
Changes in NKF
Besides a closer look at NKF's corporate governance, I am also curious about what changes this episode will bring. Will NKF become more transparent in their financials? Will there be a scaling back of bonuses? Will there be an acknowledgement that most donors donate to help those in need (and perhaps try their luck at the lucky draws), rather than allow NKF to peg its "corporate" performance? Will there be a reshuffling of top management? How will the PR rally from this?
Public Backlash
The final round of the NKF cancer show is slotted to air this week on Channel U. Will this episode drastically affect the amount of donations pouring in? Despite the public stoning that is going on strongly, I believe many realize that if the donations stop, those truly in need may suffer. Yet, this is the most instinctive and direct recourse that people have to demonstrate their ire at NKF (other than the shortlived gratification of graffiti). This untenable conundrum is largely brought about by NKF, even if it had not intended so. How will it be resolved? Will other charities suffer collateral damage from this incident?
Post Petition Effect
The petition started by NSF Lawrence Tan had just 400 odd signatures at 9.30am yesterday. The number of the undersigned has climbed to around 26,000 at this time, with multiple service stoppages caused by overwhelming response. Traditionally, informal petitions are difficult to verify and contribute little effect towards their cause. How will this particular petition fare?
The NKF-Mediacorp bond
The largest fundraising events by NKF are carried out together with Mediacorp. No doubt these fundraisers cost quite a bit. A standard hallmark of the shows is the celebrity power. Are the Mediacorp actors and actresses paid to perform, and if so, how much? We're all familiar with their favourite adage. "No matter how tough [name of stunt] is, it cannot compare to the pain the [type of beneficiary] feels. Please donate". Throw in the issue of payment for these actors and actresses, and the adage loses its emotional impact significantly. In addition, just how are popular bands and popstars brought into the show?
Consider me a cynic if you will, but my intention is not to cast anyone in a bad light. Neither am I insinuating that Mediacorp is not putting on the show out of altruism. But if the NKF is to aim for transparency, then such expenses are entirely too public to be kept secret.
A last word
Finally, I've been reading quite a bit about the theory that if you "pay peanuts" you "get monkeys". Aside from the fact that the statement is factually incomplete (you obviously also get badgers, certain species of birds, elephants and at least one dog- mine), it is also an exercise in obfuscation. Objecting to the high pay and astronomical bonus commanded by Mr. Durai does not necessarily imply that he should get peanuts (low wages). Justifiable wages and bonuses are not synonymous with low or uncompetitive wages and bonuses. Implying otherwise is a calculated attempt to miss the forest for the trees.
Filed under: Singapore, News, Musings, NKF
Corporate Governance
In an ideal situation, the board of directors exists to ensure that the CEO of an organization works in the best interest of its shareholders. The nature of NKF however, muddies this relationship. How does corporate governance operate in NKF? To whom is the board of directors representative and accountable? Is the board paid for their services (I assume they are) and who determines their renumeration? Is there a conflict of interest in the corporate governance of NKF? The NKF website appears to be straining under high traffic volume, and cannot yield any information at this time.
Court Fees
CEO Mr. Durai brought SPH to court on charges which he later admitted did not stand. Who should foot the legal fees? NKF, using donors' funds meant for lifesaving, or Mr. Durai, or SPH?
Changes in NKF
Besides a closer look at NKF's corporate governance, I am also curious about what changes this episode will bring. Will NKF become more transparent in their financials? Will there be a scaling back of bonuses? Will there be an acknowledgement that most donors donate to help those in need (and perhaps try their luck at the lucky draws), rather than allow NKF to peg its "corporate" performance? Will there be a reshuffling of top management? How will the PR rally from this?
Public Backlash
The final round of the NKF cancer show is slotted to air this week on Channel U. Will this episode drastically affect the amount of donations pouring in? Despite the public stoning that is going on strongly, I believe many realize that if the donations stop, those truly in need may suffer. Yet, this is the most instinctive and direct recourse that people have to demonstrate their ire at NKF (other than the shortlived gratification of graffiti). This untenable conundrum is largely brought about by NKF, even if it had not intended so. How will it be resolved? Will other charities suffer collateral damage from this incident?
Post Petition Effect
The petition started by NSF Lawrence Tan had just 400 odd signatures at 9.30am yesterday. The number of the undersigned has climbed to around 26,000 at this time, with multiple service stoppages caused by overwhelming response. Traditionally, informal petitions are difficult to verify and contribute little effect towards their cause. How will this particular petition fare?
The NKF-Mediacorp bond
The largest fundraising events by NKF are carried out together with Mediacorp. No doubt these fundraisers cost quite a bit. A standard hallmark of the shows is the celebrity power. Are the Mediacorp actors and actresses paid to perform, and if so, how much? We're all familiar with their favourite adage. "No matter how tough [name of stunt] is, it cannot compare to the pain the [type of beneficiary] feels. Please donate". Throw in the issue of payment for these actors and actresses, and the adage loses its emotional impact significantly. In addition, just how are popular bands and popstars brought into the show?
