The Kopi Bean

暗戀 ...

2010-12-26T21:58:00.005+08:00

这几天突然心血来潮，把陶喆的“暗恋”听了一遍又一遍 ...

在这里也为你献上这首歌的MV，希望你会喜欢 ... 暗恋 ...

维

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作曲：陶喆

填詞：陶喆娃娃

Still lonely still loney

昨晚又再見到你你還是那麼美麗

我緊張到話都不會說就傻傻看著你

渴望永遠這距離就是和你在一起

醒來發現這一切都只是我的夢境

告訴自己要冷靜卻又無法不想你

我的懦弱已經開始讓我討厭我自己

是你對我有戒心還是我沒有自信

可是誰也不能阻止我我要暗戀你

So lonely

So here I am standing all alone

在某個街頭有個我在這裡只為你等候

Here I am waiting just for you

開放我所有希望你能瞭解你能夠接受

So lonely

今晚渴望再見你雖然只是在夢裡

短暫的甜蜜也勝過了一輩子沒有你

就算沒快樂結局就算從此死了心

我要付出我所有誠意只要能感動你

我願意

So lonely so here I am standing all alone

在某個街頭有個我在這裡只為你等候

Here I am waiting just for you

開放我所有我要為你怎麼做你才接受我 (才接受我)

我喜歡你 (我喜歡你) 我要你 (我要你) 我愛你

So here I am standing all alone(standing all alone)

在某個街頭有個我在這裡只為你等候

So here I am waiting just for you

開放我所有希望你能瞭解你能夠接受

I'm lonely

故事就說到這裡就算你們再好奇

我想說的都已說完了其餘是秘密

在那某一個街頭會流傳某個旋律

那是我在輕輕唱著歌我多愛你Janine

Purest of pain ...

2010-05-19T19:33:00.002+08:00

Son By Four - Purest Of Pain

I'm sorry I didn't mean to call

but I couldn't fight it

I guess I was weak and couldn't even hide it

and so I surrender just to hear your voice

I know how many times I said I'm gonna to live with out you

and maybe someone else is standing there beside you

but there's something baby that you need to know

that deep inside me I feel like I'm dying

I have to see you it's all that I'm asking.

Vida, give me back my fantasies

the courage that I need to live

the air that I breathe

carino mio, my world becomes so empty

my day's are so cold and lonely

and each night I taste

the purest of pain.

I wish I could tell you I'm feeling better every day

that it didn't hurt me when you walked away

but to tell you the truth I can't find my way

and deep inside me I feel like I'm dying

I have to see you it's all that I'm asking.

Vida, give me back...

Vanilla Twilight ...

2010-05-09T14:45:00.001+08:00

Owl City - Vanilla Twilight

Songwriters: Young, Adam

The stars lean down to kiss you

And I lie awake and miss you

Pour me a heavy dose of atmosphere

'Cause I'll doze off safe and soundly

But I'll miss your arms around me

I'd send a postcard to you, dear

'Cause I wish you were here

I'll watch the night turn light-blue

But it's not the same without you

Because it takes two to whisper quietly

The silence isn't so bad

'Til I look at my hands and feel sad

'Cause the spaces between my fingers

Are right where yours fit perfectly

I'll find repose in new ways

Though I haven't slept in two days

'Cause cold nostalgia

Chills me to the bone

But drenched in vanilla twilight

I'll sit on the front porch all night

Waist-deep in thought because

When I think of you I don't feel so alone

I don't feel so alone, I don't feel so alone

As many times as I blink

I'll think of you tonight

When violet eyes get brighter

And heavy wings grow lighter

I'll taste the sky and feel alive again

And I'll forget the world that I knew

But I swear I won't forget you

Oh, if my voice could reach

Back through the past

I'd whisper in your ear

Oh darling, I wish you were here

解脱 ...

2010-05-05T20:53:00.000+08:00

歌名:解脱

演唱:李玖哲

爱永远都是难题　失去分寸太容易

谁都是凡人　不够小心翼翼

有时侯忘了珍惜　伤害来的太无意

有时爱太急　需要空间呼吸

争吵愈狠痛愈深刻　然后不断自责

我们都忘了最初的快乐

拥抱越紧痛愈深刻　谁不会舍不得

现在我给的或许并不是你要的

如果分离是唯一的解脱　最后的话我来说

如果永远你不必再难过　遗憾让我来过

就算过去的回忆太脆弱　连未来也没有我

爱着你　仍是我的执着

让你哭泣对不起　为了爱承受委屈

说过的承诺　其实还没忘记

愈是在乎的关系　愈是相处不容易

伤害了你　我也失去勇气

争吵愈狠痛愈深刻　然后不断自责

我们都忘了最初的快乐

拥抱越紧痛愈深刻　谁不会舍不得

现在我给的或许并不是你要的

如果分离是唯一的解脱　最后的话我来说

如果永远你不必再难过　遗憾让我来过

就算过去的回忆太脆弱　连未来也没有我

爱着你　仍是我的执着

走到感情关键时候　却握不住你的手

还能有　什么借口　让爱再回头

多少的爱说不出口　就让时间帮我说话

我一个人拼命挣扎

总比两个人一起难过还好吧

如果分离是唯一的解脱　最后的话我来说

如果永远你不必再难过　遗憾让我来过

就算过去的回忆太脆弱　连未来也没有我

爱着你　仍是我的执着

爱着你　唯一的解脱

Believe in your dreams ...

2010-04-11T16:44:00.002+08:00

This is about a true story of a lady from Britain who has believed in her dream to be a professional singer. With regardless of her age, she stood on the stage of Britain's Got Talent 2009 which eventually made her dream come true with her stunning voice which got shock anyone. Salute to you, Susan Boyle !! Never give up your dreams, at least you must try ...

