Category: My Good Life

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Diary

Singapore National Youth Orchestra – A Musical Chemistry

We’ve missed the previous media invite on the LANXESS SYNO Classic event due to our Spanish commitment.  And they are kind enough to invite us for the main event that took place yesterday at Esplanade, an event coincided with the JP Morgen Corporate Run that caused half of a highway in town to be sealed off.  We were forewarned about the anticipated traffic condition so as the clock struck EOD (end of date) at work, Cynthia and I made haste to our Singapore’s very own theater by the bay.  I love the architectural design of Esplanade.  It cost – if I remember correctly – 650 million dollars to build.  I thought that was a lot of money.  Years later, the integrated resort next door cost billions to build.  That is Marina Bay Sands.

“A Musical Chemistry” is mainly performed by Singapore National Youth Orchestra (SNYO).  The program involves a short piece by Richard Wagner, which to be frank, I have not heard of before last evening.  A piece by Tchaikovsky – Violin Concerto in D major, Op. 25 – which I love to death.  I can easily hum the notes from beginning to end.  We have Lara St. John as the guest lead violinist.  Deep inside, I was hoping that someone from within SNYO would take the lead position.  That would truly speak for the quality of the orchestra.  But I can also understand that as a public event, having an international master such as Lara St. John would help to attract the crowd.  I am not too familiar with the violinist scene.  The only violinist I deeply respect is Hilary Hahn.  Lara St. John’s approach to Tchaikovsky’s concerto is unique, in a sense that she devours the music supplied by the orchestra and pours her personality into the music.  Her phasing and timing is significantly different from the traditional recordings that I am familiar with.  In a way, I did struggle a bit to see how this free spirit performance gelled with the structure provided by the orchestra.  One audience during intermission commented that she felt exhausted – in a good way I suppose – watching Lara St. John performed on stage.  In the contrary, I was totally absorbed into Lara’s own world and was yarning for more.  During the meet the artist session, I asked if it was her first visit to Singapore and she replied that this trip is her second.  Her first visit was to the Zoo.  And I said to her, you should come back to Singapore one day and perform for us.

Then there was the world premiere of a piece written by Darrell Ang, the musical director of SNYO.  It is called “Fanfare for a Frazzled Earth”.  Something to do with caring for environment.  It sounds modern (it has to be) and contemporary with lots of complex dialogs between the instruments.  I am a more classical kind of person and have always been struggling with understanding a modern piece of musc.  This piece sounds lively, almost like a celebration.  It is shorter than we have anticipated.  That left me wonder how beautiful it would have been if he could expand the piece into a full fledge symphony.  Last item of the program is Symphony in D minor by Cesar Franck.  A Dutch composer I have not heard of.  I may explore on his other works later.

Last evening was an emotional evening.  Because I was once played in Hong Kong Youth Orchestra.  I would say, the standard of SNYO is really high.  When I heard and saw the entire orchestra playing and moving in unison, that brought back fond memories.  During the intermission, Cynthia commented that such feeling must be exhilarating.  And I replied that in real life, the orchestra spends much time repeating short segments of the music, usually stripping down the individual or a subset of instruments.  To that extend, once an orchestra pastes all the parts together and plays, that feeling is exhilarating.  However, that short moment of spiritual joy only happens through months of practice, a few bars at a time.  That makes such moment more precious I suppose.

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Diary

Bethany And I, At Botanic Gardens

I can now begin to understand why some single men like to borrow babies in order to chat up with girls.  When I walk alone, no one stops and looks at me.  But when I carried my niece Bethany, inside the Botanic Gardens one fine Saturday, all the women around me smiled at – collectively speaking – us.  Bethany is a chick magnet, I discover.  She must have ignited the maternal instinct to all whose around us.  And I have not received that much attention since the last time I have paraded myself by the swimming pool, in my condo, wearing my swimming gear, under broad daylight.  All those domestic helpers, they really should find some real works to do.

