substance amuse

the new computer

2010-06-19T21:20:00.004+10:00

After umm-ing and ahh-ing for what seemed to be months, the upgrade of my main workstation has begun! Spurred on by MSY's new funky website that "displays stock levels" I configured several possible cpu, motherboard etc combinations for the new machine.

What started off as an excercise to get a Quad core processor ended up with an entry level intel i3 chip! what can I say, the power consumption and quietness of the cpu cooler won it for me in the end!

Here's the pickups;
1. Intel Core i3-530 2.93Mhz LGA1156 CPU
2. Ritmo CR-46D USB Mini Thumb Size External SDHC Card Reader
3. 8GB Sandisk Flash Pen Disk
4. Iomega 2.5" 500GB Prestige Portable External HDD
5. Hitachi 3.5" Deskstar 1TB SATA HDD
6. ASUS P7H55-M H55 LGA1156 DDR3 Motherboard
7. Antec TruePower TP-550Watt. PSU
8. G.Skill NT 4GB Kit(2X2GB) DDR3 1333 RAM (Intel 775pin, Intel 1156pin, AM3)
9. Gigabyte 1GB 5770 PCI-E VGA Card

I've just transplanted the contents from the aspire x-qpack to my old Coolermaster case. Strangely enough, the urge for a small form factor which prompted me to get the x-qpack before has subsided. It was so much easier to put everything into the coolermaster case. Now that I've got is sitting beside me, I'm not bothered by the noise, well not that much anyway, especially since I've removed the 7600GT video card!

Time to clean up and watch the World Cup, laters

Music Roundup

2009-04-23T22:13:00.003+10:00

I've been actively pursuing a lot of a new music over the last few months. It seems like the void of boredom needs to be filled with something! Of late, I've noticed that my music preferences have changed, or rather evolved over the years. There's the old corny stuff I still listen to every now and then (especially when shuffle play mode is on!) but lately, some of the newer stuff have managed to catch my attention.

MSTRKRFT's Fist of God (2009)

These Canadian DJ duo recorded this album under the auspices of Armand Van Helden. The numerous remixes they've done for the likes of Justice and Wolfmother to name a few are excellent listens!

What drew me to this album is the amazing electronic sounds and the energy it emanates. The long list of collabs also adds to its strength. Lil' Mo, E40, Ghostface Killah and John Legend are a few.

Silversun Pickups - Swoon (2009)

With a sound reminiscent of the Smashing Pumpkins, how could I not give this a listen? You know being a *BIG* pumpkins fan. This Indie band's second album has been on my playlist since I acquired it!

The first single "Panic" with it's muddled guitar riffs and the lead vocals adds to the whole "hey! ain't this the pumpkins" paranoia.

But I'll be frank to you, it's nice listening to this album, it made me feel the way I felt when I first listened to Siamese Dreams and Gish.

That's all folks! let's see how long this goes on for :P

Revival?

2009-04-23T00:55:00.002+10:00

Just got myself a Dell 2209WA 22" lcd monitor, it arrived today! here's a flickr feed of it.

Moving from my old Proview 19" lcd, this is a nice (and huge) difference, who would've expected a bump in resolution to be such a blessing? Full sizing windows now seems a little awkward.

I'll attempt to get this back up and blogging and all. How do you like the new layout?

anyone?? :P

Nintendo Wii Fever

2006-12-06T17:41:00.000+11:00

I have to admit to being a bit of a gamer. First it was the Nintendo DS Lite and now the Wii!!

Seeing the Wii in action at the recent egames expo (how funny is the URL? egamesexpo.com.au) made my desire for it grow!

The Nintendo Wii will be launched in Australia at midnight tonight!!!!1!

Before I realised that this was a pay week I was hesitant to go out and pre-order, but now I'm just plain confused. More like caught up in the insanity that is the Nintendo Wii!!!! Still undecided on whether I should take the plunge and go to Chadstone later tonight for the launch party!

Decisions.. decisions...