Here's the link of her amazing performance on Britain's Got Talent, enjoy !!

What's in a name? Quite a lot

2010-03-24T11:18:00.002+08:00

If i write that my name is Chan and I am Chiuchow you can tell several things about me. You will know my name and the part of China where I have family roots. But you can also guess that I am from Cantonese-speaking Hong Kong.

If I wrote that I am Chen and of Chaozhou origin, you could tell that I have the same Chinese name and ancestral area, but you could also tell that I am from the mainland, since I write in Pinyin. And if I wrote that I am Tan and Teochew, you could tell it's the same name and place again, but you might guess I am probably from a place such as Singapore or Thailand where the spelling reflects the local pronunciation.

The strange thing about this feature of our culture is that people who read Chinese will miss this information. They will see the name, and that will be that. But if they see Wu, Ng or Goh, they will be able to guess this is someone from the mainland, Hong Kong or Southeast Asia, respectively. It can be quite specific.

Oei is probably from Indonesia, and Vong from Macau (they are both Wong to us). Non-Chinese readers can actually know more than someone looking only at the Chinese.

There is an alternative to writing names as they are pronounced. If you use Chinese on your Hong Kong identity card, a dedicated number represents each character of your name. Even if you are a Tran from Vietnam or a Chin from the Philippines, you are actually 7115, like me.

By Bernard Charnwut Chan. Source: The Standard, Hong Kong

圆规 ...

2010-03-22T10:41:00.000+08:00

陈伟联 - 圆规
专辑：走唱陈伟联
作词人：小寒作曲人：陈伟联

风有淡淡的咸味
是寂寞在捣鬼
唆使我们爱掉眼泪
人们总不会嫌累
车窗里看星坠毁
听着叫回忆的音轨
我握着话筒不睡
不想到天亮才追悔
这个距离是你唯一能够给
给我的依偎
还以为要为爱情的花蕾
建一座堡垒
就能够和世界对垒
却把我反锁在外头低徊
你的防卫就像一个圆规
怕犯规忘了谁
设定我爱你的范围
不能进只能退远远看你的美

我握着话筒不睡
不想到天亮才追悔
这个距离是你唯一能够给
给我的依偎
还以为要为爱情的花蕾
建一座堡垒
就能够和世界对垒
却把我反锁在外头低徊
你的防卫就像一个圆规
怕犯规忘了谁
设定我爱你的范围
不能进只能退远远看你的美
还以为要为爱情建一座堡垒
就能够和世界对垒
却把我反锁在外头低徊
你的防卫就像一个圆规
怕犯规忘了谁
设定我爱你的范围
远远看你的美
我也只能退远远看你

Yesterday ...

2010-03-16T20:08:00.002+08:00

The Beatles - Yesterday

Yesterday,
All my troubles seemed so far away,
Now it looks as though they're here to stay,
Oh, I believe in yesterday.

Suddenly,
I'm not half the man I used to be,
There's a shadow hanging over me,
Oh, yesterday came suddenly.

Why she
Had to go I don't know, she wouldn't say.
I said,
Something wrong, now I long for yesterday.

Yesterday,
Love was such an easy game to play,
Now I need a place to hide away,
Oh, I believe in yesterday.

Why she
Had to go I don't know, she wouldn't say.
I said,
Something wrong, now I long for yesterday.

Yesterday,
Love was such an easy game to play,
Now I need a place to hide away,
Oh, I believe in yesterday.

Mm-mm-mm-mm-mm-mm-mm.

分手總要在雨天 ...

2010-03-14T13:51:00.003+08:00

張學友 - 分手總要在雨天
曲︰片山圭司
詞︰陳少琪
編︰盧東尼

晨曦细雨重临在这大地
人孤孤单单躲避
转身刹那在这熟识的路旁
察觉身后路人是你
如一套戏重逢在这旧地
而彼此不知怎预备
一些叹气跟一串慰问
和随便说一些赞美
为何你眼光年月未变
思忆怎么要再返旧年
你说要走的一晚
连绵夜雨也似这天
总要在雨天逃避某段从前
但雨点偏偏促使这样遇见
总要在雨天人便挂念从前
在痛哭拥抱告别后从没再见
而一个我言词渐觉乏味
人不知怎么躲避
终於看见在这热识的路旁
那个他静静凝望你
而一个你重离别这旧地
临走的一刻亲近地
轻轻送我多真挚慰问
犹如逝去当天语气

伴 ...

2010-03-12T17:43:00.001+08:00

黄小琥 - 伴
作词：姚若龙
作曲：于晓光、李伟菘

如果命运可以订做
如果有另一次选择
我想我还是会把手让你紧握
快乐地陪你去坎坷

就算你有天变落魄
就算你老得不能动
我想我还是会挽着你看日落
你的心疼在泪光中

嘴巴上彼此嫌麻烦
眼神中关怀那么满
没说爱却早已认定一辈子的伴
在人前从来不浪漫
在心中却总为对方打算
最懂的人最暖的伴

就算我以后变罗嗦
就算我老了有病痛
我想你还是会照顾我到最后
隐藏脆弱不眠不休

嘴巴上彼此嫌麻烦
眼神中关怀那么满
没说爱却早已认定一辈子的伴
在人前从来不浪漫
在心中却总为对方打算
最懂的人最暖的伴

嘴巴上彼此嫌麻烦
眼神中关怀那么满
没说爱却早已认定一辈子的伴
在人前从来不浪漫
在心中却总为对方打算
最懂的人最暖的伴

没有辛酸没有遗憾
什么是陪伴什么是心安
你是答案

团圆饭

2010-03-09T15:36:00.003+08:00

我刚刚才与分別身处在3个不同地方的大哥、二哥和姐姐通过电话，向他们確定甚么时候会回家吃团圆饭以及想要吃的菜色，毕竟这可是我们一家人在一年之中最重视的一顿晚餐，当然马虎不得。