Consider me a cynic if you will, but my intention is not to cast anyone in a bad light. Neither am I insinuating that Mediacorp is not putting on the show out of altruism. But if the NKF is to aim for transparency, then such expenses are entirely too public to be kept secret.
A last word
Finally, I've been reading quite a bit about the theory that if you "pay peanuts" you "get monkeys". Aside from the fact that the statement is factually incomplete (you obviously also get badgers, certain species of birds, elephants and at least one dog- mine), it is also an exercise in obfuscation. Objecting to the high pay and astronomical bonus commanded by Mr. Durai does not necessarily imply that he should get peanuts (low wages). Justifiable wages and bonuses are not synonymous with low or uncompetitive wages and bonuses. Implying otherwise is a calculated attempt to miss the forest for the trees.
Filed under: Singapore, News, Musings, NKF
Wednesday, July 13, 2005
Error Messages
No matter your preference where operating systems are concerned, this website is bound to help you land potshots at another rival OS.
Or you can be lazy and use mine:
Filed under: Humour, Technology, Microsoft, Picture
Or you can be lazy and use mine:
Filed under: Humour, Technology, Microsoft, Picture
Tuesday, July 12, 2005
NKF Withdraws
Update: After reading through the court proceedings provided by the unabashedly crowing ST, I now feel that NKF knew its case was weak from the beginning. But then again, it all depends on how lawyers from both camps play it. And I know law like I know 16th century art.
NKF has withdrawn its defamation suits against SPH.
Perhaps NKF views this as a peace offering to the media and its donor base. Another alternative could be that they knew prior to the proceedings that they had a weak, if not inexistent, case. This alternative offends my sense of fair play. Charging into courts with weak claims, using public funds to back their possibly flimsy case, then backing off two days later smacks of a "shoot first, ask later" arrogance.
Yet the possibility of a peace offering does not bear contemplation either. This issue is not going to be swept under a rug simply because NKF has its tail tucked between its legs, or because of its say-so.
Perhaps this is an attempt at damage control. But it is hard to imagine how withdrawing from the suits provide any less of a PR problem, especially when it gives the impression that NKF is trying to prevent the airing of even more dirty laundry.
NKF disappoints me. In a way, it has also let those it has pledged to help down.
Filed under: Singapore, News, NKF
NKF has withdrawn its defamation suits against SPH.
Perhaps NKF views this as a peace offering to the media and its donor base. Another alternative could be that they knew prior to the proceedings that they had a weak, if not inexistent, case. This alternative offends my sense of fair play. Charging into courts with weak claims, using public funds to back their possibly flimsy case, then backing off two days later smacks of a "shoot first, ask later" arrogance.
Yet the possibility of a peace offering does not bear contemplation either. This issue is not going to be swept under a rug simply because NKF has its tail tucked between its legs, or because of its say-so.
Perhaps this is an attempt at damage control. But it is hard to imagine how withdrawing from the suits provide any less of a PR problem, especially when it gives the impression that NKF is trying to prevent the airing of even more dirty laundry.
NKF disappoints me. In a way, it has also let those it has pledged to help down.
Filed under: Singapore, News, NKF
The 600K CEO
News of NKF's CEO paycheck and perks reads like a bad parody of a Mastercard commercial:
Dialling 1900-112-6868: $5
Annual GIRO NKF donation: $70
Knowing you've helped a kidney patient: Priceless
Realizing NKF's CEO earns 25k a month: Speechless
.. On top of a 12 months bonus: Scandalous!!!
Hey don't knock it... I did warn that it's a bad parody.
I think the brouhaha can be attributed to a) NKF's volatile mix of non-profitability and non-transparency b) NKF's high profile and heavy-handed charity shows and fundraisers.
Having to wonder about the percentage of public funds that goes into paying for expensive plane tickets for the CEO of NKF doesn't sit well with me, not when this is the organization with reserves of over $189 million. On the other hand, I somehow cannot say "No" whenever call centers working for NKF dial me up for help, be it monetary or fundraising assistance.
So it is a double-layered emotion I feel. The impression that I've been played for a sucker and subsequently betrayed like a fool.
Not a pretty thing to feel.
Despite its best intentions (and I believe it does have them), this revelation is going affect NFK's credibility and erode the trust in its donor base. The saddest part is, the community most likely to feel the backlash (if any) is the community which needs help the most despite the bad publicity surrounding NKF as well as its attendant negative aspects.
A higher level of transparency will go a long way in reclaiming this trust. NKF may not feel that it is beholden to donors and therefore has no need not reveal how it uses funds. Nonetheless, a non-profit organization should not forget its core mission, and every expense should be made with that mission in mind.
Otherwise, the only way the organization is different from ringleaders exploiting the handicapped selling tissue papers in hawker centres lies in scale.
