Life above the horizon

Cruzer Crossfire 1.0GB -This is my newly bought 1GB thumbdrive at sgd23. Isn't beautiful?




What is more beautiful is that it can support Windows Vista new feature - ReadyBoost!
So what is this ReadyBoost about? ReadyBoost is a technology built into Windows Vista that caches disk reads onto a flash memory device. It can work with USB memory keys, flash memory cards, such as SD and CompactFlash, and other types of flash devices. It caches all types of file reads, not just the working set, nor just DLL's or other persistent operating system data.

ReadyBoost does not cache file writes—it's a write-through cache. That way, you never lose any precious data that's meant to be written to a hard drive. After all, a flash memory key can get yanked out of a system at any time. The cache itself is encrypted using AES-128 encryption, so no one can steal your flash memory key and casually browse through the cache file to see what you've been doing.

The minimum requirements for a USB memory device to be ReadyBoost capable is 2.5MB/sec for 4K random access reads and 1.5MB/sec for 512K random writes—and that rate has to be achieved across the whole flash memory space. When you plug a USB memory device into the system, Vista actually does a performance check to see if the device meets the standard. Vista won't allow you to use a device it thinks will slow the system down. Note that USB hard drives won't work.

Microsoft's general recommendation for maximum benefit from ReadyBoost is to match the capacity of the flash device to the size of your system's main memory. So if you have 2GB of system RAM, use a 2GB USB key. Note that some benefit is gained from using any flash device, and the capacities supported for ReadyBoost range from 256MB to 4GB.

So can it really speed up the system and how much?

"Well, that depends. On average, a RANDOM 4K read from flash is about 10x faster than from HDD. Now, how does that translate to end-user perf? Under memory pressure and heavy disk activity, the system is much more responsive; on a 4GB machine with few applications running, the ReadyBoost effect is much less noticable", Matt Ayers, Program Manager of Microsoft Windows Client Performance group, says.

So WWW is part of us, no doubt, no argument. Who actually made this happen or contribute to this great phenomenon. A top 50 names (actually 62 people) that shape what we read, what we watch, what we hear, what we write, what we buy, what we sell, who we befriend, practically everything we do online every minute everyday.
[Source: pcworld.com]

1. Eric Schmidt, Larry Page, and Sergey BrinExecutives, Google
2. Steve Jobs, Apple
3. Bram Cohen, BitTorrent
4. Mike Morhaime, Blizzard Entertainment
5. Jimmy Wales, Wikipedia
6. John Doerr, Kleiner, Perkins, Caulfield & Byers
7. Craig Newmark, Craigslist
8. Peter Levinsohn, Fox Media
9. Marissa Mayer, Google
10. Chad Hurley and Steve Chen, Youtube
11. Kevin J. MartinChairman, Federal Communications Commission
12. Brad Templeton, Electronic Frontier Foundation
13. Henry Chon, CyWorld
14. Shana Fisher, InterActiveCorp
15. Niklas Zennstrom and Janus Friis, Joost, Skype and Kazaa
16. Matt Mullenweg, WordPress
17. Philip Rosedale, Linden Lab
18. Jon Lech Johansen, DeCSS decryption program
19. Jerry Yang, David Filo, and Terry Semel, Yahoo
20. Jack Ma, Alibaba
21. Brewster Kahle, Internet Archieve
22. Ray Ozzie, Microsoft
23. Markos Moulitsas Zuniga, Daily Kos
24. Jeff Bezos, Amazon
25. Robert Scoble, PodTech.net
26. John Battelle, Federated Media Publishing
27. Lawrence Lessig, Creative Commons
28. Meg Whitman, Ebay
29. Ron Wyden, U.S. Senator, Oregon
30. Michael Arrington, TechCrunch
31. Bruce Schneier, Cryptographer
32. Kevin Rose, Digg
33. David Farber, Interesting-People.org
34. John Hinderaker, Scott Johnson, and Paul Mirengoff, Powerline
35. Vinton G. Cerf, ICANN Board of Directors & Chief Internet Evangelist, Google
36. Tim O’Reilly, Oreilly Media
37. Drew Curtis, Fark.com
38. Gabe Rivera, TechMeMe
39. Dave Winer, Scripting.com
40. Mike Schroepfer, Mozilla
41. Perez Hilton, Hollywood Blogger
42. Paul Graham, Trevor Blackwell, Robert Morris, and Jessica Livingston, Y-Combinator
43. Mikko H. Hypponen, F-Secure
44. Rob Malda, Slashdot.org
45. Nick Denton, Gawker Media
46. Sir Tim Berners-Lee, W3C
47. Leo Laporte, (TWiT) podcast
48. Mohammed and Omar Fadhil, Blogging voice of Iraq
49. Jesse James Garrett, Adaptive Path
50. Tila Tequila, MySpace Personality