其实，小时候，一家人住在一起，天天一起吃饭，因此，我常以为全家人可以坐下来一起吃顿团圆饭，是那么地理所当然的。一直到后来，当兄姐们都陆续到外地深造、工作后，才发现到一家人能够在一起吃顿饭是很难得、很幸福的，也开始慢慢地懂得珍惜除夕夜的那顿晚餐。

我的家都是在大年除夕的晚上围炉，而我们所用的火锅，可是名副其实的“火”锅，因为它可是靠火炭来生火的。我们一家人从当天中午时分起，就开始准备火锅的材料，动手製作自家品牌的鱼丸、肉丸、熬制上汤等。我家的那两老常常为了要怎么准备食材而斗嘴，有时候叫旁人听了都感到啼笑皆非，可是他们却似乎乐在其中，也许这就是他俩做了几十年夫妻的一种沟通方式吧！

別忘了要回家吃团圆饭呀！

每逢吃火锅时，全家最忙的就是妈妈，因为她总是忙进忙出地添加火炭，可是，她从来没有半句怨言，她的脸上始终掛那满足的笑容。心疼妈妈忙得不可开交，所以我们买了好几个不同款式的电插式火锅送给她，可是，她始终坚持用回火炭火锅，她说火炭煮出来的东西特別好吃。我们这些做儿女的，只好换个方式疼惜她，轮流“煽风点火”，扮演“添火炭使者”的角色了！

一家人聚在一起，吃同一锅菜，分享彼此的一切，感恩过去，期许未来──我常在想，团圆饭的意义不就是那么地简单却又那么地深远吗？

因此，不管你多忙，记得今年一定要回家吃顿团圆饭哦！

摘自《星洲日报/副刊》

Heaven Knows ...

2010-03-01T00:18:00.003+08:00

Artist: Rick Price

She's always on my mind
From the time I wake up 'til I close my eyes
She's everywhere I go
She's all I know

And though she's so far away
It just keeps gettin' stronger everyday
And even now she's gone
I'm still holding on
So tell me where do I start
'Cause it's breaking my heart
Don't wanna let her go

Maybe my love will come back some day
Only heaven knows
And maybe our hearts will find a way
Only heaven knows
And all I can do is hope and pray
'Cause heaven knows

My friends keep tellin' me
That if you really love her
You've gotta set her free
And if she returns in kind
I'll know she's mine
So tell me where do I start
'Cause it's breakin' my heart
Don't wanna let her go

Maybe my love will come back some day
Only heaven knows
And maybe our hearts will find a way
Only heaven knows
And all I can do is hope and pray
'Cause heaven knows

Why I live in despair
'Cause wide awake or dreaming
I know she's never there
And all this time I act so brave
I'm shaking inside
Why does it hurt me so

Maybe my love will come back some day
Only heaven knows
And maybe our hearts will find a way
Only heaven knows
And all I can do is hope and pray

Maybe my love will come back some day
Only heaven knows
And maybe our hearts will find a way
Only heaven knows
And all I can do is hope and pray
'Cause heaven knows
Heaven knows
Heaven knows

遥远的她 ...

2010-02-26T19:34:00.004+08:00

演唱：张学友
填词：潘源良
原曲：谷村新司

让晚风轻轻吹送了落霞
我已习惯每个傍晚去想她
在远方的她此刻可知道
这段情在我心始终记挂
在这半山那天
我知我知快将要别离没说话
望向她
却听到她说不要相约纵使分隔相爱不会害怕
遥遥万里
心声有否偏差
正是让这爱试出真与假
遥远的她
仿佛借风声跟我话
热情若没变哪管它沧桑变化

但这天收到她爸爸的一封信
信里面说血癌已带走她
但觉得空虚的心仿佛已僵化
过去事像炮弹心中爆炸
在这半山这天
我悲痛悲痛不已在胡乱说话
夜雨中
似听到她说不要相约纵使分隔想爱不会害怕
人没觅处
心声有否偏差
正是让这爱试出真与假
遥远的她
仿佛借风声跟我话
热情若没变哪管它沧桑变化

遥远的她
不可以再归家
我在梦里却始终只有她
遥远的她
可知我心中的说话
热情并没变哪管它沧桑变化
遥远的她
不可以再归家
我在梦里却始终只有她
遥远的她
可知我心中的说话
热情并没变哪管它沧桑变化
啊......

该不该 ..

2010-01-30T10:50:00.001+08:00

作曲:林麗珍, 編曲:Aubrey Suwito
監製:, 填詞:冷玩妹

誰羨慕我的世界　
誰忌妒妳的一切
其實我們　都無所謂　
愛的人都在身邊　
這就是我的永遠

另一個我離妳很遠　
這感覺我都膽怯
當苦與樂　各自體會　
各有各的每一天　
只能輕描淡寫　我的淚

該不該　告訴妳我不是不愛
該不該　心靠著心才能明白
我的愛　渴望填滿　如果妳能打開

我已經習慣在最深的孤單　
才能看清楚所有自己的糾纏
不能分享是因為我也說不上來　
不是故意隱瞞　也從不想過離開

错过 ..

2010-01-25T09:45:00.010+08:00

叶子，你也在等人吗？还是只是错过了公车？
叶子：“我在等一个我错过了的人，公车能带我去吗？”

曾经
错过了一次机会
以为自己够坚强
天真的以为时间能平复一切 ..

时间依然一秒一秒的流逝
情感却一秒一秒的累积了起来 ..

