Saturday, December 31, 2005

跨年, 2006

新年快樂!!

嗯, 第一次去跨年
累到快暈倒

跟車社的老人(發現我最小)
電動
火鍋
看台北101爆炸, 消失
然後出現"Taipei 101, Bravia by Sony"
(行銷真誇張)

接著玩國王遊戲玩到虛脫
(不過只有我先回來, 大家要玩到天亮的)


該睡了
書念不完T_T
還要找今年暑假實驗室...

---

感想:
車社真是個歡樂的好地方^^

Monday, December 26, 2005

BBC NEWS | World | Americas | US woman swallows phone in spat

BBC NEWS | World | Americas | US woman swallows phone in spat
Yet another bizzare news. "You want pickles to go with your phone?"

新しいCDを買った:柴崎コウ・ひとりあそび

好久沒買專輯了。本來一直在等一青窈12/21號在日本發行的最新專輯:「&」,不過硬碟中的舊歌實在是快聽膩了,一青窈的台壓版又不知道要等多久才會上市,於是在想嘗試新歌手的心理下到唱片行去找特價298的スキマスイッチ・夏雲ノイズ」。不過到了之後才發現柴崎コウ也剛發片。根據前一張專輯的經驗,她的歌大部分都很耐聽,於是就捨棄スキマスイッチ,買了貴50塊的柴崎コウ・ひとりあそび」。
Sweet Mom
令人驚訝的是,這張專輯的風格跟上一張不太一樣,該怎麼說呢,似乎多了不少異國情調。兩張專輯成功的做出了些微的風格上的區隔,不過不變的是,每一首歌都很好聽,沒有那種為了湊歌數而隨便混混的爛歌。

不過這張專輯的歌詞也很特別。有別於一般「不是戀愛就是擁抱」的流行歌,整張專輯不但「愛」這個字不容易找,「抱きしめて」根本是完全找不到。很符合專輯名稱「一個人的遊戲」,本專輯的主角不是最常被描寫的熱戀中的情侶,而是情緒複雜的單身貴族。11首歌中有9首歌詞是柴崎コウ創作,她寫的歌詞常用一些不常見又不容易連貫起來的詞語組成,聯看中文翻譯都要反覆看好幾遍才會懂;她描寫一個人在現代城市高壓又急促的生活中複雜的情緒,非常細膩。

整張專輯中我最喜歡的10首:「
若手クリエーター」。以輕快而有活力的節奏,描繪一個年輕人隻身到都市為了未來而努力,那種不畏困難努力追求夢想的感覺真的很棒。另外,第4首「Graybee」,歌詞是最難懂的,不過其中一小段看得懂的部份卻還真的有點同感。另這首個的節奏還滿high的,很適合飆車時聽:P

最後,一點小小抱怨。台壓版附贈摩斯漢堡的兌換卷,不過「台大店」除外,真是囧...

Friday, December 16, 2005

Mood: 身心大爆炸

本來想說期中考終於全部結束,TOEFL也解決了,總算可以正常一點的準備期末考,結果是動生實1個團體書面報告,1個口頭報告;實驗那邊還有HindIII cleavage test等著我,病毒報告週五就要預報一次,我還很白痴的接下總整理的工作(我似乎有看到牆就想撞的自虐傾向...)。還好明天的瑞芳活動放掉了,不然我真的要進醫院調點滴了。

之前在被發卡的打擊下,以一種自我懲罰的心情把這學期塞滿,希望用忙碌沖淡悲傷。是有效啦,不過過了快一學期的刺激生活,有種快撐不下去的感覺。下學期應該把實驗室和社團都放掉,課也址選必要的,全力充GRE吧。不過對於要放掉的東西,都是我喜歡的;反觀GRE似乎很枯燥T_T 下學期該如何撐下去?是有考慮過延畢,不過自己的自尊不准自己這樣作,從覺得這樣的自己太沒骨氣了,是台灣人就應該拿出台灣水牛的精神全力打拼?!

