a peek into my trashVin....

Interesting Ubuntu Version Names

noreply@blogger.com (Marvin) — Sat, 23 May 2009 15:37:00 +0000

After several millions of second from my last post, I'm back. Thus, this post is related to the first geeky stuff I did after coming back from my 5 months of "forced exile" in the US (stuffs that does not involve my work in the office). Once again , Im playing with my Ubuntu, and the first thing I have to do is to update it. which brought me to realizing that I have the 8.10 version and in a few months more they will be releasing the 9.10 version. New Ubuntu version always comes with a new interesting name. Read the list below and be acquainted with Ubuntus version names.

4.10 Warty Warthog
5.04 Hoary Hedgehog
5.10 Breezy Badger
6.06 Dapper Drake
6.10 Edgy Eft
7.04 Feisty Fawn
7.10 Gutsy Gibbon
8.04 Hardy Heron
8.10 Intrepid Ibex
9.04 Jaunty Jackalope
9.10 Karmic Koala

Funny, they always brand Ubuntu as the Linux for human being but their version names are always referring to animals. Maybe come version 10.10 they will name it after me , Marvin 'd Martian.

Paalam Kiko

noreply@blogger.com (Marvin) — Fri, 06 Mar 2009 17:56:00 +0000

Francis "Kiko" Magalona
October 4, 1964 - March 6, 2009

salamat sa impluwensya
salamat sa ala ala
salamat sa musika

paalam Francis Magalona

isa kang malaking kawalan sa musikang pilipino

Force Shutdown on VMWare Player

noreply@blogger.com (Marvin) — Tue, 10 Feb 2009 18:04:00 +0000

Here a simple tip for VMWare users. If you have set the memory allocation of your VMPlayer to be high and one day wake up with error saying it cannot start the VM because there is not enough memory on the host, here is what you can do:

1. Adjust the VMWare memory allocation to a lesser value. Closing the VMWare will not commit the changes on the memory allocation till you shutdown the VM itself. This is the problem, you cannot shutdown the VM unless you can start it.
2. To workaround this problem, go to the folder where the VM file reside and delete the .VMSS file. Open your VM , by then the memory allocation had been applied and the memory allocation problem is resolved.

Ways to Make Yourself Marketable

noreply@blogger.com (Marvin) — Thu, 05 Feb 2009 00:47:00 +0000

Waiting for a large system to compile seems like forever , so instead o f wasting my time looking at every line of code my screen tries to feed into my eyes I wandered around Yahoo and found some nicely written article that I am stealing today and share it using my own twisted point of view.

The title was 8 ways to make yourself marketable, seems to be in the right frame of time when all is fearing recession. Here it goes:

* Use your name as your brand, especially in email. Don't confuse potential employers by using your maiden name on your resume and your married name in your email. And the nickname your friends find funny may not look professional.

"Manager jobs don't go to people with cute email addresses," said Marianne Adoradio, a recruiter and career counselor.

This seems like a good idea , for people who wants to create an email address and for those who wants to get rid of their funny-sometimes-weird email address. But for the lucky ones , who have remained loyal to their not so formal email address but got always the job not because of their email address but because of their skill, keep the email address man , it may be your lucky charm. Im keeping mine by the way.

Meet an employer's need. Employers "want a round peg for the round hole," said Kathryn Ullrich, a career expert and executive recruiter.

You may want to stretch yourself by trying a job you've never done before, but there's not much in that for the employer. Any time you apply for a job, make sure you can tell a story about your career that shows why you would be the best person for the job. "It's really about what the employer is looking for," Ullrich said.

Its the wrong time of the year to be adventurous, stick with your guns and get a job. It may not be advisable to shift career at this time. Make sure you got what it takes when applying for a job. Guess what? I am postponing my move to go for open source development at this time , Microsoft tool is what I know , Ill go with it till the best moment comes.

* Maintain a smart online profile. "All that stupid stuff you put on Facebook -- take it off," said Richard Phillips, owner of Advantage Career Solutions. At the same time, find industry blogs and forums and start contributing comments.

If you have time , join professional online forums , establish an active profile on the web. Sometimes employers can do a background check of what you have been doing. Personal profiles are fine, just be sure it doesnt mess your professional profile. Google your name and see what the search engine returns, if its on the first page, perhaps you have the advantage. My name passes with a flying color.

