Preetam’s notes

Preetam’s notes

Preetam Rai  //  Educator, technologist and traveler

Jul 29 / 9:34pm

Where are the humans?

 And so the humans walked away, hand in hand, into their new world.

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Jul 28 / 6:46pm

The Chinese Internet: How to create a QQ account and install QQ internet messenger?

If you do any amount of work with people in China or have friends in China, you should get a QQ account. QQ is the most popular internet messaging software in China and almost all the netizens in China have a QQ account. Once you have a QQ account of your own, the Chinese people will love you more.

QQ messaging window.
 
Wherever they are, Chinese netizen are not far from QQ
Their business cards also has their QQ number
At an airport in central China
QQ has games etc, you can play with your friends.
 
Part 1: Getting a QQ account
a. Go to the URL below to create your account. This is QQ's new international page
 
Fill in all the information asked by the form and press the "Confirm" button.
 
b. QQ will email you a confirmation link. Check your email and click on the link provided. 
 
 Now you have a QQ account.  QQ will return with a number. This number will be your QQ account.  Congrats, now are becoming old China hand. 
QQ will also email you your account number
 
 
 
Part 2: Installing QQ messenger
 
Download the messenger software shown on the page.
 
b. After downloading start installation. There is some bug in the installation software at the moment. So when you reach the screen shown below (screen 2) , disable the Desktop and Quick Launch Bar shortcut.
 
 
Once the installation is finished, you can use the QQ messenger. 
 
Part 3. Adding a friend's contact your QQ client.  
 
a. Click on the "Search for Contacts" icon at the bottom. It looks like a magnifying glass.  A new window will open. In this window you can type your friend's QQ number and press the "Search" button.
 
QQ will show you the friend if it is able to locate her
 
b. Once your friend is located, you can send her a contact request. 
 
 
c. Once your friend accepts your message, you can do text, video or audio conversations. 
 
 
Part 4. QQ shortcut codes. Chinese netizens use these codes just like the Japanese use emoji but unlike the visual reference in Japanese emoji, the Chinese codes are phonetic. For example 521 sounds like wo er yi or approximately wo ai ni meaning "I love you". Once you know these codes, you will be a full fledged Old China Hand. Thanks to dear friend Elf for these. 
 
596 wo zou le / i will go
456 shi wo la/ it is me
7998 qu zou zou ba /go for a walk
594230  wo jiu shi ai xiang ni /i just love to miss ya
360 xiang nian ni /miss ya
2010000 ai ni yi wan nian/ love ya for 10 thousands
1372 yi xiang qing yuan/it is ur business
259695 ai wo jiu liao jie wo /love me,so try to know me
5871  wo bu jie yi/ i never mind
82475 bei ai jiu shi xing fu /it is happy to be loved
08376 ni bie sheng qi le /dont be angry
1799  yi qi zou zou/ lets go for a walk
5366  wo xiang liao liao /i wanna have a chat
246 e si le /I am starving. 
918 jia you ba/ come on
04551 ni shi wo de wei yi/ u r my only
51396  wo yao shui jiao le/ i will go to sleep
537 wo sheng qi/ i am angry

and most important one - always sign off with 88. 88 sounds like pa pa (or ba ba), similar to bye bye.

so 88 and 246. 596.
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Jul 27 / 9:38am

الحنين لمصر

من الهند. بالنسبة لمصر.

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Jul 22 / 3:11am

iPad in HK and SG and some questions on buying, accessories, 3G vs. Wi-Fi

 
iPad is now available in Singapore and Hong Kong. We have been getting questions from friends and members of our local iPad, iPhone, IPod Touch users group on buying the iPad and what they can do with it. They might be useful for other thinking of buying iPad, so I am posting them here. I am not a professional reviewer or anything but I have been using one for the last 3 months. 
1. Should you buy the iPad vs. a netbook?
If you do a lot of complex spreadsheet and if your Microsoft Word files have lots of formatting then a netbook running Windows and Office is better. You can do these on the iPad via various apps but these apps will not be able to handle complex formatting. You can edit Google docs via some apps and you can create docs, spreadsheets and presentations other apps such as Pages, Numbers and Keynote etc. Not all these apps are free  - they range from .99 cents to 10 dollars or more. You will need the VGA adapter cable to project. Also, not all apps are able to project - only the ones that have projection enabled. Check the app's description. 
For most other uses - browsing, emailing, facebooking, news reading, video viewing, gaming etc. iPad is better than a netbook. The battery life in general is also better.  
2. Can I take an iPad on my holidays or short trips?
Yes, I have done this for some of my trips. You can dump your photos from your camera to the iPad but you will need the iPad camera connection kit. The power adaptor of the iPad works with iPhone too and is exactly the same size. You can travel lighter.  The battery life again is good. iPad is able to access most hotel and cafe wi-fi hotspots. I have used it in my trips to Singapore, Japan, Indonesia, Malaysia and Thailand.  Also with an app such as instapaper, you can save your tickets, travel guides from wikitravel and other docs on your iPad. 
3. What apps should I get? 
Check out your local SG or HK iTunes store. Usually the most useful local apps float to the top of the apps list.  There are two lists - one for paid apps and the other one for free. You can buy/download the apps from this list to try out. 
The picture above shows the paid apps. Just scroll down to see the free apps (picture below)
 