One fine day, my sister messaged me and asked if we should bring Bethany to the Botanic Gardens, now that Bethany can walk.  Jolly good idea.  It would have been fun had we been able to catch some morning sun.  But alas, it was a Saturday.  And Saturdays are full of morning rituals such as housecleaning, such as I waking up early and do my blogging, such as Cynthia trying very hard to get out of bed.

I finished my lunch first and hence I was tasked to take Bethany out for a walk, while my sister, Benny, and Cynthia continued to have a good chat over their fish and chips.  I had no idea how a baby would react if she is momentarily taken away from her parent.  I thought Bethany would scream, but she did not.  Nevertheless, I briefly took her out, feeling totally awkward, and returned to the restaurant only to be sent out by the gang of three.  OK.  Perhaps I should plan a longer walking route.  I carried Bethany, under a hot sun, from one end of the cafe to the first patch of green land that took less than 2 minutes of brisk walking.  I found a nice piece of relatively shaded flat land and I put Bethany onto the ground.  After a few minutes, I ran out of things to do.  So I lifted Bethany up and headed back to the cafe.  I suppose I have yet to discover how to spend time with a toddler.  After we regrouped, I continued carrying Bethany and the four of us were running around in the garden playing catch-me-if-you-can with Bethany.  Eventually, she felt asleep on my shoulder while I was soaked in sweat.  I couldn’t even open my eyes.  That reminds me.  Next time, I should wear a sport headband and carry a fresh towel.

Benny took the photo below inside the cafe, zoomed in through the glass window.  He love this photo and so do I.  Benny observed that one time I put her onto the ground, she came right back to me with open arms.  So we reckon Bethany and I are bonding, somehow.  Bethany and I were quite far away from the cafe.  When I waved at the trios, Bethany followed my cue too.  Later on, my sister asked, “Was she able to recognize us inside the cafe?”  I am not too sure.  Maybe I shall ask her once she can speak.

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Diary

Touched By An Angel

Auntie Bernadette, we reckon, is around eighty years of age.  She is my Godmother Betty’s best friend and together, they have literally followed our Lord’s teaching: leave all that behind and trust that God provides.  You would have thought that in a country like Singapore, one must have a job and earn a living in order to survive.  Bernadette and Betty have no children, they devote their lives to serve the Lord, and in return, the Lord does provide.  It still amazes me every time I think about it.

This evening, after work, Cynthia and I have dropped by TTS Hospital.  We went through the emergency area and I saw nurses and staffs moving the still patients from wards to wards.  So much work going on in serving the community, in improving the quality of life.  Such contrast to my work environment, a banking environment specifically.  Today, I have also got some crisis at work.  People were running around frantically trying to get some presentation slides updated for an upcoming meeting.  Comparing the two, what I do for a living seems dull and meaningless.  If this world rewards people – monetarily speaking – based on the real contribution to our society, I would like to be an ambulance driver.  I love to drive fast and I love to save lives.  In my today’s job, I save people’s asses.  That does not seem to satisfy me fully.

Auntie Bernadette is hospitalized.  Hence we were at TTS Hospital.  Shortly after we found Bernadette, a priest has arrived.  We were surprised.  It was one of the Seven Catholic Sacraments: Anointing of the Sick.  In the past, it was used to be called Last Rites.  Today, it is part of the healing process.  It was the first time I see how this Sacrament is carried out.  Cynthia and I prayed along.  Throughout the session, I looked at Auntie Bernadette.  I was captivated by her eyes.  Such fire of faith and conviction, as she absorbed every word the priest said.  Those child-like expressions, such purity in heart.  Jesus once said, “Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of heaven belongs to such as these.”  I was moved deeply, looking at Auntie Bernadette.  I was ashamed too, for my faith and the fire within does not even measure up to a tiny faction of what she exhibits.

According to Auntie Bernadette, it is God at work that she is hospitalized.  So that she has the opportunity to talk to the nurses, ease them off their daily stress and pray with them.  Even when she is sick, she is still doing God’s will.  After the priest has left, Auntie Bernadette held our hands and prayed for us.  I can tell you honestly that whatever that was in our thoughts, Bernadette spoke them out in words.  It was as though she was reading our minds.  The prayer was so powerful that Cynthia was moved to tears.  It was as close to divinity as I have seen lately.  Today I am touched by an Angel.  I think it is still not too late to repent.  In the spirit of Lent, I shall leave you with two simple passages that are relevant to this Easter season.