* Become active in a professional association. This means doing more than paying dues and showing up for meetings. Find a way to help: For example, perhaps you can organize expert speakers in your field to be on a panel. It will boost your resume, build you self-esteem and give you valuable connections. "You're building up relationships with people who are going to hire you," Ullrich said.

Its a great way to meet new people. I once "tried" (at least online) to be active on some professional group like PHINUG (Philippine .Net Users Group), MSDN , DevPinoy and other IT Forums but time took its toll and I became dormant. But this type of organizations do have community activities where you will personally meet and share ideas. Its a way of extending your reach to the world. I will try again , perhaps, maybe..

* Take a class or get a certificate. This is especially helpful if it teaches you a skill -- new technology that's being used in your field, for example -- that you don't already have.

It may be a masters degeree , a Ph.D. , or an industry certification. It may cost you sometimes but in the end it may benefit you. I hope I could still catch the second shot chance to Microsoft certifications promo once I get back. Id better start reviewing again ( the first one took me at least 1 month to burn candles ), perhaps, maybe ..

* Take on a new project at work. It should be "something that lets you add something new to your resume," Phillips said. "Think in terms of the resume that you're going to be writing. What do you want to have on there that isn't on there now?"

Dont be monotonous in what you are doing, if there is a chance to be part of a new and interesting project , grab it. It gives you a better option when looking for a new job. Spice up your resume ,again, just dont be too adventurous.

* Be flexible. You may not want to commute more than 10 miles, but being willing to bend a bit will open up more opportunities. It will also make you a more attractive candidate because it signals to employers that you're able to handle change.

If you think you can do it , take the chance and extend your limit. The best way to be flexible is to continue learning. Dont just stop on what you know now, because it may be obsolete tomorrow. Live like there will be no tomorrow , learn like its forever. Dont forget to share your knowledge.

Eraserheads Reunion Concert Final Set

noreply@blogger.com (Marvin) — Sun, 11 Jan 2009 17:34:00 +0000

Another way to get the 2009 rock and rolling is to fill the year up with good and great concerts. So when my friend , Renzy , mentioned about another Eraserheads reunion concert , my year has just started right . Yes , the Final Set of the 083008 EHeads reunion concert is temporarily scheduled for March 2009 . Heres the rest of the report from Philstar.com

It’s confirmed. The Eraserheads concert “The Final Set” is set.
Save the date: March 7, 2009. The concert is produced by MTV and Smart with the venue yet to be announced.
For now, it’s a tossup between The Fort and SM Mall of Asia grounds.
They’re just about to sign the contract and will have their press conference on January 19.
We know you can’t wait, that’s why we’re already telling you — remember, you read it here first in Supreme!

My First Blog for 2009

noreply@blogger.com (Marvin) — Wed, 07 Jan 2009 17:14:00 +0000

Im starting 2009 with a blog on foods. Since my 4 months voluntary exile in the US (hahaha), I started cooking ( full time! ) so Google is my cookbook and I am the chef ( sort of ). Yesterday , I was looking forward for another experiment on the kitchen lab (it gets messy sometimes) . What I have ? Pork belly , Chinese Okra , Squash . I was having doubts on whether the Chinese Okra is the same thing as the vegetable I know from the province , "kabatiti" . So after searching for "kabatiti" on the net , Google returned some informative links on some Ilocano Foods which made my day . Listed below are some Ilocano food worth mentioning .

Abrao or Inabrao - assorted seasonal vegetables, typically malunggay, and that quintessentially Ilocano vegetable, saluyot, boiled in a bagoong and fish broth

Ipon—tiny fish in season during the cold months

Poki-Poki (also poqui-poqui), an innocent omelet made of eggplant sautéed with garlic, onions, tomatoes, and eggs

Kabatiti (in Tagalog patola) - the vegetable served with misua

Utong - string beans

Balatong - mongo to Tagalogs, usually with malunggay or ampalaya leaves, and talong strips

Patupat - boiled glutinous rice lightly flavored with salt (in some cases, pepper as well) and wrapped in banana leaves to a triangular shape

Dudol - a mixture of ground glutinous rice flour, water and sugarcane juice, that is laboriously mixed by hand as it cooks over a slow fire—reminiscent of the procedure for making haleya

Papaitan or Sinanglao - flavored boiled beef, carabao or goat sweetmeats with the bile and the juice of partially digested grass in the animal’s intestines

Its a shortlist of what this blog is mentioning and there are plenty more when you get down north.

