Millennium Lifestyles

Menkominfo RI Promise "Blogger" Will Not Imprisoned

iwanketch@bangjo.com (Iwan Ketch) — Sun, 25 Oct 2009 16:06:11 PDT

Minister of Communication and Information Tifatul Sembiring guarantees freedom of bloggers to express his opinion in a virtual universe. He said, as long as no other party defamatory, Indonesian bloggers legitimate to convey unek-uneknya.

"Yes, certainly not. Why Bloggers should be jailed," said Tifatul after giving a speech at the 2009 Pesta Blogger event in Jakarta, Saturday (24/10). "Criticism alone, just do not slander. Yes, the name of expression, answered with rhymes, too finished," continued the minister from Bukittinggi, West Sumatra, was.

Freedom of speech on the Internet network in Indonesia is still a serious concern of the virtual world travelers. This was triggered by the case Prita Mulyasari feud with Omni International Hospital Tangerang on the green table about the alleged defamation committed to the RS Omni Prita.

Therefore, the Pesta Blogger 2009 is the theme of "One Spirit One Nation" is one of them talked about the legality and freedom of expression in a poured the virtual realm of opinion.

Source: Kompas.com

Internet functions are less than optimal

iwanketch@bangjo.com (Iwan Ketch) — Tue, 20 Oct 2009 13:24:26 PDT

YOGYAKARTA. Use of the Internet that can support systems and activities connected online 24 hours, only limited surface use only, not to the contents. Because many government institutions, universities, until the offices are still running the system manually or activities.

If you continue to do so, which supports online internet will actually futile. It is said by observers of information technology Revelation Winarno Wing, on the sidelines of the event Yogyakomtek, computer exhibition in Jogja Expo Center (JEC) held 17-21 October.

"We have to think, time to get online internet nonstop only used to send email, chat, data transfer, download, and opened facebook. Are looking for lots of information, and banking transactions and pay the phone bill becomes easier, will suffice ? " he said.

Wing said the online system should be used again to many sectors that had been deemed wasteful of time, effort, and cost. For example facilitate the extension of affairs Driver's license (SIM) and Sur at Signs Tax Vehicle (vehicle registration) so that someone who does not need to wander hard-Shuhite return home. In addition, the colleges also should be able to use the internet business online in order to pay tuition in installments.

"Why not run a unique system, for example, whenever a student has money, can be directly included in the tuition installment. So, pay tuition, or moneys other college purposes, can be mild because not once," he said.

Universities, according to Wing, can exchange information books. Small campuses can run this strategy. According to him, do not need a college to buy a completely different book, because it would burden of the cost side.

Timothy Siddik, President Director Zyrex, in a discussion on the JEC last Saturday said government agencies were not many who do business procurement of goods and services online. As a result, much time, money, and energy is wasted.

Source: KOMPAS.com

Why Not to Eat at Home Computer

iwanketch@bangjo.com (Iwan Ketch) — Sun, 27 Sep 2009 23:05:59 PDT

Be careful, this bad habit can negatively affect your health.

When the work piled up, you'll often have to eat in front of the computer. These bad habits do you have to get rid of. Any busy work, take time to enjoy your lunch. Because not only have an effect on eating habits are not healthy but also makes your food contaminated with many bacteria.

You must not realize that the keyboard that you use there are thousands of bacteria. We put the food in front of the keyboard, then you type it, these bacteria could be thrown into the food you eat.

The keyboard is one of the dirtiest office equipment and rarely cleaned. There is even research that shows if the bacteria found on the keyboard more than the bacteria found in the toilet. So, do not take risks with eating in front of the computer, because the harmful bacteria from the keyboards can contaminate food and can make you sick.

Not only that, the remaining or spilled food crumbs very tempting spread animal diseases such as mice, cockroaches and flies. Can you imagine if your table, a favorite place these animals because a lot of food. You'll get a virus animal-borne diseases each day.

It is important to keep cleaning your desk for work place each day. Do not just rely on the office cleaners, to clean the table. Every now and then clear the table the maximum of their own work and keep it clean, especially your keyboard. To clean your desk can use wet wipes that contain alcohol. Because the alcohol content in it enough to effectively kill the bacteria.

Ready to Sign Gemini BlackBerry Indonesia

iwanketch@bangjo.com (Iwan Ketch) — Wed, 23 Sep 2009 04:02:16 PDT

Monday (7/9/2009), the Indonesian government began to revoke the certificate A property freezing Research In Motion (RIM) BlackBerry product as a principal. Thus, Indosat, Telkomsel, Excelcomindo Pratama (XL) and Natrindo Cellular Phone (Axis) as official partners with RIM certificate B, was able to re-import the latest phones are besutan Canada. Chief Marketing Officer of Thunder S Siboro Indosat, Telkomsel Nirwan GM Marketing Lesmana, GM Sales Handono Warih XL, and Head of Corporate Communications Anita Avianty Axis, welcomed this decision with joy. Therefore, with re-opening of the import basket, that means tens to hundreds of thousands of variants BlackBerry Gemini with official warranty service may soon be invaded Indonesia. "We welcome and ready to wait for sign from the RIM to do pre-orders Gemini in the near future," said another matching Warih, to ITGazine, Monday (7/9/2009). Both Warih, Guntur, and Nirwan, once revealed, that the minimum order for procurement of imports BlackBerry Gemini each operator is 20 thousand units. Also, the number is believed to still be increasing because of this phone is projected to be many takers. Gemini is the latest variant of RIM dibanderol the price of Rp 3 million-an. Presence of a Gemini is believed to boost the number of BlackBerry users in Indonesia from the current 400 thousand customers ranging from the four partner operators.

Mac OS X File System

iwanketch@bangjo.com (Iwan Ketch) — Wed, 15 Jul 2009 00:52:16 PDT

Do you know Apple? One of the biggest peripheral manufacturers on the world? Their product is always booming in the market but also create a new culture inside the community. Ipod is one of the most important stuff to carry for teenager, Mac is one of the strongest devices for Design graphic, and the brand new iphone is also great news for gadget freaks.

For a newbie, synchronising mac with another device looks impossible. Because Mac OS X uses a different unique file system. You can refer to this article for additional information. The downside to these file system features is the increased complexity of the underlying file system. This complexity affects both compatibility and deployment practices.

PowerPC versions of Mac OS X up to and including Mac OS X v10.4 Tiger include a compatibility layer for running older Mac applications, the Classic Environment. This runs a full copy of the older Mac OS, version 9.1 or later, in a Mac OS X process. PowerPC-based Macs shipped with Mac OS 9.2 as well as Mac OS X. Most well-written "classic" applications function properly under this environment, but compatibility is only assured if the software was written to be unaware of the actual hardware, and to interact solely with the operating system.

Online Casino

iwanketch@bangjo.com (Iwan Ketch) — Thu, 25 Dec 2008 21:39:22 PST

Placing a bet on the table can be a lot of fun. But it isn’t when you are always losing your money in the end. If you can not afford losing the money, never does the gambling stuff. But if you have make up your mind and ready to make serious money in betting, casino or USA online casino is definitely your spot. Well you can even be rich.