Remember that thou art dust, and to dust thou shalt return ~ Genesis 3:19

Turn away from sin and be faithful to the Gospel ~ Mark 1:15

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For the Geeks

So I Bought Two Sony Ericsson Xperia arc

You smart readers out there.  Looking at the photo above, which wireless phone do you think is mine and which one is Cynthia’s?  I’ll tell you in just a bit.

After I have seen the phone at one of the blogger events, I was sold.  After I have brought Cynthia to preview the phone at one of Sony Ericsson’s concept stores, she was sold.  On the day this phone was launched, we have visited the SingTel hello! store.  I did some bargaining over the phone prior to our visit and was happy with the the final deal.  We even receive four complimentary tickets to watch Jolin Tsai live in Singapore. I hardly know her music.  I reckon I will by May 7.

Xperia arc is slim and beautiful.  It feels light, yet has a generous 4.2 inches touchscreen that is pure black in color when on standby.  When Cynthia brought the new phone to work, it mesmerized her colleagues a great deal.  I will not repeat in detail what the phone does.  You can read it from my previous entry.  My initial observation remains.  On top of that, now that I have used the phone for a couple of days, here are my additional observations to share.

If you have not used Android platform before, you ought to give it a try.  It is the fastest growing platform today, supported by a good number of manufacturers.  Healthy competition is good.  I have observed the hardware and operating system improvement in the past year.  Android phones simply get better and better pushing the limits on camera specification, screen size, memory and processor power, and user friendliness.

Why Sony Ericsson?  I have been shopping for an Android phone for quite some time (by the way, it took me about 5 years to decide on which flat panel television to buy).  I value multimedia offering, form factor, and branding.  This phone seems to fit the bill.  Xperia arc is powered by the latest Android operating system for smartphones (version 2.3).  Sony Ericsson’s implementation includes the infinity button on the music player that does a quick YouTube video search on the artist you are listening to.  I use this often, especially this phone is powered by Sony’s BRAVIA technology, those vibrant videos are a joy to watch.  In this version, I find the standard email application useful to access my Hotmail, Gmail, and Yahoo! Mail.  It may not have the bells and whistles of, say, K9.  However when possible, I prefer to use out-of-the-box applications.  Xperia arc, like the previous Android models, also comes with their TrackID application.  TrackID listens to part of the song played in the surrounding and attempts to identify the song.  I also use that often and am pleasantly surprised that even as I have switched to a new Sony Ericsson phone, my historical search results follow me.

I am not an “app man”.  Unlike Cynthia, who is into surfing the Android Market regularly for new and exciting apps.  I use Whatsapp for messaging, Facebook app, TweetDeck, Advanced Task Killer, and Album Art Grabber.  Of course, some of you may remember that I am not a big fan of virtual keyboard.  I use Graffiti Pro to bypass this little handicap of mine.  I am from the Palm Pilot era.  Graffiti suits me perfectly.

On battery life, I am a heavy Internet and phone user.  Xperia arc can last about 9 hours, which meets my expectation.  Cynthia has a lighter usage pattern.  And hers can last for the entire day and more.  As a phone, like the previous Sony Ericsson models, the voice sounds crisp.  The dial pad can be pulled out with a touch of a “button” on the home screen.  Phone volumes can be adjusted even when the screen is locked.  The moment you pull out the headphone, the music player stops automatically.  Sony Ericsson must have done some improvement to their music player because now, the music sounds fuller, with more power.  Powerful enough for my car stereo.  Notification light is placed on the side and it works for incoming SMS, Internet chat message, and etc.  Swiping the screen from left to right unlock the screen.  Swiping from right to left toggles between normal and silence mode.  Folders on the home screen can be created to hold as many applications as you want.  There are progressive tool tips to show you the tricks to personalize the phone.  OK, I could go on and on.  Let’s not do that.  You can find out more yourself.  Now, back to the answer to the question at the beginning of the entry, the phone on the left with the animated falling sakura petals belongs to me while on the right, Cynthia’s.

