Tech Gospel According To John

Happy Geeky Valentine's Day Everyone!

2012-02-14T21:00:00.000+08:00

Enter the following in Google!

(sqrt(cos(x))*cos(400*x)+sqrt (abs(x))-0.4)*(4-x*x)^0.1

Happy Valentine's Day Everyone!

The video below, was Google's V-Day Doodle... enjoy!

Online Parenting v1.0

2012-02-10T10:35:00.002+08:00

For parents that can't seem to connect to their kids and all this "Facebook/Twitter cr*p"... here's how one parent dealt with his kid. Sit back and enjoy...

Visit Tommy Jordan's Facebook page here.

Some Geek Humor...

2012-02-02T09:59:00.002+08:00

If the end of the World will come in 2012, then explain how Marty McFly made it to 2015.

On a more serious note... this is a short video on quantum levitation. 3 years guys... 3 years.

A Little Monday Geek Humor

2012-01-30T08:42:00.003+08:00

Some people believe in crop circles... those strange patterns left in farmlands that can only be seen from the air. What about patterns only seen from space? Like a Google Earth satellite perhaps?

Well, in Hazelton PA, a mysterious pattern at the Harman-Geist Stadium field has been caught by Google Earth's satellites.

Amazing what a little creative gardening can do. It's at the end of Shaft Rd... hahahahaha! Here's the link to the original Google Maps location.

The SOPA Drama Continues...

2012-01-20T14:23:00.004+08:00

With the recent SOPA/PIPA debate that's hitting Internet freedom as we know it... Worlds collide as one of the largest cyber battles begins...

The website "Megaupload" was recently shut down by the Department of Justice & FBI. Four of its founders charged with piracy.

Hacker group Anonymous (ie: people you really shouldn't piss off) has just retaliated by launching their largest coordinated DDoS (Distributed Denial of Service, a cyber attack designed to bring down a website) Attack.

Targets: (All sites are down as of the writing of this article. The list will be updated as more reports come in)

~~US Department of Justice~~
~~RIAA~~
~~Universal Records~~
~~MPAA.org~~
~~US Copyright Office~~
~~EMI Records~~
~~HADOPI.FR (French Copyright Site)~~
~~US FBI site~~

Click to read Anonymous' statement on the attacks

For those that don't know what this whole SOPA thing is about, I think Jon Stewart can explain it better than I can...

The Daily Show with Jon Stewart
Get More: Daily Show Full Episodes,Political Humor & Satire Blog,The Daily Show on Facebook

End Piracy, Not Liberty! Take Action!

2012-01-19T07:04:00.001+08:00

There are better ways to end piracy. I'd like to invite everyone to read the ff on the proposed SOPA and PIPA, and please sign the petition. Click here to sign the petition on Google's page.

Monday Geek Humor

2012-01-16T10:57:00.001+08:00

Start your week right with geeky humor!

Ever need to text someone while swimming? (Liquipel)

2012-01-13T09:00:00.000+08:00

Ever jump into a lake or a pool and forget your iPhone was in your pocket?

Ever have your phone fall into a toilet?

Ever think... "gee, I really need to call ________." while you're in the shower?

It's just so frustrating when your gadgets can't handle a little water right? Well, no more!

Introducing... LIQUIPEL!!!

It's NOT a case. It's a coating.

Ok, seriously, this has got to be one of the coolest non-gadget, gadget-related products out. What they do is, they take your existing gadget (currently a limited line-up), place it in a small chamber and coat it with their water-repellant coating. I just wish there was some way to have this done here in the Philippines without going to the US.

A Picture Is Worth A Thousand Lies... ok, maybe just 8... (CES - Olympus VR-340)

2012-01-12T14:44:00.001+08:00

Ok, this is getting a bit out of hand, but I guess it was inevitable. Why bother with Photoshop when your camera can do most of the work? There are already cameras that make your eyes bigger... give you a tan... why not an instant face-lift?

The Olympus VR-340

The Olympus VR-340 looks like your average 16mp point and shoot, but hidden in the menus is a "Beauty" mode which allows you to do spot 'enhancements' like whiten teeth, eye shadow add/remove, and a few more 'fixes'.

