Win!

Older people also recorded successes. Terry Tyack, a grandfather, scored his 26th A-level pass. At the age of 73, he picked up a C in modern history after studying at Trowbridge College in Wiltshire. "They called it modern history but it was just like general knowledge for me because I lived through most of it. We had a little champagne at college and now I'm going to take my grandson out for a celebratory bite to eat."


Source: http://www.independent.co.uk/news/education/education-news/alevel-results-britains-top-pupil-rejects-oxbridge-1113734.html

Book from TI has arrived!

When I clicked the link to get a copy of the book "OMAP and DaVinci Software for dummies" at the TI webpage, I thought it's gonna cost me something but I was plesantly surprised when they did not request for any payment details and by all indications, seem to be for free.

Since it's free, and being a true blue Singaporean, I accepted it.

Today, it finally arrived in the mail and on opening it, marked right on the top left: "Compliments of Texas Instruments". Nice.

Thanks TI!

Dropped my phone but got it back.

Dropped my stuff and you came back,
even though we've never met.
From the bottom of my heart,
a big huge thanks.

CSC301 Assignment

Goal: Develop an application that returns at most 3 results for the shortest path between 2 MRT stations in Prolog, Scheme and C# languages.

C# and Prolog version is around 80 - 90% done. Just need to touch up on UI / data entry segments. The worry here is Scheme. Hopes to get it done by next week if possible. Leave us buffer time.

Remember Murphy's Law - Anything that can go wrong, will go wrong.

Google+ vs Facebook

Firstly, Google+ is finally open for all.

I thought that it was pretty cool but nobody else does so. Of the people whom I've invited, only 1 accepted. I guess they are fairly resistant to change. I remember the time when I created my Facebook account. It was fairly new then and the in-thing was Friendster. Everyone had a Friendster account and not everyone had a Facebook account. But Facebook was the new fun thing that was quickly catching on because (I think) of the games. It was basically Friendster with games then. And see where Friendster is today.

Hence, I presume that this is the situation now with Google+. However, I am not so certain now. When Facebook did a rather significant change with their UI 2 days back, I was like meh, a weak shot by an ailing (in the future, not now of course) giant (like Friendster).

However, today I learned that Facebook intends to debut their new feature - Timeline which somehow make it seem to me like Google+ is that new kid hoping to make it big and Facebook just keeps pushing forward with no intention of slowing down and giving Google+ a chance. It's like that hare and tortoise story except that the hare doesn't get complacent and wins.

I think it's a huge blow but not a KO puch and Timeline is only going live on the 30th of this month so Google+ might have a trick or two under their sleeve. They seem to be doing something from the liitle updates I see now and then.

Round 1, Fight!

Updates

Have not been writing here in a long time. Will try to do a more regular update from now on.

Yay! Have been accepted to do a DSO-URECA project on video compression. Hope I'll learn new stuff. Wanted to do one that was basically data mining but the Prof. had too many students.. Popular guy. Must be the Korean craze thing. But this seems fun too and I'll be working on an embedded system.

Have not been touching much on my other labs work and just got to touching CSC204 lab. I managed to get the door open and close toggle thing working now! Had a door that basically opens and when clicked on again opens again.. from open position. But finally got it working right today!

How I did it:

I created 2 timeSensor nodes in 3D studio max. 1 to handle the open and the other to handle the close portion of the object. Next, using the autokey, I made the opening and closing animations. Frame 0 to frame 49 is my opening animation and frame 50 to 100 is my closing animation. I next created a touchSensor node. I pointed the touchSensor to the opening and closing timeSensors. I then export to a VRML file.

Next, in Notepad++, I opened the VRML file and added a script which I got off an internet source. I then reroute the nodes - i.e. touchSensor routed to the script and the script routed to the timeSensors open and close. Basically, I'm intercepting the call from touchSensor to the timeSensors.

