So the world is still around. Nothing much has changed. I am officially a 23 year old and having back problems. That has more to do with the horrible chairs at work than my age but I am still going strong. My half life 3 announcement was completely wrong but hopefully it will still happen since its one of my favourite FPS games of all time.

The buzz word in technology is 3D has I predicted in a post some time ago. It seems that one in every 4 or 5 movies can be seen in 3D at the cinemas. So far the only good 3D movie I have seen is Avatar. It was obvious that for Clash of the Titans the 3D version was just added to try encourage people go to the cinema. Right now I will always prefer HD over 3D.

Though the next 3D movie I will watch will be Piranha 3D. It will probably be a stupid movie with a very bad story line but I expect it to be full of funny scary scenes so it might be worth watching it in 3D. The nudity and all the bikinis are just an extra positive (Trailer: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GT1XUWMqQq0).

When the porn industry backs a technology that is when the technology becomes mainstream. Happened recently with Bluray disks and now 3D has their backing. This is bad news for Flash because they are embracing HTML5 but that is a whole other story. Probably right now I seem like a porn addict.

3D is also popping out in the wild. Samsung and Panasonic pushing their very expensive 3D home solutions which require glasses. Nintendo releasing their new DS which is 3D, requires no glasses and most importantly affordable. You do not need to sell and organ or your first born to buy this gadget. The screens have a poor viewing angle but that is not a problem since to play you need to look directly at the screen. The screens the DS uses is produced by Sharp. Sharp realised that they are leading the way with this technology and hence are now releasing the first 3D smartphone by the end of this year.

Chelsea just lost against Manchester United in the Community Shield so not the best start of this year season but it could be worse and there was a spark from the Chelsea team not like the other boring games from preseason. They should be able to beat WBA next week. Even Sky now are showing the games in 3D. Maybe the next TV I buy will be a 3D flat screen…

Once work dies down I can start working on my side projects again

It is no secret that the N97 has undergone many issues and embarrassments since its release. The N97 has many many flaws but I still think it is one of the best phones you can get right now. The N97 can handle anything you throw at it. This makes the phone the ultimate Jack of All trades phone.

Here is a list of some of the flaws of the phone:

• Made completely out of plastic. A metal phone always feels like it has more quality and sturdiness.
• Some of the design features actually damage the phone. Such as the camera glass protector. This is the ultimate definition of irony. The phone has a lens protector to protect the camera lens from getting scratched. Ironically by using the lens protector you would be actually damaging the lens. Nokia released a fix for this last year but I am still not able to get this fixed because I live in Malta so I would have to pay for the repairs.
• The phone needs a beefier CPU and more RAM and internal (C:) memory. Symbian is very memory efficient though it still needs RAM. The lack of internal C: memory is very annoying. It because a juggling act installing some applications which install on to C: without any option. This leaves the users often backing up, formatting and restoring to try free up some C: memory.
• The keyboard layout could be better. I have gotten use to typing using the keyboard but I still find it awkward inserting phone numbers and pressing spacebar.

There are other issues with the phone but right now that’s all I have come up with. The phone has a lot going for it.

• The LCD screen is transflective. This means that you can see the screen in direct sun light. The N97 is one of the few phones out in the market that support this. The screen will never be as clear as a iPhone and other devices but it’s a phone and you have to be able to see the screen during the day.
• The battery life is utterly epic in this device. Without advancements such as OLED screens and other details the phone is able to function for an irrational amount of time. Under very light usage I can get away with charging my phone every 6 days. The phone can easily cope with heavy usage and will last a day under conditions of checking twitter, facebook, uploading photos, phone calls, checking emails etc. There is also an option to replace the 1500mAh Nokia battery with the 3600mAh Mugen battery which will double the battery life.
• The device has an FM transmitter built in. This allows you to hear songs while you are driving without the use of wires or cradles. Some people also buy FM transmitters to connect to their device.
• Camera protective glass lens. Yes on the original phone it actually damages it. But most people can have this fixed at no added cost. This repair also improves GPS reception. Ohhh Malta Nokia representatives should really stop being so difficult on getting these things fixed.
• 32GB of mass memory on board the device. You know how much data that is. I can carry all my mp3 collection on my phone and still have plenty of space for documents, videos, photos, etc. You even have the option of installing a microSD card to add another 32GB ?!?!?!
• The QWERTY keyboard layout isn’t the best but it is still a good keyboard to use. Allowing you to type very fast. Allowing using to type messages faster than anyone can on touch screen devices.
• When you open the keyboard the screen is angled is allows for easier viewing. It doesn’t always the better text input scenario but when using on a desk this tilted display is a God send. You often see people propping up their devices with books, toast, cats, stones, etc. The most classic I have ever seen was a guy using his iMac Book to prop up his iPad while on the phone using his iPhone.
• The phone has a very capable camera. It would have been better if the phone had Xenon flash. The phone is capable of producing very stunning photos under most circumstances.
• It’s a Nokia device. This means that you will be getting many more services even after you bought the phone. From updates to the OS and applications to services such as free world wide GPS offline navigation.