后悔错过
好讨厌那种感觉
好讨厌自己的不潇洒

如果能够
不想错过 ..

[叶子，你也在等人吗？还是只是错过了公车？]

Leaving ...

2009-12-25T18:41:00.008+08:00

The day is approaching, 3 days more (28 December 2009) I'll be leaving Malaysia to start a new journey in a whole new place, Hong Kong, for at least 3 years. There are so many things I wanted to do before I leave. However, I only managed to do portion of those in the wanted-things-to-do list due to time constraint. Below is the managed & unmanaged things:

Managed:
1. Farewell with my colleagues and students. Thanks for all the wishes.

My colleagues

With IB students I taught earlier

S.H.E?

The memories

2. Visited my Karate master in Malacca.
3. Managed to move to new office for about a week :p

My new office

4. Paid a visit to some friends who are working in Singapore including a friend whom I've lost contact for more than 3 years after we graduated from MMU.

Friend whom I lost contact for many years

Secondary school's friends

Snowman standing on Orchard Road

Unmanaged:

1. Failed to meet a friend due to I had to rush to airport to pick up my uncle.
2. Failed to meet up with one of my mentors in MMU Malacca.
3. Failed to meet up with some buddies from MMU in KL & Penang.

Goodbye, Malaysia ...

The belated cake ...

2009-12-15T17:37:00.008+08:00

Dol hareubang

Sorry to deliver the birthday cake 6 months later as I promised to buy one on your birthday. Sorry for failing to do so on your big day. Unfortunately, it was another regret for not being able to pass you the belated birthday cake personally. Anyhow, wish you all the best and hope able to meet you again ... take care.

An Unforgettable Trip to Penang

2009-11-30T14:29:00.018+08:00

Yesterday I was attending to a wedding function of my colleague at Penang. The function was scheduled at 7pm at Sunway Hotel, Seberang Jaya. However, a few colleagues and I had planned to go there earlier so that we could have sightseeing before attending to the function.

Sunway Hotel, Seberang Jaya

We were car pooling and depart to Penang from Kampar at 9am. The traffic was smooth on the way heading to Penang and took us about 2 hours to arrive at the Auto City. After that, we met Dr. Lee LH at Sg. Dua and had our lunch at a Thai Food Restaurant before crossing to the island.
After lunch, we departed to the Penang island to meet up with Dr. Cheng and his wife at Queensbay Mall.

From left: Dr. Cheng WK (Michael) and his wife, Wong CS, Dr. Lee LH

Performance show at Queensbay Mall

At around 5pm, we (Dr. Choo & his wife, Dr. Lee LH, Wong CS, me) were heading to Sg. Dua again as Dr. Lee needed to fetch his wife to attend to the function later. As been recommended by Dr. Lee, we paid a visit to a temple which has been known to be built at the cost of 8 million Ringgit Malaysia. Here are some photos taken.

The function started at around 8pm and ended at around 10pm. We departed from Penang back to Kampar at around 10.30pm. The trip back to Kampar was unexpected longer than I thought in term of time spent on the traffic. It took me 6 hours to get back to Kampar as the traffic was terrible in the North-South highway. The traffic started jamming just passed after the Tambun Exit and the flow was almost not moveable at all. We were trapped in the traffic for a few hours and decided to exit at the Kuala Kangsar to take the normal road back to Kampar. It was around 2++pm that time. It took an hour plus to get all of us back to Kampar including sending my boss and his wife back at Mambang Di Awan. I was home at around 4am and that time I was almost exhausted as I had not been slept for more than 25 hours.

Insane, isn't it?

Taken during the function at Sunway Hotel

PhD Studies

2009-11-29T03:33:00.010+08:00

Soon, I'll be leaving my current position and off to oversea again to further my PhD study as a full time student with full scholarship at the Hong Kong Polytechnic University (PolyU). Having back to Malaysia for just a year and 4 months, I'm leaving again, for at least another 3 years. Initially I was planning to go at the end of November, however, the plan has been postponed for another month due to the delay of the visa application.

Department of Computing, PolyU

Some people have asked me, why can I just leave my family, friends and career behind and go oversea? The answer is quite subjective and depends on how you look on the issue. I'm leaving none of them. Although I'll be in oversea but it doesn't mean I'll never come back. Family and friends are the one who always giving support to you whenever you need helps from them, although we may not meet that often. I'm not forgetting anyone of my friends, but just expanding my network to knowing more friends from around the world. I've left my career as I prefer to be a full time PhD student so that I can pay full concentration on doing research and hopefully can get my PhD done on time. I've heard from some of my friends their supervisors have promised the PhD could be done in about 2.5 years, on a part time basis. I hardly can believe that as when come to the world of research, there's no guarantee that you could find your answer within a specific period. I'm not sure about the requirements to be awarded for a PhD degree in that university but I believe most of the universities having almost the same criteria - at least 2 Thomson ISI journals. Unless someone has extended his/her master's research otherwise is somehow difficult to complete the PhD within 2.5 years, at least not applicable to me.

Did I so lucky to obtain a scholarship? In some sense, I did. I'm lucky to have met with a few person whom have changed the direction of my life since I was an undergraduate student and they have been my mentors since then. Without them, I definitely wouldn't have the courage to pursue higher degrees. So to some of my juniors from MMU, the scholarship won't automatically come to you, please try to move your first step. Do you know how many emails I'd sent to approach the potential supervisors and also to seek for the sponsorships? The opportunity you must seek by yourself, but not the other way round. There's no harm to have a trial and I see no point of what are you worry and scare of? Worry or scare of being rejected? Worry or scare of lacking of knowledge to pursue higher degree (master)? Those are nonsense. Life is full of failure, more importantly is how to face the failure. You would find yourself know even lesser after you've done your master's degree. Confuse? But is truth.