With all the negative issues with retouching photos... I don't think this is exactly a step in the right direction... why bother being in the photos if it's not going to look like you at all? Oh well... C'est LIE vie.

It's that time of year... CES time!

2012-01-10T10:31:00.000+08:00

CES ... gadget freak heaven... some of the things to look forward to:

Both Lacie and Belkin have shown 2 new Thunderbolt hubs (ABOUT BLOODY TIME!) that take advantage of Apple's new port. Lacie's hub allows for eSata drive connections... while Belkin's is a more conservative "port replicator" type hub with USB 2.0 (why does Apple hate USB 3.0????) Firewire, Ethernet and 3.5mm audio. But their scheduled availability dates are quite disappointing. At the slow pace Thunderbolt (pun intended) is moving, it may just be overtaken by the next unknown standard. GUYS HURRY THE #@!$ UP!!!!

Belkin's new Thunderbolt hub functions as a port replicator. Still no USB 3.0

LaCie's Thunderbolt hub allows eSATA connections! Perfect for Audio/Video professionals!

Sony Eric...er... Sony has also announced 2 new Android phones. Albeit suffering from an identity crisis, the mock-up photos still have the SonyEricsson logo at the back, and the Sony logo in front... the new models both sport HD 1280x720 resolution screens... perfect for watching recorded HD movies!

The Sony Ion is an AT&T only model at the moment sporting a 4.6" display, while the Xperia S is a 4.3" model, but has a nice ~~silver accent~~ *transparent antenna* in the design which I really like. Both have 1.5 gHz dual-core CPUs, 12 mega-pixel cameras, 1280 x 720 screens. Both still run Android Gingerbread. ICS is scheduled more or less at the same time as the 2011 models will get it.

Sony Ion - 4.6" Reality Display. **Nice rear logo... hahaha**

Sony Xperia S - 4.3" HD Reality Display.

Huawei also announced a new phone, the thinnest Android so far. Measuring 6.68mm thin. Called the "Ascend P1 S" (such a catchy name). Specs are decent although not too excited about the 960 x 540 resolution screen, it is still quite decent.

The Huawei Ascend P1 S

#itsmorefuninthephilippines

2012-01-08T04:09:00.000+08:00

The Department of Tourism in the Philippines has launched their new tourism campaign #itsmorefuninthephilippines. Show what makes the Philippines fun, unique or amusing to you! Congratulations to the DOT for a successful campaign! #itsmorefuninthephilippines #1forfun So to all my readers out there, it really is more fun in the Philippines! Come and visit!

For those interested in creating their own FUN meme, download the Harabara font here. My full album is on Picasa.

**Update Jan 9, 2012 - you may also visit morefunmaker.com to create your own photo meme! **

Technology. More fun in the Philippines

Hotel Pickups. More fun in the Philippines

Afternoon Walks. More fun in the Philippines

Surface Intervals. More fun in the Philippines

Watching Twilight. More fun in the Philippines : Caption by Tippi Ocampo

Midnight. More fun in the Philippines

Being moony. More fun in the Philippines

Traffic. More fun in the Philippines

Going round the bend. More fun in the Philippines

Cover Your Face...Book Timeline (A Privacy Entry)

2012-01-05T17:37:00.000+08:00

Facebook has once again changed their interface. Much more drastic than any previous update in the past. Causing the usual uproar about how users preferred the "old interface"... the same one they HATED when Facebook first introduced it.

Anyway, with Facebook's new timeline, user's profile now look more like those Science Museum charts that show important points in history.

For those that want to control their privacy, it's much easier to do so now.

First click on the drop-down arrow on the upper right hand side of your profile page.
Next click on Privacy Settings.
A new page will appear where you can select from 3 options: Public, Friends, and Custom.

Public makes everything you post viewable by everyone. Even those not logged into Facebook. For corporate pages, or fansites, this is usually preferred for maximum exposure and search engine indexing.
Friends is for just your immediate contacts.
Custom is where you can select Friends of Friends, or only a certain group of contacts, or even ban certain Facebook users from viewing your page all together.

Tech Gospel v3.0 (New Year.... New Look...)

2012-01-03T21:15:00.000+08:00

I've been experimenting with Blogger's new "Dynamic View" templates since they were introduced last year. But I decided to implement them only in 2012.

