LRT collision at Bukit Jalil

Maybe not many people know this but there was a minor collision between two STAR LRTs near Bukit Jalil earlier this evening. My wife happened to take the next train after the accident and her coach was stuck halfway between Sungai Besi and Bukit Jalil.
According to her there was a general confusion when the train stopped suddenly in the middle of its track and the air-conditioning and lights stopped working. About 20 minutes later there was an announcement by somebody through the P.A system saying that the train had broken down due to some technical malfunction. 10 minutes after that the doors were opened and everybody onboard were ordered to get out and walk to the Bukit Jalil station.

As you can see here the railway track is built quite high up from the walkway so the woman, pregnant and elderly passengers had some difficulty getting down from the train. Fortunately there were enough kind souls who helped everybody (including my wife) to get down safely to the walkway. God bless you guys.
Everybody had to walk slowly and carefully along the elevated railway and it took them more than 30 minutes to get to Bukit Jalil.
I waited for an hour for Linda to arrive and even then she had know idea what really happened because the LRT staff were quite secretive and refused to make any statement. Anyway I heard from people talking that one train got sidetracked and another train hit it from behind thus the minor collision. The atmosphere at the Bukit Jalil station was relatively calm although I saw several police patrol cars and two ambulances arriving. Perhaps because most of them were blissfully unaware of what's happening. We didn't hang around too see the victims or whatever cause it's already Maghrib and we were already late to pick up the kids.

I guess this is another test for us in this holy month of Ramadan. Actually my wife had already alighted at the Sungai Besi station before I told her to take the train to the next station at Bukit Jalil. If I had earlier told her to stop at Bukit Jalil instead, she could have been onboard the train that was involved with the accident. So while maybe she have had to walk all the way to Bukit Jalil, the important thing is she made it safe and sound.

*All photos were taken from my wife's hand phone.

Music of the day

Cinta antara kita - Duta feat Baizura Kahar









Oh Baizura...

その日私は、回転椅子を買った

今日から私は IKEA の回転椅子を買った。私もIKEAの椅子から購入した旧ジェフダウンにより、私の膨大な体重を骨折していた。これはフレームすぎるので、とにかく私は長い間、私を保持するために強い期待しないではない。

お客様の情報については、この問題を私が今までに購入した、最初の回転椅子です。この私の母や私の椅子のどこかの好意を得る前に。この回転いすメイン 45.00ドルのコストがかかるため、私にとって私は、 ASで、底部の半分の値段がついている必要があります(やったー!)部となっている。これは、黒の1つは利用できませんが、私は、白い色を選択します。私はどのくらい前に、私はそれを破る最後には、この椅子を見に行く。

If I become the Prime Minister...

I'm tired of waiting for Dato' Seri Anwar to take over the government. Honestly, all he has done so far is talk-talk-talk, claim this, promise that bla bla bla. I want to see some action, I want to see it NOW! Should it be by some divine intervention that I be appointed as the Prime Minister tomorrow, here's what I would do.

1. Abolish ISA, Sedition Act, Printing Press Act, OSA, AUKU and all oppressive and obsolete acts.

2. Release all ISA detainees and wrongfully detained political activists/blogger.

3. Reform the judiciary, police force, ACA and the public service department.

4. Ensure a free and fair election in the future.

5. Replace the NEP with something that will benefit all Malaysians regardless of race.

6. Demolish our part of the causeway and build a crooked bridge to Singapore. Then I will review the water price supplied to them.

7. Build the second bridge and monorail in Penang then create a subway system in KL and LRT in Johore Bharu.

8. Ensure free and fair access for all parties to the mainstream media.

9. Abolish the AP system and remove protection for local car manufacturers.

10. Open up 20% of UiTM intake for non bumiputras (ha ha take that!).

11. Declare September 16 as a public holiday.

12. Remove monopoly in the telecommunication and energy industry (so long TM & TNB he he!).

13. Cancel all the mega corridors and other wasteful projects.

14. No more angkasawan project until hardcore poverty is eradicated and the economy is good.

15. Build a free university for all Malaysians in all states.

16. Supply computers for all classroom in the country using open-source software.

17. Guarantee the right to freedom of speech and expression and the right to peaceful assembly.

18. Free RM50 of electricity for domestic users.

19. Give back 40% of oil royalty to the states that produce them.

To be continued...