On the upside, tomorrow is work's combined Xmas function and the Head honcho gave us the rest of the afternoon off! how cool is that ?!?!

Nintendo Wii ftw!!!

Guess who's back?

2006-11-29T09:28:00.000+11:00

It's been a long time since I touched this blog, no motivation and laziness are the culprits. But since the recent windfall of spare time on my hands, I'll be attempting to revive this. Let's see how it goes :)

It's a cool and wet morning in Melbourne today. Getting out of bed is rather challenging when your wrapped under the warmth and comfort of your doona (blanket, quilt). The weather is not the only thing to blame though. I was out til late last night.

A good friend of mine is heading back to Singapore for good ... or not, that remains to be seen. We've been friends for about 5 years now. So yesterday evening we headed down to St Kilda for drinks at the Vineyard Restaurant . Service was ok, but there were a couple of cute waitresses. Spring in Melbourne is beautiful, but the weather soon got chilly as we proceeded to an excellent vegetarian joint called SoulMama. All in all a good night of good company, good food, scenery and of course, Melbourne's weather.

[Fifa World Cup 2006 - the Socceroos][Flahed my NDS]

2006-06-24T01:52:00.000+10:00

Once every 4 years, the cream of the crop of football teams convene for the World Cup. There's no argument that it is the BIGGEST sporting event in the world. Residing in Australia, you do feel the lack of emphasis on the "beautiful game". However, this time round it seems that the atmosphere is there. It's a nice feeling supporting a team from the place I'm living now (even though most of the players are based in Europe).

So here's a post for the continued success of the Socceroos!

In other news, I've been clocking some serious hours on my NDS Lite. After receiving the Superkey and Supercard devices, I'm now able to run homebrew and backup games. It was unfortunate that the 2 devices working together causes the battery to run out quickly. So tonite I bit the bullet and fashioned a flash tool (out of some foil, tape and an unused cable tie), GBAtemp's excellent Flashme tutorial/Article really helped me out and now it's flashed. We'll have to observer how much battery is actually being saved.

Now that I don't need my superkey anymore, anyone wanna buy it?

naked Sansa e200.. toshiba gigabeat s30

2006-06-11T19:17:00.000+10:00

It's always pleasantly surprising to look at the innards of gadgets these days. In that line, check out the innards of the Sansa e200 at http://www.flickr.com/photos/francilloscope/sets/281445/

Another 'touted' ipod-killer from Toshiba, the Gigabeat S30. Review available at cnet.com and then the people from anythingbutipod.com presents the innards of the S30. The growing market of Digital Audio or mp3 players only goes to show the uptake of technology. After all whats the point of owning an mp3 player with no device to feed mp3's into them... right?

Sandisk Sansa e260 review

2006-06-05T18:07:00.000+10:00

MP3 or Digital Audio Players come in all shapes form and sizes. Growing popularity (thanks to apple's marketing) and an increasingly competitive marketspace has produced a whole truckload of players flooding the market with refreshes every 6-12 months. Heck, Steve Jobs was even quoted saying " .. you should buy an iPod every year... " in regards to keeping up with the best and latest.
I personally like the iPod, but I also like to support the non-iPod manufacturers, like Sandisk, iRiver and the sort.
The Sandisk Sansa e260 is being touted as the iPod Nano killer. Well, it may not be as slim as the Nano but with added features like FM radio, recorder and video playback, there is a good fight.
Continue on for the review of the e260 via engadget

My Nintendo DS Lite

2006-06-03T15:39:00.000+10:00

After finding out about the Nintendo DS Lite's 1st of June 2006 Launch in Australia I was very much intrigued. After numerous google searches, youtube views and forum reads I caved and got myself one on launch day.

I have since got myself a copy of Project Rub, Nanostray, Metroid Prime: Hunters and Tony Hawk's American Sk8teland.

Let the gaming begin!

Alienware Business Laptop? MacBook Pro Flawed??