Because of some funny and racy names , Ilocanos usually joke about food names . So don't be offended by us when we try to ask "Miss magkano yang UTONG nyo?" or a lady would tell "Mare ang haba ng KABATITING nabili mo!" or a young man would mention "Ang sarap talaga ng POKI (pause)...POKI".

The Graphical Evolution of Geeks

noreply@blogger.com (Marvin) — Tue, 30 Dec 2008 20:24:00 +0000

Here is a funny picture I got from a website (I don't remember the name , mr. image owner thank you ) , showing us where geeks came from . Enjoy and have a Happy New Year .

Open workbench an MS Project Open Source Alternative

noreply@blogger.com (Marvin) — Fri, 26 Dec 2008 15:22:00 +0000

For a project manager , planning is your bread and butter . A good software tool is a complement ,as long as it doesn't come with a high price . MS Project , a Microsft product , is one of the most commonly used project management tool around . But if your just a low earning firm with little money to invest on project management tool you may not be able to afford this tool.

Open source software , as I always mention it on some of my blogs , free users of high prices from large software companies . It may not be always free , but it is cheaper . Additionally , the source code comes with it , so if you are that technically adventurous , you can always customize it to fit your need. Open Workbench aims to be a direct alternative to Microsoft Project . Open Workbench provides project planning and scheduling together with resource management. Open Workbench even offers import of Microsoft Project files - to make migration easier . So if you dont mind investing a little of your time to learn the software , in the long run , you may appreciate how much is being saved on using this software. Personally , I have tried using the software (my project management task was short lived so i was really able to jump into it deeper) and all I can say is that , the software can be easily learned to achieve the productivity you want.

Visit their website , it has a lot of information regarding the software plus they have a SAVING section on the page that shows how much can you save. Dont forget to download it and give it a test drive.

Getting an AppleID Without a Credit Card

noreply@blogger.com (Marvin) — Wed, 24 Dec 2008 04:00:00 +0000

So you bought a new iPod Touch . You have heard a lot of those cool games and cool applications that runs over it . You opened up iTunes and excited to see what is in store for you . Last thing you know , Apple is asking you for a credit card number . Boom ! all that excitement is gone.

For an average iPod owner who does not have a credit card number or does not want to have one , applying for an Apple ID to get hold of those freebies and goodies Steve Jobs has to offer is a pain in the ass . But there are several ways to get over with it . One , you could buy a iTunes gift card and redeem it . This is good , if and only if , gift cards are available . Two, try jailbraking your iPod touch and risk voiding its warranty . Lastly , read on and follow the steps below. Just a note , I assume that you are responsible enough to take care of yourself . Take note that even if the software is free , a billing statement will be sent to you registered email address . And if you intend to buy one , pay for it.

1. Launch you iTunes application and go to the iTunes Store .
2. Scroll down to the bottom of the page and select the country. The country is significant , different country can mean different offered applications.

3. Go to the Top Free Apps widget and click on the top free application.
4. Clicking on the Get App button prompts you to enter your AppleID , select Create New Account.
5. Proceed and create a new AppleID account.
6. If you got all the previous steps working , you may be able to see the "NONE" option on the Payment method section.

7. Select the NONE option and provide the billing information . Make sure that your address is a valid address from the country you have choosen in Step 2.
8. Click CONTINUE and you are good to go.

Ubuntu 8.10 Intrepid Ibex Easy Installation Guide

noreply@blogger.com (Marvin) — Fri, 19 Dec 2008 04:43:00 +0000

Installing Linux according to some , which I strongly disagree , is painful. Ive been jumping around several Linux flavors ( from Bayanihan to Smoothwall and some popular flavors in between ) and did not find any problem at all except for some minor ones. Good thing for newbies , Ubuntus installation has been improving a lot with every new release (and new odd name that comes with it) . I have Intrepid Ibex running on my box but I have not installed it manually . I am using a VMware , so downloading the VM image was a better solution . But for those who wants to try it without virtualization , heres a GOOD LINK to EASY INSTALLATION of UBUNTU 8.10 Intrepid Ibex .

Good Luck.

