‘Open House’, as explained by Matthey Ngui, the Artistic Director of Singapore Biennale 2011, “… is not so much a theme as an attitude. I would like the focus for the third Singapore Biennale to be on the city as site and as home, where art engages audiences and re-presents realities through unique creative processes. These give fresh insights into the spaces we inhabit, and in Singapore, we hope to connect the public with artists, starting from the very process of art making …”.

Outreach & Location

Reaching out to an estimated 650,000 attendees, the organisers have tabled down two venues which are confirmed, Singapore Art Museum & National Museum of Singapore while two more locations are under consideration. They are the Old Kallang Airport & Central Promontory Site (Raffles Boulevard). Artistic Director Matthew Ngui says the efficient public transport that Singapore has, will ensure convenient transfer between various locations. National Museum of Singapore is within walking distance of the Singapore Art Museum. As for the other two locations that is under consideration,

The MRT Connection

Singapore Biennale is scheduled to be helf from 6th March to 8th May 2011. It will be curated by Artistic Director, Matthew Ngui, and members of the Curatorial Team, Russel Storer and Trevor Smith. Hence, taking the first name of each person responsible, we get MRT. This joke was shared by Trevor Smith, during the media briefing at the Singapore Art Museum, on the 11th December 2009.

Gift from SAM

The image shown above is by Hendra Gunawan, entitled War And Peace, part of the Singapore Art Museum Collection.

Quotable Quotes

Trevor Smith says a biennale is more than just an exhibition, its a space where new connections are made .

Matthew Ngui says ‘Open House’ is an attitude, the way artist work in spaces.

Will it be disruptive? Will there be lag issues when it comes to playing your favourite characters on Ninja Gaiden? It would help if TrendMicro have some screenshots of how it looks on the PSP.

After receiving the press release, I draft up a simple survey. I just asked two questions; email address & if they would use an antivirus on a PSP? Here’s the results I received.

With a total of 19 respondents, 10 people preferred to have protection on their PSP while 9 people said No. I could have created another survey, adding age, so that we can have an understanding on perception of maturity of PSP users, but let’s be frank, one uses a PSP to have fun. Therefore, the concept of instilling a sense of security into a fun-device may seem paranoid!
However, for the 10 that do prefer to have protection over their PSP, here are some good news that TrendMicro promised.

Trend Micro Kids Safety for PSP® (PlayStation®Portable) uses Trend Micro’s URL filtering technology to prevent children from accessing Web sites that feature inappropriate content. Blocked categories include: Adult/Sex, Cults/The Occult, Gambling, Crime, Illegal Drugs, Alcohol/Tobacco, Sex Education, Weapons/Military, and Violence/Discrimination.

Trend Micro Web Security for PSP® (PlayStation®Portable) uses Trend Micro’s Web reputation technology to block PSP users from accidentally visiting a Web site that may contain malicious content designed to steal personal information and confidential data such as bank account information, and credit card numbers. Web reputation is one of the main components of the Trend Micro™ Smart Protection Network, a cloud-client security infrastructure that checks the security of more than five billion URL, email and file queries daily. With Trend Micro Smart Protection Network, PSP users receive instant, real-time protection.

And to add to this, there is a running promotion for a FREE TRIAL from TrendMicro. Just go to https://boxreg.trendmicro.com/TMWS_Static/PSP/en-US/page/index.html on your PC or PSP browser to get the FREE TRIAL. Users that subscribe between December 18, 2009 through March 31, 2010 receive 30 percent off from the regular purchase price.

I personally would like to see how this develops. Will the other security companies like Norton Symantec, McAfee & Kaspersky follow suit & come up with their own offerings?

Update from TrendMicro: Here are two screenshots that will be very useful for those who wants to have a view of how the program will function upon encountering a suspicious website.




Looking at this, it would give PSP users an idea of how their PSP would respond when visiting a malicious site. So, if you have a PSP and have downloaded the free trial, please do comment here on your experience. If it is convenient, I can arrange for an interview with you on your experience. Drinks on me!

Here’s 10 Useful tips to Drinking Responsibly

1. Set a limit in how many drinks you will have (without binging) – and stick to it!
2. Drink slowly – sip your drinks rather than gulp them down
3. Know your drinks – be extra cautious with unfamiliar drinks
4. Use the buddy system – get a friend to tell you when you’ve had too much
5. Respect each other’s right and never force drinks on your friends
6. Have plenty of water to keep yourself hydrated
7. Don’t make drinking the main focus of any activity
8. If your friends are drinking too much, try starting a conversation or propose another activity
9. Remember what and how much you are drinking
10. Never Drink and Drive!

Look at this, don’t they look healthy & cheerful?
It’s not the drinking, it’s how you’re drinking. DRINK RESPONSIBLY. Pledge your support for moderate drinking at GYSB.SG