Here's my code for the 2 doors and 2 windows:

#Script for bifold door
DEF ToggleBiFoldDoor Script {
  field  SFBool  state FALSE
  eventIn  SFTime toggle
  eventOut SFTime startClose
  eventOut SFTime startOpen
  url "vrmlscript:
 function toggle(curtime) {
  state = !state;
  if (state) {
    startOpen = curtime;
    startClose = -1;
  }
  else
  {
    startOpen = -1;
    startClose = curtime;
  }
 }
 "
}
#Script for casement window
DEF ToggleCasWin Script {
  field  SFBool  state FALSE
  eventIn  SFTime toggle
  eventOut SFTime startClose
  eventOut SFTime startOpen
  url "vrmlscript:
 function toggle(curtime) {
  state = !state;
  if (state) {
    startOpen = curtime;
    startClose = -1;
  }
  else
  {
    startOpen = -1;
    startClose = curtime;
  }
 }
 "
}
#Script for pivot door
DEF TogglePivotDoor Script {
  field  SFBool  state FALSE
  eventIn  SFTime toggle
  eventOut SFTime startClose
  eventOut SFTime startOpen
  url "vrmlscript:
 function toggle(curtime) {
  state = !state;
  if (state) {
    startOpen = curtime;
    startClose = -1;
  }
  else
  {
    startOpen = -1;
    startClose = curtime;
  }
 }
 "
}
#Script for awn window
DEF ToggleAwnWin Script {
  field  SFBool  state FALSE
  eventIn  SFTime toggle
  eventOut SFTime startClose
  eventOut SFTime startOpen
  url "vrmlscript:
 function toggle(curtime) {
  state = !state;
  if (state) {
    startOpen = curtime;
    startClose = -1;
  }
  else
  {
    startOpen = -1;
    startClose = curtime;
  }
 }
 "
}
#Bifold Door open and close
ROUTE BiFold_Door_touch-SENSOR.touchTime TO ToggleBiFoldDoor.toggle
ROUTE ToggleBiFoldDoor.startClose TO Bifold_DoorTime_Close-TIMER.startTime
ROUTE ToggleBiFoldDoor.startOpen  TO Bifold_DoorTime_Open-TIMER.startTime
#Cas window open and close
ROUTE Cas_win_touch-SENSOR.touchTime TO ToggleCasWin.toggle
ROUTE ToggleCasWin.startClose TO Casc_Win_Time_Close-TIMER.startTime
ROUTE ToggleCasWin.startOpen  TO Cas_Win_Time_Open-TIMER.startTime
#pivot Door open and close
ROUTE Pivot_Door_Touch-SENSOR.touchTime TO TogglePivotDoor.toggle
ROUTE TogglePivotDoor.startClose TO Pivot_Door_Time_Close-TIMER.startTime
ROUTE TogglePivotDoor.startOpen  TO Pivot_Door_Time_Open-TIMER.startTime
#Awn window open and close
ROUTE Awn_Win_Touch-SENSOR.touchTime TO ToggleAwnWin.toggle
ROUTE ToggleAwnWin.startClose TO Awn_Win_Time_Close-TIMER.startTime
ROUTE ToggleAwnWin.startOpen  TO Awn_Win_Time_Open-TIMER.startTime

Credits to: Open & Close - Reversing animations and davidjsushil.com

Have to go and touch on CSC301 assignment too. My team mates have a heavy load and I'm trying to keep this additional workload as light as possible for them. I had CSC207 last semester and boy is it tiring.

The new blogger editor seems really sleek and cool. Hope to be using it more often. If it seems like this post is incoherent, that's because I'm typing whatever that's in my mind without any editing and I can't be bothered haha.

What if?

"POP!" A sharp sound slice through the air. Nearby, a group of 4 Full-time National Serviceman (NSFs) from the Singapore Police Force, came to an abrupt halt. 

For a second, the air around them was still still. None of them dared to investigate for fear of what what they may find. 

Eventually, knowing that it is his duty, a young Corporal from that group turned his head in the general direction of that offending noise, timidly, not daring to breathe. His eyes took in the scene and the collected was transferred to the brain for analysis. Beside him, the group waited for his reaction with trepidation.

