Difference between US Developers and Asia developers

Having gone to a few tech conferences in Asia, I can see why most tech people like to work in the US.

There are queues for every session that I'm interested in so far. In almost every queue, I always hear people talking about some technical stuff, be it serializing, or creating scalable applications. I have never heard that in the Sun, or Oracle conferences that I've been to. Even in a queue, people talk to each other about some new technology and how cool it is!

I do not know for the rest of Asia, but Singapore will never reach that level of sophistication for now. Heck, you can even get people designing software who has 0 experience in programming. Ridiculous...

I think it is because developers are the under-appreciated people in Singapore. Now I know why people have been asking me why am I still staying in Singapore...

Guesses on Singtel iPhone plan

Updated 19 Aug 2008: Link to Singtel iPhone plans post

My guess on how the Singtel iPhone plans will be like. Okay, not exactly my guess. It's based on this ZDNet blog here.

Basically it is very simple... The phone only costs USD199/USD299, but this phone is state of the art. So how does it cover the cost? Very simple... Data plans. Your data plans will be more expensive than the other phones.

AT&T is the first to implement this, and I would expect Singtel to follow that model. The latest rumour I heard about the iPhone 3G is that it is not available for those without the plan.

So I guess for those in Singapore who wants to get an iPhone, you will have to go red.

Read the post here on the Singtel iPhone plans.

iPhone lock to Singtel

For those who're waiting for the 3G iPhone in Singapore, I think you have to wait longer than 11 July. Of all the countries announced that are releasing on 11 July, Singapore is not one of them. I'm not sure of what's the delay but I find it disappointing that only Singtel is bringing in the iPhone.

At the WWDC, I've seen the list of telcos that Apple is co-operating with, and only Singtel is in the list. This is ... ... disappointing. I do not see the other telcos in the list. However, Apple has assured that all countries everywhere will be selling it at a flat rate of USD199. How true is it? We'll know near the end of the year.

But Singapore only allowing one sole operator to bring in the iPhone??

Snow Leopard

WWDC 2008 One more thing... :) The new Mac 10.6. Around 2009.

Gist of it:

• Microsoft Exchange compatibility in the Mac
• Performance boost
  

They are optimizing the core OS. That should have been what Vista should have done long ago, but failed to do. Snow Leopard performance should fly...

All the participants walk away with the Developer release for Snow Leopard. However, I do not think I will try it. I do not have a spare Mac and it would be "hazardous" to try it on your working Mac. :p

WWDC 2008 Keynote

Updated 21 Jun 2008: Photos

This is the first time I've been to a conference where the line has already snaked down half a block outside a full 3 hours before the actual conference starts. I guess only Apple can do it...

Just had my lunch (smoked ham is okay), and my colleagues are "missing in action". Not sure which corner they have gone to. :) Anyway, as I was saying, I started queuing at 7am. Got into Moscone centre (San Francisco) at about 8+am. After which I got into the main auditorium at about 9.45am. Will post the photos here once I get back. The tickets for WWDC 2008 are sold out this year!

Here are the photos of my journey to the keynote:


Moscone West, where the conference is held


7.38am, at the first floor


8.03am, at the second floor(front)


8.05am, at the second floor(back)


9.00am, walking towards the third floor


9.58am, waiting for the keynote


Tickets sold out!! 5,200 developers


12.00pm, after-math of keynote


Entrance of Moscone West

Theme of this year's keynote. iPhone. Everything is about the new iPhone. Official launch date is July 11, but I did not see Singapore in the list of countries shown. Seems like they are launching simultaneously across 25 countries. In Singapore, so far only Singtel will be having it.

What do I think of iPhone? I think its going to really change the way we use the phone. First of all, its going to be very cheap. USD199 for the 8GB iPhone. USD299 for the 16GB. That's very cheap.

The new iPhone also has the much awaited 3G. The speed was compared to a Treo 750 and a N95, and it seems to be slightly faster.

For those who uses the push technology for Exchange, the 3G iPhone now supports the push technology. Push email, push calendar, everything... And it works not only on the Mac, but also on the PC.