明天的活動放掉了,有點空虛感。似乎自己帶的活動只要暴力一點,來參加的都是一些不認識又不會聊天,只會埋頭狂騎的人。可惜社上聊得比較開的人一個一個引退,不然就是都低調私約。雖然騎車很不錯,但我還是喜歡那種一群人聚在一起歡樂的感覺。要是純粹練車,我自己去騎北47好了,幹嘛跟社上,還要負擔照顧新生的責任?之前願意付出,是為了可以騎車有伴,談天說地,不織布覺得到達目的地,然後一起拍照,一起玩。也許我討厭孤單吧,那種明明在人群中但卻被忽視的感覺。

我想,以我的個性,雖說下學期要淡出車社,但看到人多熱鬧的活動,還是會忍不住跟吧!

Wednesday, December 14, 2005

I'm done with TOEFL

今天把TOEFL給解決掉了。

早上其實還有點不順,每次鬧鐘想起就在一秒內按掉,還在夢中因為鬧鐘不太吵倒是偶而沾沾自喜...... 然後一起床還我的電腦還在繼續跟我完reset loop,應是不給我開機;PDA也拒絕播音樂,算了,先丟一邊。結果早上的軍訓遲到了一節課。軍訓課時把簡章再看一遍,發現之前為了TOEFL去照的照片還遠在基隆的家裏,心想完了;又仔細看,發現PBT才需要準備大頭照,CBT的是當場照,原來這照片事件從頭到尾都是個搞笑。

軍訓課後,距報到時間還有一個半小時。本來想再複習一下句型結構的,卻太緊張靜不下來,結果只好看漫畫殺殺時間(喂,明天還要考分生耶!)。12:00還沒到,就衝到語言中心去等了。坐下來,沒事做,就把TOEFL相關的公告全看光光。然後,還是沒事作,把護照從第一頁念到最後一頁。環視一下四周,發現一件奇怪的事:怎麼考生中,男生只看到3個,其他全是女的?難道這年頭的男生都不留學的?難道為了晚點當兵,大家都在台灣把研究所一路念到Ph.D然後拖到最後才以高齡去當兵?不會吧?但是我所熟悉的實驗室中也都沒什麼男生,這麼說來大家都就業去了?不懂。

嗯,總算叫到我的名字了:「蔡 Kevin先生!」似乎全場只有我一個人護照上的名字不是中文名字羅馬拼音,真是 囧rz。正式考試果然跟powerprep很像(廢話),不過考聽力時螢幕上出現的照片解析度比較高。範例的部份,這已經是我的3次玩了,相當無聊,就暫時發一下呆。因進場時有簽一份題目保密協定,所以我似乎不能在此討論題目的內容。不過大致上,我覺得比powerprep的題目難,但不像參考書中的題目那麼刁鑽。所以不能作太快,但也不會覺得有陷阱。

其實考完之後覺得Test Of English as a Foreign Language這個名字有點不適合,考題內容比較像是"Test Of English for Campus Use",全部都只考在美國大學校園中會用到的英文,不會考到別的。聯作文都是類似老師會在學校出的報告作業的論說文形式。所以,之前以為各方面都要顧,聽ABC news podcast,讀美國新聞,結果都沒用。其實,念原文教科書就足夠準備閱讀了,聽力,多聽空英吧。反正在學生生活圈以外的東西都不會出現。

最後,感謝糖果陳和Chroma兩位幫我瞭解考試的計分方式和應考策略。

嗯,明天的分生解決後,應該開始計畫後面的步驟了:summer internships, GRE, what graduate schools to choose...

Tuesday, December 13, 2005

Funny how the simplicity of Palm can win over WM5

Living with just a PDA (part 17)- another Palm convert - PDA 24/7

Yeah, the HTC Universal (called the Exec here) seemed to be the most powerful handheld in history. It's even marketed as a tiny notebook computer. Yes, the spec sheet look better, it looks more modern. But Windows Mobile does has it's problems. Thus, after the author did 16 posts of how he enjoyed his Exec, he suddenly posted that he is switching to Palm.

Here's the best part:
"What was wrong. The TX was so fast it was scary fast."
"The Exec can multi task. The TX has completed the tasks without the need for multitasking."

Hm, makes me want to try out a TX myself, too.

Friday, December 09, 2005

I feel miserable...

Accidentally droped my Clie NX73 handheld to the ground again.

Although still alive, now it's suffering multiple minor complications. Gosh, I felt like I just accidently pushed an old friend off a roof of a 3 story building...

Also, the battery seems to be holding only about 1/3 of it's original charge. I'm now charging it anytime I can as if it were a power hungry laptop.

Nooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo!