Someday, sometime, maybe you will see your name appear in this list!

Labels: top 50, web

I am going to revamp this blog to be a "geeky" blog.. about some latest IT developments , some IT news that catch my attentions! And I might also rope some other contributors in to guest edit this blog! :)

I am going to REVIVE this website.. hahaha..
it has been long since i last updated this website because I have been trying to maintain my other blogs.. which proven to be a bit too much for me.. but from today on.. i shall BLOG harder..

真正的爱只能维持十个月，正好是由胚胎到婴儿哇哇出世所需的时日。这或许要从生物进化的角度来解释。但爱不同爱情，爱，或许只是一种由荷尔蒙分泌而激发出的感情反应，一如我受伤会流泪，开心会微笑，是一种很生物式的感情反应。
用一个不合适的比喻： 雄性动物在追求异性时，毛会特别亮丽，叫声也会特别悦耳。
爱，只是一种行为，动物也懂得用舔触等动作表示『爱 』，然而，唯有爱情，才是人类独有的能力。一个情字，令人类爱的行为，变得成熟、深沉，由一种单一的行为上升为一种情怀。

Please see "Physical Activity Calorie Calculators" source link below.

The following healthy living recommendations will help you if you’re trying to lose weight, tone up your muscles, have aspirations of building lean muscle mass, are attempting to get a wash board stomach, or just want to feel better:

*1) Burn more calories then you're consuming everyday and measure your results using the following formula: Calories Consumed minus Basal Metabolic Rate (BMR) minus Physical Activity minus the Thermic Effect of Food (TEF). A website that explains this formula in more detail and will help you determine how many calories you need to reach or maintain a certain weight is at http://www.primusweb.com/fitnesspartner/...

Get a diet and fitness calculator that you can put on your computer or cell phone. This will allow you to easily calculate the above formula, set goals, log your daily calorie consumption, and register your physical activities.

Set realistic goals for your ideal body weight. Here are two websites that will calculate a suggested body weight:
Adults: http://www.halls.md/ideal-weight/body.ht...
Teens/Children: http://www.kidshealth.org/kid/exercise/w...

It is difficult and unhealthy to lose more than one or two pounds per week. There are 3,500 calories in a pound. If you eat 500 fewer calories per day for a week you will lose one pound. If you burn through exercise 500 more calories per day for a week you will lose one pound.

*2) Eat natural and organic foods found on earth versus something created by a corporation to make money. Eat meals in small portions throughout the day and take a good multi-vitamin supplement.

Avoid “High Glycemic Load Carbs” (sugar, pastries, desserts, refined starches such as breads, pasta, refined grains like white rice; high starch vegetables such as potatoes) and drink lots of water. Read this article for more information on high GL Carbs:
http://www.hsph.harvard.edu/nutritionsou...

Do not try fad diets or diet pills. Here is an excellent food pyramid that anyone can follow: http://www.rayandterry.com/html/images/p...

*3) Exercise on most days by doing cardiovascular training and/or resistance training activities.