Surprised?

Categories
For the Geeks

Norton 360 Now Onto Version 5

In the past one year, I still have friends who are amazed at the misconceptions they have on Norton products after finally giving the products a try.  So, I will do a quick summary here, even though these are old news for the existing Norton users.

Norton security line of products – 360, Internet Security, and Antivirus – battle online threats.  Installing the application from scratch only takes a couple of minutes.  The CPU and memory usage is low and it does not slow your computer down (OK, not that you can feel it).  In fact, they have real time monitoring graphs comparing Norton related tasks and other system tasks and be transparent about it.  Norton uses pulse live update technology.  This means updated security definitions from Norton global site are sent to your computer in real time, as and when they are available.  Full system scan is quietly performed in the background while you are away from your computer.  And it is done incrementally, over the days.  There are little unnecessary notifications from Norton application.  I receive a security summary report at the end of the month, alerts when I am trying to download an executable file that is still relatively new to the global community (Norton uses the community to derive insights), and reminders for PC tune up (because I am using 360).  That is about all the notifications I have got from running Norton.

I value security and online protection.  And I would only go for the best in the market.  Below is an excerpt that may mean more to those who want to read the official results.

In recent third-party testing, Norton 360 version 5.0 achieved a 100 percent protection score for online threat detection from Dennis Technology Labs, whose methodology has received a 100 percent compliance rating from the Anti-Malware Testing Standards Organization (AMTSO).

To be frank, I am not that technologically inclined.  I need something fuss free and yet gives me a peace of mind.  For those of you who are interested in what’s new, under the hood, Norton has now gathered about 175 million contributing Symantec users to study the software adoption patterns anonymously (I too have opted in) that in turn automatically identify and block new threats for the entire Norton user base.  Also, they have packed in SONAR 3, a behavioral protection monitors running applications for suspicious behavior to quickly identify new attacks, crimeware, and other threats designed to evade traditional detection.

Why get a Norton 360 when Norton Internet Security seems sufficient?  360 allows you to perform online backup (2GB or up to 25GB for premium edition), which I seldom use.  Mainly because what is important to me does not fit into a 2GB space.  And whatever I can fit into a 2GB space, there are other online options out there.  Personally, I enjoy using the PC Tuneup tool, which is unique to Norton 360.  It allows me to easily decide which application is allowed to be run during startup and I can now set priority to autostart applications so as to make my computer more responsive.  I also like the option to cleanup the registry, temporary files, and etc. at ease.  Norton 360 comes with a parental control management tool.  I don’t have kids at home.  But I can imagine the stress of having to manage how kids these days use the Internet.  360 can help on that.

People usually ask me how much it costs to install Norton products.  Here is the suggested retail price list for Singapore users.  All prices are for 1 year protection.  S$65 for 1 PC licence.  S$129 for 3 PC licence.  And if you need a larger online backup space of 25GB, the premium edition is S$149 for 3 PC license. It would be good if Norton offers us a more flexible licensing option. Such as a different pricing for 1 PC, 2 PC up to a household worth of PC. Also, having some loyalty programs or a deeper discount for multi-years subscriptions would be good.

There are a couple of things you may wish to know about purchase and installation.  So long as you have an active subscription, you can update the version whenever it is available.  You don’t need to buy a new version when it is out.  Simply make an update within the Norton application.  Some prefer to buy the box instead of renewing online (some claim it is cheaper that way).  By doing so, your number of days remaining for an active subscription will be reset to 366 days.  So, it is best to do it when your license expires.  If you are unable to install the application using the disk (one of my machines is not able to read the disk, for some strange reasons), you can go online chat with the Norton service consultant and have the application downloaded instead.

As always, drop me a comment here if you have more questions.  I hope this entry is useful.