There is many myth tells us that you gamble solely on pure chance and luck, but adding in a little mathematics and some proven game technique and strategies will help you out. In fact, it can guarantee you a good winning pay out. This works everywhere, whether on casino or online casino.

Here are some secrets to win any kind of gambling.

*Know the right type of gambling for you.
There are dozen of gambling games exist that you can try for yourself. Casino, online casino, sports betting, and many more. Pick one and master it, it is wise to only stick around with one focus.
*Learn about the game.
Know about the games. Read all related materials for the game such as basic rules, tips and tricks. Knowledge is everything. You can find many good sources from the books or download the tips and secret that scattered all over the world.
*Stick to a strategy.
Pick a strategy that works best for you. There is no such thing as the greatest strategy but there are proven ones. Collate all known gaming strategies and select the one that is effective and works for you.
*Don’t be overly greedy
Being greedy might give you a couple of dollars more but being overly greedy might cause you to lose them all.

7 Good Reasons For Buying A Laptop Online

iwanketch@bangjo.com (Iwan Ketch) — Thu, 27 Nov 2008 20:38:56 PST

Laptops are becoming increasingly popular with consumers mainly because laptops offer excellent portability, convenience and performance in one small package. You can take your handy little laptop anywhere; no matter whether you're just going into the next room or going around the world.

Laptops or notebook computers are the ultimate high tech gadgets of our time. They offer a tremendous amount of technology in a small versatile machine: you can surf the web, you can watch movies or play games, you can create graphics or do a spreadsheet, you can write your next novel or write your latest school report, you can listen to music or connect directly by webcam to all your friends... anywhere, anytime. These are just a few of the things you can do on your laptop.

And those are all good solid reasons why you should be considering buying a laptop if you're in the market for a personal computer. Now here are some reasons why you should make that laptop purchase ONLINE.

Convenience
Buying your laptop online is very convenient. You can sit in your living room and order one of these technical marvels within a few minutes. Granted, visiting your local mall or tech shop will give you an opportunity to examine your future purchase first-hand, but for many buyers in distant or remote locations this is not an option. Online shopping makes it convenient for everyone to buy their laptop, no matter where they live. It gives everyone the same deals and specials that they normally would not get without the Internet. It is a form of 'Shopping Democracy' in action. Forget long drives to a busy mall, high gas prices, crowded stores... ordering and buying your laptop from the comfort of your living room or your home office offers great convenience and satisfaction.
Better Selection
Shopping online for your notebook offers you a greater selection. Actually, these days just about any laptop invented can be bought online. Your selection will be much greater than you can get in a brick and mortar store. Most major laptop stores and manufacturers have online outlets so finding a merchant to suit your requirements will be very easy to do. Finding and configuring your perfect laptop will be much simpler if you do it online. You can take your time and you won't be rushed by impatient customers waiting in the line behind you or frustrated by a pushy sales clerk in front of you!
Laptop Reviews
Perhaps, one of the best aspects of buying your laptop on the web, are all the reviews and customer ratings you can examine before making your final decision. The Internet is a vast warehouse of reviews and customer ratings on the products you want to buy. Third party review sites and online notebook guides are also helpful when you're looking for general information on purchasing a laptop or computer. Many online stores have customer feedback and reviews which are extremely helpful. Whether positive or negative these reviews will guide you in making a better purchasing decision. So you should take full advantage of these online laptop reviews and sites.
Comparison Shopping
Compare before you buy. Another obvious benefit of buying your laptop online, you can compare all the different prices and stores before you buy. The Internet makes this much more convenient than driving around in the real world to four or five stores just to get the best price. Online shopping offers you a great chance to do some serious comparison shopping before you buy. Surf around and save your money.
Best Pricing
Online stores offer very competitive pricing, mainly because there are no overheads or expenses these stores have to keep. Everything is automated and computerized which can mean bigger savings and lower prices for anyone buying online. It is more like buying from a warehouse outlet than a retail store. You will get a lower price. Keep in mind, any online store will have a huge consumer base (the whole world in most cases) that their volume levels may be extremely high so offering lower prices is within reason and good business.
Laptop Coupons
Many major online laptop sellers such as Dell, HP, Toshiba do offer online coupons and special sales which can mean tremendous savings or discounts for the average buyer. In many cases these coupons or deals are only available online so it really pays to buy your laptop from the web.
Free Shipping
Free shipping is also offered by many online retailers and notebook manufacturers. This is another reason why buying online can prove beneficial. UPS or next day shipping is often available, although if you're having your laptop configured or created to your own specifications it usually takes longer to receive your purchase. So the next time you're thinking about buying a laptop, consider buying it online. It will not only be more convenient but you will also have a wider selection, better pricing, and all the reviews and customer feedback you will need to make a wise decision. Moreover, it doesn't matter where you live, you can comparison shop to find the best deal to suit your needs. Plus, if you check around, you can get free shipping thrown in as an extra reason to buy your laptop online.

Article Source: http://www.freeforallarticles.com

For more information on Buying Notebooks and Laptops online at Bargain Prices Click Here: www.bizwaremagic.com/cheap_laptops.htm Or here: www.bizwaremagic.com/notebook-online-buyers-guide.htm 2008 Titus Hoskins. This article may be freely distributed if this resource box stays attached.

Nokia N96

iwanketch@bangjo.com (Iwan Ketch) — Sun, 05 Oct 2008 03:08:16 PDT

As one of the biggest cellular phone manufacturer, Nokia released the newest N Series, Nokia N96. N Series is Nokia’s best lineup for middle-high class segment. Most of them featured with latest innovation like camera, media player, GPS and things like that. The lineup is highly demanded and popular among executives.

Nokia was introduced N96 at first time in Mobile World Congress 2008, take place in Barcelona, Spain on 11-14 February 2008. N96 also offers highly compatibility of dual mode that working simultaneously WCDMA2100/900 (HSDPA) / EGSM900, GSM850/1800/1900 MHz (EGPRS). This feature come in handy for time and cost efficiency, because two phones become one. The camera is one of the best in any mobile phone. With 5 megapixels, autofocus and the Carl-Zeiss optics and Tessar lens, it can match most other phones. We'll also mention that Nokia have improved the built-in GPS navigation system so that you can now download maps for free, instead of having to pay for a licence.

Immerse yourself in up to 40 hours of videos on a stunning 2.8" display with QVGA resolution, 16 million colors and a special kick-stand design. Enjoy easy PC to mobile device transfers when you take photos on its 5-megapixel camera with Carl Zeiss lens and up to 16GB of multi-drive support. When you decide to buy Nokia N96 mobile phone you will get standard sales package, please look below:

Standard Sales Package Contents:*

Nokia N96
Nokia Battery BL-5F
Nokia Connectivity Cable CA-101
Nokia Video-Out Cable CA-75U
Nokia Stereo Headset and Remote HS-45, AD-54
Nokia Mobile Charger DC-4 (car charger)
Nokia Compact Travel Charger AC-5

*Please be aware that Sales package contents may vary by country policies. Also the availability of particular products and services may vary by region. If you want to know further information you can always check with the Nokia dealer nearest to you.