There are still a few bugs, and I'm sure a lot of my regular readers may complain... but as all things tech, upgrading is inevitable. Dynamic View allows for easier search indexing and more interactive layouts.

The advantage of Blogger's new layout is it allows my readers to change my layout to their preferred view. Go ahead and try it out. Just click on the drop down menu on the left side and select a new layout!

One limitation for now, however, is that inability to add a header image. My simple workaround is to have it in my background image. I'm still going to be playing around with the title bar since the space allowed is quite small.

For those interested in experimenting, the height of your header image should be no more than 65 pixels. This is the only part of the background image that will be visible above the menu bar. Hopefully, Google will change this soon and allows better customizability.

Here's to 2012 and all the great new technology that will come with it!

HAPPY NEW YEAR EVERYONE!

2012-01-01T12:03:00.001+08:00

Every year is a chance to
Reboot...
Restart...
Update...
and
Upgrade yourself!!!

May you all have a wonderful new year ahead!

Happy 2012!

A Little Friday Tech Humor : Siri in the Philippines

2011-12-23T19:14:00.000+08:00

I'm sure there are countless issues with Siri's accent recognition... specially if you're from other countries... here in the Philippines, we have our own version.

Introducing, Vangie!

Merry Christmas!

Maligayang Pasko!

Joyeux Noël!

Fröhliche Weihnachten!

Typhoon Sendong : PH ALERT

2011-12-18T18:12:00.002+08:00

The recent typhoon "Sendong" in the southern Philippines left hundreds dead and even more homeless. The Philippine Red Cross is accepting donations to help all the victims and rebuild the city.

For those who want to help and donate, click on the link to go to the PRC site.

Philippine Red Cross - Donate Now

You Can't Have Enough Cloud Storage!

2011-12-16T09:38:00.000+08:00

Good news to all Sony Ericsson Xperia users... Sony Ericsson has teamed up with Box to offer all Xperia users 50GB of free cloud storage! This is a limited offer and Xperia users must sign up before the end of the year to avail of their free space.

Simply download the Box Android app and sign up for a new account from a Sony Ericsson Xperia device. Although you get 50GB free, you do not get the advanced features of the paid service. (It's the 5GB free service + 45GB more space)

Meteor Shower...

2011-12-14T22:39:00.000+08:00

Gonna try to catch the Geminids meteor shower in a few minutes... Hoping the clouds clear up...

Rainy Friday Traffic App... WAZE

2011-12-09T13:08:00.001+08:00

Last time, I wrote about the MMDA's new traffic app. Comes in quite handy for a general view of traffic in the metro. But sometimes, green/yellow/red doesn't really give you a full picture. How slow/fast is traffic actually moving?

For those with data connections on their Android or iPhone, we like tweeting or updating our statuses on our current traffic condition. It somehow saves our sanity. But what if there was an app that could that automatically... while helping contribute to the traffic data?

Enter WAZE. A social-networking app specifically for traffic. Sign up for a free account and get moving!

The app shows actual Waze users that are on the road, and gives their over-all traffic speed on any given road. No road for where you are? No problem, it can record your route and now will show your new road on the map! Accident? Flood? Wanna share a traffic mishap with everyone else? It allows that too.

It needs a data connection and GPS to accurately map your location and report traffic conditions in your area, you can specify the radius around you (the smaller the radius the faster the updates) and this is done in real-time. The more people are on it, the more accurate the traffic reporting will be! Try it out!

**This post has been brought to you by Smart LTE**

**No LTE signal here in the Fort, HSPA only**

Life in the Fast (LTE) Lane! (Smart Philippines LTE Beta)

2011-12-07T14:53:00.001+08:00

For the next two months, this blog will be powered by Smart's new LTE service! Boasting 40++mbps speeds... let's see what this can little thing can do!!! Stay tuned for full speed stats in and around the Metro!

Thanks to Smart for making me part of their Beta-test preview of their service!

For those looking for a speed boost NOW, Smart's Rocket Wifi at 20++mbps is available now at all Smart Centers!

This post has been brought to you by Smart LTE!