Read a book or find a certified trainer to make sure your doing all resistance training exercises correctly. A great book to buy that teaches you the resistance training basics is “Weight Training for Dummies”. A superb magazine to buy with resistance training routines that will not get you bored is "Muscle and Fitness". Signup for the free newsletter. An excellent free online resource is at http://www.exrx.net/

A good book to buy that teaches you the cardiovascular training basics is “Fitness for Dummies”.

*4) Get plenty of sleep. Sleep experts say most adults need between seven and nine hours of sleep each night for optimum performance, health, and safety.

*5) Educate yourself continually on health issues and make a life long commitment to good health. A great free publication is “Dietary Guidelines for Americans 2005”. A superb book to read is “You The Owner’s Manual”. An excellent periodic publication is the “Nutrition Action Health Letter”. A reputable test you can take to measure your biological age is at http://realage.com

Look at all areas where you can enhance your health. For example, make improvements in the quality of the air you breathe. Review outdoor air quality forecasts where you live and get an indoor air purifier. Send me an email or yahoo instant message to "gainbetterhealth" if you want an indoor air purifier recommendation and if you have any questions.

*Click on all the source links below to get the full benefit of the recommendations. The answers presented to your health questions are not intended to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Always seek the advice of your physician or other qualified health providers with any questions you may have regarding a medical condition.
Source(s):
My 25 years of health research and experience.

Source Links:
Calorie Calculators:
http://www.nutritiondata.com/
http://www.calorieking.com/foods/...
Calculate Basal Metabolic Rate (BMR): http://health.discovery.com/tools/calcul...
Physical Activity Calorie Calculators:
http://primusweb.com/fitnesspartner/jump...
http://www.weightlossresource.com/tools/...
Calculate Calorie Requirements:
http://www.primusweb.com/fitnesspartner/...
Cell Phone Diet & Fitness Calculator: http://www.handango.com/platformproductd...
Desktop Diet & Fitness Calculator:
http://www.handango.com/platformproductd...
Free Online Diet & Fitness Calculators:
http://www.mypyramidtracker.gov/...
http://sparkpeople.com/
http://www.fitday.com/
Body Weight Calculators:
http://www.halls.md/ideal-weight/body.ht...
http://www.kidshealth.org/kid/exercise/w...
Natural and Organic Foods: http://www.wholefoodsmarket.com/products...
http://www.wildoats.com/u/home/...
Multi-Vitamin Supplement: http://www.carlsonlabs.com/product_detai...
Glycemic Index and GI Database Website: http://www.glycemicindex.com/
Harvard School of Public Health article on Carbohydrates:
http://www.hsph.harvard.edu/nutritionsou...
MayoClinic Article on Water:
http://www.cnn.com/health/library/nu/002...
Food Pyramids:
http://www.rayandterry.com/html/images/p...
http://www.mypyramid.gov/
Certified Trainers:
http://www.acsm.org//am/template.cfm?sec...
http://www.nsca-lift.org/
http://www.acefitness.org/
http://www.nasm.org/
Weight Training for Dummies: http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0471768...
Muscle and Fitness:
http://www.muscleandfitness.com/...
Exercise Prescription on the Net:
http://www.exrx.net/
Fitness for Dummies:
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0764578...
Sleep Website: http://sleepfoundation.org/
Dietary Guidelines for Americans 2005:
http://www.cbsnews.com/htdocs/pdf/foodgu...
You The Owner’s Manual:
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0060765...
Nutrition Action Health Letter:
http://www.cspinet.org/nah/
Realage Website: http://www.realage.com/
AirNow Website: http://airnow.gov/
Indoor Air Purifier Ratings: http://www.air-purifier-power.com/top-10...

Winning the Battle

A Guide to Tackling Cellulite
By Amy Carey


Cellulite. It's the hated substance behind "cottage cheese thighs." It's the reason women of all ages make resolutions year after year to go to the gym, to eat fewer calories, to battle those problem areas. But what is cellulite? And more importantly, is there any way to get rid of it?

