the journal of estelito

we get additional 500Mb from U Mobile... Yay?... Yay!

2011-11-12T22:49:00.001+08:00

WARNING: LARGE WALL OF TEXT, be sure to read last paragraph.

A few days ago, U Mobile suffered that very serious network outage which left users without phone signal or internet for a few hours (during working hours, on a monday). As an apology U Mobile sent each user either free SMS to all networks for 1 day for a three months and/or additional 500Mb quota every month until January 2012. (see here for more details)

On 11/11/2011, I received an SMS saying they are going to gradually add the 500Mb to all users in the next few moments (google translated only, sorry). This calls for celebration, of course -- who wouldn't welcome additional 500Mb -- right?

But this afternoon I regretted ever being given that 500Mb. As I am now left with 5GB remaining quota and a very slow internet connection.

As I am lazy to type somemore I am copy pasting my email I sent to U Mobile below (along with my observations)
==================
Hi U,

This is for report number 457994.

I already called this in this afternoon but the one from the hotline told me my quota still got ~5GB left in my account and I wasn't throttled.

I called again a few minutes past 10 PM and the guy created a report. I wanted to add into the report number as I do not feel the phone support captured everything I wanted to say. (Ryan -- the guy was good but I wanted to add my analysis of this slowdown I am encountering)

This afternoon I received 2 SMS on my MB128 account. The first one (by time in the timestamp of the SMS):

Name/Number: Umobile
Time: 2011-11-12 15:37:13
Content: RM0. You have used up data allowance for MB128 activated at //. Your speed will now be reduced. Thank you

Followed by the other 1, a second after (which is weird+)

Name/Number: Umobile
Time: 2011-11-12 15:37:14
Content: RM0.You have 30MB balance in your data allowance for MB128 and speed will be reduced soon. Thank you

And immediately after this SMS my internet slowed down to turtle speed. (Please see attached speedtests done starting with the 0.13/0.30 Mb/s (DL/UL)

Here are my observations:
1. First message did not contain my activation date of Oct. 26 2011 (probably the date is at the part with the '//')
2. 500Mb additional quota was given to all broadband users for the network outage recently (which forms most part of my theory)
3. The additional quota given to all users do not show up through the 118 service command (only the original quota is seen)
4. I have just downloaded a large file which is more than 500Mb (Apple iPad 5.0.1 update ~ 700Mb) just before (and even while) the SMS came to my number.

Theory:
The 500Mb additional quota was not added to the user's original quota but rather was added as a separate quota and when the 500Mb was finished, it didn't consider the remaining quota in the original 20GB. The primary reason being there was no activation date in the first SMS. Had there been a date of Oct 26, 2011 there, then the problem would probably be something else.

I do hope you reply to my email. Or reinstate my speed back to normal. And I do hope I help you with these information I have given you.

All the best (and will be anxiously waiting for the resolution of my case.. which is 3 to 5 working days -- damnit).

EDIT: OR... maybe by tomorrow my connection will be OK because some batch job running tonight will reset my quota to the original one. /crossfingers,toes,everything

UPDATE:
Received 3 missed calls at 11pm yesterday. Didn't know the numbers. So decided to switch back to U (was using Digi Prepaid Internet while U was not so fast) and test...

http://www.speedtest.net/result/1588320280.png

happy again :)

HOWTO: Change U Mobile Broadband DNS

2011-10-26T21:52:00.003+08:00

How to change U Mobile DNS (if you're using the dialer that comes with the modem)

1. Go to the U Mobile installation directory (i.e. C:\Program Files (x86)\Umobile Connect Manager)
2. Look for the file NetworkCfg.xml
3. Edit that file to look like this (i'm using Google DNS)

<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?>
<AllNetworkConfigs>
<NetworkConfig isNDIS="0" canbeDelete="0" isPreferred="1">
 <ConfigFileName>Umobile Internet(SYSTEM)</ConfigFileName>
 <UserName/>
 <Password/>
 <LoginNumber>*99#</LoginNumber>
 <AutoGetAPN>0</AutoGetAPN>
 <APN>my3g</APN>
 <AutoGetDNS>0</AutoGetDNS>
 <MainDNS>8.8.8.8</MainDNS>
 <StandbyDNS>8.8.4.4</StandbyDNS>
 <AutoGetPDP>1</AutoGetPDP>
 <PDPAddress/>
 <PDPType>IP</PDPType>
 <AuthType>PAP</AuthType>
 <AskUserAndPwd>0</AskUserAndPwd>
 <SaveUserAndPwd>0</SaveUserAndPwd>
 <GlobeFlag>1</GlobeFlag>
</NetworkConfig>