I feel like I'm in Japan again!
*just a note, this was a WIRED LAN connection*

4S: Sign-up, Siri, Speed, Santa (iPhone 4S in the Philippines)

2011-12-02T13:42:00.001+08:00

Just in time for Christmas! Don't you just LOVE corporate timing? Yes, within hours of each other, both Smart and Globe have announced release dates for the iPhone 4S in the Philippines... and the magic date is...

DEC 16, 2011

TRAFFIC!!!! -There's now an app for that!-

2011-11-30T17:45:00.001+08:00

For most Filipinos, traffic is a way of life. The average Pinoy commute is about 15-20km (or about 10-15 miles) this easily translates to a 45 min commute by car (yes, 45 min) Now, radio traffic reports are pretty useless, telling you that's it's traffic when you're already STUCK IN TRAFFIC.

Wouldn't it be great if we had a system similar to the ones abroad that show the traffic status before we leave the house or office? Well, the MMDA is slowly rolling out a very competent online traffic status system.

Still in public beta, it has saved me at least 8 hours a week by giving me information on whether to leave now, wait it out, or take an alternate route.

The system is pretty convenient... the traffic info for 9 of the major roads in Metro Manila are now online via:

The apps are very nice to have if you have mobile internet, the website gives further details on any accidents and road work being done, and the Twitter account provides alternate route suggestions.

Great work to the MMDA for this app!

A Little Friday Tech Humor : Siri

2011-11-18T16:00:00.000+08:00

MORE ICE CREAM NEWS!!!!!!! (Sony Ericsson Android 4.0 Confirmation)

2011-11-17T14:00:00.001+08:00

The following 2011 Sony Ericsson models have been confirmed for Android's new Ice Cream Sandwich (4.0) update.

Xperia active
Xperia arc
Xperia arc S
Xperia mini
Xperia mini pro
Xperia neo
Xperia neo V
Xperia Play
Xperia pro
Xperia ray
Live with Walkman

Considering that the source code was just released Nov 14, let's hope they won't take too long from the time of announcement til actual release date! So far, with how quick they've been releasing updates... this looks promising! Only time will tell.

These are some of the new features users can expect to get from Android 4.0

Virtual buttons in the UI, in place of capacitive or physical buttons
Separation of widgets in a new tab, listed in a similar list to apps
Easier-to-create folders, with a drag-and-drop style
A customizable launcher
Improved visual voicemail with the ability to speed up or slow down voicemail messages
Pinch-to-zoom functionality in the calendar
Offline search, a two-line preview, and new action bar at the bottom of the Gmail app
Ability to swipe left or right to switch between Gmail conversations
Integrated screenshot capture
Improved error correction on the keyboard
Ability to access apps directly from lock screen
Improved copy and paste functionality
Better voice integration and continuous, real-time speech to text dictation
Face Unlock, a feature that allows users to unlock handsets using facial recognition software
New tabbed web browser, allowing up to 16 tabs
Automatic syncing of browser with users' Chrome bookmarks
Modern Roboto font
Data Usage section in settings that lets users set warnings when they approach a certain usage limit, and disable data when the limit is exceeded
Ability to shut down apps that are using data in the background
Improved camera app with zero shutter lag, time lapse settings, panorama mode, and the ability to zoom while recording
Built-in photo editor
New gallery layout, organized by location and person
Refreshed 'People' app with social network integration, status updates and hi-res images
Hardware acceleration of the UI
Resizeable widgets
Wi-Fi Direct

App of the Day : Online Banking (BPI - Philippines)

2011-11-15T09:44:00.001+08:00

BPI (Bank of the Philippines Islands) has just released their mobile app for both iOS and Android. It's a very sleek app with all the online banking functions built in. Although you could just go to your mobile browser to log in and do your banking, zooming in and scrolling around the full page isn't fun, or fast.

The app installation isn't quite clear though...

The proper procedure is:

1) Log into BPI Online using your login name and password

2) Go to Other Services > Express Mobile Registration > Mobile Banking

3) Enter you mobile number and click Submit (no need to enter the ATM number)

4) You will receive an SMS with a secure link and verification code to activate your account and download the app (If you already installed the app from the App Store or Marketplace, skip the next step)

5) Click the link and download/install the app.

6) Launch the app and enter the verification code you received via SMS

7) Login using your online name and password.