Finally, the brain was done with its analysis and proceeded to send the command - the command to initiate a chain of events which culminated in a sigh of relief. The young corporal turned to his group and gave a short laugh, one which rings of relief. 

The rest of the group, having deciphered his signal, replied with similar language. As boys of such age do, they put aside their thoughts and feelings of the past few seconds and joked jovially, making light of the situation.

The bottle that had been run over by a car rolled to the edge of the road lying in wait for the right circumstances to recreate the incident once more just as the patrol continued on their route, hoping for an uneventful end of duty.

Today, their call of duty did not appear but deep inside, they asked: what if?

/* This was based on an event I saw happening while waiting for a friend at Paya Lebar MRT */

Sam's story

Feel like creating a character. A complete character with background story, friends, job, everything.. Here's the start. His name is Sam and he's a boy.

Cycle 1.0 complete

Done with the first cycle of In-Camp Training. It came off as a mild bad taste in the mouth. It could have been worse but it could have been a hell lot better too. Anyway, it was fun listening to Mr. Brown's take on the SAF ipad (Haha, I'm a little slow).

Reservist

It's been a week. Back to wearing coverall. Back to having a rank (with a NS suffix). Start of ICT #1.

Couldn't fit into the coverall (which are brand new) from my NSF period. It was bursting at the seams when I first put it on and that made me realise how much weight I've gained in the last year or so. So I've been trying to have a healthier diet and start doing some damned exercise.

Wish me luck.

Sharing files between Windows XP and 7

Transferring files between two Windows XP computer was relatively easy. All you had to do was to ensure the workgroup was setup to be the same. And the option was rather easy to find in the control panel.

In Windows 7, they had this thing called the homegroup and between two Windows 7, it was similar to the workgroup for Windows XP.

The problem came when trying to transfer files between Windows XP and Windows 7. Windows 7 comes with workgroups as well as the homegroup mentioned.

Accessing files that were shared on Windows XP from the Windows 7 side were rather painless and typical for me.

However, when trying to retrieve files from the Windows XP side, nothing popped up. The connection was there when I tried to connect to the Windows 7 computer directly by typing "\\computer_name" in run, but the shared folder on the Windows 7 side refused to appear.

So, I went to google the problem and as usual, a thousand and one different solutions appear. However, I found one that somehow managed to solve my particular case.

Basically, here are the steps:

1. On the Windows 7 computer, go to Network and Internet in the Control Panel and select HomeGroup
2. Next, select Change advanced sharing settings...
3. Network discovery should be turned ON
4. File and printer sharing should be turned ON
5. Public folder sharing should be turned ON
6. And finally, Password protected sharing should be turned OFF
7. The rest of the options should be left untouched
8. Now, go to the folder that you want to share, Right-click and select Properties
9. Select Advanced Sharing... under the Sharing tab
10. Ensure that there is a tick in the checkbox beside Share this folder
11. Close this dialog box with OK
12. Now, click on the Security tab and click Edit
13. Click Add and type in "Everybody" exactly without the quotes. 
14. Click Ok thrice to close the dialog boxes. You're done.

You can try to access the folders through My network places on the Windows XP computer. If the folder did not appear, click on View Workgroup Computers  and select the Windows 7 computer. You should then be able to see the folder.

The online help that I found: Microsoft Forums

Team Fortress 2 Free!

Was playing Left4Dead 2 at a LAN shop when I noticed the announcement that Team Fortress 2 is now free to play! Check out the Steam press announcement:

June 23, 2011—Valve, creators of bestselling game franchises (such as Half-Life, Portal, Left 4 Dead, and Counter-Strike) and leading technologies (such as Steam and Source), announced today that after four years and over 200 updates, its popular and critically-acclaimed online action game Team Fortress 2 (TF2) is now Free To Play (F2P).
The F2P announcement comes as part of the "Über Update". Released today, it is the largest content pack delivered to TF2 since it shipped in 2007.