<NetworkConfig canbeDelete="0" isPreferred="0">
 <ConfigFileName>Umobile Internet</ConfigFileName>
 <UserName></UserName>
 <Password></Password>
 <LoginNumber>*99#</LoginNumber>
 <AutoGetAPN>0</AutoGetAPN>
 <APN>my3g</APN>
 <AutoGetDNS>1</AutoGetDNS>
 <MainDNS>
 </MainDNS>
 <StandbyDNS>
 </StandbyDNS>
 <AutoGetPDP>1</AutoGetPDP>
 <PDPAddress>
 </PDPAddress>
 <PDPType>IP</PDPType>
 <AuthType>PAP</AuthType>
 <AskUserAndPwd>0</AskUserAndPwd>
 <SaveUserAndPwd>0</SaveUserAndPwd>
</NetworkConfig>
</AllNetworkConfigs>

Basically you edit the following:
AutoGetDNS = 0
MainDNS = 8.8.8.8 or your favorite DNS service
StandbyDNS = 8.8.4.4 or your favorite DNS service

nice to see, nice to hold, once broken considered sold

2011-09-28T14:29:00.000+08:00

A few weeks back while canvassing for a coin bank, I accidentally broke one and had to buy it.

Meet my PvZ Gargantuan coin bank.

kept it inside the plastic bag for a day or two

ooohhh the box

hullo! there i iz eat ur brainz (the electric pole was the one that broke)

with the imp. too bad the 50 sen coin doesn't fit.

reminds me of someone LOL.

taped!

the small hole. LOL.

Gadget Freak

2011-09-12T21:13:00.002+08:00

I am a gadget freak. Look at the pictures below. These are some of the normal configurations of gadgets in my room.

Unsi (left), with Ipad2 connected to the family back at Los Baños

Current config: Office laptop (doing work hahaha as-if), Ipad2, Laundry, Unsi

The point of this post?

No point really.

HAHAHAHAHAHA

win a pc game (habis)

2011-09-09T00:14:00.001+08:00

As I announced a few hours ago at another post: http://journal.estelito.com/2011/09/pc-game-give-awaycontest-announcement.html, here are the details on how to win a free pc game (the one I won from Maybank's game).

HOW TO WIN A FREE PC GAME:

It's very simple, ~~beg.~~ look at the Facebook comments section on this blog post and put in a comment with the following format:

EDIT: For some reason the facebook comment section does not appear unless you click this link: http://journal.estelito.com/2011/09/win-pc-game.html

1. Which game from Big Fish games are you excited to own and play?
2. If I win, I will "Pay it Forward" by doing __________________

HOW WILL I PICK WHO WINS?

I will write down all the names of the people who leave a comment in the Facebook comment box and then draw lots. (Oh, the simplicity)

Winner will be announced in a new blog post by September 10, 2011 00:00H GMT+8 and will be contacted via a message in Facebook.

UPDATE: If nobody leaves a message, then the game code will sit in my email for eternity. Tee hee hee hee

UPDATE: Anyone want? Anyone? *crickets* If anyone wants the PC Game, just leave a message anywhere in this blog post or send and email to contact at estelito dat com or tweet me @baliwesti

UPDATE: Free PC Game is no more. hahahaha

pc game give-away/contest announcement

2011-09-08T17:10:00.000+08:00

Our names are forever etched in the Trophy Room.

UPDATE: Mechanics are here: http://journal.estelito.com/2011/09/win-pc-game.html

Yesterday, I won something from the Hatch The Egg application of Maybank in Facebook. It's a fun and simple game for the Save & Win campaign of the bank. It's a game of pure luck (and making events in your calendar to remind you of the egg hatching times - LOL)

Technically my friend won since I cannot win the prize without sending it to another Facebook friend but my friend sent it back to me this morning (says she's busy with The Sims Social).

It's a PC Game coupon from Big Fish Games.

However, when I scanned the whole list of games from Big Fish but couldn't find any games to my liking -- so instead I would like to give it to other people who may want one from the list.

The coupon is valid for a Standard version of any game in Big Fish, so while I think of how to proceed with this give-away, go look for any of the games which you may like to play.

