Jan
01

Goodbye 2011, Hello 2012

2011 is over.

I was at Embankment along River Thames, directly opposite the London Eye watching the fireworks (link for UK residents only, sorry) unravel. It was beautiful. The pyrotechnics and the sheer volume of it was really a sight to behold. The only bad thing was that we had to get there at 8 pm and wait for four hours after squeezing through hordes of people to get to our spot. Then after the fireworks, we had to spend near an hour and half to get to a usable tube station (Russell Square, which is pretty far off from Embankment) to take the tube home. The tube was free from midnight to about 4 am.

And so comes 2012. Maybe I will do a resolution post soon.

Permanent link to this article: http://new.acperience.net/2012/01/01/goodbye-2011-hello-2012/

Oct
18

Longest Day Ever

So a new academic year has begun already. As the year organiser said: if we can survive this year, we can survive anything. And my goodness, I just had a longest day of school in my entire life.

I had no breaks at all. It was labs and then lecture straight through all the way till 6 pm. I don’t know how I am going to survive nine more weeks of this timetable but I guess I’ll have to do so… somehow. At least the lessons are more interesting. I have less classes of circuits and electronics and more computer science, which incidentally is my interest.

Just a short rant. I thought I had to immortalise this timetable in a post of sorts.

Permanent link to this article: http://new.acperience.net/2011/10/18/longest-day-ever/

Sep
20

Leaving. A Second Time

It’s the time of the year again. One year ago, I embarked on a journey to London and spent the next nine months away from home and familiarity (well, maybe not the latter so much).

This time round, I leave with mixed feelings. On the one hand, I can’t bear to leave home and all the friends but I am kind of sick of just bumming around. On the other hand, I do not really enjoy the prospects of trudging through the thick stack of notes and study materials for my second year.

Oh well, c’est la vie.

Permanent link to this article: http://new.acperience.net/2011/09/20/leaving-a-second-time/

Aug
24

Colours in Music

A rather random post. I thought of writing something about music that deals with colours. I have three songs to “showcase”.

Coldplay – Yellow

Probably the most famous song of the trio that I am going to write about. This was probably THE song that propelled Coldplay to the top of the charts. A enduring classic even to this day. I’ve been listening to Coldplay a lot recently, probably because of the interest rekindled by their performance at Glastonbury this year. I swear to myself that I must attend Glastonbury in 2013 when it returns and, hopefully, Coldplay will perform as well.

Les Miserables – Red and Black

In my opinion, this is one of the under-looked songs from the musical, other than the obvious crowd favourite “Do you hear the people sing?”. It evokes a sort of nationalism in you when you hear the characters sing about revolution. This version I have embedded above features Nick Jonas singing as Marius, which I don’t think is as good as the original singer from the original Broadway Cast.

Eiffel 65 – Blue

An old song. I just randomly remembered this song when I wanted to write a post about colours. One of my favourite songs when I was in Primary School. Worth a listen after ten years.

Permanent link to this article: http://new.acperience.net/2011/08/24/colours-in-music/

Aug
17

Disinterest in Presidential Elections

2011 will be always remembered as the year when I get to vote THRICE in one year since I reached voting age: UK Referendum, General Election and the upcoming presidential election.

But this time round, I am disinterested in the presidential election. Why? Simply because I feel that the president of Singapore has no real power and influence over the government, no matter what the candidates may claim. Why do I feel so?

Let’s put partisan politics out-of-the-way, since the president is supposed to be above partisan politics. Thus, one can generally classify the candidates into two camps: the “pro-establishment camp” and the “anti-establishment camp”. Even one who is almost blind can see that these two distinctions are merely a retooling of the terms “pro-government”/PAP and “opposition” but since the government doesn’t like to associate partisan play with this election, let’s keep our terminologies in check.

On the pro-establishment side, we have one candidate: Dr. Tony Tan. On the other side, we have the rest. Suppose Dr. Tony Tan wins the election, which I find highly likely: he will simply continue Mr SR Nathan’s role of rubber stamping the government policies and being a smiling face of Singapore for overseas delegates. Suppose one of the other candidates win: we might have a more lively scene where they make loads of noise in the press about the government policies but ultimately, he has no executive power over the cabinet and the Prime Minister can simply ignore him and carry on with what he wants to do.

