Arrived in Busan intact. Shin is kind enough to pick me and also Michael Haberler from the airport. Checked into the hotel and went for a lovely Korean BBQ with beer, followed by more beer beer and beer. I’m knocking out now ;-)

Incidently, I realize I couldn’t pronounce Michael’s name in German…In the end, we both gave up and he asked me to call him Michael (English way).

Packing my bags and flying to Busan now to give a talk on ENUM. The next two weeks is going to be crazy for me, with lots of flying ping and pong, including one transit in Singapore. Yes, transit. Whoever do travel transit in their home country?

I woke up this morning to discover 70+ comment spams in my blog scattered all over. I was stunned thinking that my captcha has failed¹ to stop their automated tools.

Apparently, a guy from China (aka iacaqa@163.com) was trying to spam my blog so hard that after gotten tired of manually posting comments on my blog, he register an account on my blog, verified himself and then proceed to modify his scripts to spam me. (Registered users don’t need to enter captcha).

All that just to put spams on my blog? How far will they go? That’s why I said Typekey will not work.

Anyway, as easily as he spammed me, a two command to my mysql, “delete from comment where uid=40” followed by “delete from cache”, clean up the blog :-) I greylisted his IP address, switch on CAPTCHA for registered users and call it a day.

¹ Actually, I know at least one method to attack my own captcha but I dont intend to up the ante war unless they figure out that method.

Anyone notice that the brand new My Yahoo! now support RSS & Atom syndication? It is so cool that I could almost give up my NetNewsWire…almost :-)

Okay, after the Skype DualPhone, we have 3G/WiFi phone (via Richard Stansty):

NTT DoCoMo and its regional subsidiaries are now offering business subscribers a dual-network 3G/VoIP handset that works as a 3G mobile phone, VoIP (voice-over-IP) terminal, or both simultaneously. The N900iL is based on a Linux-based 3G mobile phone software platform developed jointly by NEC and Panasonic…When used in wireless LAN mode, the N900iL supports call hold, call transfer, and other standard phone functions, the company says.

This isn’t funny anymore. I can’t keep up buying all these stuff…wait, I cant even buy them here in Singapore :-( And yes, for our dear friends who is in Japan (yes, Adam, you!), you can laugh all you want while I drool on.

And also, Joi has a related entry on NTT Docomo isn’t using Microsoft for their phones. Could it be due to this? It certainly does not inspire confidence regardless the accusation is true or false. But hey, I have my fair share of such experience …

Introducing DualPhone (via VoIP Watch)

The Cordless DUALphone is a cordless telephone that can be connected to a normal telephone socket and a USB port on a PC. The display shows whether your friends who also use Skype™, are online. If they are, you simply have to press the appropriate green button and talk to them for free – no matter where they are in the world. If their PC is switched off, or you want to call someone who doesn’t use Skype™, you simply press the other green button and call via the standard telephone connection.

I am ordering it right now!

Technology Bets is a process Technology group within IDA taken every year to identify 10-15 strategic technology in the next 1 to 5 years based on two criteria (1) attractiveness of the technology and (2) relevance of the technology to Singapore. My group in IDA is responsible for doing this identification process and you can find last year Technology Bets here.

Today, we finally unveil the Technology Bets for 2005. For the very first time, I presented the 15 technologies identified at the Government Chief Information Officer (GCIO) Emerging Technology Seminar this morning.

So what are the 15 technologies? Unfortunately, I cant reveal here until it is up on IDA website so stay tune ;-)

Update 22th March: We quietly update IDA website with the 15 techbets last week.

Would you exchange this with this?

Apparently, Creative think so! Called iBetter, they offering first 5 to give up their iPod with a free Zen Micro and wait, it gets better: subsequent exchanger get Zen Micro at reduced prices.

Someone in their marketing division must be smoking something really strong. I mean, gosh, they going to spend 100M USD marketing campaign on this.

Have they done any market survey with iPod owners? I might consider exchanging if my iPod breaks down…wait, hold on. No, I wont even exchange if my iPod break down. At least, my iPod looks way cooler as a decoration on my desk. If I own a Zen Micro, I would spending my time hiding it from being seen.

I have nothing against Creative. I am just amazed at their strategy lately, like the one that gives out *10* Zen Micro to the top winner of a lucky draw.

Update: Best suggestion I seen so far: Sell all 10 Zen Micro on eBay and buy a Powerbook and iPod :-)

Jeff Pulver proposed an interesting idea called IPv6 Day:

Collectivity we should pick a day, at some point in the near and
foreseeable future and push everyone to reboot themselves and make it such
that from that point forward, IPv6 will be supported on all networks which
interact with the public Internet.

In geeks term, we call this a ‘flag day’. The last time we have a flag day was 1st Jan 1983 when Internet moved from NCP (Network Control Protocol) to IPv4.

So why not do it for IPv6?

Well, first of all, there are far far less hosts connected to the Internet back in 1983. Today, we have all kind of IP devices, some of them requires firmware update or total replacement to go to IPv6. A flag day for IPv6 would potentially cost as much, if not more, then Y2K. (yes, please laugh)
Read the rest of this entry »

I am blessed with many good friends. And I count those who has much more life experience then me most valuable. To me, they are not just friends, but also mentors, whom I can count upon when I need advises. Never failing to spare the time to have a cup of coffee with me, and always around when I need help.

And I am sad that I lost one good friend; Raymond Cheung, Director of SPRING Singapore, a orchid lover, a friend, a mentor, passed away yesterday after battling with nasopharyngael cancer for 8 years.

I regret not having more time to have coffee with him. I’m going to miss him.

Life – Live Life With Intergity, Fun and Energy – Raymond Cheung