• HSDPA (High Speed Downlink Packet Access)
• WLAN
• 2.8” QVGA (240 x 320 pixels) LCD TFT display with up to 16 million colors
• User Interface: S60 3rd Edition, Feature Pack 2
• Internal memory 16 GB
• Micro SD supported for additional space
• 3D Speaker Audio
• 3.5mm headphone jack
• 5 MP Camera with the famous lens manufacturer Carl-Zeiss plus flash and video light
• Integrated A-GPS (Assisted GPS)

With the feature listed above, I think Nokia N96 is deserved to be called mobile entertainment phone.

International Airport Air Travel Rules

iwanketch@bangjo.com (Iwan Ketch) — Tue, 23 Sep 2008 11:06:00 PDT

Have you ever been on an International flight before? You really need to take a note on international air travel rules. You are not only recommended to do this, but you have to, because by not knowing the air travel rules will cause you a series of problem.

The number one rule that you must abide by at an international airport is identifying who you are. Since airline officials and airport security cannot guarantee that you are who you claim to be, you will need to show proof of identification. Depending on where you are traveling to, this identification may need to be more than a simple government issued identification card or driver’s license. In fact, you may also need to supply your birth certificate, a passport, a visa, or a certificate of citizenship.

Once you have made it though all of the international airport security checkpoints, you should be able to begin boarding your plane. When boarding your airplane, you are advised to do it in a calm, but timely matter. As soon as your airplane is in the air, you need to follow all instructions given by the pilot or flight attendants. This includes staying in your seat until it is safe to get up. In the event that you refuse to cooperate with the airline staff, you may be putting yourself and other passengers in danger.

They are important not only for your safety and well being, but for the safety and well being of others. Although it may seem ridiculous at the time, but if you refuse to stay in your seat or you are caught arguing with airport security, you will find that you are automatically labeled a terror suspect. This is largely due in part to the fear of another terrorist attack. Once this happens it is often difficult or impossible to go back to normal.

In the event that you violate international airport security rules, intentionally or not, it is likely that you will be pulled aside. Depending of the rule that you violated, you may only receive a warning, but you could also receive much more. Should you be labeled as a suspicious traveler, you may be detained by airport security or local authorities for an undetermined amount of time. The same can be said for international air travel rule violations in the air. Once your airplane is able to land, often at the nearest available airport, you will be held for questioning.
What will happen after questioning will all depend on your actions and the preferences of local authorities or airport security? Since you can never guarantee the outcome of your actions, it is important that you stay on your best behavior when at an international airport or aboard an international flight.

The Hybrid Cars in the world…Don’t have to be a best, we just need it.

iwanketch@bangjo.com (Iwan Ketch) — Sun, 21 Sep 2008 11:05:00 PDT

Human, animal, plants have been living in Earth for many millennium, living together in harmony. But since human is a being that have intelligence so human invented a tools to help them. Machines, Electricity, Telephones, Computers, and still much more. As for these days the tools become more common, human can not live without electricity anymore; cars are widely spreading the streets, dirty factory that released a worse pollution to air and water. Human have forgotten the reason to live in harmony, and now human face the worst nightmare, climate exchange, global warming and scrapped ozone.

Human has realized what the mistake is, and began to repair it step by step. Because if human do nothing, mother earth will slowly die, so is human. Revitalize the world is the biggest issues recently.Saving the environment through less gas emissions from cars have been becoming sort of a sacred statement today. That is why Hybrid cars believed to become an answer for transportation. Many car manufacturers have released their own hybrid car. Toyota and Honda was the first who introduced a mass produced hybrid vehicles.

With the advent of technology and science, more and more gadgets and equipments are being offered today to suit different tastes, styles and preferences. So you still have a option to drive a environment friendly vehicle but still wit style.

The Best Sedan Hybrid Car distinction was awarded to the latest Honda Civic Hybrid. Improving significantly over its previous model, it has the sleek and sporty look the conventional Civic has and doesn’t announce its being a hybrid. But being its owner, you will certainly feel the difference. You still get the high quality and comfort conventional Civics provides, but you go to gas stations to fill up less.

The Best SUV Hybrid award is given to the first ever SUV Hybrid in the market, the Ford Escape Hybrid. Its inception in the Hybrid market was such a huge success that although it already has competitors from Toyota and Lexus, it still reigns supreme. With many features and accessories plus the power of a small SUV, the Ford Escape is seen to just keeping better and would be hailed as the Majesty of Hybrid SUV's for many years to come.

Voted for Best Hybrid car in terms of economy in pure fuel is the Honda Insight. Combining its distinctive aerodynamic body design and its lightweight finish plus of course its superb hybrid technology, the Insight produces the best figures in fuel economy. Although not as multi awarded nor as comfortable and powerful as its stable mate the Civic Hybrid, the Insight is best if you want fuel economy, and with the oil prices still surging upward, this is not a bad idea after all.

Confuse which is the Best? XBOX 360 or Playstation 3

iwanketch@bangjo.com (Iwan Ketch) — Fri, 19 Sep 2008 11:04:00 PDT

Entertainment is one of people primary need; there will be endless demand for music, movies, and even gaming consoles. Gaming console is become more popular from time to time, lot of store runs out of stock when new game or console being released. For next generation console, there are a big competition which one is the best. XBOX from Microsoft and Playstation 3 from Sony, Nintendo Wii also a popular console too, but people still consider about the best between those two giant console.

Xbox 360 offers one of the best feature gaming consoles. Microsoft has predicted all about what consumer really need. They developed a system that has everything you need in a gaming console. Packed with Wireless controllers, an upgradeable hard drive, also offer XBOX Live for online gaming experience. You can interact with Xbox player over the world using Xbox Live Headset. For internet connection it has WiFi adapter feature, of you have to make sure you are using broadband connection for best online gaming experience.

Sony Playstation 3 is the third generation in the playstation kingdom, released on November 2006 worldwide. It has unique features like the Blu-Ray drive that is not found for other consoles. It has larger data storage, so developer can put their creativity in maximum capacity. It also can be equipped with WiFi to connect to Internet and play online game with other players. Hard disk is also upgradeable, and has a backward compatibility feature, allow you to play it predecessor games.
About the games, Xbox and PS3 have a lot of game. Most of it comes from same developer, but what makes Xbox and PS3 special for one another is Xbox has a lot of Action game, for people who love blood, explosion and thrilling action, such as Ninja Gaiden 2, Call of Duty 4 and much more. In other hand PS3 has a long list of RPG games, which some of them not released on Xbox360, such as Final Fantasy, Tales series and many more.

As you can see, both gaming console system are closely matched except for the Blu-ray technology that PlayStation 3 has. If you want a gaming console that offers high definition graphics, you should opt for PlayStation 3. With the Blu-ray technology and advanced HDMI technology, you will be able to have the best gaming experience of your life.