GPS technology will also be in the new iPhone. Seems like it integrates with Google Maps. No more getting lost?? :p

They have many other new features. Too many to list down. However, the main gist is that it is easy to program on the iPhone. They demoed many programmes written for the iPhone, and that includes games. All these will be sold in the Apple app store when it launches. iPhone is also enterprise ready with its integration to Exchange.

You can get more information at Apple website here.

I think I ate too much Anyway, will walk around and see if I see any familiar faces. :)

My way of avoiding of jet lag

My trick of avoiding jet lag, especially for my trip to San Francisco from Singapore, is ... ...
not to sleep too much on the way there, and follow San Francisco time zone strictly. That means the sleeping and waking times, and meal times .

I think so far, this method has worked for me in avoiding jet lag when going overseas. The key idea is to let your body accustom to the time difference by observing the sleeping time, and the meal times strictly. At least for my body, if I follow the meal times and my sleep patterns, it will somehow adjust very quickly. That means no matter how much I want to sleep, or how full I am, I will force myself to eat or sleep at the appropriate time.

I have only napped for 1 hour + on the plane, but I slept at the normal time I use to sleep back in Singapore, in US timing of course. As a result, I woke up at my normal time too (7+am), without the alarm clock. However, the first day upon arrival, you will be very very very tired. :p

Had fun shopping today. :) This place is really a shopping paradise. The designs here are really unique, and I'm very sure I can't find it in Singapore.

Okay, going to bed soon. Its near my normal bedtime timing and I'm feeling a little sleepy. :)

Things to note at San Francisco

Updated 21 Jun 2008: Photos

Just reached back to the hotel not too long ago and getting ready to sleep. I've woke up at 5.30am on a Friday morning, and now its 2pm Saturday afternoon, all Singapore time. I've only slept a grand total of at most 2 hours, interrupted sleep. *yawn*

I flew from Singapore to Seoul to San Francisco. Very tiring, and I had very little sleep. In fact, I've watched so many movies that I've lost count on what I've watched.

Just some things to note for Singaporeans going into USA.

For Singaporeans, take note of the visa requirements for USA. As a rule of thumb, you're safe if your passport date of issue is before 2005. If it is not, you'll need the biometric passport on the safe side. More information can be found in this website.

If you need to transit to Seoul, just follow the directions by the staff at the airport. You will get a green(visa waiver program - Singaporeans)/white visa declaration form, and a customs declaration form upon transit. The customs declaration form is only 1 per family, or 1 per person if you're just colleagues or friends traveling together. You will need to go through the whole hand-carrry baggage process again in Seoul, so be prepared. Basically, you only have about 20-30mins after you clear the transit immigration in Seoul. There are some shops there, and food stalls too, if you're hungry. Korean food court, KFC, Dunkin Donuts, etc. You can even use credit card to pay for your meal at KFC.

Here are some of the photos I've taken in the airport at Seoul:


KFC, Donuts!


KFC, Donuts (Interior)



Korean Food court

Another point to note is that from Seoul to San Francisco, you might be randomly called up for a more detailed search. Depends on your luck... ;) Sometimes the staff might randomly check your documents too. Do not be worried if they do that. Its just their standard procedure.

Temperature upon landing I felt was around 17-18 degrees. Now, I feel that the temperature is around 12-13 degrees. Problem though is the wind. The wind is very cold and a windbreaker is not enough. Luckily I have "backup". :)

Anyway, even with my lack of sleep, I was pulled immediately to a meeting in Silicon Valley. It's really an eye opener though. The guys there really know what they are doing, unlike the "experts" I've talked to in Singapore. They are quite knowledgeable on the subject they are in. I can feel it from the talk. No wonder people say that working in USA is an eye opener. Now I know why...

I will post some photos here once I get back because I do not have a SD card reader for my Mac.

Renaming Multiple Files at one go

Sometimes, we will encounter situations where we need to rename multiple files at one go. For example, you might have a few photos, and you want them to be named as "China Trip 1st Day". Windows actually provides a hidden feature for you to rename all the files at one go.

To do that, do the following:

1. Run your Windows Explorer
2. Go to the directory containing the files you wish to rename (note that this tip works on all types of files)
3. Highlight the files you wish to rename by using the shift/ctrl key and the mouse.
4. Right-click on the first highlighted file and click on Rename
5. Rename it to the name you wish. Do not leave out the extension.