New players interested in experiencing what PC Gamer calls "the most fun you can have online" will have access to training and offline practice modes, so they can hone their skills before jumping into the ever-expanding TF2 universe.
To celebrate the launch of the Über Update, Valve has released "Meet the Medic," the latest in its series of TF2 animated shorts.

TF2 is now Free to Play for PC & Mac players via Steam.

For more information on Free to Play, please visit http://www.teamfortress.com/freetoplay.

For more information on the "Über Update" and "Meet the Medic", please visit http://www.teamfortress.com/uberupdate.

The official Steam page to download: Team Fortress 2 Steam Page

Might be a little late, but as they say, better late than never.

Wallpaper

My new desktop wallpaper

Got myself a new wallpaper from deviantart.

No idea who's that gal but really like the effect.

The designer's page: frozenbee @ tumblr

Call of Duty: Black Ops

Couldn't get to sleep after knowing my results. What better to do when you can't sleep? Complete Call of Duty: Black Ops of course.

Well, I stink at multiplayer so I'm talking about singleplayer here anyway.

I think the singleplayer mode is quite cool. But why did they have to make the controls at the main menu so.. console? Maybe they thought that having a cursor there would spoil the immersion level of the player but there's a pointer visible (and a very prominent one at that) in the cutscenes!

I mean come on, obviously we are not playing as the protagonist when we are at the main menu screen, if we are, there must be a Kinect somewhere built in to detect his head movement or something...

Right, just wanted to whine a little(maybe a bit more than that) now lets get to the part I like.

I like the story. Basically, you are Capt. Alex Mason, a SOG operative. In the main menu screen, Mason is shown to be bound to a medical-looking chair with all those computer screens surrounding him which he seem to be hooked up to. There's even an IV pack beside him. Now the game carries on from here when you select to start a new campaign.

The story is told through the memories of Mason and sometimes of his handler, CIA agent Chris (? Can't remember) Hudson. He is shown to have been through many missions all over the world, most of them being clandestine in nature.

One feature I liked about Black Ops is that the loading screen is some sort of cutscene without any sort of loading bar. It took me a few missions before I realised that that video I've just watched is the loading screen.

I was a little bit disoriented at first with the aiming system of Black Ops. It might be similar to other Call of Duty games but my memory is failing me. However, it does make the game that more realistic.

That might be realistic but being unable to take out a squad of 20 soldiers at one mission then being able to take out a building full of them does not sound(or look) realistic to me. Oh yes, and being ordered around by your sergeant just makes you look incompetent and having bought your rank from the beach road over at the USA.

Now to finally start on Dragon Age..

Results out..

Thought I would have done worst (even though there was a little lining of hope). Well, I thoroughly deserved this result for my relax attitude this semester. Let's get to the results shall we..

Course	Grade
CSC105	B+
CSC106	B
CSC110	B+
CSC201	A+
CSC207	A
CSC279	B+

Semester GPA = 4.27

Which brings my CGPA down to 4.45. Hope this serves as a good wake up call to me ('cause nothing's going to work if this doesn't).

---

Anyway, GPA is calculated in this way:

Sum(Module grade score x module AUs) / Sum(module AUs)

So to calculate my scores for this semester(in order presented):

(4 x 4 + 3.5 x 4 + 4 x 2 + 5 x 4 + 5 x 4 + 4 x 4) / (4 + 4 + 2 + 4 + 4 + 4) = 4.27

Now CGPA is calculated in the same way but for all modules taken from the start.

"Graphic setup" error for Company of Heroes.

The error message:
"Failed to find a supported hardware rendering device. Ensure that your system meets the minimum requirements for CoH. Verify that DirectX is properly installed and that you have the latest drivers for your system."


The solution:
Use "-minvidmem 0" (without the quotes) as a launch option. 


Guess the game thought I'm using the integrated video card to play the game..

GLaDOS says..

• "If at first you do not succeed.. you fail."
• "Do not disappoint me... or I'll make you wish you could die."

Random thought

How would you see a glass as half full if there wasn't a drop to begin with?