Find Your Dream Boat. How to Choosing One ?

iwanketch@bangjo.com (Iwan Ketch) — Mon, 15 Sep 2008 11:04:33 PDT

First of all you must define what kind of boat do you need, because there is no such single boat will do everything. If you're looking for simple sailing boats that are exciting on the weekend, so avoid Jet Foil option. In the other hand, if you're desire to catch a big waves, dont choose a family boat either. You shouldn't expect to find quick acceleration and load carrying capacity together with the same boat.

Think about the very reason why you want to purchase your own boat, what are you going to do with it, and how you plan using it. That is the simple logic, clear it first before you make any decision.

Race Boat
Speed is your main consideration. Many sailors complaining about slow ride boat, they want a cut through waves boat. Speed demons which causing a big waves at full speed.
Sail Boat
For this type, beauty and look is number one. You'll spend most of time floating around, and slowly sail around the lake / bay. You will want to make sure that your boat is amazing, and will catches many eyes when people looking at your vessel.
Fish Boat
Only for fisherman who desire a thrill when fighting with a big fish. This type of boat are the most popular boating activities, so you have a lot of choice to picking your boat.

Take your time, look into the option wisely, and you will have your dream boat before you know it.

Halloween Party is On The Edge

iwanketch@bangjo.com (Iwan Ketch) — Fri, 15 Aug 2008 12:01:35 PDT

The Halloween party is near and most people already make preparation for it. Halloween party is one of the parties that included to each one’s party agenda. This is because most people don’t have much time to relax. Today’s lifestyle is required us to be more efficiently done the task and greater responsibility. Sometime the work hour is not enough to get the job done, and continue it at home. As we live in a professional world, these kinds of life become common life, because in that world people are competing hard and tight. Enough talk of it, the most important thing is Halloween is up ahead of us. Have you prepared your costume? Be haste, because the time won’t wait you.

What do you have in mind? A King costume so you can act like noble to charmed girls? Or a Grim Reaper Costume? Whatever it is, just choose it quick. Halloween Costume must be unique enough to impress people around. To achieve the goal, a decent preparation is needed, and of course time seems being our biggest nemesis. Time is always flow, and none of us can stop it. The only thing all we can do is cheat it. Don’t think falsely about what I said, I just suggesting buying some Halloween Costume from online store. The store I’ve been found is offering a huge list of product. Choose the costume, add it to your cart, pay that for good, and just wait. As easy as been said.
For what I’ve seen about their products, my personal opinion is they are a life saver and time saving solution. The products are varying from toddler costumes to adult costumes, from Holiday theme to Mascot Costumes. So what are you waiting for? Just hit the internet and do your preparation. I’m sure they already thought about their Halloween costume safety, in case if you still have a doubt about their products.

Bring out the party out of edge…!!!

Setting up your Life

iwanketch@bangjo.com (Iwan Ketch) — Wed, 06 Aug 2008 09:35:14 PDT

There are a lot of people who have become rich over the world. They have much for us to learn about their success story, as they have a better qualification than other people. Some of them even don’t have a high education but they have a business intuition, this is the one that we must learn and research. They have goals that giving them short term and long term motivation, helping them to set focus on the acquisition of required knowledge and help you to plan and organize your resources and your time so that you can get the best out of your life. Article like Nouveau Riche on CNN is one of many good resources that you can read on the net. Covering about a lot of successful entrepreneur all over the world, and about their ideas that bring them a highest peak on their life.

For some of us, improving our personal life is finding a new career. If we are working in what we love to do, that rubs off on the way we view things and gives us a better perspective on life. You have to consider the many ways of success we can practice to become a well-rounded person finding his or her dream job. You have to believe in you and what you want. Make it your reality. Nouveau Riche is achievable with a solid plan, whether to change jobs or start a new entrepreneur ideas can become yours. This is a preparation basic idea to help you before changing a career:

Find a career you love
Decide why you want to change careers:
What are your goals?
Identify your interests
What are your abilities?

This Nouveau Riche article can help you through the problem. Setting your motivation, consistency and razor sharp business intuition is very hard at the beginning. Never give up to fate, because the choice is in your hand. Reach the top of your social life and enjoy the most pleasure lifestyle.

USB Stick for a Gifts?

iwanketch@bangjo.com (Iwan Ketch) — Mon, 28 Jul 2008 10:04:46 PDT

In this modern world, anyone who owns or frequently used a computer will very familiar with this gadget. PC at home or work, Laptop on mobile. USB is now well known as one of the most popular or the hottest promotional purposes. As USB Sticks are much more efficient compared to its predecessor, Floppy, it offers faster data transfer rate and bigger capacity

Many Business and Organisations use USB sticks for a souvenir. It carries promotional purposes because name, logo and company details can be printed on its body, it will give a repeated exposure, directly and indirectly. With the wide choice of finishing, design body, color, size, shape, capacity can be a perfect giveaways, a desired and stylish also formal manner.

Because of its high compatibility to transfer files from one PC to another, it is ver convenience to have one in every one pocket or cases. When it first time released we knew that this gadget is going to very popular around the world, but personally, i never thought that from tiny stuff, not so expensive USB Sticks can be one of easiest and the most effective advertising factor.

Brand New Panasonic Waterproof 3G Phone

iwanketch@bangjo.com (Iwan Ketch) — Sun, 20 Jul 2008 04:29:37 PDT

This phone has a rare, unusual capability to stands out before the
crowds, The Waterproof! This phone is gonna be interesting gadget to
have. It has various feature:

Ready stock for various colors like pure white, cherry pink, marine blue and lime green.
2 mega-pixel camera,
Bluetooth,
GPS,
3G HSDPA and
Weighs only 132 grams. (Good for pocket)

The vendor has not been released how deep it can go, but they said
it is waterproof so i think the local swimming pool will be a good test
for it. Give it a call in a middle of pool and you will be the center
of attention.

Moderate Fitness to Enhance Your Life

iwanketch@bangjo.com (Iwan Ketch) — Fri, 18 Jul 2008 10:32:26 PDT

Did you know that by exercising at a moderate pace for only 30 minutes, you would feel a lot better, mentally? It has been proven that this improves the appetite and sharpens your style in problem solving. Not only that. You will also feel that it is easier to sleep at night if you do moderate exercises even for only 30 minutes every day.

Benefits from regular exercise are to give you self-discipline. It also helps you to enhance your spirits and take you out of any stress and depression you had. For beginner, 15 minutes every day is a good start. When your body get used to exercise you had been using, try to increase the ticks.

NEVER, when I said never it should not be done and avoid it no matter what. Never over pushed you body, it can cause you an injury if take too much pressure. Take a break, don’t rush it. When you are ready repeat the process from the beginning.