The good news: Cellulite is nothing more than fat – fat you can indeed tackle. Cellulite owes its bulging, dimply appearance to the strands of tissue that connect fat to your skin. In women, these connective strands occur in a honeycomb pattern, which allows the soft fat tissue to bulge through the connective fibers. As the fat pushes against your skin, the bulging causes the dimpled appearance we know as cellulite.

A Quick Fix?
Before you run to the gym, you may be asking if there is a quick fix for those dimples. Do creams and pills work? Not according to Vin Ricciardi, certified personal trainer and owner of Total Body Shoppe in Southold, N.Y. He does not believe in cellulite reduction from cream treatments or wraps. Instead, he explains that the layer of fat underneath the skin is what needs to be attacked.

And nutritional supplement pills like Cellasene are not proven to work either, despite claims by the product's makers, Rexall Sundown. According to a Federal Trade Commission report, Cellasene's ads led consumers to believe "that a dietary supplement would reduce or eliminate cellulite," claims that were later deemed to be "unsubstantiated."

The lesson: Don't believe the info-mercials. Creams only tighten skin temporarily – if at all. Long-lasting ways to eliminate cellulite are not for sale. "Getting the muscles toned and the skin tight is the only effective way to diminish ... cellulite," Ricciardi says.

Working It Out
Many fitness experts, including Ricciardi, believe that the best way to battle cellulite is by building muscle. By replacing the fat behind those dimply thighs with muscle, skin becomes firmer and smoother with less jiggles. "Women must exercise ... to put muscle under the skin. This muscle will smooth out the cellulite area," says Joyce Vedral, Ph.D., a certified physical trainer, fitness author and creator of the video series Weight Training Made Easier. "You can get rid of it all by working out the right way with weights."

However, targeting a particular problem area with strength training will not solve your problem overnight. For instance, doing lunges won't eliminate the cellulite in your thighs until you start burning the excess fat stored there. But how? Since we know cellulite is nothing more than fat, it makes sense that the usual advice applies: get moving (walk, run, climb stairs, ride a bike) and reduce the fat and calories in your diet.

Reducing fat and calories is often easier to add to your list of New Year's resolutions than it is to enact. What type of diet should you try this time? "When I am actively participating in a 'diet plan,’ I will make the proper choices, but when I drop out of the plan, I go back to my regular choices," reports Dana Hansen of Hot Springs, Ark. For Hansen, eating well "has never become a habit."

Vedral advises women to stay away from fad diet plans. "That big initial weight loss with fad diets is just temporary water loss and muscle loss," she says. Long-term success is based on a healthy balance. "Balance is the key!" she says.

Having a "healthy eating" partner helps, too. Chris Viteznik, a mother of two in Jersey City, N.J., says, "Having a partner is very helpful. It is tough to go it alone. The support and accountability – and just the camaraderie – of others in the same situation are invaluable." She also thinks planning is a good way to watch what you eat.

Ricciardi agrees. "Prepare meals ahead of time,” he says. “Carry a meal replacement shake or bar when you're on the go. Remove all junk food from the house."

Being prepared might be the hardest part – and can be your downfall. "It takes time, attention and organization" to eat a healthy diet, Viteznik says. "When you are just starting out, [you'll use] any excuse to procrastinate!" Anticipate that changing your eating habits is going to be an uphill climb and line up your support system, whether you join a weight loss program, pick a friend or enlist a spouse.

Don't forget that simply laying off the peanut brittle this New Year won't melt away the fat behind those jiggling thighs. Exercise plays an important role, too. Ricciardi suggests that "cardio work could include the treadmill, stair stepper or elliptical trainer." Do this type of work "for at least 30 minutes a day, building up to 60 minutes a day, four times a week." You also can try exercise videos that get you moving or a class where you have the support of other women who are trying to get fit.