牽車

原來我騎一台簽一台時有時速限制,超過時速20就會失控把牽的那台車甩出去。
不過自己還可以安然無事,只摔牽的那台,已經有進步了XD

嗯,趕著紅燈前最後一秒卻在路口摔了校園車,真是對不起被我阻礙到的駕駛們。

裝滿「電子錢包」的錢包?

今天到醫圖找病毒學要報告的paper,經過休閒雜誌區,還是不改老毛病,無論是否有更重要的事,看到雜誌就坐下來殺殺時間。

翻開「數位週刊」,看到關於電子錢包的報導,深有同感。

因為某些人覺得找零錢很麻煩,於是發明的電子錢包這玩意兒,繼信用卡後又一種塑膠貨幣。或許稱之為「預付儲值卡」比較恰當。當初北市捷運/公車/停車場共用一張的「悠遊卡」推出時,還覺得挺方便的,不過當時我心裡就已經有點小抱怨:為何不能在便利商店用悠遊卡購物?好了,幾年過後的今天,我打開錢包一看,嗯,有基隆市公車卡、電話卡、圖書館影印卡、醫圖影印卡、7-Eleven iCash,又因為悠遊卡和基隆市公車卡會互相干擾,悠遊卡要另外擺背包裡。天啊,還沒出社會就有6個「電子錢包」了!(高中時期還曾經另有一張台鐵電子月票咧)據說以後還要有高速公路電子收費卡,高雄市的捷運/公車要用Master Card 的PayPass電子錢包系統......。這麼多張卡,煩不煩啊?當初期待第一張:悠遊卡可以逐漸拓展到各領域,結果是各領域的卡越來越多。基隆市公車卡本來說要跟台北市的悠遊卡和的,結果我們非常豬頭的法規不允許,造就了系統相同,卻不能共通,還會互相干擾的兩張卡!高雄用的Master Card PayPass倒是神奇了,因同系統,未來可能可以拿到美國的麥當勞或加油站使用。和國際接軌了,卻不能在國內互通。(北市政府一向耍臭屁,絕不可能會願意改成和高雄市互通的。)

反觀日本,因有Sony和NTT Docomo兩大企業主導Felica平台,真正整合了電車車票、便利商店等用途,現在還整合到手機裡面去,真的可以用手機到便利商店買購物了。NTT Docomo還為此收購TowerRecords唱片行的日本分公司部份股權,明年聯買CD都可以「刷手機」了。

期待臺灣的這些平台也有整合的一天,真正達到一張薄薄的電子錢包游天下,而不是一個傳統錢包塞了滿滿的塑膠卡。

Tuesday, December 06, 2005

TOEFL composition practice: Method of Travel

(Topic from here)

There is a place about 64 kilometers away from my home that I need to go to. I may drive, ride a motorcycle, take a bus, ride a bike or simply walk there. I would prefer riding a bike if I have enough time, here's why.

First of all, I don't have a licences for moterbikes, so riding a motorcycle is the first one off my list. Driving a car seems to be the easiest and fastest way, however, the roads aren't wide near home, and there are frequent trafic jams. I could even be caught in the long waits in front of trafic lights. Besides, driving burns gas, which isn't cheep, and causes polution. Also, finding a place to park also takes time. As for taking a bus, I have to find a bus stop, wait for it to come, take the extra time waiting for it to stop at every stop, and finally, find my way to my destination from the bus stop where I got off. Now for walking, since walking that distance might be really tiresome, 64 kilometers means I might need a whole day to get there, if you count in the time for rests and meal.

Finally, for bikes, I usually ride at an average speed of about 20 kilometers per hour. So, getting there takes about 3 hours. Biking is great exercising, nearly polution-free and cost-free, and is also a pleasure for me. I also have total control of which route I take, as I would if I drive. Thus, if I'm not in a hurry, and not too tired that day, I'd ride there.

Monday, December 05, 2005

Upgreading to Firefox 1.5

Upgrade to Firefox 1.5!
(First of all, if you don't know what's Firefox, see an intro here.)
I just upgrade last week. The most significant difference I felt was the launch speed. Firefox 1.5 sure is much faster then 1.07! And the updated pop-up blocker does work better. The previously leaked pop-ups are now successfully blocked. Not much more stuff to make you say "wow", though, since Firefox 1.07 was already pretty much refined. But please do upgrade, because the new auto-update feature keeps you up-to-date with the latest security update, keeping you safe.