Here are some moderate exercises you can do and enjoy:

Do the Walking. Make use of your surroundings. You can walk your dog, with your partner or child. Encourage your family to do the walking exercise daily and you will find yourself burning calories while enjoying the surroundings and getting enough sunlight that is also good for your body.
Discover the wonders of Yoga. Yoga is one effective exercise that energizes not only your body but also your soul. You may want to learn even the basic yoga positions that are not too complicated but proven effective. A five-minute yoga exercise can perk you up and recharge your body with the energy you lost for the whole day. You relax and at the same time you stretch!
Engage yourself into sports. Play basketball, football, baseball, tennis or badminton. Many doctors have recommended sports as an effective way to stay fit and healthy. Sports can also be done in moderation. Do not take it seriously. Shooting basketball with a friend is one moderate exercise that is also considered a sport.
Join exercise programs at work. If you still do not have exercises programs at work, then why not start it? You can talk to your boss about it and start with your colleagues. You do not only lose calories but it is also one good way to bond with them. This can be done 30 minutes, 3 times a week.
Exercise while doing household chores. Gardening, raking leaves, lawn mowing, doing the laundry, vacuuming and car washing are effective moderate exercises at home. Make use of these chores to sweat and burn calories. Instead of using machines and gadgets to perform these chores, why not do it with your hands and lose some fats?

Daily and routine exercise will burn your calories before you know it. You will be confidence to approach your potential lover, as you have a good shape body, healthy mind to impress her / him. Show them that you can care about the other because you can take care about yourself.

Mensana Et Corpore Sano.

Technorati Tags: exercise, yoga, fitness

Its Real… FREE webhosting

iwanketch@bangjo.com (Iwan Ketch) — Sat, 12 Jul 2008 12:00:37 PDT

If you wish to have a professional shared hosting quality in a free hosting package, come and host with 000webhost.com and experience the best service you can get absolutely FREE.

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CommunicAsia 2008

iwanketch@bangjo.com (Iwan Ketch) — Tue, 08 Jul 2008 08:41:42 PDT

Held in Singapore 17 - 20 June, The Asia Annually Biggest Exhibition is currently on event. The exhibition has a many innovation in Information and Communication Technology for you to check out. Vendors, Operators will be totally show off of their product.

As years before, CommunicAsia 2008 takes place with other exhibition which has a same format. EnterpriseIT, InteractiveDME, BroadcastAsia and CGOverdrive, but BroadcastAsia takes another hall. More than 2300 participant from different 61 country demonstrated the cellular latest products and solution. 8 hall was filled up with companies offering newest technology, 3G/HSDPA, WiMAX/LTE, Broadband, Fixed Mobile Converence, Fiber to the Home, Next Generation Network, Ip technology, Internet Protocol Television (IPTV), Mobile Entertainment and Satellite Security.

Cellular Phones Vendor also participate into the event, but huge vendors like Nokia, Sony Ericsson and Motorola was missing the event. But Lg Mobile and Samsung was compete each other.LG came up with 'Secret Phones' (Black Label Series) as Booth mascot. As with beautiful ladies inside the booth you can also found a great cellphone, but of course the ladies is great too...Ha, back to the topic.

Samsung's booth was great too, designed with tall, sturdy blue pillars. They want to introduce Samsung i900 Omnia to audiences. Yahoo!, NavTeq, Huawei, SanDisk, Viwawa also participate too.

School of Medical Assistant

iwanketch@bangjo.com (Iwan Ketch) — Sat, 21 Jun 2008 13:12:29 PDT

Health subject is one of the most popular issues nowadays. Diseases like Cancer, diabetes, avian influenza have been haunted human for years. Job as a medical assistant is very desperately needed to fulfill demand on health public services such as Hospitals.

On that table we can see jobs for medical assistant and health laboratories was dominated, and we can predicted the demands will be increasing in 2008.

That data queries only on USA.
It is very promising to attend on medical career these days. With high demands, so we can search more opportunities easily. Lot of educational institute providing us to become Medical Assistant with authentic Medical Assistant Certificate Program.

St. Augustine is one of the Medical Assistant School. It offers an easy schooling for us, it called Online Medical Assistant Classes. We just attend online classes, take up our medical assistant exam and earn your certificate in less than 8 weeks!. It'll never been as easy as ever.

This is an Online Medical Assistant Classes description :

Medical Terminology, Human Body Planes, Basic Human Anatomy and Physiology, Medical Office Professionalism, Patient Communication, Medical Records, Basic Medical Law, Scheduling Appointments, Medical Billing and Insurance Claims, Infection Control, Surgical Instruments, Emergency Care, Clinical Equipment, Patient History and Physicals, EKG and Lab Testing, Specimen Collection and Lab Safety, Introduction to Patient Medications.

Online Medical Assistant Clinical Labs: Virtual Phlebotomy Lab (Collecting a Blood Sample), Virtual Injection Lab , Medication injections, Measuring A Pulse, Introduction to CPR and Basic Ultrasound. Simple Online Registration.

Required Course Medical Assistant Textbook:
All students entering our distance education program are required to purchase the textbook: "Outline Review for the Medical Assistant ", by Marsha Perkins Hemby (second edition). This text contains all the materials and CD-ROM required to successfully complete our Medical Assistant distance education program. The text is available at Amazon.com for $40 (used copies are often available) or at the publisher www.prenhall.com

Canon EOS-1DS MarkIII SLR Camera

iwanketch@bangjo.com (Iwan Ketch) — Thu, 12 Jun 2008 20:35:44 PDT

This camera is very excellent, i was looking around the web and i found 10 satisfied comments from 10 users. It's very easy to find product info or technical details, but to search users comment isn't very easy, it takes a lot of effort. But when i am looking info about this Canon Eos I've found pebuzz.com, PEbuzz is a social networking website for gadget lovers, it users provide reviews, opinions, etc on personal electronics. Feel free to check it out.

Product Info :

Product Features

21.1-megapixel full-frame CMOS sensor
Large 3.0-inch LCD display with Live View and seven brightness settings
5 fps at shutter speeds 1/500 second or faster (for bursts of up to 45 Large/Fine JPEGs or 15 RAW images)
sRAW mode; 35-zone metering system; 45-point AF; integrated Self-Cleaning Sensor Unit
Powered by LP-E4 lithium-ion battery pack; stores images on CF, SD, or some SDHC memory cards