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For the Geeks

Upcoming Sony Ericsson Xperia arc, neo, and PLAY

Xperia arc

This blogger event could not have come in a better timing.  Cynthia took over my Xperia X8 because she has ‘accidentally’ soaked her old phone that I bought for her with water, inside her gym bag.  X8 is good as an entry level Android phone but we are looking for something with a more executive outlook.  When the folks from Sony Ericsson unveiled the upcoming Xperia arc (together with two other new models), I was instantly in love.

Xperia arc features a pure black screen, noticeably striking when on standby.  It makes the rest of the smartphones that have a dark grey screen looks less appealing and somewhat dated.  Xperia arc is slim.  At its thinnest, the phone measures at  8.7 mm.  The screen size is 4.2 inches, which I believe is one of the largest in the smartphone category.  Xperia arc scores very high on the form factor.  But what about the multimedia offering?

During the video playback demo session, arc was put side-by-side with Sony Ericsson’s current high end model, X10.  Because arc employs Sony’s BRAVIA technology, looking at the same video, arc produces more crystal clear picture and the image looks vibrant and brilliant.  In terms of image and video capturing capability, with an Sony’s Exmor R technology as well as an aperture of 2.4 (quite possibly one of the lowest I have seen), this phone supposes to shine under low light condition.  I have tested the evening shots on top of Esplanade and I am pleased with what I have seen.  Perhaps I can share some live images with you once I get hold of one.  Xperia arc has a 8.1 megapixel camera that comes with HD video recording capability.  Not the highest I have seen.  But not too low either.  I suspect Exmor R technology should be able to boost the image quality.  Sony, after all, makes cameras as well.  This phone has a HDMI output.  I don’t see much use to it.  But if you need it, it is there.

Xperia arc will be launched with the latest Android for smartphone version 2.3.  Although I am not fanatic towards the version of the operating system (I still yet to see that huge different between 1.6 and 2.1 besides that animated screen, it is certainly not like an upgrade from Vista to Win 7), it is good to see that Sony Ericsson has fixed the perception issue.  Now, I am keen to see if they can keep up the platform update for their existing Android models.

Quite honestly, the moment I plugged my personal earphone onto Xperia arc was the moment when I said to myself, “Woah, this is the one”.  I am much impressed by the music playback quality.  It is a class on its own.  You have got to hear it for yourself.

Xperia arc will be available in Singapore in Q1 this year (which is just days away!) in two colors: Midnight Blue and Misty Silver.

Xperia neo

Xperia neo is very much similar to Xperia arc, in terms of technical spec.  Hence, I would not repeat here.  Xperia neo is more compact.  It has a screen size of 3.7 inches instead of arc’s 4.2 inches.  And it also has an unique design, equally ergonomic in a different way compares to arc.  At launch, neo will have two colors – Blue Gradient and Red – and is going to be available in Singapore Q2 this year.  It should be priced below Xperia arc.  By how much?  We have to wait and see.

Xperia PLAY

For the avid gamers, the above image would mean something dear to your heart.  I have heard the rumor of such release a while ago.  I was trying to get a confirmation from the PR company that handled Sony Ericsson’s account.  But you know how marketing team works.  It is all hush hush.

Xperia PLAY combines both PlayStation gaming experience with the latest Android platform.  PLAY is the first PlayStation certified device.  It does not come with the BRAVIA technology (color vibrancy is less of an issue as far as gaming is concerned because video games by default are designed with vibrant colors).  But it has a better graphic processing system.  On paper, it delivers a 60 frames per second gaming experience with minimal power consumption.  I have tried out a racing game on the 4 inches screen.  Pretty good experience.  I was hoping to try out some fantasy role playing games but did not have a chance (not sure if there is one).  At launch, PLAY will be preloaded with: Sim 3,  FIFA 10, Madden NFL 11, Star Battalion, Bruce Lee: Dragon Warrior, and Crash Bandicoot.  On top of that, more than 50 game titles will be available – for purchase I suppose.  I have seen the list of games.  It looks diverse.  Surprisingly, I do not see Final Fantasy, or any fighting games that I can recognize.

When will PLAY be out?  Q2 this year, in Singapore.  In black, and in white.

Got a question?  Drop me a comment!