Good luck.

An unpleasant day ...

2009-10-01T20:22:00.012+08:00

Today as usual I went to campus at around 7++am. I had a couple of things to do before noon, and I had hoped could be done latest by noon. First, to draw lots to pick a room in the new building. Luckily I've chosen one facing the lake as it would not as noisy as those facing the corridor, I supposed. Anyhow, I've planned to swap the room with Dr. Cheng due to personal reason, but that would happen only if ... The first thing wouldn't take much time actually, just randomly picking a number in a box only.

Mr. Matahari

However, the thing really bothered me was the meeting chaired by an old man - a "veteran" known as "matahari" has been with this institution for so many years. The meeting as said supposedly to be started at 10am actually, but ended up nobody had shown up on time. I had no choice but got to wait for the rest of the committees. Finally, the chairman came at around 10.15am. However, the first thing he did was not initiate the meeting but went to draw lots to pick his new room, great !!! Then, the next wonder he did was to PREPARE the materials to be used in the meeting. The meeting was supposed to start at 10am, he came late and was just want to preparing the materials for the meeting >_<"'...

Frankly speaking, I don't really like to attend the meeting held by him as I've had a few bad experiences earlier. Just take the last meeting held last two weeks as example, he spent about 1 hour and 45 minutes to discuss only 2 simple issues. He likes to talk a lot of nonsense and more importantly, he don't want to make decision. Can you imagine as being a leader and don't want to make any decision as he don't want to bear any responsibilities on any decision made, what the ... that's why I said he is "veteran", indeed a Tai Chi master.

Tai Chi Master

At around 12.30pm, the meeting was still like endless story and I really couldn't stand with my hunger and anger anymore, felt like going to have gastric soon, and to slap the Matahari.

Can I slap you?

The things discussed in the meeting again were not the big issues but he did not want to make any decision even asked by one of the deputy deans (DD) how he handled the similar kind of things based on his past experiences. The Tai Chi master again showed his power by replying to DD that he couldn't recall anymore and pointed to me to make the decision. I really fed up with the meeting and therefore I just pulled myself off from the meeting without seeking his permission and went to have my lunch. Do not want to bother anymore!!!

Hopefully I'll be relieved from this committee soon!!!

September ...

2009-09-24T08:25:00.010+08:00

1. I went back home for a couple of days due to the Merdeka Day. Luckily this time I had some companies followed me back to my hometown and most importantly they shared the traveling cost with me :D. They are actually the students of UTAR from the same hometown as me, and one of them is actually the sister of my friend. On the way back to BP we stopped by at Melaka and had our dinner there. After dinner, I showed them to Jonker Walk which is one of the attractions in Melaka. It had been years I did not put my step to this place after I graduated from Multimedia University.

Jonker Walk at Jalan Hang Jebat, Melaka

2. I've got myself a new handphone though not an advanced one but have got all the features I wanted like GPS, WiFi and 3.5G. This new toy offers a lot more features like it supports *.pdf, *.doc, *.xls, and *.ppt file formats. However, the GPS software was not come along with the handphone itself although I'd requested the seller to install for me but got rejected by him as the shop is selling only the genuine handsets and never provide such kind of services. Of course you can pay for installing the GPS software from any of the handphone accessories shops, but the software installed is a pirated copy and they will still want to charge you from about RM50 - RM100. I don't really want to pay such amount for just getting a pirated software so I spent a couple of days on researching how to install the software myself. Thanks to the Internet and now I've had the GPS software installed on my handphone :p. Not only that, I can start to do the "dirt" job to install the GPS software on your mobile devices and charge you at a cheaper rate than other shops, haha ...

3. This would be the biggest thing happened in this month though today is still 24. I've sent out the PhD application. The entire process was just taken 2 days, from the moment I approached the professor, talked to him on phone, and finally sent out the application. Currently still waiting for the further notice whether I can secure the scholarship or not. Wish me luck then.

Finger-crossed

August ...

2009-09-22T18:54:00.010+08:00

It has been quite sometimes since the last time I blogged here due to the busyness plus with a little bit of laziness. It was so many things happened within these period. Therefore, I decided to give a short view of what had happened in these 2 months.

1. I had moved to a new place, not too far from what I had previously stayed. The room is bigger and the rental is cheaper. However, the main reason was because the old place had the direct sunlight shone to the room from the afternoon till the evening. I couldn't imagine I had been stayed in an oven for a few months then only made up my mind to shift out.

2. First time in my life I attended to a concert named "Super Band" held at Bukit Jalil with my colleagues. SuperBand is formed by four veterans: Luo Da You, Emil Chau, Jonathan Lee and Zhang Zhen Yue. I've no regretted to attend to such a wonderful concert.

Poster - Super Band Live In Malaysia Concert

3. The first Korea gang gathering after I got back to Malaysia for 1 year plus. The gathering was intended to gather those had attended to Dongseo University no matter for doing their postgraduate studies or industrial training. However, the attendance was not as good as expected due to some "unforeseen" and "technical" and whatever kind of reasons :p. Anyhow, we still managed to have twelve person attended to this big event as shown in the picture below:

Daorae

(left) Seongyee, Rong, Shin, Wei Liam, Shiew Woei, Shin Keat, Della, Kok Shin, Shu Yun, Yu Shu, Me, HM

We had our dinner at one Korean restaurant named "Daorae" situated at Sri Hartamas. The taste of the foods was quite close to what I had eaten in Korea so I've no hesitation to recommend this restaurant to you.