This is why I don’t really care about the presidential elections.
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Let me, for a moment, be a very unscientific pundit on how the results will turn out. I believe Dr. Tony Tan will win but the other candidates will have significant number of votes when added up together albeit insufficient for them to win the race on their own. This is because I feel that many people, like myself, has this perception (whether right, or not) that the president has no power. And so they will be more willing to vote for the “anti-establishment camp” since the ramifications of electing one to become a president will likely have no effect on our country. But because there will be THREE such candidates, the votes will be split and eventually, each candidate will not be enough to win the race.

Permanent link to this article: http://new.acperience.net/2011/08/17/disinterest-in-presidential-elections/

Aug
08

The Difficult Bus Rides

Warning: This is a rant.

Sometimes, I wonder if some bus drivers are rushing to get somewhere.

They love to brake faster and harder than they do in bed (okay, bad joke). They accelerate as quickly as the revving bus engines can allow them to and then brake at the very last moment possible. What results from that is a bunch of disgruntled passengers on the bus. This is especially bad if the bus is crowded during the rush hours.

There was once when I was on bus 131 outside SAFRA Mount Faber. There was only one poor sod (i.e. me) who decided that standing on the bus was less of a hassle then trying to sit down with my ear phones on, a shoe bag in one hand and a book in another. So when the driver did his signature move, braking as if he was about to hit a cow alongside a bus stop, I was almost flung from my perch which consisted of me leaning against the metal pole with my right foot stuck out to try to cushion any motion that my inertia (physics!) would cause when the bus braked. Obviously, it was inadequate.

So after that bus stop, I decided to call it quits. There was no point trying to resist against such relentless braking and acceleration. I simply placed my shoe bag between my feet, clamped it tightly and held onto the metal pole with my left hand while my right continued holding onto the book. When the bus braked, instead of trying to resist my inertia, I simply let my left arm stretch out as far as it could go, holding onto the metal pole, while my upper torso went all out to try and continue the motion it was engaged in several microseconds ago. What a sight that must have been. I did all this while simultaneously engaged in nonchalantly holding the book in my right hand and reading.

This phenomenon is not unique to that bus. I had the pleasure of experience it again today, while standing. This is the primary reason why you are reading this entry which, I’d admit, seemed to have been dramatised a little.

Permanent link to this article: http://new.acperience.net/2011/08/08/the-difficult-bus-rides/

Aug
08

The Singapore Identity

It’s 8/8/2011. Almost forty-six years ago (off by one day), we were thrown into the world to fend for ourselves and we have since come a long, long way. I’m not here to talk about our history – on the contrary, I feel like I have something to say about our future, on a rather apt occasion – national day.
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I really admire the Scots. They have had a tumultuous history of asserting their own independence through the last few centuries. Yet, even after the union with England in 1707, they have continued to keep their own identity which is widely recognised in the world (though not entirely exclusive to the Scots): bagpipes, tartan kilts and Scotch whiskeys. While they are seeking independence after managing to wrestle a devolved parliament from the UK (which I don’t think is a good idea, economically at least, but I’m not really qualified to comment), we have to ask ourselves, especially now when Singapore is celebrating its independence day, what is the Singapore Identity?

I would define such an identity as something that all Singaporeans can identify with. It has to be something that is common and utilised by everyone who calls himself/herself a Singaporean. It has to be something that is part of our everyday lives. When you approach this entity, you must immediately feel at home with it. If you meet a stranger in a strange land who wields this entity, you must be ale to feel familiar with this stranger. It cannot be the cuisines because there is a plethora of cuisines available and not everyone eats everything. Not trying to sound like I came up with this idea, I think the answer to this is Singlish.

While the government frowns upon the use of Singlish (though they seem to have relented somewhat in recent years), it is not all doom and gloom when it comes to the use of Singlish. People generally know that they have to switch to using Standard English when appropriate (e.g. communicating with foreigners). It is not to the detriment of the country to use Singlish once in a while, for fun, humour and among close friends while not taking things too seriously.

Let me present myself as the sole exhibit to illustrate the point. I come from a typical working class family, not rich and not too shabby either – we could make ends meet. My parents are not well-educated in English. I think I could barely understand English TV Programmes until I was in my tweens. I speak Mandarin at home, and practically babble Singlish with friends. With my background out of the way, let me recount a tale of how I survived in London during my nine months in my first year of study.

I was under no pretence that I am going to change the way I speak to sound “British”. I was not going to adopt a Cockney accent or speak “Queen’s English” (though I’d admit I love these accents – they sound like music to my ears). I was going to speak to our own brand of Singapore English with its generally flat enunciation and non-rhotic delivery. I figured that the things I say are going to matter more than the way I say it. And it worked well.