Categories
Diary Linguistic

Say What? It Is Level Pre-Advanced 1 at Las Lilas School?

Compare to my good Spanish classmate Monster, I am a lot more conservative.  When his colleagues asked him which level he is at after spending close to three years learning the language, he humbly replied, “Intermediate”.  After all these years you are still at intermediate? they would ask.  And he would reply, “Yes, intermediate”.  To be frank, I have no idea how many levels there are, what the next level is going to be.  I feel as though I am still at the elementary level.  Because I am still feeling so very inadequate.

The good news is that Cynthia and I have passed our exam.  My score is not that great, which means I have to study harder.  I treasure wake up calls like this.  We humans are the lazy bunch.  We need a kick every now and then to get us back on track.

Pre-Advanced 1 started with a new teacher Amelia.  Our previous teacher Alejandra is taking a short break and has returned to Spain to deliver a baby.  I think it has something to do with the Spanish culture.  All our teachers so far at Las Lilas School are lively and warm, cheerful and fun loving.  In today’s class, I have put in extra effort trying not to look like a retard (especially when Cynthia was stuck at her week long project management exam preparation course and could not be there to help me answering all the questions).  Otherwise, Amelia would be wondering what Alejandra has been teaching us all these while.

Going up one level has certainly come with added challenges.  Today’s class’s theme was fitness, or vida sana.  No more simple, overused verbs that we have been relying on for close to three years.  We now have to form sentences with more formal verbs.  Such as fruits and vegetables provides vitamins (comer frutas y verduras proporciona vitaminas), enough sleep rests the body (dormir suficientes horas descansa el cuerpo), and drinking too much alcohol damages the liver (beber mucho alchol dañar el hígado).

What else have we learned today?  Grammar, of course.  I was not even shocked by yet another new tense to conjugate, with all its irregularity glory.  It is affirmative imperative (imperativo afirmativo) and negative imperative (imperativo negativo), which is intimately linked to subjunctive (subjuntivo).  In fact, negative imperative takes the form of subjunctive while there are two exceptions for affirmative imperative.  I am still struggling with subjunctive (and the rest of other tenses to be honest).  How in the world do Spanish and Latino people manage to use grammar of such diversity?  Whatever secret they have, I admire their ability to express things around them in such colorful variety.

Some asked: What do you get out of learning Spanish in Singapore?  Unfortunately, I do not have an inspirational answer to that question.  Learning a language works my brain muscle, which I like.  It is a common hobby for Cynthia and I.  Developing a common hobby of any type is good for a couple, mostly.  And I still believe that learning any skill opens up opportunities in the future.

On a more practical note, last night we had non-stop thunderclaps for one good hour followed by heavy rain.  Immediately, I associated the event to one of Prince’s classic “Thunder”.  This morning, I have transfered three of Prince’s albums onto my wireless phone and listened to them in our car.  When the first song from “The Gold Experience” was played, I instantly recognized that the narrator was speaking in Spanish.  It was a pleasant surprise.  Not that I fully understood what “Nuestra presentacion especial comenzara en breve.  Pero antes un mensaje de nuestros auspiciadores” meant.  At least the narration was not that foreign to me, compares to the first time I heard the album in 1995.

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Photography Travel Blog

Corsica Is A Beautiful Island – Our Day 1 Adventure

I must be amongst the laziest people in the world.  It would be embarrassing if I am unable to publish a complete set of journal for our trip to France last year before we head to Spain later this year.  Corsica is a beautiful island.  We saved the best for the last.  Looking back, we would love to spend more time in Corsica and experience the nature and the local dishes.

This entry documents the first day of our visit, to the birthplace of Napoleon.  As I have mentioned before, it is tedious to write a journal.  But it is rewarding to look at the end product.  Because there is only that much a picture can say.  Let’s hope that I will not take too long to publish the final entry, which is going to be one of the meatiest in this collection.

To read more on our adventure to this French island, Corsica, here are the options.