Do check back tonight at 12:00 Midnight for the details. (I hope I don't eat this deadline for midnight snack -- lol)

Oh and btw, Maybank recommends the game Supercow.

to our dear pocca

2011-08-18T21:53:00.001+08:00

last night, i passed by carrefour after watching a movie at midvalley megamall.

i wanted to buy some dentastix for all of you because i know you guys wanted it.

but alas, i didn't find any.

that meant i won't be bringing home dentastix next week friday, when i go back home.

next friday i will be going home, you won't be there anymore.

you won't be by the door, crawling your way to try and open it.

only poopoo, kulit, pazza and tuldok will be there.

how i wish i could have done the same thing as previous years and go home during my birthday week itself.

then maybe, just maybe i could have said one last goodbye to you.

HOWTO: Renew Your Philippine Passport (Kuala Lumpur)

2011-08-18T11:50:00.002+08:00

my passport with the receipts and oec

Yesterday was a Public Holiday in Selangor, and to make the most of the holiday I made a couple of trips the whole day around KL to prepare for my trip back home in a couple of weeks.

First agenda and subject of this post is the renewal of my passport which expires sometime in February 2012.

It is my fervent wish that this guide makes your life a little easier if you're in the same situation as me.

- The Requirements -

Prior to making the trip to the Philippine Embassy in Kuala Lumpur make sure you have the following with you:

ePassport Form, download it here.
Your Passport.
Cash for ePassport fee (231 MYR)
Photocopy of the first page of your passport
Photocopy of the page where the visa / working permit is stamped
(OPTIONAL) Photocopy of your employment contract, if employed
(OPTIONAL+ to have the employment contract notarized by a Malaysian Notary Public)

Now that you have all the requirements, you can allot half a day for the whole process and do take note of the following:

Embassy hours: 9:00 AM to 11:30 AM and 1:00 PM to 4:00 PM, Monday to Friday.
Attire: No slippers, sandos or shorts.

Also, it would be wise to look your best (no eyebags, no zits, hair spray, hair net) on the day you decide to have your passport renewed, as you will be photographed once you're done with payment. Don't wear any earrings or jewelry though as the operator asked me to remove them if I had them on me.

-The Process-

Make your way to the embassy. Directions are here.

Once at the gate of the embassy, wait a few minutes for other people who haven't memorized their passport numbers or their phone numbers fumble.

It's your turn to fill up the logbook -- Hurray! Start with your (1) Name (2) Full Address (3) Phone Number (4) Passport Number (5) What's your purpose in ~~life~~ going to the embassy (6) Time In

And please note the last column is not a signature column, but rather a "time out" column which you are not expected to fill up after you leave.

Open the steel gate, take out your wallet and bring out any photo id you can find inside your wallet -- give this to the security guard, he will give you a "Visitor" Id.

If you were looking at one of the signs while waiting for slowpokes who were filling up the logbook, you'll see that they want you to pin the "Visitor" Id on your chest area -- not on the sleeves nor the lower part of your shirt. For me, I pinned it on my collar.

Go down into the driveway into the place where there are lots of chairs and people waiting, then look for the counter for "Passport". For those who are lazy to read, if you are facing the chairs, it's the group of windows on your left -- 3rd from the left. ( Receiving/Releasing | Visa, etc. | Passport, etc. | Empty window with no sign)

Give all the required documents to the person by the window (ang babae/lalake sa bintana) or wait for the person to appear.

If there is no problem with your documents, they'll point you to the cashier window which is a few steps to the right.

Say goodbye to your 231 RM and give it to the cashier, who will staple all your documents and give you a small piece of paper that you must not lose no matter what.

Then make your way to the ePassport room, wait for your turn/number (it's scribbled on top of your documents, something like AM/PM 999,999,999). If there's no queue by the door, don't be so happy as there may be a couple of people before you sitting by the chairs waiting for their turn.

There will be nobody calling out numbers, but best to look for the number after you then make friends with him/her and tell him/her that you are number 999,999,999 and he/she is 1,000,000,000 so you are in front of him/her.

Once inside the room, there's another chair where you can put your belongings. Give the documents to the operator of the computer. While He/She types a few things, make sure your hair and face is all pweetty and nice because in a few minutes he/she will then take a photo of you using a Canon digital camera .

After the photo session, right thumb into the biometric scanner followed by left thumb then signature on the small rectangular thingie with some pen attached to it (NOTE: do not use the ball-pen that's near you to write on the rectangular thingie)

He/She then prints a sheet of paper, containing all your info with your picture and signature -- verify everything is correct then sign again at the lower right corner (NOTE: pretend you read the thing that is usually printed before the signature field).