4. What accessories should I get?
Get a case that can fold and provide a slight incline for typing. Everyone seems to love my Macally BookStand. 
Macally case positioned for watching movies
Case positioned for typing
If you are going to be showing presentations, get the VGA connector.  Note that not all apps are able to project out. The Keynote app can project. So can Goodreader, an excellent PDF and document viewer.  
The camera connection kit for downloading pictures from your digital camera
I got the bluetooth keyboard but I find that I don't use it much. Get it only if you plan to type in long articles on your iPad. The onscreen keyboard works well if you are used to  iPhone or Android phones. 
5. Should I get a 3G or Wi-Fi model
In SG, wireless.sg works well with iPad, except some points at Changi Airport (might be a temporary thing). If most of your usage is going to be gaming, reading docs or ebooks then I would recommend the Wi-Fi model.  If you really need to keep checking your email and other stuff then go for the 3G version.  If you spend a lot of time on the bus, traveling to work, then 3G is worth getting.  3G does not work well for trains routes that spend a lot of time underground.
If you are already on an iPhone or smartphone plan, then you can get a multi-sim plan from your provider. Under this plan, for a minimal fee per month, you can get an additional data SIM card that can use your existing data plan. The iPad 3G uses the micro sim card. Ask you provider if they are able to give you the micro SIM. 
6. What capacity should I get? 16GB, 32 GB?
If you plan on storing and showing lots of videos and pictures, get the bigger capacity model otherwise 16 GB is good enough. 
 
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Filed under  //  apple   ipad   Learning and Technology  

Posted from Singapore

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Jul 20 / 9:16pm

I recommend IndiaMike and Loney Planet ThornTree India Forum for your India travel questions

This week I am getting some questions from friends looking to travel to India. Let me post two forums that I usually recommend

1. IndiaMike at http://www.indiamike.com

Indiamike.com has been around for last 8 years or so. They have some experienced India travelers and locals on there and often provide good advice. This is where I go to when I am looking for information on less traveled regions.

If you have never been to India, Indiamike has a very good introduction here http://www.indiamike.com/india-articles/8_the-india-confusion/

2. Lonely Planet's India Thorntree Forum http://www.lonelyplanet.com/thorntree/forum.jspa?forumID=16&keywordid=66

Another long-standing forum on India and surrounding countries.
3. And Wikitravel's Indian destinations are always getting better. The main article is here http://wikitravel.org/en/India
Do run a search for the city you are traveling on Wikitravel.

4. Also check out Oktatabyebye http://www.oktatabyebye.com/

5. And if you are trekking then you need http://tripnaksha.com/

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Jul 20 / 5:12am

Banana, Egg and Chocolate Roti from Thai Street Vendor

Looks delicious isn't it.

First the dough

Spread it on the pan

Add a mix of eggs and banana slices

Folding

Generous lump of butter

More heat

Almost ready, add some condensed milk

And chocolate

Ready to eat.

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Filed under  //  food   thailand   travel  

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Jul 11 / 8:59pm

Downloading Media on the iPhone

Got such questions from a friend

Q: Got a questn abt iphone: is it possible to download mp4 videos into iPhone?

A: Use Download Manager Pro. The app features a browser, where you can type or paste the URL of the media you want. The app downloads and stores the media for playback. $1.99 on the ITunes app store.

ITunes link: http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/download-manager-pro/id334640492 
A video review by an YouTube user: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AUZIZuvdWls

Follow up question

Q: What if there are mp4 files on my desktop and I want to transfer them to the iPhone

A: Use Avatron Software's Air Sharing. Transfers fiels via wi-fi

iTunes Link: http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/air-sharing/id289943355?mt=8

YouTube review: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mxA3c5HrhMs

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Jul 11 / 8:26am

Playing with the ASUS UL20A Notebook

Found one hackerspace.sg member using this smart looking notebook. It has 12.1 inch screen, 2 GB memory, decent size keyboard, 7 to 8 hours of battery and it runs an Intel ultra low voltage processor. It comes with Windows 7 home premium but this particular notebook was running Ubuntu. Michael Cheng of Sg PHP group fame and the owner of this notebook had installed Ubuntu from a standard install disc and everything works fine. Not too shabby for about 580 USD. 

         
Click here to download:
Playing_with_an_ASUS_UL20A_Not.zip (2130 KB)

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Filed under  //  Asus   Learning and Technology   Ubuntu  

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Jul 10 / 8:07am

Photos from Australia and New Zealand Travel Meet

We were at Singapore's Woodlands Regional Library doing a Travel meet. Abby and Zoran shared their travels from New Zealand and Australia. We will be back with travel sharing on Sri Lanka and Nepal in August.

                 
Click here to download:
Photos_from_Australia_and_New_.zip (1622 KB)

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Jul 9 / 1:31am

Remote Skype Presentations at Travel Meetups

 Mousan giving us a virtual tour via Skype

We had a Japanese presenter come in from Tokyo and talk about lesser known places to visit at the last meetup.  It was rather last minute,  I was talking to Mousan on Skype just before the meetup and I suggested she stay on and do the first presentation via Skype. A good sport that she is, she readily agreed. She gave us a virtual tour of the places. We should do this more often in future travel meets. 

Some notes on the Skype sessions and how to improve Skype ins:

1. Do a test-run a day or couple of hours before so that we are prepared for the actual session. You also know that the bandwidth is enough.

2. Keep your notebook facing the audience, that way the remote speaker can see who all she is addressing.

3. Have some of the people in the audience pass around the computer and introduce themselves to the speaker. That way the speakers also get to know some of the audience. 

4. For the Q&A have a person seated near the computer to repeat the questions for the speaker. 

5. The screen sharing feature works great. Get your remote presenter to show some pictures. She can also use it to run presentations. 

BTW Abby san posted some pictures from the meetup. http://www.meetup.com/sgtravelmeet/photos/969463/16040196/#16040196
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Filed under  //  skype   Learning and Technology   Travel  

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