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2007-03-30

 

iMoved

After many round trips in the weekend and help from some movers Wednesday, I am now settled in my new place.

The moving company was recommended by my boss (he also recommended my colleagues, but I'm pretty sure I couldn't afford that :P). Their service was great, moved my crap efficiently and account the time accurately. But I'm going to let them remain anonymous here, as there is still one thing I am not happy with them.

Two hours before the scheduled moving time, they called and said they want to add an additional mover on top of the two movers and a truck I reserved. Reason? The two scheduled movers have just finished a job in the morning and were tired. Wait, so how is this my fault and have to pay more just before they had another job? And how come I should be paying for two very tired men? More disturbingly, they knew there would be another job in the morning -- I couldn't schedule the morning time because of that other appointment.

So they waited until the last second to tell me all these. They know I had to agree. They could tell me they want to charge me double and I still had to comply...

2007-03-23

 

Ideal Keyboard

If you know me (let alone obsessed with me), you'd know that I hate M$ as much as the next guy and probably more. But I still give them credit when it is due, and in this case for creating the keyboard that I love so much.

I am talking about their Comfort Curve Keyboard 2000 (don't ask me why 2000), to me the best keyboard money can buy.
First, a little background. I take keyboards seriously, and it is the only one component I always look for upgrading to make myself more comfortable. While I can type at a reasonable speed, I never type in a "proper" way. Therefore, I am never comfortable with the ergonomic keyboards from M$. My previous keyboard, as some of you may find surprising, was a cheap Memorex one I got from Fry's, just because it had the best reactive buttons.

That's until I found CCK2000. I can now comfortably place my hands, without being told on which key should be pressed by which hand. It has very soft keys. It blows away even the keyboard in my Thinkpad. As added bonuses, its spill-resistant design prevents milktea mishaps, and ultra-thin design makes my hand more comfortable putting on top of it.

Of course, being M$, they have to screw up good things. I wanted to get a wireless version for use at home (I'm using this one in office right now). Most I could find come only with a primitive mouse or made from very cheap materials. The Wireless Laser Desktop 6000 version 2 finally improved to be good enough, but there are plenty of complains on the wireless connectivity. What about the next version? They have suddenly changed their mind and make it an "entertainment combo." On top of the hefty price, they also removed the keypad, probably to make it smaller as a remote control for an entertainment center (?). So despite having 7 versions available (not counting discontinued versions), I can't find a good one that I want to buy, even at a premium price. Horray...

 

Pledge (To Myself)

Never copy & paste or find & replace source code again. If I really have to, at least don't use "replace all."
I have just spent a good part of the day to find a little nasty bug. This is also the second time that such activities have cost me long hours of frustrations. "Replace all" is a really tempting function that should not be implemented in any IDE...

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2007-03-15

 

Layoff

If you have heard about the big news and worry about me, don't. I am notified today that I would not be affected.

It was a horrible moment when the news was announced though. In the special group meeting this morning, I looked around the room to see if anyone was not there already...

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New Apartment

My current apartment rental lease is quickly expiring, so it is time to hunt for a new place again, at the very least to live in a quieter neighborhood, not so far away from my company's new location, and, most importantly, pay less rent.

So I did. I've already found such a place: 20% lower rent, comes with a den to become my home office, and in a much quieter neighborhood but still very close to groceries and whatnot. It doesn't have a mini tennis court, but it does have a sauna and a jacuzzi and close enough to some public tennis court

However, the big hassle here is that it does not come with a refrigerator. I could either rent a second-hand primitive one from the apartment for $22 a month, or I could buy a brand new for roughly two years' rent. But then the other hassle would be what if I later move to a place that comes with a fridge? Damn, I hate making these kinds of decisions.

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2007-03-13

 

Losing Weight

I have an important news to announce: My belt is getting loose! Too bad I don't have an easily accessible scale, so I can't digitize the result for you.

It is probably contributed by several factors. One, eating unclean food and got sick; two, changed diet, eating yucky oatmeal for breakfast; three, walking almost two miles to work a few times a week. But most importantly, it must be gaming.

The first game is WiiSports. I play it as realistic as possible, with full body motion. Not only it is good exercise, but also it is more fun playing this way. Tennis was the game I played most in the beginning, but once it is mastered, it becomes too easy. On the other hand, boxing is a much better exercise, forcing you to move your body even when you are tired. The second and more important gaming is dancing. Never thought I would be interested, turned out the experience is better than I thought.

Now what if you combine the two and create an ultimate exercise game, I would be in perfect shape... This is not a dream. It has already been announced that Konami is making a dance game for Wii that would somehow make use of the wiimote... Can't wait for that game to come out!

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2007-03-08

 

Update Again

I intended to update this blog again last weekend, but couldn't do so. I was pretty sick the last few days, after eating lamb in a hot pot in Tan Yu Tou on Saturday. I knew the cleanness of the place was questionable and the meat, particularly the lamb, was not the freshest, but I didn't know it could be this bad. I was sick all day Sunday. Monday was better and I managed to go to work, but it got worse on Tuesday again. My stomachache became so bad that I had to leave work and went home for medicine and another day of sleep. In retrospect, based on the texture and the fact that large chucks stuck together, the lamb was probably leftover from the night before, which is not entirely uncommon in those cheap all-you-can-eat places.

Anyway, nothing to worry about. Right, I know you're worrying only on whether I would continue updating this blog. I can assure you more entries will be added soon. In the next few days, I promise...

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