When speaking to European friends, I tend to speak slower (Singaporeans tend to speak too fast!) and remove all the usual quirks of Singlish like la and lor. When I speak to my Singaporean friends, the speed picks up and all the pleasantries are thrown out of the Window as all the hokkien and malay and mandarin return to take their places in my words. I generally get understood pretty well, though I still need to work on slowing it down a little!

On the contrary, my inexperienced ears face problems trying to understand what the others are saying at times. It is said that the more North you go in the UK, the harder it is to understand the accent. I find it hard to understand what some of the Irish and Scots say at times and I am usually embarrassed to ask them to repeat their words a third time and so I just nod my way out of a potentially awkward social situation. It is, of course, no fault of theirs. I need more practice!

My point is that with proper code-switching, speaking Singlish is of no problem at all! Instead of campaigning to eradicate Singlish, the government should promote the use of Standard English in the right contexts and situations instead! And I am not alone in thinking like this.

In Neil Humphreys’ (rather old) book “Notes from an Even Smaller Island”, he wrote at length about how he felt Singlish was a quintessentially Singaporean quality. Looking back at a chapter written almost ten years ago, I find it increasingly important to assert our own sense of national identity in this day and age of globalisation where cultural seepage from other countries through the internet can severely dampen our sense of belonging with our home. How can you feel like at home if there is nothing unique about this place that tethers you back?

Singlish is “Uniquely Singapore”, to quote the Singapore Tourism Board, even though that phrase is technically grammatically incorrect (for all the Grammar Nazis out there!). But hey, this is Singlish we are talking about, and we can be more lenient on the technicalities of English grammatical syntax, could we? ;)

Do not attempt to eradicate Singlish. Promote the use of standard English at the right juncture in the right place at the right time. It is one identity that permeates our society, independent of ethnic groups and social strata. It is Uniquely Singapore.

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For the first time in my life, I am going to attend a National Day Parade with my family, courtesy of my brother who managed to ballot for four tickets. After being away from Singapore for a good nine months, I suppose it will be a nice day to feel patriotic and express our gratitude and love for a country that has given us a lot (despite its shortcomings, but who is to say that any country is perfect?). Though it might seem “trendy” on the internet nowadays to diss the country, it is one day where I will truly feel “Singaporean” among other Singaporeans.

Permanent link to this article: http://new.acperience.net/2011/08/08/the-singapore-identity/

Aug
03

How I Grew Up With Harry Potter

It has been more than ten years since I picked up the book Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone when I was eleven or twelve. I remember reading up till the fourth book before I joined millions of readers worldwide waiting eagerly for each of the sequels. These ended in 2007 with the release of the last book and tonight, after everyone seemed to have caught the film, I finally watched the final episode of the saga in the cinemas.

Supposedly the "birthplace" of Harry Potter which I visited this summer, in Edinburgh.


What a journey it had been. If you looked at my old blog, you can find sparse references to the series scattered throughout the years. From the spoilers of Dumbledore’s Death to the title for the last book, I remembered all the excitement I felt when I could hear any bit of news about the next sequel. The fifth book was released exactly on my birthday in 2003. I remembered pre-ordering it online and having it delivered to my house at about 10 am that morning. And, no prize for guessing, I spent the whole day at home reading the book. Probably one of the nerdiest birthdays of my life. That enthusiasm died down slightly for the last two books as I entered the world of O and A Levels, but they would always surge back when a new book was published and I would literally spend one whole day reading the books. Of course, these culminated in the final book when I simply woke up that day to grab a copy off the book shelves at a book shop (and was surprised to find no queues!) and then spending the rest of the day at home, reading it.

I grew up reading the books, just as Harry had. Even the actors who portrayed them have grown up as well. I was surprised to find that Neville Longbottom’s actor is actually just several days younger than me! But of course, I’m sure he has deeper pockets than this poor student here.

I never liked the films, to be honest. I felt that they butchered too much of the story, but I guess that had to be done if you had to translate a novel worth hundreds of pages onto the silver screen. And so I went into the cinema this evening not expecting much, and I was not wrong. Aside from the stunning effects, and perhaps sub-par acting from some, I felt that the film laid an appropriate end to the saga. I laud the people involved for having the determination to finish the mammoth task of finishing eight films (aside from the fact that there was loads of cash to be made).