Rip DVDs using VLC Media Player

So you've got a bunch of movie DVDs borrowed from a friend and you don't have time to watch it all in one go so what would you do? Save it (rip) to your hard drive for viewing later of course!

There are plenty of popular DVD-ripping software out there but here I'm going to teach you how to rip a DVD or VCD using the awesome VLC media player software.

First download and install VLC media player from their website here. It's open source, runs on multiple platforms and it plays just about every multimedia format available on the planet.
Run VLC and click the Open button. Follow the instructions above before selecting Settings to configure your video file. Remember not to set the volume to mute or low or otherwise your saved movie won't have any sound.
Next tick the appropriate options as shown above. Those are an ideal setting to save a fairly acceptable movie file. Feel free to experiment with different settings. Remember not to tick Play locally else the entire movie will play will you rip. Click Browse to choose where to save the movie file.
Type a file name ending with a .mpg extension. Click Save (step 10b) and click OK on the previous screen (step 11) to start ripping.
And that's it! Ripping time will depend on your pc speed and RAM size. Happy ripping :)

Free RPK and other ISA detainees

They can put off this candle but they can't keep the fire of change from burning. Today they shot the messenger but tomorrow there will be another to carry the torch of truth and justice. Let us pray for 916 to be a reality and stop this atrocity. Save us Anwar, you're our only hope.
Now they've arrested the Sin Chew Daily reporter and Teresa Kok too and surely many more to come. What if they took away your father or sister or your friends & family? Still having doubts about morality of crossovers?

General guide for removal of computer malware and spyware

Malware, also known as Malicious Software, is software designed to infiltrate or damage a computer system without the owner's information. Malware includes computer viruses, worms, trojan horses, most rootkits, spyware, adware, and other malicious and unwanted software. It generally infects Microsoft's Windows operating system while other OS such as Linux or Mac OS have been relatively safe from malware.

How do you get infected with spyware? Spyware gets on a system through deception of the user or through exploitation of software vulnerabilities. Most spyware is installed without users' knowledge. Since they tend not to install software if they know that it will harm their computer, spyware deceives users, either by piggybacking on a piece of desirable software such as Kazaa, Limewire, BiT Torrent, Yahoo Messenger and Yahoo Toolbar or by tricking them into installing it. Some rogue anti-spyware programs masquerade as security software, while being spyware themselves (i.e WinAntivirus 2009, WinXP Antivirus,etc).

Spyware can also come bundled with shareware or other downloadable software, attached to e-mails, as well as music CDs. The user downloads a program and installs it, and the installer additionally installs the spyware. Although the desirable software itself may do no harm, the bundled spyware does. In some cases, spyware authors have paid shareware authors to bundle spyware with their software.

Another way of distributing spyware involves tricking users by manipulating security features designed to prevent unwanted installations. Internet Explorer prevents websites from initiating an unwanted download. Instead, it requires a user action, such as clicking on a link. However, links can prove deceptive: for instance, a pop-up ad may appear like a standard Windows dialog box. The box contains a message such as "Warning! Your computer is infected with harmful viruses. Would you like to remove them now?" with links which look like buttons reading Yes and No. No matter which "button" the user presses, a download starts, placing the spyware on the user's system. The right way to close this pop-up message is to press Alt and F4 simetenously. Earlier version of Internet Explorer such as IE5 and IE6 are quite vulnerable to such attack. A better alternative is to use Mozilla Firefox browser which is more secure and less vulnerable to unwanted spyware installation.

What does spyware do to your computer? Users of infected computers frequently notice unwanted behavior and degradation of system performance. A spyware infestation can create significant unwanted CPU activity, disk usage, and network traffic, all of which slow the computer down. Stability issues, such as application or system-wide crashes, are also common. Spyware, which interferes with networking software commonly causes difficulty connecting to the Internet. As spyware program can also download harmful viruses and trojan horses to your computer. These virus can lead to many undesirable effects, such as deleting all the user's files, corrupting the Windows installation and spread to other computers connected in the local network.