He/She returns your passport with the 2 receipts stapled to it and instructs you to call the embassy in 2 months. Get your things from the other chair and leave after saying "Thank You" to the embassy personnel.

Hope this very long "HOWTO" helps you. :)

lazy sunday

2011-06-12T09:51:00.000+08:00

The term lazy suddenly crept up to me again (blogging, getting out of bed, etc). The culprit: P1's (my ISP) awesome speed of 128kbps dl after exceeding your fair usage cap.

So here's a couple of links to entertain all of us feeling lazy this Sunday.

1. MCMC starts blocking File Sharing Sites - started last may 30, but workarounds are out there. Google it! Nothing us foreigners here in Malaysia can do but to silently wish someone with enough sense knock 'em to those guys at MCMC (yeah reported a couple of spammers to MCMC, yet they seem to not stop spamming still)

2. What Did The Government Personal Do In Their Office? Watching Porn? - probably the author meant "personnel". Here's what kept me up last night, googling the hacking group lulzsec and reading about their exploits and stuff. Also kept me looking at the long list of email addresses from the member database of pron.com (a porn site). Best catch of the night? Finding a (Philippine Independent Church) parish priest's email address in the list. Nope, he's not from Laoag. And his email doesn't start with the usual acronym for "Father" nor is his email from a .ph domain.

Anyone know of any unsecured wifi I can leech? This speed sucks. I betcha the head honcho of P1 probably hasn't tried the throttled speed they're offering out there. Sucks. Big Time.

In other news, I subscribed to Yes 4G as a replacement for my Digi Smart Plan Lite. Hope it doesn't disappoint. If Yes was able to match P1's price, I'd transfer 100% of my broadband to them.

pepsi pinas

2011-06-04T21:46:00.000+08:00

Before I get to the one question I've been having after seeing this advertisement (as I am not in the Philippines to experience it) -- I just wanna say whoever created this one deserves a very nice pat on the back.

Earlier, while viewing this vid on my phone while riding the Star LRT to Masjid Jamek this video had me snorting a bit while laughing during the "ugly" part. Oh and cricket sounds on the "rice" part. Epic.

I smell a viral video coming up.

Now, what does this Pepsi Pinas taste like? Seeing the blue color of the drink I cannot help compare it with the Ice Cream flavor soda of F&N here in Malaysia. Someone buy me one and keep it in the fridge until I return on August, please!!!

gaya street

2011-06-03T12:00:00.023+08:00

This is a photograph I took while we were roaming the city of Kota Kinabalu last February 2011. It was a Sunday but the Gaya Street Fair had gone and left. I particularly liked how the picture turned out, with my two models in the center and the composition of the photograph.

good morning, kuala lumpur

2011-06-02T21:40:00.000+08:00

Early morning view in Kuala Lumpur, February 22, 2011

One of my favorite pastimes is looking out my window, observing the city from my vantage point. On this particular morning, the combination of the street lights below, the peeking sun, the twin towers and the clouds was just perfect.

I was debating with myself whether to put a watermark on the picture or just leave it be -- and the latter won. As for those who want to reuse the above image, kindly do so as you wish just don't claim it as your own and link to this blog post is all I ask. If you need a higher resolution picture, you may send an email to contact@estelito.com.

*Oh, and I can't seem to fix that weird issue with the margins of the picture in this post at all.

me and the stop sign

2011-06-02T16:06:00.000+08:00

This is another test post. I should be fixing my maven repo instead of doing this. LOL.

petronas towers

2011-06-02T15:57:00.000+08:00

This is a test post. /bow

for the nth time

2011-05-31T15:13:00.001+08:00

I'm starting to blog again.

About what? Check the "about" page in my blog.

In other news: it's May 31 today, and that means it's 31% off at all Baskin-Robbins stores in Malaysia.