The difference between Vista, XP, Linux and MacOS explained!

noreply@blogger.com (Marvin) — Sun, 14 Dec 2008 20:43:00 +0000

I was looking around for some nice articles to read till I reached this funny yet real blog post from Phil Shapiro on washingtonpost.com.

The Difference Between Vista, XP, Linux and Mac OS Explained
Wherein a middle school student asks me to explain the difference in simple terms. I do just that.

A middle school student I know asked me to explain the difference between Vista, XP, Linux and Mac OS. Here's the gist of our conversation:

Me: "You want to know the difference in real simple terms? Okay. Vista is bad gnews and GNU is good gnews. XP ain't such bad gnews, until you reach the blue screen of death, which ain't good gnews at all."

Middle schooler: "Okay, I think I understand. How about Mac OS?"

Me: "Mac OS is like a beautiful Bermuda island with a prison wall built all around it."

Middle schooler: "Really? How so?"

Me: "Well, Mac OS uses Digital Recreation Management (DRM), so if you want to build a sandcastle, you are forced to use an approved pail."

Middle schooler: "An approved pail? I want to use my own pail. That sounds to me like it's beyond the pale."

Me: "That indeed it is. It's beyond the pale. To use an approved pail is going to cost you $40 up front. Would you like to use Mastercard or VISA?"

Middle schooler: "I don't want to use Mastercard or VISA. I just want to use my own pail."

Me: "It sounds to me like you're ready to break out of prison and live a life with no bad gnews."

Middle schooler: "Yes, I'm ready now. I'm ready for that. Will you show me how?"

Me: "Well, sure, I can show you how."

I just love how he spelled GNEWS (news) , so GNUish.

Microsofts First iPhone Application

noreply@blogger.com (Marvin) — Sun, 14 Dec 2008 17:51:00 +0000

On yet another occasion , software giant Microsoft has been extending its "coverage" on other platform. Just yesterday , they have release their first application to run on Apples iPhone (perhaps even on iPod Touch too). The Seadragon Mobile is a free image-browsing app that allows users to quickly "deep zoom" images while online and is intended to demonstrate what is possible with mobile platform.It is the backbone for Microsoft's Photosynth, which allows users to take a grouping of photographs and stitch them together into a faux 3D environment. an article from CNET news also mentioned that other iPhone apps are being developed at Microsofts Live Labs .

Some may welcome this move of the software giants to expand and penetrate the iPhone market, others may simply see it as another marketing strategy to display what they can do . when asked why they have the made the new application available to the iPhone first before their own mobile platform , they simply say :"The iPhone is the most widely distributed phone with a (graphics processing unit). Most phones out today don't have accelerated graphics in them. The iPhone does and so it enabled us to do something that has been previously difficult to do."

I appreciate Microsofts way of getting the best out of any available technology . They have the idea but Apple got the needed technology. Unselfishly , they decided to put it in Apple. I am not a Microsft guy or an Apple patron , I just like the way how technology is being used by anyone. I run Vista and Linux , I have an iPod and I use nokia phone so what the heck....

An Open Source CMS from Microsoft ?????

noreply@blogger.com (Marvin) — Tue, 09 Dec 2008 04:51:00 +0000

Perhaps the open source thing has been running around Microsoft . Microsoft dont like showing their codes, that is why even just a glimpse of MS Windows code can be worth a million. But of course , they support learning , that is why they have codePlex. Now going back to the topic , ZDNet announce today that Microsoft is developing an Open Source CMS !! Yes , an open source Content Management System. For what ? I dont know. as far as I know , they released Blogengine.net on codePlex a few months ago which is mainly an opensource solution for blogging. Now they are going for the CMS. Is it not that Microsft already have the MOSS or the Microsoft Office Sharepoint Server or even the outdated Community Server?

It is a welcome development indeed for Open source fanatics . I just hope that it will receive great appreciation from those who are currently using famous Opensource CMS such as Drupal , Joomla , PHPNuke or even DotNetNuke .

One main concern why I prefer OpenSource CMS which can run on linux is its cheapness to maintain and operate. Most free and cheap web hosting runs linux on their servers. Drupal , which I have already used in Online aparri , for example, uses MySQL and runs on top of apache in a linux box. Will this new OpenSource CMS has the ability to run on top of MySQl and Apache environment? I bet it doesnt unless maybe they have used Mono , then there is a slim chance. Nonetheless , for a budget sensitive guy , I will still prefer CMS that run on top of open source softwares such as Linux, MySql and apache.