And so tonight, I end off this journey with the film. Thank you for having been there when I was growing up. Perhaps one day, when I have the time, I will sit down and read those books again, for nostalgic sakes.

Permanent link to this article: http://new.acperience.net/2011/08/03/how-i-grew-up-with-harry-potter/

Aug
03

Reasons Why I Like Android

I have been a proud owner of HTC Desire for more than a year. Desire happens to be my second HTC phone, after the first HTC Touch Pro which ran on the creaking old Windows Mobile OS which could literally fall over itself. So I decided to take the plunge and try out the Android OS since it has piqued my interest after seeing the first Android Phone.

And I have not regretted since. So here I will document several reasons why I like Android so much even though I am in a country where, anecdotally at least, most people who use smartphones have iPhones. Believe it or not, I don’t think Flash is a “killer feature” of Android, unless what most advertisements claim. In fact, I really dislike Flash and set it to only run “on demand”. So here I present three features of Android that I think are its unique selling points.

Unparalleled Google Services Integration
I am an avid user of Google services. I use Gmail, Google Calendar, Google Reader and, recently, Google+ on a regular basis. All of these services are seamlessly integrated into Android through the various applications. My contacts and calendar events are synchronised wirelessly over-the-air to Google Services. There is no need to even connect my phone to a computer when I reset the phone or flash a new ROM. Everything live in the cloud.

The Gmail application on Android is arguably the best mobile Gmail available. It has almost feature parity with the desktop web client. The Google Maps version on Android is also, currently, superior to its iOS brethren, featuring free navigation, 3D Buildings and offline map viewing.

Widgets and Notifications

Widgets are useful to access information and application features in a pinch


Support for widgets is probably the next best thing after the integration of Google Services on Android. There are tons of widgets to choose from and these widgets can provide you with so much information for you before you ever need to launch any applications.

Unobtrusive notifications lets you handle events when you like.

Secondly, Android has an interesting notification system that allows you to “pull down” a list of notifications. (Or to tap to see a list of notifications in Android 3.x) You get notified and you can handle that notification as an when you like, without breaking the flow of your work. Of course, if you prefer, you can still install applications that present you with popup modal notifications, like in HandCent which provides you with a route to “quick reply” from another application. Again, this is one area that I feel that Android is really good at: customisation.

Ease of Customisation
If there were only one thing I liked about Windows Mobile, it would be its ability for the user to customise the hell out of it. I feel that this is one area that Android excels particularly at when compared to iOS devices.

There are two main “types” of Android customisation: “Root” or “Non-Root” ones. “Root” requires you to root your phone, or to enable “root user” access to the phone. This is somewhat analogous to “jailbreak” for iOS devices. “Non-Root” customisation would be the ones that are already baked into Android and intended for general consumption.

Replace your software keyboard if you don't like the default ones.

Don’t like your default internet browser or SMS app? You can replace them! There are alternative SMS applications and browsers out there in the Android Market and boy, their quality can even be better than the stock applications!

The different options that appears when I click on "message contact".

If you are looking for deeper customisation like theme change (though newer HTC Sense phones can change the theme without needing to root), you can root your phone. Hell, you can even replace the whole ROM as I did in a previous post!

There you have it. Three unique strengths of Android presented to you by a bona-fide user, sans the usual marketing gimmick.

Permanent link to this article: http://new.acperience.net/2011/08/03/reasons-why-i-like-android/

Jul
20

Feels like a new phone

I seem to have gotten a new phone this week – except I did not actually have a new phone physically. I merely updated my one-year-old trusty HTC Desire to a new custom ROM by a great developer which includes HTC Sense 2.1 (from the likes of Desire HD) and some elements of HTC Sense 3 (from the likes of HTC Sensation) and woa la, it feels like I have a new phone.


This is the beauty of smartphones (less the iPhone) that allow you to root/jailbreak/whatever. It basically gives you free reign to do whatever you like with the phone. It can make your “old” phone feel new simply with new and updated software. I remember installing a custom ROM on my old HTC Touch Pro phone that gave it a new coat of paint when the ailing Windows Mobile 6.1 OS was simply dying.

It is perhaps in the best interests of consumers that phone manufacturers don’t make it too difficult to “unlock” the phone. This is perhaps why I feel that HTC and Motorola are taking a right step in their new decision to ship their phones with unlocked bootloaders.

Permanent link to this article: http://new.acperience.net/2011/07/20/feels-like-a-new-phone/

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