Links:
Dialling 1900-112-6868: $5
Annual GIRO NKF donation: $70
Knowing you've helped a kidney patient: Priceless
Realizing NKF's CEO earns 25k a month: Speechless
.. On top of a 12 months bonus: Scandalous!!!
Hey don't knock it... I did warn that it's a bad parody.
I think the brouhaha can be attributed to a) NKF's volatile mix of non-profitability and non-transparency b) NKF's high profile and heavy-handed charity shows and fundraisers.
Having to wonder about the percentage of public funds that goes into paying for expensive plane tickets for the CEO of NKF doesn't sit well with me, not when this is the organization with reserves of over $189 million. On the other hand, I somehow cannot say "No" whenever call centers working for NKF dial me up for help, be it monetary or fundraising assistance.
So it is a double-layered emotion I feel. The impression that I've been played for a sucker and subsequently betrayed like a fool.
Not a pretty thing to feel.
Despite its best intentions (and I believe it does have them), this revelation is going affect NFK's credibility and erode the trust in its donor base. The saddest part is, the community most likely to feel the backlash (if any) is the community which needs help the most despite the bad publicity surrounding NKF as well as its attendant negative aspects.
A higher level of transparency will go a long way in reclaiming this trust. NKF may not feel that it is beholden to donors and therefore has no need not reveal how it uses funds. Nonetheless, a non-profit organization should not forget its core mission, and every expense should be made with that mission in mind.
Otherwise, the only way the organization is different from ringleaders exploiting the handicapped selling tissue papers in hawker centres lies in scale.
Links:
Monday, July 11, 2005
Grand Theft Auto: San Porno
In GTA: San Andreas, the latest offering from the producers of the wildly popular video game franchise Grand Theft Auto, the electronic protaganist can steal cars, shoot missiles, bring down police copters and army tanks. He can (will) rob a store, beat up old ladies on the street, spout tough expletives that can embarass a cow, swim across the channel to escape from corrupted law enforcement officers.
Now, thanks to a mod, Mr. Role Model can hump his girlfriend on screen (Not work safe, not kid safe link here) .
The Entertainment Software Rating Board (ESRB), which is responsible for game ratings, is currently investigating the mod and the game contents. According to the mod writer, Patrick Wildenborg, the mod (Hot Coffee) merely unlocks what was originally in the game and does not add any content.
Sale of GTA: San Andreas is banned in Singapore for its gore, violence and explicit content. With this new mod surfacing, we can probably expect this title to be on the shelves of legitimate stores sometime in year 3000 or so.
Filed under: Gaming, Article
Now, thanks to a mod, Mr. Role Model can hump his girlfriend on screen (Not work safe, not kid safe link here) .
The Entertainment Software Rating Board (ESRB), which is responsible for game ratings, is currently investigating the mod and the game contents. According to the mod writer, Patrick Wildenborg, the mod (Hot Coffee) merely unlocks what was originally in the game and does not add any content.
Sale of GTA: San Andreas is banned in Singapore for its gore, violence and explicit content. With this new mod surfacing, we can probably expect this title to be on the shelves of legitimate stores sometime in year 3000 or so.
Filed under: Gaming, Article
Friday, July 08, 2005
Fare Hike... Again.
Just when I am thinking how fortunate it is that cab fares have not gone the way of train and bus fares, ComfortDelgro goes public with the announcement that Comfort, CityCab and Yellow-Top will introduce a fare hike come mid-July to deal with over-demand. The concept of a possible increase in supply probably never crossed their minds. (ComfortDelgro: Sacre bleu! l'horreur!)
The flag-down fee, if I'm not mistaken, is now $4 during 7.30am to 9.30am and 5.00pm to 11.00pm. I bet the other taxi companies will follow suit and "revise" their fare structures, seeing as how they "have said they will not raise fares unless ComfortDelGro, which dominates the market with 17,000 cabs, do so". I wonder if this amounts to collusive oligopoly.
I'm beginning to develop my own theory on why Singaporeans don't protest such fare hikes. If consumers tried to protest using boycotting as a strategy, then they'd have to abstain from driving (ERP hike), riding the train, bus and taxi, watching movies, eating popcorn, reading the papers, going to school (Uni fee hike) etc etc. Makes for a pretty miserable life all in all.
Time to load up on ComfortDelgro's shares.
Filed under: News, Singapore, Article
The flag-down fee, if I'm not mistaken, is now $4 during 7.30am to 9.30am and 5.00pm to 11.00pm. I bet the other taxi companies will follow suit and "revise" their fare structures, seeing as how they "have said they will not raise fares unless ComfortDelGro, which dominates the market with 17,000 cabs, do so". I wonder if this amounts to collusive oligopoly.
I'm beginning to develop my own theory on why Singaporeans don't protest such fare hikes. If consumers tried to protest using boycotting as a strategy, then they'd have to abstain from driving (ERP hike), riding the train, bus and taxi, watching movies, eating popcorn, reading the papers, going to school (Uni fee hike) etc etc. Makes for a pretty miserable life all in all.
Time to load up on ComfortDelgro's shares.