By the way, MS is naming it initially as "Oxite".

Microsoft Vista SP2 is on the Loop

noreply@blogger.com (Marvin) — Sun, 07 Dec 2008 19:42:00 +0000

After releasing Vista SP1 this year , Microsoft has announced the availability of Vista SP2 on Beta of course . There is no final release date for the said service pack but some report mentioned a roll out by April 2009. The company launched the first public beta of Windows Vista Service Pack 2 (SP2) last December 4, making it available for download from both its Web site and through its update mechanism. A warning. Unfortunately , the update is not directed towards the general public , rather it is intended for tech junkies , beta testers or simply geeks who wants to have a preview on what to come. Additionally, users must jump through some hoops before they can grab Vista SP2 from Windows Update, Microsoft told.

Read more about this article at ComputerWorld.

I am a Foreigner

noreply@blogger.com (Marvin) — Sun, 07 Dec 2008 18:22:00 +0000

Being away from the Philippines for almost a month now somewhat changed the way I go by everyday. Missing those close to you , your family , the lutong ulams , the busy street of the metro, colorum fx , jeepneys, the fort bus , cool and uncool OPM music on every radio, the endless competition of ABS and GMA and unlimited texting will get into your nerves somehow . What you see here are different , no sari sari stores just walmarts and targets, no cdrkings or greenhills or gilmore what you have are circuitcity or tigerdirect or radisoshacks , the closes to filipino foods are the chinese restaurants and where oriental shops the grand asia market is the alternative to american oriented grocery stores.

Good thing the internet has not changed a bit , YMs and Chikka are still available , Yahoos and Googles are still your best friend and torrents are still your best resource (hahaha).

This is where nosebleeds are a common sight , not because of fist fights but more on communicating with fast-talking "americanos" . A place where the question "Ano Raw?" is a common term. Where a dime or a 25 cent coin is worth something , where tax are not included on item prices and where tips are compulsary and not just an option.

The complexity of life here unfolds before my eyes , I may either appreciate it or simply live by it until the end of February.

Pacquiao Won Over Dela Hoya

noreply@blogger.com (Marvin) — Sun, 07 Dec 2008 05:49:00 +0000

After months of hype and excitement, the Pacquiao vs Dela Hoya match came to an end with a big bang for Filipinos. The Pacman won , with no question, and once again proved to the world that he is the best pound for pound boxer today.

Congratulations Manny Pacquaio . You made us feel that we should be proud being a Filipino.

Online Aparri

noreply@blogger.com (Marvin) — Thu, 30 Oct 2008 01:55:00 +0000

I have been silent for a while on this blog . Even my planned post on MonoDevelop running on top of Ubuntu has been put on hold. Reason? I found Drupal and started playing on it for a while . Output? An alpha release of an Online Virtual Community for Aparrianos.

The site was built using the basic features of Drupal plus some contributed modules . As of the moment no PHP coding is being done but Im planning to integrate some of it when Ill have time to learn the langugae. The domain name is a free but Ill be registering a more appropriate domain name later on. I enjoyed learning Drupal and still learning more and expect for posts regarding this Open Source CMS later on.

Google Code Repositories

noreply@blogger.com (Marvin) — Sun, 12 Oct 2008 02:30:00 +0000

Google is indeed conquering everything . I usually use Google Mail (gmail) , Google Docs , Google Calendar , Google Talk , Google Map , Google Pages , Blogger , Chrome (before my OS got hit by a virus last month , ill reinstall chrome soon) and yes Google Search . No wonder Google is all over .

Just last night , while searching for some articles on Model-View-Presenter topic , I downloaded a sample source code from a source which has "google" on its URL . The code was actually hosted by Google Code repository running Subversion. The main Google Code page displays most of the current development done and link to those projects . This include a link to Android , Googles platform for Mobile Development. Under Developers Resources you will find the Project Hosting link. This allows you to host your own project (up to 10 projects) and make it available to the web. Whats cool is that a Wiki page , Issue Tracker , Download Page , Source Code Page and Description page is provided . This is a good avenue for open source developers who wants their codes to be looked upon and being changed by the community . Im planing to host one of my initial open source web project here once it is ready for alpha relase. By the way , I found the C#-Ported DotNetNuke hosted in Google Code.