4. I've been assigned to a new faculty with the department remained the same. The previous faculty I attached to had finally split into three new faculties due to the expansion of number of students. The former one was considerably too big to represent three major disciplines namely engineering, science and technology.

Basically these are the major events happened in August and I shall continue with the story for September in the next post.

FoxTab

2009-07-30T05:59:00.010+08:00

This article is solely targeted for FireFox's fans. Don't worry if you're not one of them, what you need to do is to get yourself a FireFox browser by clicking here. Shall we?

Logo of FireFox

Have you ever thought of the dowdiness of tabbing experience when you switch between multiple tabs of opened websites on your browser? I believe so most of the people would experience the inconvenience of the conventional tabbing provided by most browsers especially when you've opened so many tabs and can't really remember the content of the pages have been opened. In that case, you've to switch from tab to tab in order to look for the content you wanted, which is for me a very unpleasant experience.

However, the unpleasant has been a history after I accidentally found a handy gadget (add-on) for FireFox - the FoxTab. This is really an awesome add-on for your FireFox browser which would definitely change your tabbing experience, believe me!!! The add-on behaves like the Aero effect in Windows Vista so you can "flip" between the tabs with the 3D effect. By flipping the tabs, you can have a glance on the opened pages and easily access to them. FoxTab provides six layouts to display the thumbnails of the opened pages for you. Besides that, you can also configure the 3D perspective of how the thumbnails are being presented on your browser. For the complete list of features, I would like to refer you to this page.

One Night In Ipoh

2009-07-27T23:39:00.004+08:00

Few weeks ago a few buddies of mine had come to Ipoh to attend their colleague's wedding ceremony. Thus, we'd grabbed this opportunity to schedule a meet up after the function. This has been my first time to drive to Ipoh alone late at night as I'm not quite familiar with the Ipoh downtown except a very limited places.

Undoubtedly I'd spent quite sometimes to find the way to the restaurant they were having the function with the help of their friend by giving instruction through the phone. Perhaps with this time's experience has signaled me to get a GPS, so that at least I've something to refer to and wouldn't get lost easily.

After met up with them outside the restaurant, we first made move to the hostel the groom rented for them to unload their stuffs before we went out for drinks at a cafe somewhere near to Jaya Jusco. I like the decoration and also the ambient of this cafe and found it quite comfortable to have a few friends sit in to have some drinks and chit chat together. I think this would be the first time we all gathered together after got back from Korea, am I right, EY & SY? Should we schedule a gathering that summons all of the DSU graduates and trainees?

Friends Cafe

Sunset

2009-07-26T13:22:00.005+08:00

On 24 July 2009 (Friday) at around 7 p.m, just before I left the campus I'd got the scenes of sunset captured by my camera at different settings. The God of luck was favored on me that day as I not always carry the camera with me to the workplace. Perhaps next time you should have sent someone together with me to cherish this beautiful moment.

Sunset (taken with different parameters)

Bridge towards the new phase buildings

The path way

New library (according to rumor)

A La Carte

2009-07-23T03:40:00.005+08:00

What's your reaction when you first saw the title of this post? You may have thought that I'd most probably introducing some dishes I found tasty. I may have disappointed you for the misleading title of this post, please accept my apologize.

This post is all about a film, a short film which had won the honours over the works submitted by 3600 filmmakers from around the world at the 56th Berlin International Film Festival in 2006. The theme for this festival was about "Food, Taste, and Hunger". Amongst the works submitted by filmmakers, only 32 were chosen to be screened and the one I'm about to show you had topped the 32 chosen films shown in Berlinale Talent Campus.

Enjoy the show.

View this movie at cultureunplugged.com

Inequality

2009-07-15T08:57:00.010+08:00

Nowadays the term "equal opportunity" is flying around especially has been practicing by most of the organizations to ensure all of their employees are treated fairly without sacrificing (I don't want to use the term "discriminating", though it may be the truth) the basic benefits.

Recently I've been known about the allowances allotted for each lecturer to visit the industrial training students as a routine to assess their performance during the training period. Unfortunately, I've been excluded from the budget list. No single cent has been allocated to me for this visitation, GREAT, isn't it? I'd voiced this issue to my superior and he'd discussed this issue with the acting dean of the faculty I belong. As expected, the proposal has been rejected by the AD. I'm not surprise when I got to know result as the moment my superior promised to raise this issue to him, I knew it not going to work. Why? Because of that old man (AD). He is soft and indecisive, perhaps the balls somehow have been removed by emperor sometimes ago. Sigh~

Inequality

Look at other side, I shouldn't be so mad on this issue as the unfairness has been practicing in this country. What can I expect a university owned by a political party to be fair enough to its employees since the righteousness of the party has been an opened issue in recent years.

Perhaps my loyalty to this organization has been doubted. The consequences of not being loyalty are well reflected to what have happened to me. I apologize here as I've devoted and sworn my loyalty to the McDonald's. I'm truly sorry if I just not fair enough to you ...

Am I fair enough?

Deeper Thought of A Typing Master Program

2009-07-07T22:21:00.012+08:00

Finally, I have come out something which is quite different from the assignments usually given to the students. NO ticket reservation system, NO ATM system, NO library management system, NO hotel management system, NO registration system, NO calculator ... and NO ...

I had planned to give 3 assignments to my students as part of their assessments. The first two assignments are intentionally to warm them up which contribute only 5% to the total coursework mark. The first two assignments are actually quite related to each other and are not that difficult. The assignment 1 was due two weeks ago and the due date for assignment 2 is just around the corner. However, somehow I found out some of them are requesting helps from their seniors to write the programs for them. GREAT, aren't them? No worry, I can afford to give them the 5% for the first two assignments, but, please try to think further, would they able to score in the final if they do not even able to come out the programs as simple as the first two assignments given to them. Perhaps they should stay back with their juniors to brush up the fundamental programming techniques.