Technical Details

Effective resolution: Approximately 21.1 million pixels (total pixels: approximately 21.9 million)
Recording pixels: 5616 x 3744
Sensor type: Full-frame CMOS sensor, with primary R-G-B filtration (28 x 18.7 millimeters)
Pixel size: 6.4 microns square
Lens focal length factor: None (1x)
Imaging processor: Dual DIGIC III image processors
Maximum frames per second: 5 frames per second (fps) at shutter speeds 1/500 second or faster, in all recording modes
Drive modes: Single; silent (single-frame); high-speed continuous (5 fps; adjustable 5 to 2 fps); low-speed continuous (3 fps; adjustable 4 to 1 fps)
Maximum number of frames / burst: JPEG: 45 (full-resolution, Level-8 fine compression); RAW: 15; RAW plus JPEG: TBA
Flash sync speed: Up to 1/250, with EX-series Speedlites
Shutter "lag" time: Approximately 55 milliseconds (from half-way to fully depressing shutter button)
Start-up time: 0.15 seconds
Image type: JPEG, RAW (14 bit); improved A/D conversion to 14-bit processing for 16,384 individual tones
Highlight tone priority: Improve tonal range in highlight areas by approximately 1 stop (C.Fn II-2)
Noise reduction: Long exposures 1 second and longer (C.Fn II-1); high-speed ISO images (C.Fn II-2)
Storage media: Compatible with two card slots and external storage media; CompactFlash (Type I or II, including MicroDrives); SD card slot (SDHC-compatible for 2GB higher SD cards); USB external hard drives (requires optional WFT-E2A wireless transmitter)
Recording options: Multiple media recording options: record to only one memory card; record the same image to both SD and CF card; record RAW image to a CF card and JPEG image to a SD card
New additional features: Files can be automatically written to another media if card beomes full; select different image sizes and save to different media (example: different JPEG sizes); record same image using all three media options, including external hard drive; copy files manually from one card to another, or to connected USB hard drive
Image format options: JPEG (compression adjustable in 10 steps on menu); RAW ("CR2" RAW file format); RAW + JPEG (selectable on rear LCD panel); sRAW ("CR2" small RAW file format; 1 /4 file size of full-resolution RAW, approximately 5.2 megapixels)
Resolution options: Large: 5616 x 3744 (approximately 21.0 million pixels); "Medium 1": 4992 x 3328 (approximately 16.6 million pixels); "Medium 2": 4080 x 2720 (approximately 11.0 million pixels); "Small": 2784 x 1856 (approximately 5.2 million pixels); "RAW": 5616 x 3744 (approximately 21.0 million pixels); "sRAW": 2784 x 1856 (approximately 5.2 million pixels)
Data recording format: DCF 2.0 and EXIF 2.21; EXIF 2.21--applies "Adobe 1998 RGB" color space tag to images
Sound recording: Maximum 30 seconds per sound clip (more than one clip can be assigned to each image)
Folder settings: Create new folder and select on memory card
3-part approach to dust reduction: EOS Integrated Cleaning System; self-cleaning sensor unit--low pass filter in front of the sensor vibrates at a very high frequency for about four seconds to "shake" off loose dust and dirt; occurs on start-up and shut down--can also be activated by user or totally disabled; Dust Delete Data: a test shot is taken and any dust spots are "mapped" and added to each image's text data; automatic removal possible in Canon DPP software; manual: user can lock up mirror to blow off any dust or have service technician wipe sensor clean
LCD monitor: 3.0-inch (diagonal) TFT color; approximately 100% coverage; approximately 230,000 pixels
Playback options: Single image; single image with info and histogram; 4-index or 9-index image; magnified zoom display
Live View type: Electronic viewing of scene, directly off imaging sensor, on LCD monitor
Coverage: Approximately 100%
Metering: Real-time evaluative metering (off CMOS imaging sensor)
Grid display: Two vertical and two horizontal lines; can be turned on or off by user
Aspect ratio: Masking for 6:6, 3:4, 4:5, 6:7, 10:12, and 5:7
PC live view: Enabled using EOS Utility (v.2.0) (use computer monitor as viewfinder)
Shutter speed range: 30 seconds to 1/8000, plus bulb (1/3, 1/2, or full-stop increments when user-set)
Maximum flash sync speed: 1/250 second
Anticipated shutter durability: 300,000 exposures
ISO range: 100 to 1600, in 1/3-stop increments; ISO 50 and 3200 can be added via ISO extension on menu; new ISO safety shift (camera shifts ISO in Tv or Av mode if needed to preserve exposure)
Exposure modes: Manual, Aperture-priority, Shutter-priority, Program, Bulb
Metering: 63-zone metering linked to 19 AF points; Evaluative metering (63-zone, linked to active AF point); Center-weighted metering; Partial metering (approximately 8.5% of the picture area); Spot metering (approximately 2.4% of the picture area); Options: Center only; linked to any of 19 AF points; and Multi-spot metering up to 8 readings
Metering range: EV 0 to 20 (all patterns; at normal temperatures)
Exposure compensation: Possible in any Auto exposure mode; up to +/- 3 stops, in 1/3-stop increments
Exposure bracketing: 2, 3, 5, or 7 shots (selectable with C.Fn I-6); up to +/- 3 stops, in 1/3-stop increments; Standard Auto bracketing, via aperture and/or shutter speed
Compatible flashes: Canon EX-series Speedlites (TTL flash not possible with non-EX speedlites)
E-TTL II: 63-zone metering with EX-series speedlites; evaluative E-TTL flash metering (can be averaged over all 63 metering zones); distance information now used from compatible Canon EF lenses for flash calculations
Flash metered manual: Possible with flash in Manual mode, via FEL button
Flash exposure lock: 2.4% Spot metering of pre-flash illumination
Flash exposure compensation: Possible on body for certain speedlites (up to +/- 3 stops, in 1/3-stop increments)
Flash exposure bracketing: Possible with 580EX II, 580EX, 550EX, MR-14EX, and MT-24EX (set on Speedlite)
Hi-speed flash speed: Possible with EX-series Speedlites, up to 1/8000 second , normal maximum x-sync is 1/300
PC socket: Standard; sync line voltages up to 250v are OK through PC socket or hot shoe
Number of AF points: 45 (inside of ellipse area of focus screen); 19 high-precision cross-type points (require f2.8 or faster lens for cross-type coverage); 26 assists points (require f5.6 or faster lens)
Number of cross-type points: 19 points--any of these can be user-selected with manual AF point selection (high-precision type points; require a f2.8 or faster lens; center point requires f4 or faster)
Focus modes: One-Shot AF (for stationary subjects); AI Servo AF (for tracking moving subjects)
Manual AF point selection: 19 AF points ( default); inner 9 AF points (via C.Fn III 9-1); outer 9 AF points ( via C.Fn III 9-2)
Automatic AF point selection: Possible in both One-shot and AI Servo AF modes
AF On button: AF button on rear of body executes AF and metering; AE Lock button can switch functions with AF On button via C.Fn IV-2-1
Viewfinder coverage: 100%, vertically and horizontally
Eyepoint: 20 millimeters
Magnification: 0.75x
Focusing screen: Ec-C IV (new standard focusing screen); interchangeable with Ec-series screens from all previous EOS-1 series cameras
Diopter: -3 to +1.0 (user-adjustable); further adjustment possible with Eg series diopter lenses
Mirror lock-up: Possible via C.Fn III-14; new: option to have mirror remain up for multiple pictures, until SET button is pressed
Eyepiece shutter: Built-in; activated by lever to right of eyepiece
White Balance modes: Auto (WB is read off of CMOS imaging sensor only); Pre-set (Daylight, Shade, Cloudy Tungsten, Fluorescent, Flash); Custom (reading taken off 18% gray card or white object; up to 5 custom readings can be stored); Color Temperature (range 2500k to 10,000k; 100k increments); Personal WB settings--PC-1 to PC-5 (up to five, created in computer and uploaded into camera)
White Balance compensation: Alter white balance in amber-blue direction, and/or magenta-green direction +/- 9 levels
White Balance bracketing: Alter White Balance in amber-blue direction or magenta-green direction, up to 15 mireds
Picture Style: Allows user to easily adjust the "look" of JPEG images, or RAW files processed with Canon software; six presets: Standard, Portrait, Landscape, Neutral, Monochrome, Faithful; adjustable settings: Sharpening, Contrast, Color Saturation, and Color Tone
Digital terminal: USB 2.0 Hi-speed (Type B port)
Video output terminal: NTSC/PAL
System extension terminal: 15-pin terminal (connects new wireless file transmitter WFT-E2A)
Remote control terminal: N3-type terminal
Custom functions: 57 Custom Functions (personal functions built into Custom Functions)
My Menu: Up to six menu settings can be stored separately for quick access
Battery: Lightweight LP-E4 lithium-ion battery pack
Battery information: Current power source in use (battery, AC adapter, etc.); remaining capacity (displayed in 1% increments, on camera's LCD monitor); current shutter count on this battery charge; recharge performance (displays when battery should be discarded; 3 levels)
Main switch: Three settings: Off, On, and On with Quick Control Dial active
Camera body exterior material: Magnesium alloy
Chassis material: Magnesium alloy, including mirror box
Operating temperature range: 32 degrees to 113 degrees F (0 degrees to 45 degrees C); 85% or lower relative humidity
Dimensions (W x H x D): 6.1 x 6.2 x 3.1 inches (156 x 160 x 80 millimeters)
Weight (without battery or CF card): 41.3 ounces (1205 grams)