Not sure how many benefits I have written down but the positives really outweigh the disadvantages.

I have owned the N97 for almost a year as of writing this. Right now I am not thinking of upgrading to another device but when the time comes I will happily consider getting another Nokia phone even though this phone had so many flaws.

• Avon vonBrockdorff
• Chelsea supporters club Malta

Two very useful sites. Especially if you want to go abroad to watch a Chelsea game

]]> http://malcolmmicallef.com/2010/05/19/finally-got-around-to-updating-the-website-portfolio/feed/ 0 http://malcolmmicallef.com/2010/04/21/website-up-and-running-again/ http://malcolmmicallef.com/2010/04/21/website-up-and-running-again/#comments Wed, 21 Apr 2010 07:57:48 +0000 Malcolm Micallef http://malcolmmicallef.com/?p=385 The site has been down due to unforeseeable technical errors.

By unforeseeable I mean errors I have been warned about and tried to beat into submission. Yesterday I admitted defeat and changed my hosting plan. It seems that GoDaddy Windows hosting and WordPress don’t see eye to eye. I am now on a Linux hosting plan which promises to be running for quite awhile.

So prepare yourself for more content

For all the people who were using it before please delete that version and replace it with this version. The download link is below. Happy pirating and pillaging.

YouTubeMusicPirate

It was quiet because I went to visit my brother in Bournemouth. Where I almost lost some limbs due to the cold while the horny English girls wore outfits where the total area of material equalled the boxers I was wearing and I don’t wear large boxers.

Anyway let’s continue. While I was away the site was unusually busy for days I haven’t updated. The site has low traffic when I do not update it. But traffic was equalling days where the site was updated. After anaylzing (you have to love Google Analytics) I concluded this increase traffic came from a very unlikely source. The iPad was launched last week and because of that my site had a traffic boost.

Seems like there are at least 50 people in Malta wanting to purchase the device. Being the fair guy that I am I will tell you how to do so…

EBay or Amazon (if they gave up on their discriminating shipping policies). When I find a moment of free time I will try preform an impartial review by reading other reviews. Steve Jobs still ignoring my e-mails and doesn’t want to send me a test unit.

Either way the iPad already a huge success. I believe 700,000 units have already been sold and there are no more units available to purchasing. Manufacturers are going to hire more little children and work their tiny fingers to the bone to double production of the device. Now fat Americans can Twitter from the loo.

If you really want to purchase the iPad you will have to wait a bit before it comes to Malta, but since you are so serious you can use EBay to find the device. Be prepared to pay a fair bit though. The cheapest iPad I found that ships to Malta is 525 Sterling. But if you want to go to places and have people stare at the piece of technology between your hands go ahead buy the device.

Others use Google using some basic but not well known definitions one can search for files. I usually use Usenet to download all my files due to its speed. However the major flaw with these systems is that there is no way to preview the song. In Ares there was once a feature that allowed you to preview the song. However you would have had to download part of the MP3 to preview it.

Nowadays we use YouTube for a lot of our music needs. There are even websites which allow you to create a virtual music library online using YouTube music videos. However, with this system you need to have access to the internet to listen to your songs. In Malta we do have 3G but the data charges are so high it is not an option for most. Either way you would like to hear your music on your basic MP3 player and in your car. Using YouTube you can see the video and decide if you want to make a MP3 or not from it.

In the program I created all you need to do is enter the web address of the video you are viewing on YouTube and select a file name and save location for your MP3 and allow the program to do its magic. It will automatically download and convert the video for you into a MP3. This MP3 then can be played on any MP3 player.

The program I created is not unique in anyway but I believe it is the simplest to use. My inspiration was my father. He wanted some new MP3s and he gave me a list of songs to download for him. Hopefully now he will use this program instead of giving me a list. So inspiration was my laziness. The best ideas come out of one man’s laziness.