If I could remember it well , my previous officemate (Meng) once sent me a link to an article about Googlism, discussing profane thoughts on Google being a God .

The Need for Source Code Control

noreply@blogger.com (Marvin) — Sat, 11 Oct 2008 13:34:00 +0000

Reading through some articles on Source Code Control , I ran into an article by a person from SourceGear and I certainly agree with his introduction. Never had I learn something about source code management in school . Yes , they did talk about the infamous SDLC but not on SCM or CVS or SVN . Of course any one from the industry knows Source Code Control is a vital part of any development.

Back when I was starting development in USL where most of my skills was gained through constant reading , reseach and unpaid overtimes , I never thought of SCM . I know Visual Studio has a Visual Source Safe , but its actual use Im really clueless (or maybe just plain uninterested). One of the main reasons I never really dug into t is because I was the only developer for the application, I was the source code and the source code was me. It was only during my remaining quarter in USL that I made some effort to look into it. Mainly because some works are now being done by other programmers plus the thought of turn over was making sense. It was only on my second company that I got exposed to this process ( SourceOffSite and Vault was the main tools). My current company uses another , unfortunately I am yet to be exposed to it.

Source Code Control has undergone several innovations. Here are some list of terms use to describe them:
1. "Manual" Version Control - The simplest kind of version control consists of using the organization’s shared file storage system (e.g. networked file server) as the source code repository.
2. Microsoft Visual Source Safe . For larger projects and to solve the corrupted repository risk, Microsoft recommends the source code control functionality built into the Visual Studio Team Foundation (a suite of software configuration management and development technologies). Visual Studio 2010 Team Foundation has been previewed on some sites.
3. Concurrent Version System (CVS) - CVS is the dominant free open-source multi-platform client-server version control system.
4. Subversion (SVN) - Subversion is an open source project, actively maintained by Collabnet/Tigris, whose goal is to supercede CVS.
5. Revision Control System (RCS) - RCS is one of the oldest open-source version control systems and only implemented exclusive locking mode, so CVS was developed to supersede it by providing concurrent versioning instead.

Given those options , plus a dozen even more , different implementation can be adapted basing on the need of a particular team or company. I ran into a white paper discussion listing the pros and cons of each options above ( be warned that the document is somewhat outdated ).

Why do we neecd it? In my point of view , here are some reasons why Source Code Control is important.

A. Developers Point of View .

1. It serves as a central repository of source codes and other important data . Database changes are also placed in the repository. Not the MDF but the SQL (fro SQL Server) code (which is in text format , thus , diff can be done)is stored. You can use the SQL Server Data Publishing Wizard to generate the code if you are working on SQL Server.
2. Changes are easily tracked. This is very important on a project where several people are working together.
3. Ease of Backup and Restoration.
4. Updated Source Codes can easily move from one machine to the other.
5. Security on source code access can be easily done.

B. Management Point Of View

1. More secured respository for source codes.
2. Tracking of changes can be done easily.
3. Ease of Source Code turn overs.

Of course, there are other benefits of Source Code Control . Just feel free to comment on the post if you want to add or question some things.

Source code control is not just for team or groups, it can also be helpful for individual developers. This can be very helpful if you want to track changes in your code or move your code from one PC to the other.Currently , at home , I am using VisualSVN Server(free) , TortoiseSVN (free) and VisualSVN (not free). Luckily , for MonoDevelop users for Linux , SVN functionality is integrated in the IDE. (a blog that i will be posting later).

A US Visa Experience

noreply@blogger.com (Marvin) — Tue, 07 Oct 2008 14:38:00 +0000

A US Visa at last, just B1 to be exact but somewhat fulfilling . After several hours of anxiety and waiting for a make or break interview with the consul , I nailed it. It came after several weeks of document preparation of course .

So here are some tips that I gained from the experience which may help :
1. Take time to read the instructions that comes with the DS157 form.
2. Fill up carefully the DS156 online and the DS157 manually.
3. Prepare the documents needed . If you have invitation letters , official letters from the company or any important documents that may be connected with your purpose of visiting the US , review them and make sure they are complete and authentic.
4. Prepare documents that may establish "strong ties" with Philippines ( reasons that will make you comeback). These may be in the form of bank statements , land titles , car registrations , existing contracts and others (some even brought photos of their family). I was not asked to show it to the consul but just bring it to be sure.
5. Come early on the day of the interview and make sure all your documents are with you.
6. As much as possible wear something smart casual and comfortable.