Hybrid Cars

iwanketch@bangjo.com (Iwan Ketch) — Fri, 23 May 2008 11:16:20 PDT

Basically, a hybrid electric vehicle combines an internal combustion engine and an electric motor powered by batteries, merging the best features of today's combustion engine cars and electric vehicles. The combination allows the electric motor and batteries to help the conventional engine operate more efficiently, cutting down on fuel use. Meanwhile, the gasoline-fueled combustion engine overcomes the limited driving range of an electric vehicle. In the end, this hybridization gives you the ability to drive 500 miles or more using less fuel and never having to plug in for recharging. Gasoline-fueled HEVs are among a select few vehicle technologies that can provide dramatically increased fuel economy and extremely low levels of smog-forming and cancer causing emissions, while delivering the safety and performance the public has come to expect. But that all depends on how well automakers apply the technology.

a.Idle-Off
Like the switch that turns off the refrigerator light bulb when the door is closed, this feature allows a vehicle to turn off its gasoline engine when stopped, saving fuel. In a well-designed system, the engine will turn back on and be ready to go in less time than it takes for you to move your foot from the brake to the gas pedal. However, while hybrids use a full function electric motor operating above 100 Volts to accomplish this, conventional vehicles accomplish this same thing by using a beefed up 12 Volt or 42 Volt starter motor (often called an integrated starter-generator). So, this ability alone does not define a hybrid even though all hybrids can do this.

b.Regenerative Braking
The energy associated with a car in motion is called kinetic energy—the faster a car moves, the more kinetic energy it has. To slow down or stop a car, you have to get rid of that energy. In a conventional car, you use the friction of your mechanical brakes to stop, turning the kinetic energy into hot brakes and thereby throwing away the energy. "Regen," or regenerative braking takes over some of the stopping duties from the friction brakes and instead uses the electric motor to help stop the car. To do this, the electric motor operates as a generator, recovering some of the kinetic energy and converting it into electricity that is stored in the battery so it can be used later to help drive the vehicle down the road. In order for the system to actually improve fuel economy, however, the vehicle must have a large enough electric motor operating at a high enough voltage to efficiently capture the braking energy. Also, the vehicle requires a battery pack with enough capacity to store this energy until it is needed. Some automakers claim to have regenerative braking on conventional vehicles with integrated starter-generators, but their system cannot recover enough energy to actually help power the vehicle or cut fuel use beyond what is achieved with their idle-off ability.

c.Power Assist and Engine Downsizing
The most basic definition of a hybrid vehicle is one that uses two methods of providing power to the wheels. As a result, the ability of an electric motor to help share the load with a gasoline engine is the technology step that, on top of the first two, truly qualifies a vehicle as a hybrid. A vehicle meets this classification only if it has a large enough motor and battery pack such that the motor can actually supplement the engine to help accelerate the vehicle while driving. This power assist ability, combined with downsizing the engine, allows the vehicle to achieve the same performance as a vehicle with a larger engine while achieving superior fuel economy. Typically vehicles containing these first three features are categorized as a "mild" hybrid like the Insight, Civic, and Accord hybrids from Honda.

d.Electric-only-drive
This technology step allows the vehicle to drive using only the electric motor and battery pack, thus taking full advantage of electric side of the dual system. With this step, we separate out "full" hybrids such as the Toyota Prius and Ford Escape Hybrid. This is the reason why Prius owners are sometimes shocked when they start their car and don't even realize it's on—only the quiet battery system is operating the car rather than the traditional rumble of the combustion engine. The greater flexibility of full hybrids allows the vehicle to spend more time operating its engine only when it is at its most efficient. At low speeds and at launch, the electric motor and battery powers the car and at high speeds the engine takes over.

e.Extended Battery-Electric Range
The final level of hybridization extends the electric motor's capacity to drive the car by recharging the battery from a clean energy grid (i.e. "plug in"). This would allow the hybrid to operate solely as a battery-electric vehicle for as much as 20-60 miles, thus improving their environmental performance if they are using clean sources of electricity. A Plug-in can operate as a typical full hybrid if it is not recharged from the power grid, so the benefits of this feature are largely dependent on how often the consumer plugs in. The biggest challenge with these hybrids is cost—they have the highest up-front costs because they require larger motors and battery packs to ensure good vehicle performance and sufficient all-electric range. To date automakers have not offered any of these hybrids for passenger vehicles, though DaimlerChrysler is currently testing a commercial van-based plug-in hybrid.

Samsung U900

iwanketch@bangjo.com (Iwan Ketch) — Mon, 28 Apr 2008 08:18:21 PDT

Samsung released the new variant of Soul series, Samsung Mobile phones U900. Gifted with smooth design and neatly improved user interface among its sibling, U900 Soul had us itching for a test drive ever since first time we met.

To start with, Samsung U900 Soul is one of the most beautiful on the market these days. Packed with fair amount of metal used surely benefits both design and feel.

Samsung U900 Soul feels great in hand and offers commendable ergonomics. The touchpad is responsive and quick enough (and good looking too) to make sure the hardware D-pad won't be badly missed.

The user interface of Samsung U900 Soul is a slightly improved. It allows personal customization, as even the theme of the touchpad can be modified. You can also create your own personal theme, tweak every single element to your taste.