2006-04-04T18:24:00.000+10:00

Most people who have heard of Alienware know it as a "pro-gamer" company that specialises in custom machines in both desktop and laptop form factors catering to the gaming community. ie people who have much $$$ to spare but can't be bothered with building their own gaming behemoth.

Well the suits can now partake of Alienware's excellent wares with the introduction of the Sentia M3200 12" goodness with the alien head and all! The kind folks at Arstechnica have a review for your reading pleasure.

In the world of Steve Jobs, Apple recently celebrated it's 30th Birthday on the 1st of April (no April Fools Joke here!). However, the much anticipated refresh on the iBook line has not happened. I'm personally holding out for the new iBook. The wait continues.
Apple's first Intel Based notebook/laptop, the MacBook Pro is grabbing headlines on the Net this week as Apple seeks to resolve the issues that have plagued the MacBook Pro. Basically, if you're looking to get one of these sleek sexy machines, look out for the following:

# Serial numbers starting with W8611: revision D
# Serial numbers starting with W8610: revision C

Revision D Macbook pros are the updated ones.

Robo-One 9: RAYERD-X - The Magical Robot (Video)

2006-03-27T14:28:00.000+11:00

Following my previous post about real transformers I came across another video this time with a 4 appendaged robot. Check it out!

Can't take credit for the video, here's the link to the original site I found
http://www.robots-dreams.com/2006/03/roboone_9_rayre.html

2006-03-22T15:14:00.000+11:00

It's another exciting day at work, I'm sure it's the same for most of you too. Here's a little something to brighten up the already exciting day.

What (Steve) Jobs Did!

2006-03-04T13:13:00.000+11:00

Seems like the fanfare was worth it, new apple products! but no iBook replacement.. yet.
Here's what Steve unveiled on Tuesday. Enjoy!
<

iPod Hi-Fi

(expensive) iPod leather cases

Intel Mac Mini

WWJD = What Would (Steve) Jobs Do ?

2006-02-28T21:38:00.001+11:00

An interesting play on WWJD by the Engadget crew. It's Tuesday evening here in Melbourne and it's ONLY about 7 plus hours to go!!! What oh what will Steve unveil? As far as rumormills go, nothing beats good old photochops! so have a gander at the handywork of enthusiasts far and wide at What Would (Steve) Jobs Do #3 Results!

Today was the last day of work for a dear colleague, my best wishes goes out to her and good luck in the near future. It has been a great time working with her, without which would be a less exciting workplace.

Fun New Apple Products to be announced Feb 28

2006-02-26T11:59:00.000+11:00

Looks like Feb 28 will be a red letter day for Mac fanboys. This invite has been leaked numerous times over the last week or so. Speculations include;

13" Widescreen Macbook, the iBook replacement. Personally, this is holding back my laptop purchase. I wanted to get the 12" iBook last year, but was discouraged by the 12" XGA (1024x768) screen and lack of a DVD burner. Not that burning dvd's on a laptop is a good idea. Can someone say BATTERY DRAIN?

touchscreen iPod video. With Apple ramping up iTunes with video content, it seems only natural that an iPod with better video capabilities is released. After all who wants to be stuck in their own (white iPod earbuds) world when you can now watch movies on your iPod. Conversation will soon be a lost skill

Intel Mac Mini with front row. speculations continue...

You may wonder, what's the deal with the random posts about Apple products, software etc etc etc. To be honest, I don't have a direction with this blog, really. We'll just have to wait and see how we go.

Tis Sunday in Melbourne, the hot weather has given way to rain (some parts received a downpour! so much in fact flash flooding occured!)

Unpacking the Macbook Pro & Creative Zen Vision:M

2006-02-19T20:47:00.000+11:00

When I saw the iPod Nano that my friend had just bought, I was impressed! But what was even more impressing was the packaging the Nano came in! Classy is the word.

Now with all the hype surrounding the Macbook Pro, here's a flickr photoset of the MacBook Pro Packaging If you wanted one of these babies but can't afford it, well at least now you can "experience" the joy of opening the packaging.