I decided to place the file online here for all to use. Be warned that I developed the program over two days and it hasn’t really been tested completely debugged so if errors appear keep that in mind. I might release updates for the program so like this you have to stay coming to my site

To use this program you need to download the zip file (here) and just extract it somewhere on your computer. The program should be easy enough to use. Here are the steps:

1. Open the application. The program you need to open is “YouTube Music Pirate.exe” (the pirate skull with headphones).
2. Select a YouTube video you want to download as a MP3. The link should look something like this http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Sqz5dbs5zmo
3. Copy this link into the program. The link should go in the top text box (“YouTube Video Link”).
4. Press the button “Save As”. Select a folder where you want to save your MP3 and also the name of the MP3.
5. Select the quality of the YouTube video you wish to use and the quality of the created MP3.
6. Press the button “Download and Convert” and wait for the program to inform its done.
7. Enjoy your new MP3.

If you run into any errors or problems either leave a comment on this page or contact me directly so I can fix the program.

Download YouTubeMusicPirate.

Gamecrush works by dividing their community into two categories boys (known as Players) and girls (known as play dates). The players buy credits which can be spent on time playing with the girls, while the ladies are paid to play with the boys. Outside the games players can chat to available play dates for free and spend time browsing profiles.

Supposedly there are around 1200 play date profiles available on the site right now. I cannot confirm or deny this though since I do not own an Xbox 360 but it seems that the site is a big success because it has been overloaded with traffic as of writing this article.

According to IGN the actual dating is divided up into 6 to 10 minute slots. The GameCrush site also supports a few casual games and videochat. Supported Xbox 360 games include Modern Warfare 2, Gears of War 2, Halo 3 and GTA IV. You get to see the play date biting her upper lip while you are fragging the enemy away or just stealing a car and causing trouble around Vice City.

Dates cost 400 GameCrush credits. Predictably though you can only purchase batches of 500. Play Dates keep 60% of the money from each date. 500 credits cost 8.25 US dollars. GameCrush has decided this value by determining how much it would cost to buy a drink for a girl in a bar.

The 1200 girls currently on the site were recruited through a Craigslist ad asking for girls who want to get money by playing games. Not sure if they are component gamers or not. I don’t think it is fair that the guys have to pay. Doesn’t that sound sexist?

Me thinks it’s a rip off. However the site was overloaded with traffic so I guess their business is going well…

Yesterday I ran into a listing which sounded interesting. I decided to email her to find out more about the car. She was selling a BMW which had around 20000miles on the clock for 4000 Sterling. After contacting she said the car in perfect condition etc. In essence it was what most people would say to sell their car. She claimed she movie to Cadiz (Spain) and she wants to sell the car because its right hand drive in a country where they drive on the left.

She said that we would use a company to transfer the money so like this no one had the chance to lose their money. I asked her for the name of the company and she returned this link to me “http://www.uk-yahoo-finance.com” (WARNING DON’T TRUST THIS SITE). I posted the link to show you how alert you have to be. She also gave me registration number and chassis number of the car.

When purchasing anything online you should be keep your guard up all the time. The web address seem valid and even the design of the site seems very yahooish. However the real link for Yahoo Finance is “http://uk.finance.yahoo.com/”. The actual web addresses seem practically the same but the fact there are dashes in the fake one changes it completely.

To confirm my hunch I decided to see who owns the domain in question (whois domain lookup). The fake site returned that the owner of the site was a private user. I was unable to get the name since they are using a domain privacy protector. When we run the real domain name through this free service we find that the registrant (owner of domain) is Yahoo! Inc. We also find contact details, phone numbers, etc. This is further proof that these people are trying to take your hard worked cash away from you (unless you too are a con artist).

If you are looking for a car avoid Tina Wharmby tinaw134@msn.com she is a con artist trying to steal your money. If you feel like sending some abusive e-mails to her I attached her email address to warn anyone looking for a car but feel free to abuse the email address.

When purchasing things online always keep your wits about you. If you have a feeling that the deal you are making seems too good to be true it probably is.

This technological wizardry might change how video games are played in the future and even maybe cut down on piracy. The OnLive streaming game service takes console and PC games, renders them server-side, and then streams it to your MAC or PC. This service costs 15 US dollars a month.

Here comes the bad news. Since we live in Malta I highly doubt that we can use this service. One reason would because of bandwidth limitations of the connections . However, I think the biggest problem would be the latency issues. For the ones that understand what I just said here is a quick explanation.

The game is being played on a machine somewhere in the world (most likely USA), the video feed of the game is then being sent to you through the net, like a youtube video.  You view the video feed and play the game on your own computer. Your controller movements are sent to the computer playing the game.  This data takes time to travel across the net. This time delay would ruin your gaming experience. Hence this service will probably not work in Malta unless the servers are moved closer or just set up here. Maybe they get an office in SmartCity Malta.

From what I have read about the service it seems that the service is working well in USA.

Looks like even video games are moving into the cloud. Save games would be stored on their servers, and multiplayer should be easier. Your game would be available to you anywhere in the world where you have internet access.

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