Filed under: News, Singapore, Article
Why?
Reuters
My deepest sympathies and condolences to the victims.
Link: Metroblogging London
Filed under: News, Picture
Thursday, July 07, 2005
Chilling Blog
The Fifth Nail is a blog hosted by Blogger (via Wired). Dark blackground, bright fonts, almost similar to the plethora of Blogger blogs.
Its content, however, is chilling.
The blog is purported to belong to Joseph Duncan, a registered sex offender currently charged with the kidnapping of Shasta and Dylan Groene. Dylan is still missing, but many believe that he is dead.
The blog details Duncan's apparent inner turmoil as he "wrestles with Demons". His second last entry reveals this alleged battle is lost, and that the loosed demons have "locked up the 'Happy Joe' person [Duncan's innocent persona] in the same dungeon that 'Happy Joe' kept them in for so many years". In the April 24th entry, he admits that "only two people in the world have a clue as to the power and nature of my demons (besides me) and they will probably never read this".
The blog has since received the attention of the mainstream media, and the sheer volume of the comments left in the last few entries are nothing short of staggering. Many call for his head (in a less poetic fashion... I believe this blog can contend for the most number of expletives in a website), while others are sympathetic enough for Duncan's, wishing his "cries for help" were heeded. Yet some others comfort Duncan, assuring him that:
All three types of responses chill me almost as much as the blog itself. The first type because of its mob mentality. The second type because it somehow suggests that Duncan is not entirely at fault because he blogged about his turmoil but received no help. The third type because it presumes a God that exonerates all wrongdoing unconditionally*.
I do not know if this blog is a prank, though many appear to believe in its veracity. Although it has entries dating back to January 2004, it is not impossible for someone who is patient to pull an elaborate prank, because Blogger allows the poster to change the date of the posts. Perhaps what some visitors to the blog wrote are not without truth:
* Enter through the narrow gate. For wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it. But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it (Matthew 7:13-14)
Filed under: Article, News, Blogging
Its content, however, is chilling.
The blog is purported to belong to Joseph Duncan, a registered sex offender currently charged with the kidnapping of Shasta and Dylan Groene. Dylan is still missing, but many believe that he is dead.
The blog details Duncan's apparent inner turmoil as he "wrestles with Demons". His second last entry reveals this alleged battle is lost, and that the loosed demons have "locked up the 'Happy Joe' person [Duncan's innocent persona] in the same dungeon that 'Happy Joe' kept them in for so many years". In the April 24th entry, he admits that "only two people in the world have a clue as to the power and nature of my demons (besides me) and they will probably never read this".
The blog has since received the attention of the mainstream media, and the sheer volume of the comments left in the last few entries are nothing short of staggering. Many call for his head (in a less poetic fashion... I believe this blog can contend for the most number of expletives in a website), while others are sympathetic enough for Duncan's, wishing his "cries for help" were heeded. Yet some others comfort Duncan, assuring him that:
He loves you and wants to heal you. I don't know how long you will sit in jail or what your ultimate fate will be, but please remember that God loves you and will always forgive you. Not only that, he will give his precious spirit to you and you can feel his presence which will give you such peace, happiness, and joy that you will know longer care whether you are in jail, or whether you live or die. You will feel safe! I know you want to feel safe. He will take your fear of death away. He will take your guilt away.
All three types of responses chill me almost as much as the blog itself. The first type because of its mob mentality. The second type because it somehow suggests that Duncan is not entirely at fault because he blogged about his turmoil but received no help. The third type because it presumes a God that exonerates all wrongdoing unconditionally*.
I do not know if this blog is a prank, though many appear to believe in its veracity. Although it has entries dating back to January 2004, it is not impossible for someone who is patient to pull an elaborate prank, because Blogger allows the poster to change the date of the posts. Perhaps what some visitors to the blog wrote are not without truth:
Why on earth can we not monitor things of this nature? We have the technology to do it, but it takes the death of a child in order for someone to react.I do not normally approve of all internet monitoring, but if monitoring of blogs could have helped Shasta and Dylan Groene, then perhaps we are ethically predisposed to do so.
* Enter through the narrow gate. For wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it. But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it (Matthew 7:13-14)
Filed under: Article, News, Blogging
Wednesday, July 06, 2005
Piracy and Online Auctions
I don't frequent auction sites very often, since I'm not big on trust where such user-to-user transactions are concerned.
It is therefore quite an experience for me to discover that software pirates now no longer require a brick and mortar stall to hawk their illegal wares.
Here're some of the auctions going on now:
-Warcraft III: Throne of Chaos
-Warhammer: Dawn of War
-UEFA Euro 2004
In all three auctions, the sellers helpfully inform the visitor that the software is non-original. And there's even a delivery system thanks to SingPost. The first seller (sg_business) even agrees to International shipping. Imagine that. A piracy shop without the startup costs associated with a brick and mortal stall as well as annoying raids from the pesky authorities. Almost complete anonymity too, with the profile blurb being as innocuous as "Hi, this is a collected outlet for a group of us who are interested to sell items over the internet".
