Posted on 30 August 2009 @ 13:24 in Tech Stuff
Has it only been 22, 23 months since ASUS released its eeePC 701 to the world?
According to Wikipedia, Asus announced two Eee PC models at COMPUTEX Taipei 2007 – the Eee PC 701 and the Eee PC 1001. I thought the 1001 was launched a while later, at least after the 900. But then Wikipedia entries are not known for their 100% accuracy.
At the time, the other comparable machine was the one developed by OLPC, the One Laptop Per Child project aimed at making low cost computing available to the developing world. Because of the term “low cost computing”, any similar machine was tagged with the same expectations, which was not much. True enough, when the eeePC 701 was revealed, it turned out to be a very small machine with an almost unuseable keyboard and tiny squint-inducing 7″ keyboard. Nevertheless, early adopters took to the machine and began to laud its advantages.
There must be something to the tiny machine after all, when it came out in the news that the 701 was sold out in Australia soon after being launched there.
ASUS followed the 701 with the 900, then the 901, then the 1000, with the first numeral of each model series indicating the size of the screen.
The default operaing system for the 701 and 900 series was Linux. I bought a 900 Linux in July 2008, along with a copy of Windows XP Home to replace the Linux OS. The install was not successful, and I resigned myself to using Linux and living without most of my preferred apps on the 900. Nevertheless, with the 900, which I took on my panda volunteer trip in August 2008, I was able to edit photographs, go online to upload the photographs, participate in my favourite online forums, as well as update a client’s blogsite.
I’d always known there would be a netbook upgrade in my tech future. It came in January 2009 when I bought the ASUS eeePC 1000H running Windows XP, which I soon christened “H”. It remains my mobile computing machine almost nine months later.
Meanwhile, other companies had been sitting on the sidelines, watching how ASUS fared with its eeePC. When they saw the runaway success, they decided it was time for their share of the netbook market, too. Now, there are netbooks available from Acer, HP, Lenovo, Dell, even Toshiba, too. Most of them skipped the 7″ screen to begin with the 9″ screens as entry-level netbooks in their offerings.
Today, ASUS is not the only company selling netbooks. A lot of my friends prefer Acer. But because I began with ASUS, and it’s never disappointed me to date, I decided to stay with the brand when I upgraded to the 1000H. (By the way, I still have the 900 Linux version, and if anyone would like to buy it off me, please leave a comment. But only if you’re in Malaysia, and preferably the KL / PJ area.)
On the NaNoWriMo forums, especially the NaNo Technology forum, there are increasingly questions from interested buyers for opinions on this or that brand of netbook, or just for suggestions on which netbook is better. When I’m in the mood, I leave a comment, and it’s always for them to go to a store selling netbooks so they can have a first-hand feel for the different machines. I particularly like this comment I just posted in response to someone asking about the HP Mini 110:
The best thing for you to do is to look for a store that carries the HP Mini so that you can test it for yourself. It doesn’t matter what other people say – the important thing is how your fingers like the keyboard, your eyes the screen and your purse the price.
If you are interested in getting a netbook, reading up the specs is a first step. Next step – go to the nearest computer store and put your fingers on all the netbooks available there.
|
Posted on 28 August 2009 @ 08:36 in Health
It’s raining. If not, I would be out there on my morning walk. If I were, this would be the first time I achieve the three-times-a-week routine I’m supposed to do. So far, it has been either twice or even just once a week, usually the latter. Some weeks, there were none.
Of couse, I could go and use the walking machine in the gym on the ground floor of my apartment block. I’ve used that before. But ever since I got into the semi-habit of walking outdoors, the indoor alternative has not seemed attractive at all.
This is for my own good. For my health, in general, but specifically, for my bones. It’s what my rheumatologist says I have to do.
Back in March this year, I took the bone mass density test. The last time I had it done was maybe 2 years ago. The results, when compared to the last set of tests, showed that my bones had deteriorated about 8% over the last 2 years.
I could immediately think of the reason for it. Steroids. Prednisolone. It’s one of the two main meds for my lupus condition. Not a big dose, just one 5mg tablet every other day, but over 15 years (with higher doses some months during those years due to a flare in my lupus), it adds up.
But there is another reason for the bone deterioration. Menopause. This is supposed to be a major milestone for women, complete with mood swings, hot flushes and whatnots. For me, it was a quiet transition to the next stage of my life. Actually, I’m assuming I’ve gone thro menopause. There is one less item on my shopping list, which accounts for this assumption. But I digress …
Rheumie also said bone changes are at the highest in the couple of years after menopause. Couple that with my long-term prednisolone use, and that explains the 8% bone deterioration.
