I Need $5 for Pangya (Closed - I Got $15)

I have been playing Pangya (online golf game) for almost four years. Before, I used to play in the Philippine server but the management decided to close it down because the number of players is declining. Now, I am playing in the international server. This Christmas season, Pangya has this so called “Stocking Offers for Christmas”, an event wherein a player can have expensive items (when I say expensive, it’s terrifying expensive in Pangya) for a very little price. But there’s a twist, each player, including myself, should gather the so-called “Christmas stockings” by playing the game.

This event from Ntreev Pangya has lots to offer ranging from clothes to club sets. The item I want to obtain is the “Christmas Clubset” which is so cool because this item can only be seen in the stores every Christmas season (it’s pretty rare). There’s a problem, I already have all the items except for one which I cannot obtain if I don’t use electronic money. In the virtual Pangya store, it costs 1300 points and to be able to buy points, one must have real electronic money. The smallest amount a player can buy is 5000 points which costs $5. Huhuhuhuhu that’s all I can say.

I don't have Mulligan Rose which costs 10 for 1300 points.

Of course, I am not a beggar (as if someone is interested to give me $5) that will just accept some $5. If someone, a kind-hearted one, will give me money via PayPal, I will design him/her a 270x200 image banner (porn not allowed of course) to be linked ("do follow" method) to his/her blog or website. If there are two or more donors, then the size will still be the same but the banners will have a uniform theme. The banner will be visible up to December next year. The point is - I badly need five dollars now.

The position of the image advertisement.

I know Christmas season is over but I badly need some $5. I have roughly five dollars in my pocket (of course in peso) at this moment but the problem is I need an electronic one.

If you are willing to give me money via PayPal or just interested with my offer, you can leave a comment to this post. Anyone is welcome to grab this very little and simple opportunity. Deadline for this offer is December 29, 2009, the end date of the Christmas stocking event in Pangya. Thanks for reading. ahehehehe

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Festival of Lights - Naga, Cebu

Today, I just witnessed the christmas lights lighting ceremony in the town plaza of Naga. Before, the town plaza was just lit by few lights but this year, it's quite audacious - the whole place is very bright. Each tree is crowned with numerous simple christmas lights that as a whole, looks like small galaxies. The old municipal hall and the town complex are also covered with the same kind of christmas lights.

Christmas-themed old municipal hall.

Countdown to lighting of christmas lights and fireworks.

I know questions like over budget for christmas lights and decors could arise but the local government ensured the public that an honest audit will be conducted. Some even said that some lights and decorations are donations from the town mayor, Hon. Valdemar Chiong. Electric consumption is also a big deal not only to the local government but also to environmentalists - for not saving energy.

Here are some high-resolution photos I took today. I enjoyed a lot during the lighting ceremony especially when the host of the event starts to count down.

Christmas is just a day in the calendar but in our town, it is celebrated whole month long (up to January like last year).

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Rookie: Slide Presenter - A Web-based Application

Microsoft has PowerPoint while OpenOffice has Impress. These two slide editor and presenter software shapes and changes the ways business presentations are delivered. This semester, I am going to develop a similar application - a web-based slide editor and presenter. Well, this plan isn't final yet because there are still people who are going to scrutinize the specifications of what I am going to develop. There is still a possibility that this project will be canceled either at the beginning or at the middle of the development (rejected is the worst).

Temporary logo of the "Rookie: Slide Presenter".

The name of my web-based presenter is "Rookie: Slide Presenter" because even rookies (beginners) can create their own business or wacky presentations using this web application. As much as possible, the controls and buttons of this application are minimal unlike PowerPoint and Impress which has numerous buttons and menus. I am not saying that the two existing applications are difficult to use, what I am trying to say is that this one which I am going to develop is an easy-to-use one.

Failure to accomplish this project means a failing grade. I need sheer courage and numerous sleepless nights in order to finish this project on time. I hope someone will help me along the way.

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Sun, Sea, and Sand at Maribago Bluewater

Even though I am not sure if I can really avail this once in a lifetime opportunity, I am so excited about this Maribago Bluewater invitation to selected bloggers. I have never been to this kind of luxurious place and I think this is one of the right moments I should be visiting and enjoying this sun, sea, and sand experience given by Maribago Bluewater resort. The resort also offers not only maximum enjoyment but also ultimate relaxation brought by the in-house Amuma Spa. I’ve visited their website and found out that they can also host events like conventions, graduations, baptisms, weddings, and a lot more.

There were already bloggers who availed this shall I call summer escapade but I am really hoping that I could do or experience alike. Selected bloggers started visiting the resort last October 25 but I am hoping I can go on November 22 – Sunday at the beach. From this very moment, I am now visualizing the food, nipa huts, white sand and the crystal blue sea with matching sound of the sea waves.