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Diary

One Crazy Week

I listened to the acoustic recording of the quake captured from the deep ocean with goose bumps all over my body.  I suppose I could imagine the terror induced had I come face to face with such force of nature.  The 2011 Japanese earthquake had lasted for 2 minutes.  That has triggered a series of aftershocks, a tsunami, a potential nuclear meltdown, and an impact to the global economy.  For the past one week, I have been glued to the news from the Internet feeling deeply saddened.  That puzzled me a bit because I do not usually feel that attached to the disasters worldwide.  Maybe deep inside, I admire the Japanese people and culture more than I think I do.

This week has been a crazy week.  My mother in Hong Kong was hospitalized for a minor operation and how I wish I was there with her.  One colleague of mine’s grandfather has passed away and I said to her, “Go home and spend time with your family.  Don’t worry about that minute of meeting”.  I suppose falling back into routines helps one to return to normalcy.  And normalcy helps one to momentarily forget the pain.  I did not have the heart to grant her that wish.  There were two major deliverables this week and in the mist of all these chaos, one of my colleagues has lost his sanity – figuratively speaking – because he thinks that he will be asked to leave the company soon.  So I said to him, “Keep your head down and continue to be productive”.  I suppose different people handles stress in a different way.  Constantly having to deal with his momentary lapse of sanity seems to have worn me out a bit.  And hence, summing all up, it has been a shockingly depressing and incredibly busy week.

I have a different approach when it comes to work, compares to some of the colleagues around me.  I believe that knowledge and experience should be shared.  Because together, we can do so much more.  Don’t you worry that one day your job will be taken away from you, some have asked in the past.  I would be in deep trouble if my job is hanging onto what I know today.  In contrary, I would be happy if more and more people can do what I am doing.  That way, I can move onto other things in life and create new knowledge, create new experience.  I think there is enough food to share around (again, figuratively).  Even when the time is bad, deep inside, we are hunters.  We will be able to find something else to eat, somewhere, somehow.

Last Sunday I took Cynthia to the IT Show.  I would imagine that must have been a terrifying experience for her.  The gigantic exhibition hall was filled with people.  Mostly men talking in some geek languages, ogling at products that meant nothing to her.  I am a seasoned IT Show visitor.  IT Show is not a time and place for shopping.  When I visit an IT Show, I know exactly what I want to get.  At the exhibition, I checked where the Creative’s booth was located and under my supreme leadership, we zoomed straight into the location that mattered: Creative’s cashier.  I took a look at the pamphlet.  Yes, the World of Warcraft headset was on sales.  Big discount.  So I ordered three headsets there and then.  The man who manned the cashier was surprised at my efficiency and determination.  I went in as fast as I went out.  Cynthia was shocked.

Today is unlike the previous days, my working day has ended with a sunny blue sky.  Finger crossed, I am hoping for a better week next week.  My world and the world I am living in.

Categories
For the Geeks

Darkspore – Day 1 Of Beta Testing

PS. This entry is dedicated to my buddy Mark.  Together we have conquered dungeons and overcome challenges only 0.17% of the population today can relate.

For many years, I have identified the web address Darkspore.com with Mark’s personal site.  I vividly remember it was one fine afternoon, when I was waiting for the traffic light to turn green in front of Somerset 313 (which was still under construction), Mark messaged me saying that he has sold his domain name.  Right there and then, I guessed that a new game was in the making, due to a strong association to another game called “Spore“.  I was right.  Darkspore is indeed a new game based on Spore.

EA Game has sent me a beta key to try out the new game.  Of all the beta testing I have participated, this beta testing is surprisingly smooth, with a decent level of features available to play.  What is Darkspore?  It is sci-fi based action role playing game with an option to engage other players online to play with you.  You could – I suppose – solo your way through the leveling and gearing.  But the game rewards better XP (experience point) if you choose to play with others.  I have tried out the campaign mode (or the co-op mode).  I have yet to tried out the PvP mode (player-versus-player).  Subjected to final changes as the game is still under development, you start the game with two heroes, who look like those strange bug life form coming from the Spore universe.  Upon completing the tutorial, you get to pick one more hero to complete your squad of three.  Each hero can fulfill one of the three roles: tank, damage, and heal.  As you level, more heroes are unlocked for you to recruit into your squad.