Certain spyware can also collect your private and confidential informations such as passwords, credit card and bank account numbers. These is particularly dangerous when you often do online banking, shopping or other similar transactions. Some spyware is also know to hijack your computer and use it as a proxy to distribute thousands of spam e-mails. This computer (or server) will eventually be banned by major ISP, web-based e-mail providers (such as Gmail and Yahoo) because of those unsolicited e-mails.

General guide for removal of malware and spyware

1. Download and scan your pc with Malwarebyte's Anti-Malware.

Malwarebytes' Anti-Malware is by far the best anti-malware application on the market today. It is fast and simple to use. The free version is powerful enough to detect and remove most known malware and spyware on your computer while the paid version will have extra features such as realtime protection, scheduled scanning, and scheduled updating.

First, get a copy of Malwarebyte from here.
Then install Malwarebyte on your computer select the Update tab and click check for updates to download the latest database.
When the update is finished, click on the Scanner tab and you can opt to either perform a quick scan or a full system scan. Normally a quick scan is sufficient to detect most known malware. At the end of the scan. Malwarebyte will then display all malware and spyware that have infected your system Click remove all infected items. You may be required to restart your computer to complete the removal process.

2. Use Sysinternals Autoruns and Process Explorer to remove malware.

These next steps involve modifying the windows registry so backing up the registry is highly recommended. You can also set up a restore point with System Restore.
To back up the registry entries, select Run and type 'regedit' (without the quotes). In the Registry Editor click File > Export. Choose All for the export range and type a simple name for the back up. Save it on your root directory (preferably C:).

Autoruns and Process Explorer is part of a set of really useful Windows troubleshooting tools developed by Sysinternals (now acquired by Microsoft). To download both tools go to their website here.
Double-click the downloaded file to run both Autoruns and Process Explorer. Autoruns will list all programs that automatically run everytime the computer starts. To avoid deleting important windows programs, click Options, select Hide Microsoft Entries and hit the refresh button.
A good and harmless program will usually display its publisher's name (i.e Hewlett-Packard,Intel or Adobe) while most malware and spyware won't display any publisher's information. While this is usually true, take caution when deleting unknown entries because there are still some valid programs (usually old programs) that doesn't display any publisher's name. Just use your common sense and your familiarity with the installed programs on your computer. Delete the obvious spyware programs like WinAntivirus 2009, WinXP Antivirus, Ravmon.exe, wscript.exe and Xiao.vbs and programs you think you've never installed (voluntarily) on your PC. The are 16 tabs available in Autoruns but the 7 that you need to analyize are Logon, Explorer, Internet Explorer, Scheduled Tasks, Services, Boot Execute and Image Hijack.
Process Explorer is very much like the default Task Manager program available with all Windows OS except that it gives a more detailed information of every active and running processes in your Windows system. You can also see where a particular process originates from (it's parent program) and how much system resource it is using. Again if you don't see any Company Name in the processes list, it's is safe to assume that that process is a virus or a malware except for the regular Windows processes like DPCs,Interrupts, System and System Idle Process. If you are not sure what a particluar process does, just google for the process' name on the Internet. Chances are somebody or some website will tell you what that process does or whether it's harmless or not. To delete a process just right-click on it and select Delete. Certain types of virus which resides in the computer memory cannot be deleted with Process Explorer or Task Manager. For that you'll need a powerful anti-virus software like McAfee and you can only remove it by logging into a safe mode. Alternatively you can boot up your PC with any Linux live CD, find that suspected program and delete it there. Make sure you empty the trash before shutting down.

3. Use a good antivirus software.

I have used and tried a many major antivirus software in my line of work and I have come to these personal conclusion on which antivirus really works and which are just a waste of money.
The best antivirus software out there is without a doubt, McAfee antivirus. I've tried many brands of antivirus software and nothing works as effectively in detecting and removing viruses like McAfee does. Although their price is a little bit more expensive than other antivirus software, it's worth every penny, trust me. I've been using primarily McAfee antivirus to remove viruses from all of my client's PC for the past 2 years and I can confirm that at least 95% of known viruses is detected and can be removed with McAfee antivirus.