Was there anything I could do to put a brake on this?
Yes, there were two items. One was imposed from the outside, the other from the inside, requiring self-discipline.
The outside imposed item was an addition to my meds in the form of a weekly Fosamax dose. I was familiar with Fosamax, having helped to give it to my mother quite a few years ago when she needed it. It’s used to treat postmenopausal osteoporosis, and according to the official website, “the only treatment with Vitamin D, which helps absorb calcium and build strong, healthy bone”.
Prior to this, I had been taking Caltrade to maintain my bone’s health, supplemented with Rocaltrol for the Vitamin D to absorb the calcium. Apparently, the combination was not enough.
Taking Fosamax requires some self-discipline. It’s a once-a-week dose to be taken on the same day, and to be taken first thing in the morning, before food, and after it’s taken, I cannot eat and must remain in an upright position – no going back to bed – for 30 minutes. So far, I’ve been good with this, I even brought along the required dose for my trip to see my pandas in May. I only managed to forget once. When I did, I checked the instructions and found that I could take it the following morning. But I forgot to take it the following morning, and was in a bit of a dilemma until I realised that the following-following morning would still be another 5 days to the next official dose, so by my own reasoning, was still okay to take, better than not taking at all.
The second item ordered by my rheumie was more exercise, particularly a weight-bearing exercise that would get me moving and my bones acting, or re-acting. The easiest weight-bearing exercise, believe it or not, is walking. It is also the least likely to cause injury. I can’t run, or even jog, because the impact would affect my weakened bones. So, I had to walk. And I had to want to walk. That’s where the self-discipline comes in.
It took a while before I settled on my current routine. Initially, I used to go for evening walks around the school field near my sister’s house. But it was a difficult routine to keep; some evenings, I would be late getting there, and if the rest of the family were already home, I couldn’t very well say, wait, let me go for my walk and then we can have dinner. So it was an erratic walking schedule.
Next, I tried indoor walking, inspired by a short story by Preeta Samarasan in the MPH collection, Urban Odysseys. It was fun because I got to look at the window displays as I walked past the shops. But indoor walking just didn’t cut it for me.
Finally, I decided to try the path across the road from my apartment complex. So simple. It was right there in my own “backyard”, but I’d resisted it, mainly out of embarrassment – what would people think? Actually, what do I care what people think – my health is more important.
So now, my walking routine is established, and just needs to be boosted and maintained at three-times-a-week. I even have a little side-routine to get the most out of each walk. I’d read up about it, and have learned to check my pulse before and after each walk, to see if my walking rate is sufficient to keep my heart pumping within an acceptable range – it is. I also wear a simple digital pedometer to help me count my steps on each walk. There’s one more thing I do – I use the stopwatch function in my handphone (mobile / cell) to time each walk. So far, I’ve averaged 35 minutes and 4,000 over steps each walk. Oh yes, there’s one more thing I do – I keep a walking log on my Evernote account, so at a glance, I know how many times I walked each month, and how I fared each time.
Walking. It’s so simple. And inexpensive. And I can say it’s made a difference to my previous sedentary lifestyle. Especially when done in the morning before the rest of the day catches up and drags me down. It may not be much, especially when there are lots of other more exciting ways to keep and stay fit – swimming, jogging, running a marathon, hiking, mountain climbing … But different ways to keep and stay fit for different people, and for me, walking is my way.
Tree-lined and with a rocky side on the left, this walking path across from my apartment complex is shaded against the sun and helps keep my lupus in check
|
Posted on 19 August 2009 @ 21:56 in Stress Busters
If my travel plans have gone as scheduled, right this minute I would be in a room in Xiao Xi Tian inn on Bifengxia Panda Base. I would either be waiting for the water heater to sing and signal that the hot water is ready for my shower, or running a hair dryer over my arms and legs in an attempt to warm up after the shower.
Earlier today, I would’ve visited with birthday boy Mei Sheng and spent some time in his black and white presence, taking lots of pictures to be posted on the Flickr Pandas Unlimited group for fellow panda lovers.
Day after tomorrow, it would be his half-sister Hua Mei’s 10th birthday. But she’s in confinement, having given birth to her seventh cub on 7 July, and I would not be able to visit with her, the way I would’ve done with Mei Sheng.