Checking sg_business's profile, I did manage to find one black mark against him/her/them:
Note the carefully crafted dramatic irony in the last response. Masterful! Almost worthy of Oedipus the King.
An old CNET article, dated April 11, 2000, indicates that this form of piracy is not new. Makes me wonder why the anti-piracy champions have not foamed at the mouth trying to make online auction sites take more responsibility. Drafting a guideline which probably no one reads and claiming zero responsibility doesn't sound quite right to me, not when piracy is so blatant and glaring. Will the company even take action should such sellers get reported? Perhaps an experiment is in order.
Filed under: Internet, Technology
It is therefore quite an experience for me to discover that software pirates now no longer require a brick and mortar stall to hawk their illegal wares.
Here're some of the auctions going on now:
-Warcraft III: Throne of Chaos
-Warhammer: Dawn of War
-UEFA Euro 2004
In all three auctions, the sellers helpfully inform the visitor that the software is non-original. And there's even a delivery system thanks to SingPost. The first seller (sg_business) even agrees to International shipping. Imagine that. A piracy shop without the startup costs associated with a brick and mortal stall as well as annoying raids from the pesky authorities. Almost complete anonymity too, with the profile blurb being as innocuous as "Hi, this is a collected outlet for a group of us who are interested to sell items over the internet".
Checking sg_business's profile, I did manage to find one black mark against him/her/them:
Buyer gives Bad Seller rating.
Comment:Sold,to the best of my knowledge non-original CD without indicating and even showed picture of the boxed real thing which is certainly misleading. Not even apolegetic about it. I would not have paid for registered post if I knew. (Aug 29 20:38 2004 SGT)
Response:Buyer insists that he didn't know that a $10 version of Quickbooks is not original. (Aug 30 10:53 2004 SGT)
Comment:I have reported this seller to the authorities for conning the public and selling counterfeit product without being honest. (Sep 14 08:46 2004 SGT) (most recent)
Response:You are a sore buyer who refused to ask question about the products even before bidding when my auction clearly states that. (Sep 14 10:49 2004 SGT)
Response:IT IS BUYER LIKE YOU WHO GIVES A BAD NANE (name) TO YAHOO AUCTIONS. (Sep 14 10:54 2004 SGT)
Note the carefully crafted dramatic irony in the last response. Masterful! Almost worthy of Oedipus the King.
An old CNET article, dated April 11, 2000, indicates that this form of piracy is not new. Makes me wonder why the anti-piracy champions have not foamed at the mouth trying to make online auction sites take more responsibility. Drafting a guideline which probably no one reads and claiming zero responsibility doesn't sound quite right to me, not when piracy is so blatant and glaring. Will the company even take action should such sellers get reported? Perhaps an experiment is in order.
Filed under: Internet, Technology
Tuesday, July 05, 2005
Measure of a U
NUS celebrates her centennial this year.
There are many things to be proud of. She has a rich heritage that is intricately linked to Singapore. She is a rising Asian university gradually gaining a world class reputation. In a 2004 ranking exercise by The Times of London, she was ranked 18th, ahead of Cornell and UPenn.
Accolades and felicitations are definitely in order.
However, centennial celebrations should not just be a self-congratulatory event. It should also be a time of review and introspection. In that spirit, MM Lee and SM Goh advocates the need to attract the best in the region and in the world. No doubt the influx of talent is hoped to increase the position of NUS in global ranking exercises and surveys.
Rankings are important, but to me, they are not the be-all and end-all of a university. Ranking criteria change with each exercise. The Academic Ranking of World Universities 2004 published by Shanghai Jiao Tong University for example, accords NUS a less glamorous position in the 101-151 category.
The fact is this: academic ranking alone does not make a university world class. A university can be consistently ranked first in all global academic rankings, but it won't make students anymore attached to it. Sure, there is a certain pride in knowing that you're schooling in a top university, but that pride by itself is fleeting. Without a sense of espirit de corp and ownership, this pride is unsustainable upon graduation.
Yale, Harvard and MIT, three premier US universities, are openly competitive with each other. More so between Yale and Harvard and less between Harvard and MIT. Healthy or not, the espirit de corps and sense of fellowship in the student bodies is tangible and real.
What of the universities in Singapore? Some might point towards the disdain apparent in NUS students during the occasional comparison between NUS and SMU. But how much of that is external (reacting out of spite due to guerilla marketing tactics) rather than internal (reacting out of a sense of pride and genuine love for one's university)? Perhaps Singaporean students are a more sensible lot. Perhaps Singapore is too small for such rivalry to be constructive. Perhaps university students here simply do not care one way or the other, as long as their timetables are not disrupted and they are awarded that certificate at the end of the day.
Still, amidst the centennial celebrations, I cannot help but feel sad that many local university students donning a university tshirt today will not derive from it pride, passion and fellowship. To me, that would have been worth more than a number one position in any academic ranking exercise.