Not that I'm going to buy me some ice cream or anything later though.

it's about time

2010-07-27T14:01:00.000+08:00

woot!

just received my collector's edition (CE) box of Starcraft 2 and I wasn't supposed to open it but curious me prevailed.

here are some quick thoughts:

1. the jim raynor usb dog tag is pretty impressive! it's heavy (you'd be a bit crazy to put it on your neck)
2. there are 2 SC2 and 2 WoW guest passes. the SC2 guest pass is good for 7 hours of gameplay or 14 days (whichever comes first) and the WoW guest pass is the usual 10 days.
3. the art book looks nice
4. the included comics (which was discontinued) looks like a pamphlet.
5. the box is cool.

also included in my CE box was the t-shirt (wouldn't want to be caught wet in those t-shirts as the fabric is too thin) with the SC2 logo in the front and some insignia at the back. and the 1337 dog tag (1337 = leet = elite) which I am now wearing under my polo haha.

i can't wait to go home now. 4 hours!

java talk number 001

2010-06-22T10:32:00.000+08:00

after reading news about charice pempengco joining glee, hurray -_-', two java peeps got talking about a new project. (sorry in tagalog)

frappucino: juskoooo
frappucino: kelangan na nating ma kontento sa first season ng glee
frappucino: hahaha
frappucino: gawa tayo app
espresso: huhuhu, tae tlaga sila
frappucino: chariceremover
frappucino: hahaha
frappucino: edit yung video para tanggalin si charice tapos palitan na lang ng subtitles hahaha
espresso: hahahaha
frappucino: black screen tapos kung ano lang nangyari nakalagay
frappucino: game?
frappucino: jmf lang 'to
espresso: hahahaha
frappucino: hahahahahhaa
espresso: pede den
frappucino: unang module, charice-detector
frappucino: BWAHAHAHAHA
espresso: hahahahahahaha
frappucino: gawan pa ba natin uml?
frappucino: simple lang naman use case hahahaha
frappucino: basa basa na tayo sa mga video editing using java BWAHAHAHAHA
espresso: hahahaha
espresso: hahaha seryoso ka jan
frappucino: shempre hindi haha
frappucino: pagsasayangan ko ba ng oras si charice
frappucino: hahaha
espresso: hahahaha kaasar tlaga no
frappucino: yer

final word: to each his own. kanya kanyang trip lang sa buhay.

finally registered for penang bridge international marathon 2010

2010-06-17T20:36:00.003+08:00

So it’s finally done no more turning back now (unless I chicken out at the last minute). All that is left to do is start training for my first full marathon. The event will be the Penang Bridge International Marathon 2010.
The proof is in the pictures:

~~Break a leg!~~ Wish me luck!

dear airasia

2010-06-17T00:41:00.001+08:00

last may 6 to 9, me and some friends went to phuket. we flew airasia on our trip. but days before that we were plagued with problems of the airasia kind, let me enumerate them to you.

april 26, 2010
my friends booked a flight (PNR: U7VZDC), from CRK to KUL. they managed to book it but at the booking confirmation that they had, the following was written:

Booking Number U7VZDC
Status PENDING
Your booking is pending for credit card verification.
You will receive the Travel Itinerary once the payment is approved and your booking is confirmed.
You can check the booking status at Check & Change after 2 hours.

april 30, 2010
one of my friends asked for help in contacting airasia because up to that date the status of the booking was still “pending” but the credit card that was used in the booking was already charged.

I called the airasia “premium line” since the self help line obviously won’t be able to help me in my inquiry. the first call was at 15:23:51 and basically told me a couple of things:

a. payment was declined.
b. there’s amount due in the booking
c. proof of the charge is needed so airasia can check

(sequence of calls may not be in order)
16:04:23 Called the premium line again. Next agent didn’t understand me and proceeded to ask for the credit card details so he can charge the card again. Absurd.

16:16:31 Called the premium line again. Next agent gave me a number (03 2141 9388) for the finance department, suggest I call the finance department. I called the finance department, but a voicemail answers my every call.

17:03:39 Called the premium line again. Next agent gave me a fax number and also suggested i send the copy of the screenshot to the malaysia-support@airasia.com email address. I printed a copy of the screenshot and attempted to fax the printout to the number – and the fax machine is either turned off or non-existent. We also sent an email before the day ended to the malaysia-support@airasia.com email address with the screenshot of the charge.

May 3, 2010
one of the first things I did was to call your premium line again.

10:08:56 I call to confirm if the email last Friday was received. Agent was having hard time locating the email. She said she’ll call back in 1 hour. Didn’t call back.

14:32:51 I call again to ask if the email was located. Again was told that I’ll receive a call in an hour but still no call.