Despite the aforementioned situations, I believe they have got themselves warmed up (or forced to be warming up) and ready to enter the battle mode for the third assignment. I assure this time their seniors would not show their sympathies anymore as I have shown to them the demo program I done for the assignment 3. I have no doubt on their (seniors) capabilities as they used to be my students in last semester and three of them are 4 flat students. They have their own businesses (assignments) to take care of and would not have time to prove they are merciful.

Typing Master (Demo program)

In this assignment, I require them to form a group of maximum 3 members. There has no much instructions given to them but only the title and a few basic requirements like computing the error rate, accuracy, typing speed and etc. They have been given the room to design how the program should like and implement based on their design. Although the program seems like tough for them as I found out the students here have never done even a small project/system throughout their entire lifespan in university except for the final year project. What a surprise to me when I got to know about this. Therefore, I have decided to train my students to pick up the analytical skills by giving least specification and have them analyzed what would be required for the system during the process they designing the solution. The assignment 3 may cause them hectic, but I believe they would enjoy the sweetness of their fruitful works at the end of this semester. On top of that, they would have at least something to show to the companies during the interviews they might attend in the future and feel proud to express what they have done past few years in their university life.

Students, I would really like to see you all excel. Show others your capabilities; Disprove the claim by Jobstreet.com the undergraduates nowadays have been lacking of analytical skills; Prove yourself and show them you are BOLEH!!!

The End

2009-06-23T10:04:00.024+08:00

Finally, the C.P.U workshop which I had mentioned in my previous post had reached a successful ending. The response from the students were quite moderate and we had about 200 students participated on this event.

Basically, this workshop had been divided into two sessions, the first session involved some talks from the invited speakers, studying skills and motivation videos. We had been honoured to invite the representative, Mr. Teoh, from Jobstreet.com to give the speech about the future trend in ICT. I have been impressed by his talk as he had presented an insightful picture about the current and future trend of ICT industries in Malaysia with the statistical data. Definitely I hope all the participants (no matter you are a student or lecturer) would benenited and inspired by his talk.

Representative from Jobstreet.com

While the next session we had actually prepared five games for the participants which required them to form a total of 15 groups before playing the games. Each of the groups was led by one or two helpers who have been the seniors. The role of the lecturers was acted as facilitator to oversee the entire progress and ensure the games were run smoothly within the time frames. The objectives of preparing these games were to cultivate the team work spirit among students, to train them the time management skill as they were required to finish the tasks given to them within the specific time frame. Most importantly, to promote the interaction between the freshmen with their seniors and lecturers.

Last but not least, I would like to extend my greatest gratitude to all my colleagues and student helpers who worked together to bring the glory of this event.

Registration

Division of PA

Security & MC

Speeches by Deputy Dean - Dr. Lim and Mr. Alex Ooi

Games competitions

Helpers and Dr. William (Chairperson of C.P.U)

Group photo - Helpers & Committees

Middlesex University

2009-06-17T13:36:00.007+08:00

Few days ago, I had a short conversation with the deputy dean (DD) of my faculty when I accidentally met him at the staircase as he was on his way heading back to his office. It had been my honour to have the precious moment to talk to him about my PhD plan.

I am quite appreciated of his concern about my progress to preparing for my PhD studies. During the conversation, he had referred one of his friends whom will be joining UTAR soon and has the close connection with the Middlesex University in UK to me. According to him, due to the close connection of his friend with the Middlesex University, I can actually register my name under that university as a part time PhD student under the supervision of his friend and I do not required to reside in the UK for the entire PhD period except viva. The tuition fee is quite acceptable as if compared to those foreign universities in Malaysia. At the end, I would get a certificate issued by the Middlesex University. What an attractive deal, isn't it?

The next day I received an email he sent to his friend and CC to me. I was quite surprised that he had recommended me to his friend about the story he mentioned to me earlier. I really appreciated of his concerns and kindness to recommend me a potential supervisor for my PhD studies. Although I prefer to be a full time PhD student to enjoy my last student life, I would take his advise into the consideration especially during this time of economic crisis which seems quite difficult to obtain a scholarship.

Thanks DD.

Another Nice One !!!

2009-06-17T09:30:00.010+08:00

As recommended by a friend about this piano cello version of Love Story by Taylor Swift and Viva La Vida by Coldplay. Could you imagine what would happen when they meet each other? Let's John Schmidt tell you the story and I bet you gonna love this masterpiece!!! Enjoy!

Love Story

2009-06-16T21:48:00.007+08:00

Taylor Swift - Love Story

We were both young, when I first saw you.
I close my eyes and the flashback starts-
I'm standing there, on a balcony in summer air.

I see the lights; see the party, the ball gowns.
I see you make your way through the crowd-
You say hello, little did I know...

That you were Romeo, you were throwing pebbles-
And my daddy said "stay away from Juliet"-
And I was crying on the staircase-
begging you please don't go...
And I said...

Romeo take me somewhere, we can be alone.
I'll be waiting; all there's left to do is run.
You'll be the prince and I'll be the princess,
It's a love story, baby, just say yes.

So I sneak out to the garden to see you.
We keep quiet, because we're dead if they knew-
So close your eyes... escape this town for a little while.
Oh, Oh.

Cause you were Romeo - I was a scarlet letter,
And my daddy said "stay away from Juliet" -
but you were everything to me-
I was begging you, please don't go-
And I said...

Romeo take me somewhere, we can be alone.
I'll be waiting; all there's left to do is run.
You'll be the prince and I'll be the princess.
It's a love story, baby, just say yes-

Romeo save me, they're trying to tell me how to feel.
This love is difficult, but it's real.
Don't be afraid, we'll make it out of this mess.
It's a love story, baby, just say yes.
Oh, Oh.