Coming second best are Panda Antivirus, Avira Antivir and AVG Free 8. Panda Antivirus is almost as good as McAfee but it can use up quite a lot of system resources. Avira Antivir and AVG Free 8 both comes with a free version but also offers a highly effective virus scanning and removing capabilities (although not as good as McAfee). If you lack the budget to buy McAfee antivirus then I would recommand that you install either Avira Antivir or AVG Free 8. Personally, I prefer to use AVG Free 8 because I can install it on as many PC as I like while Avira requires me to register for every single software downloaded before I can use it which prove to be a hassle.
When installing AVG Free 8, remember NOT to install the AVG Security Toolbar. It will just slow down your browser.
You might also want to disable the LinkScanner component on your AVG antivirus. This little feature will scan all outgoing links on every website that you visit thus substantially slowing down your browsing experience. I don't know why they think it's neccessary to scan every single hyperlinks. That's just paranoid man.

Now here are the generally expensive but totally useless antivirus softwares. Symantec's Norton antivirus, Kaspersky antivirus and TrendMicro antivirus. Symantec unfortunately came with many major PC vendors (such as HP and Dell) but is usually ineffecive in curbing and preveting virus infections. Kapersky antivirus while cheaper than most major antivirus is also not so effective in detecting and removing viruses. TrendMicro is from my experience, the crappiest and totally useless antivirus software you can buy in the market. Not only it misses out a lot of new and old viruses, when it does detects them, most of the time, it cannot do anything to those viruses except to quarantine them. So naturally, PCs installed with TrendMicro antivirus is the most virus-ridden one. Might as well save your money and use AVG or Antivir than throw them away by buying TrendMicro.

Save for the useless TrendMicro, many popular antivirus software doesn't support older Windows OS like Windows ME, 98 or 95. This is where Clam Antivirus comes to the rescue. This open-source and community-driven antivirus software doesn't offer real-time protection but at least it's just as good as AVG and Antivir and what's more it's free.

4. Removal of specific spyware/viruses.

Certain spyware or viruses may from time to time escape from being detected by Malwarebyte or McAfee antivirus. Getting rid of these malware require specific action to be taken like deleting specific registry entries or removing them in a non Windows operating system (such as Linux).

Removing xiao.vbs virus.

Xiao.vbs is a type of worm virus that replicates and distributes itself to other PCs and servers through the local network and the Internet. Lately xiao.vbs has infiltrated and infected many computers in a network especially those with weak antivirus software. Computers infected with xiao.vbs will usually become really-really slow. Using Malwarebyte will detect and remove this virus but your Windows system will not be completely clean from this virus until you delete its registry entries.
To do that, open the Registry Editor by typing 'Regedit' in Run. Click Edit > Find and type xiao.vbs in the dialog box. Click Find Next.
The full registry entry for xiao.vbs is wscript.exe xiao.vbs. Right-click on that and select delete. Click find next (or F3) to find and delete all the remaining entries in the registry until you finish searching through the registry.

Bleepingcomputer.com is a great free web based community and discussion forum for answering general and specific malware and virus troubleshooting guide, computer help, security issues and technical questions. In fact I was introduced to Malwarebyte and Autoruns by searching through this website's forum. Feel free to browse this site for guide on removing most known malware.

My camera is like better than yours

Meet my new camera: the Kodak EasyShare M753.


7.0 mega-pixel
3x optical zoom
1250 ISO
Digital image stabilization
HD still capture
Rechargeable lithium-ion battery



Actually my camera's colour is like the second photo, yup the fugly copper colour one. I bought it online at Lelong.com.my for RM309 (1GB SD Card+shipping). It is a demo set hence the cheap price but where else can you get a digital camera for RM270? <-- that's my winning bid.