Apple's latest iPod vide's competitor the Creative Zen Vision:M is being given the review runs. One of my daily sites, dapreview.net has a comprehensive write up and photos to boot! check it out!

Macbook Pro Processor Upgrades

2006-02-15T10:37:00.000+11:00

Now I've been hankering for a Mac for some time now, ever since I got a copy of Max OS X 10.2 to install on an aging Clamshell iBook G3 366. Apple was first on the scene to adopt Intel's new Core Duo processors, and it seems that they've upped the (processor) ante.

The 15" Macbook Pro's have been updated, the 1.83 Ghz Core duo processor for the entry level model (up from 1.66 Ghz) and 2.0Ghz (upgradeable to 2.13 Ghz)for the more expensive one!

Check it out at the Apple online store

On a personal note, I'm waiting for the refresh on the iBook range. I ain't got THAT much money to spare!

AMD has been making strides in the processor wars of late. 1st in the scene with the 1Ghz processor, then the 64 bit enabled processors and winning market share over Intel. Will Intel hold its ground ? will it overcome ? Firingsquad.com has a write up on Intel called: " Intel core new low ".

Last but not least, a laptop/notebook review by cooltechzone, on the Asus W5F sporting a core duo t2500 processor and 1GB of DDR2-667 Ram !

WR-07: More than meets the eye

2006-02-13T20:59:00.000+11:00

It's a fresh week, yeah, it's Monday. Here's what I've come across the web today.

I'm sure you've heard of the Transformers, I mean who hasn't rushed back home from playing outside to catch the glory of the Robots in Disguise? right??? I remember chucking a fit once because I was missing the final parter of a 3 part episode of the Transformers because I was at some crummy flower and produce show!

But in any case, to follow up with the Citroen transformer ad, here's the WR-07 , a prototype transformer! Mind you it's not CGI but an actual rolling, transforming vehicle/robot! You gotta give it to the Japanese, I reckon it's super-kawaii!

Check it out!

Video Card Pr0n! ATI's x1900 series

2006-02-12T11:46:00.000+11:00

Now for those of you out there who relish in the latest video cards or GPU, head on over to bit-tech.net. They've got a round up of the ATI 1900 series cards. Sporting a core clock of up to 650Mhz and a memory clock of up to 1550Mhz this looks like a beast of a video card/GPU.

I do wonder about availability and pricing here in Australia.

On another note, The Age reports that Australia is the no 2 biggest market for pirated TV Shows. Not the pirated VCD/DVD variant like Malaysia but with regards to people downloading TV shows via the bittorrent network. Can't fault them tho, with Australian TV programming, who can? By the way it's summer here now, and summer tv is umm the sux0rs!

TOP 10 pirated shows

SHOW (number of users)

Without A Trace 574,884

CSI 561,240

NCIS 555,372

The Daily Show 554,476

Grey's Anatomy 549,622

Desperate Housewives 547,902

Smallville 538,640

American Idol 538,546

My Name Is Earl 538,546

Family Guy 537,957

(downloaded around the world, week ended January 31, 2006)
Big Champagne Online Media Measurement

open source itunes replacement - songbird!

2006-02-10T11:27:00.000+11:00

So it's a new blog, but what the hey! here we go.

dapreview posted an item about songbird an open source media player. The screenshots look good, but then again I'm partial to dark coloured user interfaces, open source software and anything to help me keep track of my 20 odd GB of music!

Apple has quietly launched the 1GB iPod Nano!whereas some people were expecting a 6GB version, the new 1GB Nano seems to fit in well with the flock, set to compete against the gazillion 1GB players with displays from China, Korea, Taiwan etc. Australian pricing as follows;

1GB iPod Nano - $219 (NEW!)

1GB iPod Shuffle - $149

512MB Ipod Shuffle - $99

1st post!

2006-02-10T10:33:00.000+11:00

Welcome to substanceamuse, my new blog!