14:55:38 I call again (didn’t realize 1 hour has not passed yet) I ask for another fax number, to resend the printout. Agent doesn’t know the fax number, has to put me on hold to get it (don’t they have it like in a post-it or something). Number given (03 2160 9518) only kept ringing. Agent was agitated I asked for his agent id, also was reluctant to give it out (some shit reason that they only have names as identifiers).

16:06:08 Some good agent escalated my case to the finance department and asked me to call back 3pm the next day.

May 4, 2010
waited till 3pm to call the premium line again

15:08:55 After checking and a long time of holding, agent gives me a number to call the finance department of airasia. 03 2141 9388 and I informed the agent I've tried this number before as some agent before her/him also gave me this number and nobody ever answers (but the voicemail does). But he/she tells me it might be lunch when I called and the agent was confident someone will be answering the said number. Lo and behold I call and the voicemail answers again.

18:32:17 I asked for the manager. But hey the manager is busy. Had to again spend some minutes explaining the situation, how I wanted to talk to the manager 'cause all the agents seem to not know anything (case in point, above). Spent some time holding, then agent comes back with same reply as previous one, gives me the 0321419388 number. I had to stop him midway and told him why does he give me a number that no human is answering. Is this supposed to be how your premium line is working, etc. (also informed him of the fax number without a fax machine answering). I told him to try the number himself. Puts me on hold. Comes back, reconfirms my number and says he'll pass this to the finance department, puts me again on hold. then comes back and apologizes and promises to call back in 1 hour if his manager doesn't. Told him some agent already said the same line to me a few days back but never did call.

18:53:26 (impatient me, calling not yet 1 hour passed) I called again because the premium line was about to close (close at 7pm). I was willing to hold and wait for them to finish discussing – as I was informed that the manager (or someone with authority) named Martin was talking to the finance department. They assured me they will call me back even if the premium line is closed so I ended the call after.

The flight of my friends were the next day at 11am.

Martin did call me back, but basically to inform me of the following things:

1. They cannot locate the first charge and would need some data from Citibank.
2. We needed to charge the card again over the phone to make sure my friends can fly the next day.
3. That he will personally call me once they locate the data needed to proceed with refunding the first charge.

So we charged the card the second time, and my friends were able to fly the next day – and we enjoyed Phuket.

Fast Forward to June 9, 2010. I send an email to malaysia-support@airasia.com as I didn’t want to burn my handphone once again. The following was the body of my email:

Hi AirAsia,

Any update on the Refund Request of booking U7VZDC? Some guy named Martin/~~Mateen~~ which we were liaising a few days before the flight assured us he will be calling once Air Asia gets the details from Citibank, but up to now no call has been made.

Thanks,

June 10 No reply.
June 11 No reply.
June 12 No reply. Happy Independence day to us! Happy Birthday Jason!
June 13 No reply.
June 14 No reply.
June 15 No reply.

June 16, 2010

I try to call the premium line in the morning. On hold for 2 minutes before giving up. Got frustrated, fired of 2 emails adding tony@tonyfernandesblog.com to the recipients:

Pls. for the love of all things good, reply. Your premium line is clogged and it has put me on hold for 2 minutes already. unacceptable.

Next email was (seconds apart)

resending again, just in case (as previous calls to your premium line said they didn't receive the email i sent before).
I will be resending this email every hour from this point on until some human answers me.

Also tweeted the following:

@airasiadotcom, do you guys got problems with your email? nobody seem to be replying to my emails (from 7 days ago) @tonyfernandes

The “resending” was not done because I was finally able to find a human to answer me. Enter the live chat.

In my frustration I started the Live Chat feature in their website. (TODO: get the chat log and post to blog tomorrow)
I was able to talk to Lisa and the end result is that either any of the following:

1. Someone might reply to me via email within 12-24 hours
2. Martin might call back within 24-48 hours.

~~So here’s a countdown timer for the 48 hours:~~ REMOVED because action has been done by Air Asia (at around 2PM June 17)

~~Clock is ticking.~~

Oh and yeah, this post is a long rant I know and I’m too tired to put pictures in the post. Maybe later or maybe I'll call back in an hour. Can I put you on hold while I get some pictures too?