There was some minor problems, though. I did some research before I made the jump to 1.5, and I found out that the Adblock extension had some incompatabilities with 1.5. You have to uninstall it, upgrade and then goto addons.mozilla.org and get the newest version. Also, the PCman extension (which is no longer updated) that I used as a telnet replacement, no longer worked. (Untill I found a modded version of PCman here) As for themes, I previously used brushed, which is not updated yet, forcing me to switch to iFox.

Other then that, all seems fine. So if you're plaining on updating to 1.5, remember to make sure the extensions and themes you love are updated to work with 1.5. And remember, after the upgrade, there's no going back unless you make a new profile.

Happy upgrading!
Spread some Holiday Cheer
By the way, care for some Firefox ad videos? See them here:
Firefox Flicks!

Brrrrrr.........

Winter is certainly here.

It's freezing cold today, with strong winds. Wonder why the cold weather make you feel really drowsy once you get inside. This whole morning it was like a tag of war between me and my eye lids: they keep closing down when I was trying to concentrate in statistics class. But any how, the statistics professor is kind of good at putting me to sleep, so , yeah, I eventually lost and dosed off. What a wasted morning.

It's obvious that we need relativly more energy to keep our body tempretures up in this kind of weather. And boy I spent a lot on food today. Sure wish this won't be the situation for the whole week, or I'll be out of dough fast.

Sunday, December 04, 2005

Trying to fix my Clie


My camera on my beloved Clie NX73 suffered a rough drop to the ground last week when I accidently dropped it falling asleep in class...

Now that it's dead, and I don't like the idea of sending it back to japan at the cost of at least 2000NT dollers, I got a set of those 5T tork screw drivers and went on to dismental my most expensive toy. As you can see I took off the battery and CF card slot covers first.

In the middle of the picture, you could see how weak the plastic power switch is inside. This is my second switch, which costed me 2000NT for the repairs.

And over all view , notice that there are sponges that are ment to block out dust. Also notice how sophisticated and crowed it is inside. Most non Sony models just simply have everything on the mother board. I couldn't find a way to open up the camera module, and the ribbon cable look OK, so I could only give up, and put it back together. At least I managed to keep do no harm and it's still alive, though. (whew!)

But, no more camera, no more pictures. Now, does this mean that I should start looking for a good slim camera, or just use my TH55, instead? Neah, I guess I'll stick with my NX73. The audio remote is still very useful.
(All pictures took with my TH55, which, if you don't know, is my 2nd Clie PDA, my replacement whenever I have problems with my NX73.)

Change of mood (calmness from craziness)

The last of my midterm exams finally finish this past week(which I totally screwed up).

Right after, some friends and I went to a park for a great turkey dinner. It was absolutly great. Not only the turkey it self and the stuffing inside. It was the whole complete package, with wine, french bread, cranberry jelly, gravy and punpkin pie, all together, made it a terrific dinner. It's also about getting together with all the great classmates that we normaly seldom get together with due to the diverse classes we take. After the dinner, we began gossiping about people's "process" in their relationships. After hearing several people's storys(some failed, others are just false rummers), I started to think about my self, and that made the blues come back at me. Yeah, they had recent stories of pursuing mates, what about me? I gave up, like when? Almost a year ago? Oh well, drank a lot of alcohol, trying to see why people in a bad mood likes to drink, wondering if it'd help. But nothing happened, I was still blue, still had a clear mind, and my hand and feet are still icy cold in the blowing wind of the night. So then all I could do then was listen quietly, and occasionally lie back on the soft grass and look into the sky, and , crap, there was only one single star I could see.

The next two days of the week, I was busy working on my experiment class report. That report by it self took me 13 hours to finish. But hay, it still feels great to at least accomplish something. And yeah, being busy some times do make you forget of the sad stuff.

Weird, I guess the feeling's starting to wear off. That particular name is showing up less and less in my mind. Not only did the busy days keep my mind off there, but I guess I'm starting to let a name of some beautiful comic charactor take over that place. Hehe, never thought that reading a comic on relationships would have this effect. But yeah, I guess when I have no targets, letting a fake name fill my mind at least feels better then thinking about the girl who didn't choose me. And besides, that girl in the comic is also cute...