FORMULAIC, SAFE AND SAPPY, THIS ALBUM DELIVERS GUILTY PLEASURES

Even though a lot of my high school classmates were members of the theater guild, I don't remember high school being anywhere near as musical as the one in High School Musical. Nobody broke out into song in the cafeteria. There was no dancing in the halls. Heck, all we could probably manage for entertainment was a dirty joke and a half. Still, give a listen to the High School Musical OST and you just might be fooled.

This OST works best in the context of the movie it hails from, a Disney Channel Original Movie that you can't seem to escape from. I've seen it rerun ad infinitum on cable. I've seen desperate parents buy bootleg DVDs of High School Musical from the bowels of Makati Cinema Square to placate their kids. My two and a half year old nephew flatly refuses to eat his lunch without Troy and Gabriella's audition scene playing on the telly. A pretty colleague of mine even sings along to Breaking Free after banging her head to Rob Zombie (unbelievable, but true). To ape a thought from The Matrix, this OST is inevitable, like the drunken shenanigans of Disney doyen La Lohan AKA Firecrotch or the monthly waning of the moon.

I have been playing a lot of MMORPGs and games extensively for the past few years. And, apart from the sheer exhilaration I get from playing these games, I also get really annoyed with people who resort to cheating.

From hex runes and map hacks in Diablo, to aimbots, speed hacks, and map hacks in CS or Battlefield - these cheaters go out of their way to purchase, download, and install hacks on their PC to gain a very unfair advantage.

Yes, I too have had my fair share of cheating... When I get stuck (or die pertually) in a PS2 game, I immediately read my favorite faq website: http://www.gamefaqs.com. Better yet, I just download a couple of codes for my Gameshark application (infinite lives and ammo, etc.) and play the game without worries. What I DON'T do however, is to get hacks/mods/bots for any online game that I'm playing (or played before) as it defeats the purpose of enjoying it.

However, this is not the case for chronic cheaters...

I recently had a problem with my PC at home. Sometimes it works okay, but there are some times wherein my PC crashes while I am playing online games. I thought that it was a software problem so I decided to reformat my PC after backing everything up.

However, it didn't really help as my computer still crashed without warning. This prompted me to check everything:

- Latest drivers? Check.

- Video card? (Is the fan running? Is it overheating?) Check.

- Motherboard? (Latest BIOS version?) Check.

- Latest updates for OS? Check.

- RAM? Check.

Hmmm. RAM? Honestly, how would know if your RAM is in tip-top shape or the exact opposite?

Sad to find out that people resort to violence just because of a video game...

In Philadephia, a 25-year old man has been charged with murder. The person he killed - his 17-month old daughter.

The reason: His daughter apparently pulled the cords of his gaming console, causing it to fall down. He was so upset and wanted "someone" to pay for all the troubles. Sooooo, he punched his daughter twice and slung his daughter over a chair.

All I can say is... What is happening?

According to NBC news: His wife said that she fell in love with a man who had never been violent before, and she wanted to know what would possess someone to kill a child.

The link can be found on this link.

We have grown accustomed to the habit of placing our loose change in our ever dependable piggy banks. Now, wouldn't it be nice to have a bank that is "tamagotchi" in nature.

Here it is. Introducing the Bank of Life.

This bank holds up to a whopping 100,000 Yen.

But hold on, there's more...

We have seen different products come to life with the help of modders - people who actually go out of their way to build/rebuild something, creating beautiful pieces of art.

If you've been following us for the past month, this wouldn't be quite a surprise as you've seen the Bear USB (August 2006) and an article on how to transform your Old PC Into A Router (September 2006).

Now, allow me to share to you readers some mods for the PS2 and the XBox360...

Introducing the Palm PS2

Now, this person decided to disassemble his PS2 and create a new PS2 that he can bring anywhere. The whole link to the article can be found on the palmps2.com website and can be viewed here.

Yes. It's already September. And since the "-ber" months are here (have to write my Christmas list now), I would like to share a product that will scare your "Scrooge" blues away and relive the spirit of Christmas everyday.

Introducing....

The snowman USB drive! The Snowman has a storage capacity of 256MB and the nose lights up as soon as you jack it up your PC.

Solidalliance is the company responsible for this product and they actually have other products that you can buy (in case you want to have a unique USB Flash Drive that you want to bring along).

Do you guys remember Atari's Pong? How about Millipede? Now, through these Atari keychains, one can relive those old school memories (and play them too).