Some tips during the interview:
1. Be cool and keep an eye contact with the consul.
2. Answer all questions honestly.
3. Provide the additional documents he may ask . Be polite in giving honest reasons if those documents are not present.

Additional Tips:
1. Ask questions, some friends or colleagues that have undergone the application process can tell you a thing or two.
2. Read some forums regading the topic.

I find myself lucky in situations like this. On some interviews and applications (which maybe for employment or otherwise) I usually nail it on the first try. Marriage , of course is another story . Ill try to nail it the second time I suppose (hahahah)..

Success By Age

noreply@blogger.com (Marvin) — Sun, 05 Oct 2008 01:29:00 +0000

Just to break the techie stuff , here is a post taken from my friends' friend blog.

At Age 4........... Success is........not peeing in your pants.

At Age 6............Success is........finding your way home (from school)

At Age 12...........Success is........having friends

At Age 16/18........Success is........having a driver's license

At Age 20...........Success is........having sex

At Age 35...........Success is........having money

At Age 45...........Success is........having money

At Age 55...........Success is........having money

At Age 60...........Success is........having sex

At Age 65...........Success is........keeping a driver's license

At Age 70...........Success is........having friends

At Age 75...........Success is........finding your way home (from anywhere)

At Age 80...........Success is.....not peeing your pants

The Story Behind the Name C#

noreply@blogger.com (Marvin) — Sat, 04 Oct 2008 03:14:00 +0000

I remember one time in an exam for employment , the first question was - who is the father of C#? I have been working with the language but never did I ask myself who actually started the language ( of course Mirosoft was the brainchild , right? ) . After a googling expedition I found out who was the culprit - Microsofts Anders Hejlsberg. I was not interested why it was called C# then , but opening my VS2008 today , I stumbled on one of the articles being shown at the VS2008 opening page - "Computer World: The A-Z of Programming : C#". Its an interview with Anders discussing the history and beyond of C# . Heres the cool part , the name for C# prior to its release was actually COOL (C like Object Oriented Language) . Below are some lines taken from the interview:

Why was the language originally named Cool, and what promoted the change to C#?

The code name was Cool, which stood for ‘C like Object Oriented Language’. We kind of liked that name: all of our files were called .cool and that was kind of cool! We looked seriously at keeping the name for the final product but it was just not feasible from a trademark perspective, as there were way too many cool things out there.

So the naming committee had to get to work and we sort of liked the notion of having an inherent reference to C in there, and a little word play on C++, as you can sort of view the sharp sign as four pluses, so it’s C++++. And the musical aspect was interesting too. So C# it was, and I’ve actually been really happy with that name. It’s served us well.

Weekend with Linux

noreply@blogger.com (Marvin) — Wed, 01 Oct 2008 14:26:00 +0000

After reviving my laptop from a virus infection , I started tinkering with it once again . I always had a passion for Linux and the Open Source community , but after trying to think about it a couple of times , I decided to stick with Windows XP for a while .So before I go on and try to tell you why I had Linux on the title of my post , I listed some reasons why I chose to stick with Windows XP for the meantime.

1. I use M$ products at work . Im a .Net developer , thus I use Microsoft Visual Studio for work . Having it installed in my machine is a necessity . However , I have begun exploring the Mono project (which will be posted later on ).
2. I use several software that I still could not find any alternatives yet in the Linux platform.
3. I have a legit license for my Windows XP so I decided to stick with it anyway.

Back to the main topic , I decided , however, to still go ahead and use Linux on my machine . Next stop , virtualization . Yep, as many have been hooked into it , i turned on virtualization to quench my Linux thirst . After looking at two possible options ( VMWare vs Vitual PC - VirtualBox should have been another good candidate) , I decided to go with M$ Virtual PC 2007 . Mainly because I have an existing VirtualPC that I want to use , and I find the software (but less feature rich than VMware ) simple to use.

Using my Ubuntu 7.10 (Gusty Gibon) installation disc, i moved ahead with the VPC creation . Which , of course , went unsuccessful . The screen just went ballistic upon loading the X window.