UPDATE JUNE 17: Tony Fernandes, CEO of Air Asia replies to my email and directs me to one of his colleagues for assistance. I am then contacted by Frank, who requests bank statements showing the 2 different charges (Apr 26 and May 5) to the Citibank credit card that was used. I also asked Frank to refer to Martin for additional info and for consolidation of data for this issue. An update is expected on Monday.

my recommendations for the KTM Komuter

2010-06-14T22:29:00.003+08:00

I have been very vocal, always complaining about the level of service by KTM Komuter here in Kuala Lumpur, both in twitter (@KTMKomuter) and Facebook.
But now I just realized complaining wouldn’t do much.
And this past weekend, I was aboard a shuttle train to Klang and every time the door opened some passengers would just be dumbfounded what route the train is going to – some hesitate but board the train anyway. So I came up with a list of recommendations to KTM and my first recommendation is:
1. Have sign boards on the doors of the shuttle trains.

As most shuttle trains are the usual setup: a non-functioning train with the noisy train pulling it and the generator located somewhere – usually there would be no electronic sign board along the side of the train informing passengers what the train’s destination is.
The only sign that will give out the train’s destination would be a the very front of the train and passengers wouldn’t usually notice it since the setup is different from the usual.
There are signs in the doors, but these are not helpful because the sign reads 2 different routes, and it’s outdated (as with the shuttle train I boarded over the weekend was going to Klang but it was nowhere in the sign – sign only was up to Shah Alam) and people not familiar with KTM get confused.

2. Have some mechanism to inform the passengers of any delay
It sometimes frustrates me, whenever you think that the train services are under normal conditions but when you get to the platform you’ll be doing a double take as to whether you are at the KTM station or a rock concert. In the case of the KL Sentral station there is absolutely no way to know how many people are in the platform or how delayed trains are (although I think KTM started turning off the display when inevitable delay is happening). You would just know about it after you have purchased a ticket or swiped your Touch’n Go and it’s too late – you can’t switch to another route for your travel.
Maybe a whiteboard that gets updated would be the cheapest way to go about this. Or have some pre-made signs that you can clip into somewhere. Be creative! But informing passengers of any type of delay and being transparent would definitely be appreciated.
3. Check the volume of the speakers in the open air stations
At times, the volume in the speakers (i.e. Putra station) would not be loud enough to hear. It’s like a whisper specially since the noise around the station would drown out the sound of the speakers. It would be best if the volume was checked and adjusted for the speakers at certain times of the day. Also sometimes toning it down in the late, late night would be great as sometimes I can hear the PA system from the condo at 32nd floor.
4. Fix the signage inside the trains
A train I boarded got an ad for an event that is going to happen in 2007 – oh wait, it’s 2010 already. Another train doesn’t have the usual train routes pasted on top of the doors. Make the signage for the other stuff, like the “courtesy to those who need seats” to be noticeable because they are just the opposite.
5. (Putra Station specific) Move the signboard for the north/south(pick one) bound (going to Seremban/P. Klang)
The said electronic signboard can be moved somewhere that the passengers outside the station can see it from a far. Why? So that people can run like they’re being chased by ghosts when they see that destination blinking already. It is being covered by the walkway from the stairs and is not so noticeable from the end of that platform.
6. If you’re going to be using social media like Twitter and Facebook, abuse it (figuratively speaking).
No need to reply to everyone one by one but it’s the ideal situation. At least use the two services to provide timely updates on your service.

I do hope someone in KTM gets to read this post. These recommendations are by far non-authoritative, but I just wanted to take a different tone to my usual complaining and instead contribute something constructive.
Anyone got other ideas? Put them in the comments section!

the day (i think) i just won 28RM

2010-06-13T23:42:00.003+08:00

Just as the title says, I think I just won 28RM in RHB’s Win Like Crazy with your RHB Cards promotion.
In the promotion, you just have to use your RHB credit/debit card (I got me the Visa Debit) for a minimum of 80RM and match the last 2 digits in the approval code with the last 2 digits of your IC. The reason why I have the “I think” part in my title is that I don’t have an IC but I got me a passport. I don’t know if it counts but there was no specific clause in the Terms and Conditions which made me think otherwise – I just got to wait and see.