This Atari keychain allows users to play pong right in your own television set. All you have to do is to put 3 x AAA batteries, hook up the keychain with the 6 foot cable to your TV, and voila! Old school games comes alive!

HardwareZone Phils. Corp., the publisher of HWM - the premier tech magazine covering the 3C beat in the Philippines and around the SEA region is looking for qualified applicants interested in its opening job positions (full-time) for:

- 2 Programmers (Web)

- 2 Staff Writers

JOB DETAILS:

Senior Web Programmer:

-Must have extensive experience with general programming or scripting using any language or specialized in particular language (preferably with C/C++/Java or closely related syntax and style)

-Experience with data-driven web projects a plus.

-Experience as team lead for programming project(s) a plus.

-Preferably Documentation skill and project planning.

-Has experience or can learn how to use PHP + MySQL and Javascript (AJAX) platform.

-Young, dynamic, open-minded, dedicated and goal oriented

-Willing to continue learning and very flexible

-Must be a team-player

Junior Web Programmer:

-Must have a background on basic programming (better if knowledgeable with web related services)

-Experience with data-driven web projects a plus.

-Can learn how to use PHP + MySQL and Javascript (AJAX) platform.

-Young, dynamic, open-minded, dedicated and goal oriented.

-Willing to learn, can handle workload, and flexible.

-Must be a team-player.

- Fresh graduates welcome to apply

Two (2) Staff Writers:

-Must be interested and preferably knowledgeable in consumer technology, namely the 3C's: Computers, Consumer Electronics and Communicatons.

-Young, dynamic, open-minded, dedicated and goal oriented.

-Willing to learn new things.

-Must be a team-player.

Successful candidates will get to experience exciting challenges as well as a fun environment of seasoned professionals. They will be working closely with our headquarters in Singapore.

Fore more information about HardwareZone, it's affiliates and publications, please visit the following websites:

HardwareZone International Site:

www.hardwarezone.com

HardwareZone Corporate Site:

www.hwzcorp.com

HWM Regional Magazine Site:

www.hardwaremag.com

If interested, please send your resumes to editor(dot)ph(at)hwzcorp.com and we will get in touch with you ASAP.

Thanks a lot.

Before we even see the Wii in action, I stumbled upon a gaming device that might give you a prelude on how Nintendo Wii games would look like.

Introducing....

The "Takekoputa"!

The Takekoputa is a game that allow users to control Doraemon as he flies through the air using a helicopter strapped unto your head. All you have to do is to lean your head forward to go forward, lean your head back to move back, and tilt your head to go sideways.

Yes, you'd look really silly, but hey, you might be doing a lot of these should you buy a Nintendo Wii when it comes out.

The original Japanese website link is here. However, if you can't really read Japanese, you can click here or here.

Tell me what you guys think.

Well, I do not really have the skills in creating masterpieces using Adobe Photoshop. But, wouldn't it be nice to get some tips from the pros? I accidentaly stumbled upon a website called photoshoptips.net, and this website provides tips on how to maximize the use of Photoshop.

Here is a picture of an image they rendered...

This can be found on their tutorial on how to utilize layer masks and can be found on this link.

Yes. Mickey Mouse now needs your fingerprint everytime you enter his domain, Disneyland. For the longest time, the administration recorded onto the tickets of visitors their own fingerprint geometry and shape to avoid fraud and reselling of tickets.

Photos are usually taken to capture those "precious" moments. But what if the photos you see are merely fragments of ones imagination?

In an article entitled: Pictures that lie, Cnet news posted some photos that were altered to make it look better or cause more impact.

An example is a photo of Katie Couric. She was "slimmed down" in this picture and can be seen here...

So much for reality.

The whole article can be found on the Cnet news section and can be found on this link.

Does it ever bother you that people talk SO LOUD on their cellular phones? Wouldn't it be nice for them to be polite enough to just talk to the people on the other line inside a more "private" place? Fear not as Salemi Industries has found the perfect solution for those annoying people on their phones.

This is called the Cell Zone, and it is bound to change the way we talk over the phone.

As you buy and upgrade to a new computer system, one can't help but ask: "What will I do with my old Pentium II (333Mhz), 10GB HDD, 128 MB RAM, and a 16-bit video card?"

Well, have you ever considered transforming your CPU into a router? Yes, a router. All you have to do is to download a Linux Gentoo, configure it to run as a router, and presto! Your computer now runs as a router.

Check out this link to know more about transforming your PC to a working router.