To have a sneak peek and discover more about the resort, just visit Maribago Bluewater blog. You can also watch a Maribago Bluewater video or stopover at PinoyWorld.

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Before the 2012 Movie

November 13 is the showing date of the movie 2012 here in the Philippines. I don't know if everyone's excited because I myself is not looking forward to watch this film in the theater. I think this movie is just based from History Channel's "Decoding the Past: Doomsday 2012" which is a documentary type film. The most creepy part of the documentary is the prediction of the Mayan people (native and ancient people of Central America) wherein they made a calendar that predicts many things and scenarios in the future. This calendar does not only predicts phenomenon but also planetary alignments and lunar activity like solar and lunar eclipses. The calendar mysteriously ends on December 21, 2012. Many westerners including the creator of this film, 2012, believes that there will be a major shift or change that will happen to the world.

Video Credits: YouTube EmbarkToHeaven

Promotional poster of the movie 2012.

Before you believe this film and the predictions that will be shown in the movie, take a look on the previous failed end of the world predictions.

1806: Prophet Hen of Leeds - Someone said that in the town of Leeds (now a city of United Kingdom), there is a hen laying an egg 0n which the words "Christ is Coming" is printed or written. A curious local watched the hen and the eggs and found out that the phenomenon is just a big hoax.

1910: Halley's Comet - An astronomer discovered that the tail of the Haley's comet contains a deadly toxic gas cyanogen or simply cyanide. The panic started when it was discovered that the tail of the comet will pass through earth. Nothing happens as the comet passes by through the skies of the earth.

1997: Heaven's Gate - When comet Hale-Bopp appeared in the skies of the Earth (probably the only comet I've seen so far), a cult named Heaven's Gate speculated that a UFO is following in its tail and NASA is responsible for the cover-up. Astronomers or even people with telescopes can prove that this speculation is not true. Their little world ends as they committed suicide (all of them) on March 26, 1997.

These three failed doomsday predictions are just a condensed form of the article "10 Failed Doomsday Predictions" from Live Science.

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Firefox 3.7 Theme for Firefox 3.5

I have seen a lot of people who are still using Firefox build 3.0 even though version 3.5 is already out and ready for download. Now, there is version 3.7 available for testing. What shocks me the most is that before this pre-alpha release build 3.7, there was a 3.6 build and I didn't know about all these releases made by Mozilla.

This release focuses much about sheer performance and appearance. The menu bars are already hidden just like Internet Explorer 8 and Google Chrome. This new version looks best if you are using Windows Aero.

(Photo Credits: Mozilla) A screenshot of Firefox build 3.7 that looks elegant with Windows Aero.

To download Firefox 3.7 pre-alpha release, just click this link. I don't know why the browser is named Minefield but I'm pretty sure it's Firefox.

If you don't want to use or test the alpha release, there is still an alternative way on how to make your Firefox looks like version 3.7. First download this ZIP file and extract it. One of the extracted files is a JAR file. Open the 'Add-ons' window ('Tools' -> 'Add-ons') of your Firefox and drag that JAR file to that window. Firefox will ask you if you will continue installing that add-on. After installing that JAR file, you have to install this add-on. The same as the first file, Firefox will prompt you if you are going to install this particular add-on. The third step is to install another add-on. This add-on will enable you to hide or show the menu bar of Firefox. After installing the third add-on, you may now restart Firefox as you were prompted even at the first installation of this tutorial. I know, some of you had already restarted the browser but it's OK. To hide Firefox's menu bar, just right click anywhere at top or maybe at the large empty space at the end of the menu bar (the empty space after the 'Help' menu) and then uncheck 'Menus Toolbar'. To show the hidden menu bar back, just press Ctrl+Shift+Alt+S.

A screenshot of Firefox 3.5 with a theme that looks like Firefox 3.7.

The tutorial I made is just a condensed form from Askvg.com. If this tutorial didn't work for you, you can view the original tutorial by clicking this link.

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My Windows 7 Experience

The installation took about 30 minutes (or maybe less, I don’t know) but so far, it’s worth it. After installation, all the drivers including the wifi driver (Broadcom) was detected. As expected, the boot time is faster than Vista.
There are a lot of improvements and features added to the Windows 7 core. One of these features is the one I am using right now (the editor of this blog post) named Windows Live Writer. This software is so amazing because the IDE (Integrated Development Environment) is your own blog theme. This editor can insert tables, pictures, videos, hyperlink, and even maps in your blog post.