"I am absolutely not self disciplined enough to do a video at home,” Hansen says. “I have had a few videos over the years, and they ended up in a garage sale." Figure out the type of exercise program that fits your lifestyle and avoid those that make you uncomfortable. You're not likely to continue dragging yourself to a Tae Bo class if you can't keep up with the instructor or hate exercising in front of others.

Once you've started burning fat, now you're ready to hit the weights. According to Ricciardi, you should work out with weights three to four times a week, performing strength-training exercises after your aerobic workout.

What exercises should you do to start building muscle and firming up areas now plagued with cellulite? Try some of these:

Leg Curls: With a weight between your feet, lie facedown on the floor. Bring your feet up behind you in a semicircular arc as far as possible. Keep your torso pressed against the mat or bench without lifting your hips. Repeat 10 to 15 times. Firms up thighs.
Hack Squats: Place your feet shoulder width apart. Hold two dumbbells behind your bottom. Bend your knees to 90 degrees, and then stand up. Repeat 10 to 15 times. Tightens rear.
Inner Thigh Toning: Attach an exercise band around both feet, keeping legs straight. Lie on your side and extend your left leg. Hold this position for 30 seconds. Change legs and repeat 10 to 15 times. Tightens inner thighs.
Lunges: Place your right leg in front. Stretch out your left leg, place your hands on your hips, and bend both legs at the knees until you are an inch from the ground. Change legs and repeat 10 to 15 times. Firms thighs and bottom.
Step Exercises: Use a step and hold a weight in each hand. Start with both feet on the step, and then step off the back with your right foot. Don't allow your right foot to touch the floor before you use the muscles of your left leg to bring your right one back up to the step. Change legs and repeat 10 to 15 times. Firms bottom.
Ricciardi adds the following tips for women getting started with strength training:

Train with a partner. The ability to motivate and the sense of security each provides, increases the likelihood of her fitness longevity and reduces the chances of injury.
Don't dress to find a mate. Wear comfortable clothing in the gym that will absorb perspiration.
Remember the basics of strength training: consistency, determination and motivation.
Don't waste your time. Hire a Certified Fitness Trainer if your knowledge is limited of the weight room.
Plan workouts ahead of time. Always know what you're going to do in the gym before you go.
Write everything down. Sets, reps, weight, how you're feeling, what you ate and when. You can use these notes as a guide as you continue working out.
Through it all – the commitment to healthier eating, regular aerobic exercise and weight training – remember that it's easy to get discouraged, especially if you're not seeing results as quickly as you'd like. Vedral reminds women that "it takes about 12 weeks to see a clear change and up to 40 weeks to see most of it (cellulite) gone from a difficult area."

Ricciardi stresses that women should focus on the progress they have made rather than how far they have to go. "Take the successes, no matter how small. Celebrate those successes," he says. He also recommends to his clients that "they take a 'before' picture in a bathing suit in week one. Place it aside; don't look at it for 12 weeks. In the 13th week of consistent training, take another picture. Compare the two – you'll be amazed how much better you look."

When you do achieve the results you've been striving for, don't stop. Keep up your fitness routine and you won't have to make another New Year's resolution to get in shape again – being in shape will be a lifestyle. With support, a plan and a spotlight on the little wins along the way, you can make this year the year you get serious about eliminating those dimply, jiggling areas that plague us all. Get moving!

Adventure of MARS

> ping mars-lab

Pinging mars-lab [192.122.139.21] with 32 bytes of data:

Reply from 192.122.139.21: bytes=32 time=1ms TTL=252
Reply from 192.122.139.21: bytes=32 time=1ms TTL=252
Reply from 192.122.139.21: bytes=32 time=1ms TTL=252
Reply from 192.122.139.21: bytes=32 time=1ms TTL=252

Ping statistics for 192.122.139.21:
Packets: Sent = 4, Received = 4, Lost = 0 (0% loss),
Approximate round trip times in milli-seconds:
Minimum = 1ms, Maximum = 1ms, Average = 1ms

******
ping was successful!