Filed under: Personal, Musings, Education
There are many things to be proud of. She has a rich heritage that is intricately linked to Singapore. She is a rising Asian university gradually gaining a world class reputation. In a 2004 ranking exercise by The Times of London, she was ranked 18th, ahead of Cornell and UPenn.
Accolades and felicitations are definitely in order.
However, centennial celebrations should not just be a self-congratulatory event. It should also be a time of review and introspection. In that spirit, MM Lee and SM Goh advocates the need to attract the best in the region and in the world. No doubt the influx of talent is hoped to increase the position of NUS in global ranking exercises and surveys.
Rankings are important, but to me, they are not the be-all and end-all of a university. Ranking criteria change with each exercise. The Academic Ranking of World Universities 2004 published by Shanghai Jiao Tong University for example, accords NUS a less glamorous position in the 101-151 category.
The fact is this: academic ranking alone does not make a university world class. A university can be consistently ranked first in all global academic rankings, but it won't make students anymore attached to it. Sure, there is a certain pride in knowing that you're schooling in a top university, but that pride by itself is fleeting. Without a sense of espirit de corp and ownership, this pride is unsustainable upon graduation.
Yale, Harvard and MIT, three premier US universities, are openly competitive with each other. More so between Yale and Harvard and less between Harvard and MIT. Healthy or not, the espirit de corps and sense of fellowship in the student bodies is tangible and real.
What of the universities in Singapore? Some might point towards the disdain apparent in NUS students during the occasional comparison between NUS and SMU. But how much of that is external (reacting out of spite due to guerilla marketing tactics) rather than internal (reacting out of a sense of pride and genuine love for one's university)? Perhaps Singaporean students are a more sensible lot. Perhaps Singapore is too small for such rivalry to be constructive. Perhaps university students here simply do not care one way or the other, as long as their timetables are not disrupted and they are awarded that certificate at the end of the day.
Still, amidst the centennial celebrations, I cannot help but feel sad that many local university students donning a university tshirt today will not derive from it pride, passion and fellowship. To me, that would have been worth more than a number one position in any academic ranking exercise.
Filed under: Personal, Musings, Education
Monday, July 04, 2005
Tom Cruise and Pseudo-science
Note: This is NOT an objective article on Scientology. If you got here by a search engine expecting one, or are easily offended, please read no further- I fully intend to poke fun.
My friends and I met up during the weekend and had a long chat. Hollywood idiots and their religions were one of our topics. Naturally the chat turned to the inimitable Tom Cruise, Scientology and Cruise's televised attack on psychiatry and psychology. For those who have been hiding on Pluto (or perhaps another planet in the Galactic Confederacy... you'll understand later), Cruise labelled psychiatry a pseudo-science and practically pooh-poohed postpartum depression, leveraging on his far-superior intellect and knowledge base.
Postpartum depression is not foreign to me: my mom suffered from both pre- and postpartum depression back in the early 1990s. I still remember the days and nights when either I or my father had to accompany her every moment, because even sleeping gave her nightmares and she would awake shaking and in tears.
Brooke Shields was right. Cruise has no clue about portpartum depression, and I daresay depression in general.
But I digress. As I was saying, my friends and I were laughing over Cruise and his beloved Scientology. When one friend asked if any of us knew the origins of Scientology though, we realized that none of us did. Oh I knew it was a religion with roots in philosophy created (if I were being snide, I'd say "invented") in the mid 1900s. But that was about it. It was always one of the things of which I largely ignored due to its high quack status. It ranked up there together with pyramid and multi-level marketing (MLM) schemes.
But, hand me a baton and I'll run. I've done research and calculations on pyramid and MLM schemes before, when a friend got clutched in their claws. Likewise, after the meetup with my buddies, I read up a bit on Scientology. As it turned out, Scientology took little effort to research. What it required was a huge suspension of disbelief, which is the really tricky part.
Allow me to present an outline of my findings: (snide remarks mine)
1) 75 million years ago, there was an evil ruler called Xenu (not to be confused with Xena, warrior princess).
2) Xenu ruled the Galactic Confederacy, of which Earth was part of (not to be confused with Galactic Republic or the Confederacy of Independent Systems, both from Star Wars).
3) The Galactic Confederacy was over-populated (guess condoms weren't invented yet).
4) Xenu, working together with psychiatrists, injected many citizens of G.C with drugs.
5) Xenu shipped these people to Earth, unloaded them around volcanoes.
6) Hydrogen bombs were lowered into the volcanoes and detonated.
7) Billions of people died and their souls (thetans, but not thezhangs, thelims, or thetays) were moved into a huge cinema (maybe that's why Cruise believes).
8) The thetans were made to sit through a motion picture which implanted misleading data (R6 implant) into the thetans' brains (somewhat similar to the movie-going experience nowadays).
9) R6 includes all religions including Christianity (but excludes itself... how else could Hubbard have all this knowledge?).