To make your life much easier when dealing with this odd combination ( Linux on M$ product ) , here are some few points that I would like you to look into:

1. VPC 2007 does not support the high resolution being offered by Ubuntu installation , thus it would be wise for you to choose the Start Ubunutu in Safe Graphics Mode . The disc i have is actually a liveCD which can let me use the OS without actually even installing it on the machine (or virtual machine as our case maybe) .
2. The Ubuntu 7.10 kernel has some problem dealing with mouse once it is in the emulated environment by VPC 2007 . To work around this problem , the i8042.noloop option added on the boot options seems to do the trick . Once you have selected the Start Ubuntu in Safe Mode Graphics , press F6 to bring out the boot options and simply add the new option at the end of the line.
3. Once done , hitting the enter key (and after several minutes of waiting) brings the Ubuntu desktop to life. Just click on the INSTALL icon to begin installing the guy. Installation will proceed similar to the usual Linux installation screens.
4. After reboot , fix the mouse again through the command line . Press Ctrl+Alt+f1 to go to command line then edit MENU.LST under /boot/grub adding the i8042.noloop at the end of the kernel option . Reboot and head your way towards a new Linux experience.

I managed to get my Ubuntu up and running on VPC 2007 , after several runs I found out several problems :
1. I cant access the USB devices . After running some google queries , i found out that it is one of the problems with linux on VPCs . Try several hacks and tricks to make them work.
2. I cant share folders using the VPC (of course I could not without installing the add ons for VPC which unfortunately does not support Ubuntu ) . Solution , folder sharing . I have managed to share a forlder on my host machine and just like any computers on a network it worked . SAMBA of course is another topic worth discussing.
3. My wireless network is not working.

I decided to upgrade to Ubuntu 8.04 (Hardy Heron) . Fortunately , I dont need a new CD for that , I just run the Add/Remove utility and Ubuntu seems to have detected that a new version is out and let me upgrade from 7.10 to 8.04 easily ( i used a wired connection to my network just to make thi work ) . And after almost 8 hours of downloading new packages (my connection was soooo slow) , I have managed to upgrade my Ubuntu , no CDs/DVDs/ required and not even a single cent to spend ( how I wish M$ can also offer this service ..I wish hehe ).

More than 1 day have passed , now I have my Ubuntu VPC working . It does not have the visual effects (like this and the one shown below) that it supports for real install but every thing I needed to start is there.

With all things in place , im heading towards the next stop : .Net development in Ubuntu using MonoDevelop , C# and MySQL . The screenshot below shows my Ubuntu VPC running MonoDevelop, MySQL , Firefox and Pidgin.

Google Adsense, where is my PIN ?

noreply@blogger.com (Marvin) — Fri, 26 Sep 2008 16:06:00 +0000

For almost three or so months I was in haitus from this blog , yes I did post an article or two but that was just it. No change in layout nor enchancements . Worse , my Google Adsense is no longer showing , or if the poor guy is showing , its probably displaying a public announcement. My site is not generating much traffic for me to be concerned about those clicks and impressions that was not recorded during those adsense-free months , but the thought that it aint showing is a bit troublesome. So after poking around some FAQs about adsense , I found out that I need to enter a PIN to continue with the service . A number that they must have sent to me but somewhere along the way it was lost. So I gave another shot and requested another . After more than 3 weeks (i think) of patiently waiting , that damn PIN is not yet in my hands . DID YOU EVER SEND IT GUYS? Well if yes, I have to wait for another week or so ....

To Google-Adsense Guys: Please !!!!!!

Opening Office 2007 files using Office 2003

noreply@blogger.com (Marvin) — Fri, 26 Sep 2008 15:03:00 +0000

This is a post that I should have done a year back , when Office 2007 was still on its initial phase. I hope this would still help others who have still their Office 2003 intact and dont want to move to a more resource inensive Office 2007.

To be able to open your docx , xlsx or pptx ( the common files in MS Office ) using the Office 2003 , the user must be able to install the Compatibility Pack for the 2007
Office system from Microsoft . This , however , does not guarantee that all elements in the 2007 file can be edited in 2003. Take note that the main purpose for this pack is for backward compatibility only but it doesnt assure that all things will be all well, otherwise the point of upgrading will be "pointless".

To read more about this solution as well as the link to the compatibility pack , read more of this from the Office 2007 website.