What I like about this camera:
  • 7 mega-pixel and big 2.5" LCD screen
  • Digital image stabilization so no more blurry photos
  • Rechargeable li-ion battery which makes the camera much lighter
  • High ISO (up to 1250) so I can take pictures in the dark
What I don't like about this camera:
  • The colour is ugly, period.
  • External charger is not included so I have to find a PC whenever I want to charge it
  • Zooming in and out while taking video is not very smooth
  • Startup time is slow, about 2 seconds. My late Nikon L10 took only a second to start.
Okaylah maybe your camera is still better than mine but for RM270 it's a steal. This is also the first time I ever buy anything online and so far it's been quite a pleasant experience. I pay the price, wait for 2 days and the good arrives at my doorstep via Pos Laju some more. Next time I wanna buy anything I'll definitely check on Lelong.com.my first. It's a great place to buy cheap, below the market price goods from computers, cameras, hand phones and everything under the sun. It's relatively safe to shop there but remember to use your common sense a bit lah. Always buy from a verified and established seller with good feedbacks and track record. Remember to register first and happy shopping!

How to renew GDL license

This is a general guide on who to renew your GDL (Goods Driver License) / Lesen Vokasional in Malaysia.

First go to the Road Transport Dept (JPJ) website and download the JPJL8 form needed to apply/renew your license. You can also download the form from this direct link here.
Fill up all your details in the form except for the Akuan Doktor part. Then go find a clinic and get the doctor to do some basic eye-sight and blood pressure test to testify that you're fit to drive. The doctor will fill up the Akuan Doktor part and give you an examination slip. The normal charge for this examination is RM15.00. Anything more than you've just been ripped off.
Once the doctor finds you fit, head to the nearest state JPJ office. Don't go to the JPJ HQ in Putrajaya. They don't entertain minor cases like license renewal. Go to Selangor's JPJ office in Padang Jawa or KL's office in Wangsa Maju. I choose Padang Jawa cause it's the easiest to go. Just take the Federal Highway from KL heading to Shah Alam and don't stop until you see the Padang Jawa exit on your left after Shah Alam city.
Go the customer service counter and ask for the driver's license counter. Or you can skip that take the stairs on your left to the first floor and find Pintu 6 (door 6).
Take a number and wait for your turn. I went on a Tuesday and it took me just 10 minutes to get my license renewed. Hand over the JPJL8 form and pay RM20.00 for the license. And that's it your done! Remember to pay the parking ticket (RM2:00 first hour) on your way out.

August: Buy a car month

You might know this but last month was the unofficial buy a car month in Malaysia. Why? Well 3 people in my company bought their new cars last month alone.

First my boss bought a shiny new 2.4 litre black Toyota Camry. In case you haven't noticed already, black is my company's official vehicle colour. Well, that what I think.
I get to ride (on the passenger side) this car last week and like all new cars, it felt really good and smooth. Not as bumpy as the Sorento definitely. I'm gonna miss those Equestrian days ha ha! My boss has only one complain though. The windscreen made quite some noise during rain. I can't believe the Toyoto engineers missed that during R&D. What to do lor, bought already :)

Next my colleague Pijoi (might be his real name) also bought a new car last month. A Proton Saga BLM, you know the new model. Previously he'd been riding on his bike everywhere but since he got a raise earlier this year, he decided to get a car for himself.
One week after purchasing the car, he changed all his tires and sports 4 shiny new sport rims. Whoa, I had my car for 2 years but I still use my crooked original rims. Then again if it makes him happy, why not? Besides, chicks nowadays only dig guys with a proper ride, not just some common Mat Rempit (where got class one). Some more, the more you pimp your car, the easier it is to hitch those chicks. Trust me Pijoi, soon you'll have more chicks than KFC !! Just remember to pay your car installment and credit card bill before the due date arr or Suzen (refer Bujal) will start calling you up every month.

Lastly my friend Mr. Shrek err I mean Mr. Bujal bought himself a brand new Proton Persona. Persona beb, don't prey-prey wan! So now we cannot make fun of his old Kancil anymore, damn. I think it's about time too. It's not like Bujal can't afford it or anything. Previously he's been saving his money to buy a rocket.
I haven't got the chance to ride his new car yet. Heck Bujal won't even let me anywhere near his car (he told me to keep a 10 meter radius). So action wan. Owh I get it. Nobody rides his car until he took his girlfriend out first. Now I get it. Whateverlah dude, if it makes you happy then I'm happy for you. So now you can bring Suzen for a date at Alamanda again lah eh? (wink-wink!).