10) The thetans were released, and they grouped themselves into the remaining people who didn't die in (6) (thus engaging in the first mass orgy known on Earth).
11) Xenu was overthrown and exiled to a mountain on a planet, trapped by a eternal force field (powered by Duracell).
12) We are all of us afflicted with these thetans (but of course).
13) Luckily for us, we can learn about this and purge ourselves of these thetans, specifically though a series of Operating Thetan levels. Points (1) to (12) are covered in Operating Thetan Level 3, which lucky scientologists can reach by paying around USD$360,000.
This, I'm afraid, was my limit where suspension of disbelief was concerned. There are defenses and counter-arguments of course, but the fact that this "secret teaching" exists is good enough to debunk scientology as a pseudo-religion and pseudo-science for me. I guess I'm what scientologists call a "Suppressive Person". Lucky, lucky me.
Tom, Tom, Tom, you don't even-- you're stupid. I know, because my inner thetans tell me so.
Resources (Titles mine)
- Those who are still interested in scientology can find a list of resources in this wiki article. Links to sites both for and against scientology.
- Debunking Scientology 101, via Dsng
- Bad Science Fiction: Xenu Explained
- Debunking Scientology: The Whole Nine Yards
- Slate: Summer of Pseudo-science
Filed under: SF, Entertainment, Humour, Religion
My friends and I met up during the weekend and had a long chat. Hollywood idiots and their religions were one of our topics. Naturally the chat turned to the inimitable Tom Cruise, Scientology and Cruise's televised attack on psychiatry and psychology. For those who have been hiding on Pluto (or perhaps another planet in the Galactic Confederacy... you'll understand later), Cruise labelled psychiatry a pseudo-science and practically pooh-poohed postpartum depression, leveraging on his far-superior intellect and knowledge base.
Postpartum depression is not foreign to me: my mom suffered from both pre- and postpartum depression back in the early 1990s. I still remember the days and nights when either I or my father had to accompany her every moment, because even sleeping gave her nightmares and she would awake shaking and in tears.
Brooke Shields was right. Cruise has no clue about portpartum depression, and I daresay depression in general.
But I digress. As I was saying, my friends and I were laughing over Cruise and his beloved Scientology. When one friend asked if any of us knew the origins of Scientology though, we realized that none of us did. Oh I knew it was a religion with roots in philosophy created (if I were being snide, I'd say "invented") in the mid 1900s. But that was about it. It was always one of the things of which I largely ignored due to its high quack status. It ranked up there together with pyramid and multi-level marketing (MLM) schemes.
But, hand me a baton and I'll run. I've done research and calculations on pyramid and MLM schemes before, when a friend got clutched in their claws. Likewise, after the meetup with my buddies, I read up a bit on Scientology. As it turned out, Scientology took little effort to research. What it required was a huge suspension of disbelief, which is the really tricky part.
Allow me to present an outline of my findings: (snide remarks mine)
1) 75 million years ago, there was an evil ruler called Xenu (not to be confused with Xena, warrior princess).
2) Xenu ruled the Galactic Confederacy, of which Earth was part of (not to be confused with Galactic Republic or the Confederacy of Independent Systems, both from Star Wars).
3) The Galactic Confederacy was over-populated (guess condoms weren't invented yet).
4) Xenu, working together with psychiatrists, injected many citizens of G.C with drugs.
5) Xenu shipped these people to Earth, unloaded them around volcanoes.
6) Hydrogen bombs were lowered into the volcanoes and detonated.
7) Billions of people died and their souls (thetans, but not thezhangs, thelims, or thetays) were moved into a huge cinema (maybe that's why Cruise believes).
8) The thetans were made to sit through a motion picture which implanted misleading data (R6 implant) into the thetans' brains (somewhat similar to the movie-going experience nowadays).
9) R6 includes all religions including Christianity (but excludes itself... how else could Hubbard have all this knowledge?).
10) The thetans were released, and they grouped themselves into the remaining people who didn't die in (6) (thus engaging in the first mass orgy known on Earth).
11) Xenu was overthrown and exiled to a mountain on a planet, trapped by a eternal force field (powered by Duracell).
12) We are all of us afflicted with these thetans (but of course).
13) Luckily for us, we can learn about this and purge ourselves of these thetans, specifically though a series of Operating Thetan levels. Points (1) to (12) are covered in Operating Thetan Level 3, which lucky scientologists can reach by paying around USD$360,000.
This, I'm afraid, was my limit where suspension of disbelief was concerned. There are defenses and counter-arguments of course, but the fact that this "secret teaching" exists is good enough to debunk scientology as a pseudo-religion and pseudo-science for me. I guess I'm what scientologists call a "Suppressive Person". Lucky, lucky me.
Tom, Tom, Tom, you don't even-- you're stupid. I know, because my inner thetans tell me so.
Resources (Titles mine)
- Those who are still interested in scientology can find a list of resources in this wiki article. Links to sites both for and against scientology.