The story goes a little something like this: (hehe can’t resist)

I was on a quick trip to the supermarket (Carrefour – Midvalley) this evening after my scheduled recovery run.
On my way to the supermarket I happen to pass by the GNC store, was confident enough to browse the shelves since I left my GNC VIP card at home but lo and behold it seems you can buy without the physical VIP card and still get the discount and earn the points.
Ever since I came here in MY, I have been waiting for GNC to have stock of their Mega Men Sports Multivitamin but only now did I see anything resembling it. In the shelves, my eyes were fixed at the Mega Men Active Multivitamin – it was like it was calling me – and beside it, was the sign: 30% off.
End result – I bought the vitamins and then I used my RHB debit card to pay for it, since I already read of this promotion days before. I was a bit tense waiting for the credit card slip and when I finally got my hands on it, I didn’t sign it immediately – my eyes went straight to the approval code field. R74235 – good luck and try again. (my passport ends with the number “93”).
Now I didn’t buy the vitamins just so I can join the promotion, but rather I had just finished my last bottle of multivitamins two weeks ago so I really needed them (haha reasons, reasons, reasons)
Afterwards, I stopped by Guardian looking for some stuff I put in my pogi pack (vanity kit ng mga lalaki haha) but decided to buy them from Carrefour instead – this time, just so I can buy more than 80RM in the single receipt as I was going to swipe my debit card to try my luck for the promotion.
But then the only things in my grocery list were the following: (1) refills for the magic mop at home (2) fresh milk (3) some stuff for the pogi pack and (4) deodorant.
None of these would total to 80RM!
Enter: the silly Carrefour pricing mistake that I have been abusing since a year ago:

Yes, the 1RM Denta Stix still exists. And this time, I saw 2 unopened boxes so I went ahead and bought those. Each box contains 12 packs and each pack costs 1RM: which brings me a total of 24RM for both boxes.
Even after adding these to my cart, the total won’t make it 80RM so I added two more items, a 4Kg Breeze powder detergent with free 1.8L Comfort Fabric conditioner (18.90RM) and 2 packs of spaghetti (for carbo-loading before the Standard Chartered KL Marathon).
So after buying all these stuff I went ahead and proceeded to the cashier.
As usual cashier spoke to me in Bahasa Melayu, I replied the usual english until he figured out I wasn’t Malay. Total of the purchase was 106RM, well above the 80RM requirement for the promotion.
I handed him my debit card.
He punches some buttons.
The machine prints, prints, prints.
He folds the slip in the middle lengthwise.
I look at the slip, almost wanted to yell:

So yeah, both the last 2 digits of the approval code matches my passport number. I sent the required SMS and now all that I need to do is wait for confirmation if I really did win.
If I get the same match again the next prize is 88RM (2nd to 4th match) each. *gasp*
If I get 5 matches and above, each match is equivalent to 888RM each. *gasp moar*

my micoach progress so far

2010-06-12T14:10:00.005+08:00

Last March 17, I purchased a micoach pacer from the adidas store at The Gardens.
It was one of the best decisions I have ever done in my life, if you look at the picture below and you can just see why:

I’ve been running for 32 hours, 24 minutes, 3 seconds.
I’ve burned an estimated 21,656 calories.
I’ve travelled an estimated distance of 191.28 kilometers.
And my workout for today is 2 hours, 5 minutes *gasp*.

Before I started running, I was diagnosed with Type II Diabetes and treated with a tablet of Glucophage XR before sleeping. Some time March 2010 I was downgraded/upgraded (depends on how you want to look at it) into just being pre-diabetic and taken off the prescription medicines. I’ve never felt healthier than ever before.
Fast forward to just last month at the Pacesetters New Balance 15KM run, here’s my action shot (taken from qqlai.multiply.com, one of the photographers present during the run):

(so shiny!)

And in 14 days, I’ll be in another half marathon – The Standard Chartered KL Marathon 2010.

And in November 21, we (with my good running friend Jason – Happy Birthday!) are planning on taking on our first full marathon at The Penang Bridge International Marathon.

So onwards to another year of running! (and I have to be off to do my long run now)

public Estelito(int numberOfBlogs)

2010-06-12T12:56:00.003+08:00

just finished reading the first post on my just now past blog (blog.estelito.com) and was it freaky that I just did the same thing with my “about” page but with pictures. =0
Welcome!

You may be unfamiliar with the post title, which i took from constructors in Java.
Time again for another separate blog, because my previous blog which was in wordpress.com is about to have the domain related add-on expire.
To paraphrase a bit, the blog.estelito.com redirection to the wordpress.com URL will no longer work. It will cost me another 10$ to have it renewed so rather than renew it, I just opted to switch to Blogger once again because that feature is provided for free – thus you are seeing journal.estelito.com.
On June 17, the URL blog.estelito.com will then be redirected to this blog.
Until then, while I’m pondering on posting a whole plethora of things, you may check out my interactions in twitter *~~points at sidebar~~* or go to my contact page to find ways to ~~stalk~~contact me.