“This is the arsenal screen.  The three heroes on the left are my current squad.  As for the line of heroes on the right, some are available for my picking.”

For this day one of beta testing, I have picked a squad that has a tank, a damage, and a heal.  To be honest, all the bug-looking characters look the same to me.  Hardly something I can identify with, but I was eager for some good action.  So I have headed to the navigation screen and selected a multi-player option.

“This is the navigation screen.  As you level up, you can pick harder challenges, which come with better reward I suppose.”

Matchmaking is not the only way to form groups.  I have tried out partying with players on my friend-list too.  I am not sure how the multi-player matchmaking algorithm works.  At times we have a group of two.  At times we have a group of four.  Darkspore comes with a chat window as well.  Since I am familiar with other MMO (massively multi-player online), I felt at home with the lobby and party chat.

“This screenshot was taken during the actual game play, with a party of three.  Bottom center is the action bar.  Bottom right is the squad of three.”

The game play involves a lot of mouse-clicking, which is simple enough most of the time.  Left click is to move to a spot and right click is to move and attack.  Each hero comes with a health bar and a power bar.  Abilities that consume power can be accessed through the action bar at the bottom of the screen.  The beauty of this action role playing game – in my opinion – is the option to switch heroes in the mist of the battle.  The tank can charge ahead and take the punishments from the enemies.  The damage class can focus on bringing down the enemies fast, from near or far depending on the hero’s nature.  And the healer can stay at the back making sure that the party is safe and sound.  Loots are rolled automatically as the party members walk over the items on the floor.  The currency of the game is DNA, which is useful from equipping my heroes to buying weapons and upgrading the ship and etc.  At the initial level, the game appears to be generous on the potions that refill the health and power bars.  These potions can be found as enemies or structures are taken down.

“Boss fight can be relatively intense.  But if everyone knows what they are suppose to do, it is quite trivial (thus far).”

Fortunately so far, I have grouped with players who know what they are doing.  We stayed together, switched heroes as the situation called for, and helped each other when one of us was trapped.  Range attack can be avoided, same applies to the enemies who may stand out of the line of fire or area of effect damage.  Each campaign so far involves maps of multiple stages.  Portals to the next stages are open once the obelisks are found.  Once we have completed a campaign, there is an option to collect the reward.  Or, continue to the next campaign and aim for a higher reward if we succeed, lose it all if we fail.  During this beta testing, I was only able to continue two times.  To go beyond, my ship needs to be upgraded.  I noticed that the chances of rolling a rare reward is tied to how well I have performed during the campaign.  As in what the exact formula is, I have no clue at the moment.

“This is the editor screen, whereby you can equip your heroes, or even change the color and shape of this bizarre looking bug.”

At the end of each campaign (or a series of campaigns), you can customize your heroes, from the look to what he or she (or it?) uses.  I realized after spending some time of playing the game that my heroes level up as I equip better items onto them.  How does that reconcile with the overall XP and level of my squad, I do not know.  Items can be equipped to all my active and inactive heroes.  The item stats can be overwhelming, even to the seasoned players.  I have struggled quite a bit on what should be given to which hero.  Fortunately, some items are specific to a single class.  I can imagine as I collect more heroes, managing the inventory could be quite a task.

“This is the inventory screen.  Useless items can be sold for DNA, the currency of Darkspore.  DNA can be used for upgrades.”

In Summary

Darkspore is indeed a fast action game and it seems pretty easy to play.  Those who love online hack-and-slash games would love this one.  Each campaign seems to only last 10 minutes or so (It may get more tedious later, I do not know).  In between campaigns, there are cut scenes too.  Personally I am not that immersed into the storyline, as yet.  The videos remind me of Perimeter’s, with the same monotonous narration of some alien stories.  And I am finding it difficult to relate to the heroes who look so bug-like.  I think Darkspore is one of the games whereby the more time you spend in playing, the better your arsenal of heroes will become.  This game may well be a good stop gap before Diablo III is released.