- Debunking Scientology 101, via Dsng
- Bad Science Fiction: Xenu Explained
- Debunking Scientology: The Whole Nine Yards
- Slate: Summer of Pseudo-science
Filed under: SF, Entertainment, Humour, Religion
Deep Impact
The impactor of Deep Impact successfully collided into Tempel 1. NASA has the confirmation image from the flyby, even though it'll be quite a wait before the subsurface images of the comet are available.
Filed under: Space, News
...and there was light
Update: Russion crackpot files a suit against NASA for altering the force of the universe as well as ruining her horoscope and inflicting upon her "moral suffering". Crackpot is seeking damages worth- get this- $300 million. It doesn't take an astrologer like her to predict NASA's reaction to the lawsuit. Abject hilarity.
Filed under: Space, News
Friday, July 01, 2005
Site Changes
There hasn't been many entries this week because I was busy changing the blog design and layout and trying out new functions.
Here's what has changed:
1) Name change
The URL remains the same, and my alter-ego is still Cap'n Intrepid. The blog however, has a new name to match its new look. Intrepidity. Not to be confused with Insipidity, even though I may border on that at times.
2) Blog design
The green Blogger template is gone. This current one has been taken off Blockfrocks and tinkered with. It's not perfect yet, and I expect to do lots of finetuning with the CSS. Visited hyperlinks are a shade too light to be comfortable (fixed!), for example. And the CSS style for comments also suck big time (looks rather plain but what the heck... fixed!).
3) Categories
The blog now has Technorati and Categories by way of del.icio.us and John over at Freshblog. John has an excellent post on how to do this. My categories are still growing (grand total of 1 category now) and may be found here. Links can also be found on the side-bar. I will probably permalink the more common categories that I will have in future.
Initially wanted to set up multiple blogs, with each blog representing one category. Main problems with that were double posting/repeated html files (I'm not that bad a programmer to allow such redundancy) as well as the lack of on-the-fly categories.
4) Disclaimers
Terms of use and a Privacy Policy has been put up. Strictly a CMA (Cover-My-Ass) move.
5) Mugshot
Mugshot is temporarily taken off, since I look entirely too serious. That's the problem with me in photographs. I either look dopey or as if someone has died.
6) Search
A Google search bar has been incorporated into the sidebar. Maybe I'll switch to a Technorati one in future. In any event, it's now easier to look for a post.
What's still to come:
1) Self-rotating banner
I'm currently browsing for free-to-use stock photos so that the main image on the sidebar can be cycled automatically. Figure I'll get tired of those stones very soon.
Update: Done! I'm currently using a set of 12 images. To see how they look like, you'll just have to hit F5 repeatedly (hence giving me more hits). Did I mention there's a pretty lady somewhere among the set?
2) More categories
Perhaps even a regular column of sorts. Still pondering this.
3) Sideblog (?)
The sidebar doesn't look as if it's big enough for a sideblog. Again, still pondering this.
Filed under: Blog, Admin, Miscellaneous
Here's what has changed:
1) Name change
The URL remains the same, and my alter-ego is still Cap'n Intrepid. The blog however, has a new name to match its new look. Intrepidity. Not to be confused with Insipidity, even though I may border on that at times.
2) Blog design
The green Blogger template is gone. This current one has been taken off Blockfrocks and tinkered with. It's not perfect yet, and I expect to do lots of finetuning with the CSS. Visited hyperlinks are a shade too light to be comfortable (fixed!), for example. And the CSS style for comments also suck big time (looks rather plain but what the heck... fixed!).
3) Categories
The blog now has Technorati and Categories by way of del.icio.us and John over at Freshblog. John has an excellent post on how to do this. My categories are still growing (grand total of 1 category now) and may be found here. Links can also be found on the side-bar. I will probably permalink the more common categories that I will have in future.
Initially wanted to set up multiple blogs, with each blog representing one category. Main problems with that were double posting/repeated html files (I'm not that bad a programmer to allow such redundancy) as well as the lack of on-the-fly categories.
4) Disclaimers
Terms of use and a Privacy Policy has been put up. Strictly a CMA (Cover-My-Ass) move.
5) Mugshot
Mugshot is temporarily taken off, since I look entirely too serious. That's the problem with me in photographs. I either look dopey or as if someone has died.
6) Search
A Google search bar has been incorporated into the sidebar. Maybe I'll switch to a Technorati one in future. In any event, it's now easier to look for a post.
What's still to come:
1) Self-rotating banner
I'm currently browsing for free-to-use stock photos so that the main image on the sidebar can be cycled automatically. Figure I'll get tired of those stones very soon.
Update: Done! I'm currently using a set of 12 images. To see how they look like, you'll just have to hit F5 repeatedly (hence giving me more hits). Did I mention there's a pretty lady somewhere among the set?
2) More categories
Perhaps even a regular column of sorts. Still pondering this.
3) Sideblog (?)
The sidebar doesn't look as if it's big enough for a sideblog. Again, still pondering this.
Filed under: Blog, Admin, Miscellaneous