Then, on Sunday, 23 August, I would be walking up to Leopard Mountain to visit with my adopted panda daughter, Feng Yi, and celebrate her 3rd birthday with her.
But I am not in Bifengxia Panda Base right now, I did not visit with Mei Sheng earlier today, and I would not be celebrating Feng Yi’s birthday with her on Sunday. In fact, I don’t even know if she’s still living on Leopard Mountain with Xi Dou and Si Xue, or whether she has been moved to another enclosure on the Base.
My travel plans have not gone as scheduled, thanks to the H1N1 flu alert. I’m feeling sad that I can’t be in Bifengxia as planned, but at the same time, I’m also grateful for the little nudge from God earlier this year that got me thinking about being there on 12 May, the first anniversary of the earthquake.
Back in September 2007, during my first visit among my beloved bears, I remember promising myself, as soon I stepped into Wolong Panda Centre, that I would return every year from then on, at least once a year.
At least once a year …
I’ve kept this promise twice so far – in August 2008 and in May 2009.
I’ve done my volunteer visit for this year, so I shouldn’t complain.
How was I to know, when the thought came to mind in April this year about being in Bifengxia on 12 May, that a worldwide flu alert later in the year would make it difficult for me to carry out my original travel plans? But He knew.
God knew.
He knew that there would be a flu alert later in the year. I didn’t know, and the thought that came to mind wasn’t really my thought, but His thought that He put there for me. I listened and went through with an earlier visit, thus fulfilling my volunteer trip for this year.
I shouldn’t be greedy. The promise is at least once a year. More would be nice, but in the future, that could happen. Who knows? Right now, I’m sitting here, feeling a little sad but mostly grateful.
|
Posted on 12 August 2009 @ 18:06 in Gadgets, Memories
“Remember you used to go to Long Black all the time?” deesee asked the other evening when three of us met up for a “beamfest”.
Yes, I remember, and yes, I used to go to Long Black all the time. It was a cafe in SS2 – well, not just a cafe, but a cafe offering free wi-fi to customers. It also offered awesome all-day breakfasts. What more could a “young” wi-fi “warrior” ask for.
Those were the days. Actually not so long ago, maybe just 5 or 6 years back. But Long Black wasn’t open for long, altho I don’t think it was closed out by other wi-fi competition. When it closed, wi-fi was still quite a novelty, not commonly available like how it is now.
I have such fond memories of Long Black. I didn’t even have a laptop then, only a 16MB AlphaSmart Dana wireless, the reason for my being in Long Black a lot. Especially during November, the glorious NaNo month, I would be there, writing away, and then going online to update my word count. Ha! Those were the days.
These days, you can find wi-fi anywhere in Kuala Lumpur and Petaling Jaya. Most shopping malls offer free wi-fi, and those that don’t, there’s always a Mcdonald’s or Starbucks, even an Old Town White Coffee shop where you can fire up your netbook or notebook and go online. Most times, you don’t even have to ask for the password to get on.
Ah, those were the days. And here’s a picture of my Dana on the table at Long Black. Trust me, it is Long Black, even tho’ the picture is too close-up to see the rest of the place.
Oh, that “beamfest”? That’s another relic from the not-too-distant past, when PDA (mostly Palm PDA) owners used to meet up to beam apps to one another’s PDA. This recent one was attended by just three – deesee, tehoais and me – altho’ there were no Palm PDAs in sight and we weren’t beaming anything between us.
|
Posted on 6 August 2009 @ 03:14 in Stress Busters
Congratulations to San Diego Zoo’s Bai Yun who gave birth to her fifth cub at 4:58 a.m. PST on Wednesday, 5 August 2009. Her previous cubs include Hua Mei (21 August 1999), Mei Sheng (19 August 2003), Su Lin (2 August 2005) and Zhen Zhen (3 August 2007). Yes, all August babies. What an august family of giant pandas.
Bai Yun may be having another cub, but the zoo’s panda blog notes “If there is a twin to be born, it should happen soon, but we don’t believe there is a high degree of likelihood a second cub will be born at this point.” Her ultrasound initially showed two fetuses but later scans showed one growing while the other one went AWOL. This is not the first time Bai Yun has had twin fetuses – both Mei Sheng (2003) and Su Lin (2005) were surviving cubs from twin pregnancies.
Congratulations to Bai Yun and Gao Gao for adding to the giant panda population!
Related Posts
While I slept, she had her 4th baby
Panda Family Album
|