That's all to it. Using the example above, you will see the files that are renamed in this format:

• China Trip 1st Day.jpg
• China Trip 1st Day (1).jpg
• China Trip 1st Day (2).jpg
• etc
  

If you've renamed it wrongly, just press Ctrl Z to undo your changes. Hope this is useful.

Leopard Security Guide

Apple released a 3.4MB PDF security guide, detailing on how to secure Mac OSX Leopard clients. You can also refer to this ZDNet blog, where I first saw the posting about this guide.
Using this document might require you to be familiar with the Terminal command line style of enabling/disabling features.

The following are the list of topics in the guide:

• Chapter 1, “Introduction to Mac OS X Security Architecture,” explains the infrastructure of Mac OS X. It also discusses the layers of security in Mac OS X.
• Chapter 2, “Installing Mac OS X,” describes how to securely install Mac OS X. The chapter also discusses how to securely install software updates and explains permissions and how to repair them.
• Chapter 3, “Protecting System Hardware,” explains how to physically protect your hardware from attacks. This chapter also tells you how to secure settings that affect users of the computer.
• Chapter 4, “Securing Global System Settings,” describes how to secure global system settings such as firmware and Mac OS X startup. There is also information on setting up system logs to monitor system activity.
• Chapter 5, “Securing Accounts,” describes the types of user accounts and how to securely configure an account. This includes securing the system administrator account, using Open Directory, and using strong authentication.
• Chapter 6, “Securing System Preferences,” describes recommended settings to secure Mac OS X system preferences.
• Chapter 7, “Securing Data and Using Encryption,” describes how to encrypt data and how to use Secure Erase to verify that old data is completely removed.
• Chapter 8, “Securing System Swap and Hibernation Storage,” describes how to secure your system swap and hibernation space of sensitive information.
• Chapter 9, “Avoiding Multiple Simultaneous Account Access,” describes how to avoid fast user switching and local account access to the computer.
• Chapter 10, “Ensuring Data Integrity with Backups,” describes the Time Machine architecture and how to securely backup and restore your computer and data.
• Chapter 11, “Information Assurance with Applications,” describes how to protect your data while using Apple applications.
• Chapter 12, “Information Assurance with Services,” describes how to secure your computer services. It also describes how to protect the computer by securely configuring services.

Although out of the box Macs are more secure than Windows, this however should not lead to complacency. One should still secure it, to ensure the safety and integrity of the information stored in your Mac.

Previously, I've also written a post here on the bare minimum security to be enabled on Tiger. I did not write one for Leopard as it is quite similar to Tiger. Just that the steps are slightly different due to the different operating systems.

Again the time of the year where people leave

Just today, it was official that another of my colleague is leaving. We have worked together for 4 years and he'll be missed. I wish him all the best in his new job.

I guess its normal in Singapore that people leave after a certain time in the company, be it for a change of environment, or a change in working style, change in job scope, etc. In fact, 4 years in a company is considered quite long among my friends.

I've been in my present company for 5 years. Am I immune to this trend? No. I did consider leaving about 2 years ago. That was when I went solo in a project, and I was frustrated with the pressure I get from managing the customers, partners, and the technology. The worst part was because I was in it alone, with no one to help me. It was super frustrating to face the problems alone, and it kinda eats into you.

I seriously considered leaving last year when I was in another project, doing it solo again. Same problem. New technology, new customers, new problems, and only me.

So am I surprised that he left? No... The problem with small companies is that you end up handling many things alone, and you will get pretty stressed up.

The only reason I stayed was because my company has treated me well, despite the work pressure I'm facing. However, the stress is getting too much, even for me. Just recently, I've decided I'm giving myself, and my company one last chance. Strangely enough, I've decided roughly around the same period my colleague decided to leave.

Anyway, I've decided to salvage one of the products in the company and I'm going to do my best to ensure the product is launched by this June. By my 5th anniversary, I want to see something happen. Not only do I wish to grow, I wish the company will grow with me. If the product goes down the drain, I guess its time for me to move on. I've already did my best, but I can only do so much alone.

And now with my colleague going, the pressure is going to be tremendous on me, and I'm not even talking about the new projects coming in.

I hope I made the right choice...