Specs :

Manufacture	Samsung
Model	U900 Soul
Announced	February, 2008
Form factor	Slider
Networks	850/900/1800/1900
HSCSD
GPRS
EDGE
UMTS
HSDPA
WLAN / Wi-Fi
Weight	112 g
Height	106
Width	50
Depth	13
Battery	Standard battery, Li-Ion 800 mAh
Standbytime (h)	NA
Talktime (m)	NA
SMS
Email	NA
MMS	NA
IrDA
Bluetooth
USB	v2.0
GPS
Java	NA
FM Radio
Camera
Camera resolution	5 Megapixels, 4x digital zoom, autofocus, image stabilizer
Camera Flash/Light
Second Camera	NA
Video recording
Colour display
Number of colours	16000000
Display width	240
Display height	320
LCD size	2.2 inch
Second Display	NA
Touchscreen
Memory	Expandable with microSD
Ringtones / Music file format	Polyphonic, MP3, WMA, e-AAC+, imelody, M
MP3
Games	NA
Calendar
Voicedialing	NA
Predictive text
WAP version	HTML

Key features:

5 megapixel camera (autofocus, face detection, wide dynamic range and image stabilization)
2.2" 16M-color TFT LCD display of QVGA resolution
3G with HSDPA (7.2Mbps) support
Touchpad navigation
Cool looks
FM radio with RDS
128MB of shared memory and microSD slot
Bluetooth and USB v2.0
Wide dynamic range and image stabilization in camera
User-friendly keypad

Main disadvantages:

Tri-band only
Only LED flash
Display legibility suffers under direct sunlight
Limited browser capabilities
QVGA video recording at most

This beauty is perfectly good Mobile phone deals .
Great design, easy interface, and many features awaits you to explore.

Grand Theft Auto IV on XBOX 360

iwanketch@bangjo.com (Iwan Ketch) — Sat, 05 Apr 2008 10:38:07 PDT

Is there a doubt in anyone’s mind that 2007 will end up going down in the books as the greatest year in gaming history? The holiday lineup on the Xbox 360 alone is staggering, with games like Halo 3, BioShock, The Orange Box, and Call of Duty 4 competing for your gaming dollars. We had a chance to see each of those titles at E3 last week, but there was one sure-fire blockbuster that was noticeably absent from the festivities (aside from an all-too-brief showing at a press conference). Granted, it’s not like we were expecting to see Grand Theft Auto IV at the show, as developer Rockstars Games is notorious for their protection of their marquee titles

GTA IV tells the tale of Nikolai “Niko” Bellic, an Eastern European immigrant that comes to New Yor…er, Liberty City to chase the American Dream. Although his cousin Roman promised him a life full of champagne, women, and luxury cars, Niko instead finds that his deadbeat family member is deep in debt and working at a cab stand. Since Roman is the only person that Niko knows in the city, he must stick by his cousin in an attempt to help him out of trouble and make a name for himself. Like any GTA game, you’ll meet a wide array of memorable characters, helping some of them and putting some in the hospital.

Our demo kicked off in Star Junction, which is GTA IV’s version of Times Square. The first thing we noticed about the game was how authentic everything in the environment was when compared to the real New York City. Seeing the Xbox 360-powered Liberty City was an eye-opener, as we were actually able to tell precisely where we were in the environment by the landmark buildings, a far cry from the low-res doppelgangers in the last-gen games. For instance, as we rolled down the game’s version of Fifth Avenue, we knew that the Metropolitan Museum of Art would be right across the street from Central Park (or Middle Park as it’s known in the game).Like the previous games in the franchise, the game world in GTA IV is broken up into a number of different locations. Liberty City is made up of representations of four NYC boroughs: Algonquin (Manhattan), Broker (Brooklyn), Dukes (Queens), and Bohan (Bronx). You’ll also be able to take a trip to Alderny, the suburban area that’s modeled after New Jersey. We were told that the development team is still determining whether or not to make everything open from the beginning, although we’d bet that they’ll stick to the same formula to keep the missions close together. This is apparently the biggest city ever seen in a GTA, and while it’s not as large as the state of San Andreas, it’ll still take about an hour to drive across it.

If the segment that we saw was any indication of what to expect in the final product, GTA IV looks like it will have some extremely intense combat. As Niko made his way down the multi-floored office building, he had to take down a number of rent-a-cops that stood in his way. It appears that you’ll be able to deal location-specific damage, and shooting an enemy in the leg will cause him to crumple to the ground. Once our hero finally made his way outside, he was faced with a bunch of cops that were waiting for him behind their cars. This intense shootout reminded me of the bank robbery scene from Heat, which is high praise indeed. Everyone who hated the gunplay in the previous GTA games should be pretty happy with what they’ll see in this one.

There’s definitely still a lot for us to learn about GTA IV, but we were ecstatic to see that the game is shaping up beautifully. It appears that the development team is working hard to ensure that the game will be rooted in reality quite a bit more than the previous titles. While we might take stuff like cell phones, internet access, and taxi cabs for granted, they are a big part of living in the “real world” city. The combat appears to have been much improved, as well, which was one of the biggest problems that people had with the previous games. You can be damn sure that we’ll be bringing you a lot more info on everything from the combat to the soundtrack in the weeks leading up to the game’s release.

Motorola RAZR v8

iwanketch@bangjo.com (Iwan Ketch) — Sun, 24 Feb 2008 07:01:18 PST

# You'll flip over the latest RAZR Cell-Phone from Motorola. The RAZR2-V8 RAZR takes thin to the next level by packing it with a new, richer multimedia experience. RAZR2 V8 provides an unmatched Music experience. It comes complete with 512MB end User Memory or 2GB memory, USB 2.0 high speed for fast music File transfers, Windows Media Player 11 for simple music management and touch-sensitive music controls located on the 262k Color external display. You can read and reply to texts via RAZR2 V8’s external display, which at 2.0" is the largest in its class, as well as make use of the full HTML Browser to check your Email and surf the web. Quad band technology will let you be heard no matter where in the world you go. Built-in Motosync will synchronize your email, calendar and the 1000-entry phonebook. It has version 2.0 Bluetooth wireless technology with range up to 30 feet, as well as high speed micro USB 2. 0. Download and employ a variety of polyphonic ringtones. There's even a 2.0 Megapixel camera, with Video capture and playback, and up to 2GB of internal memory to capture every unforgettable moment in high resolution! Unlocked - Use with any GSM service carrier in the United States or around the world

Super-slim, iconic RAZR design with stainless steel frame, metal and glass housing, internal antenna
Large 2.0” QVGA (320 x 240) 262K color external display with contextual touch interaction
2.2” QVGA (320 x 240) internal display, 262K color
Integrated 2.0 megapixel camera with 8x zoom
MotoSync – Over the air synchronization of Email, Phonebook and Calendar
Music player with Optional Stereo micro-USB Headset and stereo Bluetooth wireless tecnology
Strong as steel -- At the core of RAZR2 is a stainless steel internal frame to provide strength and durability
512MB of on-board shared memory / SD upgradeable
Full HTML browser to surf the sites you know and love
Speaker independent name and digit dialing
EDGE Class 12
MPEG4 Video capture and playback
Integrated Bluetooth wireless technology with imaging, printing and peer to peer gaming profiles
Messaging via MMS, WV, SMS3
Class 2, version 2.0 Bluetooth wireless technology with range up to 30 feet
High speed micro USB 2.0
Up to approximately 500 minutes talk time and 280 hours standby time