I got tired of waiting.
Wondering if you were ever coming around.
My faith in you was fading-
When I met you on the outskirts of town.
And I said...

Romeo save me, I've been feeling so alone.
I keep waiting, for you but you never come.
Is this in my head, I don't know what to think-
He knelt to the ground and pulled out a ring and said...

Marry me Juliet, you'll never have to be alone.
I love you, and that's all I really know.
I talked to your dad -- go pick out a white dress
It's a love story, baby just say... yes.
Oh, Oh, Oh, Oh, Oh.

We were both young when I first saw you.

A Story ...

2009-06-16T13:56:00.010+08:00

Girl made a complaint to guy that he had not care about her. Guy just kept himself quiet and said nothing to the girl. Within, guy had told himself would try to care more about her.

One day, girl was coming back from the other town and expecting the guy to fetch her up at the station. However, the guy had failed her expectation as he had been trapped in the traffic due to the unforeseen circumstances. The anxiety had taken control of his usual calmness. Then he called the girl. She picked up the phone. As from the conversation, the guy sensed that the girl had mad at him, he felt guilty and apologized, but she hung up. The anxiety was getting stronger and stronger after a few attempts to reach the girl as there was quite a distance from the station to the town area. Again, she hung up and did not answer.

The guy reached the station. He called the girl again to check where she was. Again, the phone had been hung up. The sadness filled up his heart. He searched the station, searched the buses ... The efforts were in vain, no trail could be found. Eventually, he had been told by a friend that the girl had safely reached home.

Guy met her at home and apologized. She said nothing and returned with an ironic stare. The strange looked from the girl had raised the uneasiness of the guy and made him chilled. Since then, the guy had rarely talked to the girl as each time they met would remind him about the stare, which had drawn certain degree of fear deep into his heart. The fearful had stopped the guy to claim his promise to care more about the girl ...

C.P.U Motivation Workshop

2009-06-16T00:06:00.011+08:00

The "Competence.Progressive.Upskilling" (aka C.P.U) motivation workshop is just around the corner. The idea of having this event was initiated by my boss which has placed the priority on the new students from our department.

It was quite a surprise to me when I had been told about this event. Indeed, there are plenty of motivation workshops out there to help students. However, none of those I have ever heard was actually organized by a university department. Though the intention is undoubtedly good, what about the outcomes? Would they really appreciate the workshop? Would they really beneficial from the workshop? If yes, to what extents?

Frankly speaking, I am not quite really looking at the brighter side of the outcomes if the students do not change their spoon-feed attitude. They are too passive and expecting to get A-Z from lecturers and never have thought the role an undergraduate supposed to be. Indeed, you may argue that they are paying higher tuition fee if compared to the local universities and should be expecting something in return. Yes, you are right, and you are wrong! Students should not be expecting to get everything from their lecturers, instead, they should take the initiative to explore the new knowledge. The role of a lecturer is nothing but a navigator, to guide the students heading to right directions. University serves as a very good platform for students to share their ideas, to exchange their knowledge and train their personalities. However, after a few months since I been here, I found that only a very limited number of students that could fill up the gap when I taught them only A & Z. They are indeed very good students and I could perceive they have been practicing positive attitudes in their learning process. "We are paying ... " - I know you are paying, does that mean we should pamper you well? To tell you when to study? What to study? How to study? You would never ever want to argue upon this point right in front of me as I used to be a student from a private university and was paying higher tuition fee than yours. Therefore, the reason "we are paying" sounds bad to me and does not make sense at all.

Students, take my advises, change your learning attitude, be dared to explore new knowledge, be dared to share your ideas among friends, behave yourself as a true undergraduate. We are never giving up you, if you are not giving up yourself!

Assignments

2009-06-15T15:32:00.001+08:00

I have been scratching my head since the semester started about what assignments are to be given to my students. For this semester, I have planned three assignments as the practical exercises for my students to expose them to the object-oriented (OO) environment.

Currently, I have come out two assignments' topics which are quite related to each other. The first one just requires them to develop a simple programme that takes N integers specified in the parameter and perform some calculations. The second one requires them to modularize the operations they developed in the first assignment. I believe through these assignments they should have ideas in mind about the advantages of practicing the modularity and reusability in developing applications.

For the third assignment, I am still on my way to figuring out. Most probably this assignment would require them to develop a simple graphical user interface (GUI) application. However, my focus definitely will not place on GUI as it just to enhance the user experiences. What I am concerning is to get them understand the most important concepts in the OO world, which are the inheritance, polymorphism and the encapsulation. Therefore, the question should not be focused intensively on developing the GUI but to instill the three pillars of the OO concepts to the students.

So ladies and gentlemen, could you suggest me what would be the third assignment for my students?

Hello World

2009-06-14T10:15:00.001+08:00

The words "Hello World" have been used in almost every computer programming literature to introduce the very first programme to the readers. By taking the idea to name the title of my first article posted in the cyberspace to fulfill its ultimate purpose "introduce".

In fact, I have owned this space a couple years ago without posting any single word since then. Reason? It could not be simpler, the laziness! Perhaps, I should quit from this habit to invest some of my times to start blogging, regardless whether it is a long or short article. If you look at others' blogs, it is not difficult to find that they share some similarities. You may curious to ask me, "What are they?" Theme. You must set a theme to shape what your blog is all about. It could be about your works, about the foods you tried, about the hang-out places and many more. Therefore, a theme is important to be identified before start blogging which gives you ideas what would be on your blog.

Perhaps, "general" could be considered as one of those themes as I have no favor in any specific topic that to craft my blog.