A screenshot of Windows Live Writer with a GUI inherited from my blog.

Another thing I like about this new operating system (not really a big bang feature but for me it’s cool) from Microsoft is that it has many preset pictures/avatars for a certain account.

Lots of avatars to choose from.

The super bar is one of the most obvious change since operating systems were made. It works like a stack of the same programs. For example, if I have five Firefox windows opened, the super bar will only have one Firefox icon and when I hover my mouse to that icon, a series of screenshots are displayed - screenshots of opened Firefox windows. The super bar can also display and play videos when a video software is minimized while its icon is hovered.

The super bar with five Firefox windows opened.

Windows Movie Maker has also improved a lot. The name was also changed from Windows Movie Maker to Windows Live Movie Maker. There are also lots of effects and transitions to choose from unlike the previous versions.

A screenshot of Windows Live Movie Maker with imported video from Oprah.

Windows Media Player has also transformed into a more compact and simple audio/video player. There is still a button to revert back to the original boring player but for me, the compact player is the simplest elegant software GUI I’ve ever seen.

Windows Media Player compact GUI playing David Archuleta’s songs.

I still have to explore more in this new operating system from Microsoft and see if there are bugs. I also have to dig its features and talk about it maybe in my next blog posts. So far, this OS is comparable to Windows XP with service pack 2 in terms of performance and maybe stability.

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Best Rendition of Everything I Do by Gareth Gates

I've known Gareth Gates way back in high school. His most famous song was the "Unchained Melody" which was included in his first album after winning the "Pop Idol" competition. For me, his rendition of that song was one of the best because his voice suits perfectly to the song and not to mention his cuteness. The music video was also great (two thumbs up).

Unchained Melody - Gareth Gates

As I was browsing for more Gareth Gates' video in YouTube, I found this video in the "Pop Idol" contest. In one of the episodes of the competition, he sang "Everything I Do" (by Bryan Adams) which really rocked me. His a-minute-and-a-half rendition of the song was really the best I've heard so far (no offense to singers who already sang the song). Gareth really knows how to chill me deep down to the bones. ahehehehe

Everything I Do - Gareth Gates

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The Sipser Show Widescreen Wallpapers

We already had a meeting last September 5, 2009 about this great show. The meeting was all about the format of the show and the tasks we need to do. I hope everyone will cooperate in the preparation.

More updates about this show will be posted in this blog later. Meanwhile, you may download one of these widescreen wallpapers for yourself.

[Click on the thumbnail for full preview]

There's a possibility that the show will be exclusive to certain group of people so don't get excited about this show. ahehehehe

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If Ever There's a Sipser's Idol

Last August 29, 2009, I took THE CMSC 141 first long exam and guess what, it was difficult, some parts are even more difficult. I studied for almost a week but still it wasn't good enough. I think I'm just too dull to answer those kind of questions...

But there could be a bright side if 'Sipser's Idol' or maybe the title will be changed into 'Sipser's Got Talent' will push through this semester. Not only for my main reason but also for the fun part. I love to host or maybe become a contestant in this kind of shows or presentations.

Not attainable stage.

What do you think?

Sipser's Idol wallpaper is available in two screen modes, widescreen and generic.

[Click the thumbnail for larger preview and download]

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Report - Software Configuration Management

Software Configuration Management (SCM) is the process of tracking the changes made in the software. We already reported this topic in front of the class including the tools to be used in tracking software changes.

We have agreed to use TortoiseSVN [Click Here to Download] and Visual SVN [Click Here to Download] in accomplishing or doing this job. Here are some screenshots including a brief explanation about it.

The server URL is the link to see the files using a browser.

Create a user and give privileges to specific users who can edit specific files.

A repository is where the baseline project(s) is/are stored.


This is where the magic and power of Software Configuration Management happens - the process of sending a copy of the baseline project to a server (in this example, the server is locally hosted in the system) and downloading the baseline project for the developers to modify or change if a request for change is/are made.


After downloading a specific project from the server (the user will specify the local directory and repository of the project), a green check mark will appear (the specified location in which the file will be stored) showing that the local copy and the copy from the repository are still the same (no changes has been made).

If a specific file has a green check mark, then the file is still the same of that in the repository. If it has a red exclamation point, then there are already changes made in the file (the local copy and the copy from the server and not the same anymore). A yellow lock in a file or folder means that those things are locked for a certain user and no other users can access and edit those files or folders.

For CMSC 128 (2009) students, send your finished (screenshots) activity to justinelaurel@yahoo.com and justinelaurel@gmail.com. Here is our report about Version Control and Change Control [PowerPoint File] under the topic of Software Configuration Management.

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