Sun, Sea + Small Japanese Babes in Tiny Bikinis + Big Surf Boards

Mind the long headline, but I’m off to Bali! I might write if I have time to spare and a comp terminal to type on, but if not, will return on Monday!

Yippee! Here’s to sunkissed, toned bikini-clad women, salty water and the crowded Kuta beach!

See ya!

Out with the Shuffle, in with the New iPod mini

In its quest for world domination, Apple slashes prices of the 4GB iPod Mini to an attractive USD199 (approx. RM760) and introduces a 6GB model for the capacity-conscious. Apple claims an extended 18 hours of battery life and the ability to charge over USB 2.0. Having been contemplating the iPod Shuffle since it was launched, I think I am changing my mind. We’re spoilt for choice, no doubt these days. Heh.

Currently owning a first-gen 5GB iPod, I think the iPod Mini wins where size and weight is concerned. Nice to lug around and small to fit into your front shirt pocket, although I rarely wear shirts to work

By the way, Apple also introduced slim 30GB and 60GB iPod Photo models which feature high-resolution colour screens for displaying photos. They will feature the new iPod Camera Connector which enables users to import photos directly from their digital cameras.

I still think that Apple should introduce a Flash memory card slot of some sort for transferring photos in addition to syncing via FireWire or USB 2.0. Makes life easier, don’t you think?

Till something better comes along, the iPod Mini’s my choice! What’s yours, digital music freaks?

Prince Charles Gets Ride of His Life

Giddyup, Cam! Source: Unknown

So they wed. I question Charles’s keen eye for beauty. He has so aptly redefined the phrase “Beauty is in the eye of the beholder”. With a 12-gun salute, I bow to you, dear Prince. May you have the ride of your life.

A long way you have come. Actually it’s more like getting lost, more so than going a long way. More like a detour. Erm… a trip into the disenchanted Parker forest. Princess Diana, God rest her soul, was the epitome of elegance, poise, beauty and compassion.

Charles… what have you been smoking?

100 Times Happier, But 5,700 Ringgit Poorer

After intense mind-boggling self-discussion, contemplation and consideration, I decided on the ex-stock 1.33Ghz 12″ Powerbook. After comparing specs and weighing options dollar for dollar, the PowerBook came up tops where price/performance ratio was concerned. The 14.1″ iBook is also a steal however, and it was a close-fought battle to the finish.

The stock-supplied RAM of 256MB is hardly sufficient to even run the OS, but it will have to do for now. Have maxed my credit cards and will need to prostitute my not-so-youthful body in order to pay off all short-term debt. Anyone interested, please drop me a line. Consequently I will need to go on a strict 2-pc roti canai daily diet in order to not still be paying for the PowerBook in 2015.

On a brighter note *ahem*, the Powerbook will be my first portable I own, and my 3rd Mac ever. Have been without a Mac for over a year, since I sold off my iMac G4 last year. I look forward to many intimate times with my new baby. May she bestow upon me generous amounts of fulfilling projects (both monetary and otherwise) this year.

For whoever is interested, there are a couple of 14.1″ 1.02Ghz iBooks for sale at RM3,999. You can find these in Mac Studio, IKano Power Centre. Good buy, I reckon. Pay Mac Studio a visit fellas!

Decisions, Decisions, Decisions!

I am seriously contemplating an Apple notebook purchase but am torn between the consumer level iBook and the more powerful, but ultimately more expensive Powerbook.

I have been scouting around, checking out prices and stumbled upon this over at Zerotohundred.com. Some ex-stock 14.1″ iBooks are for sale. Excellent value at RM4,800. Specs as below:

1.2GHz PowerPC G4
512K L2 cache @ 1.2GHz
14-inch TFT Display
1024×768 resolution
256MB DDR266 SDRAM
60GB Ultra ATA drive
Combo Drive
ATI Mobility Radeon 9200
32MB DDR video memory
AirPort Extreme built-in

The other ex-stock offer, as highlighted by one MyMUG member who bought one yesterday, is a 12.1″ 1.33Ghz Powerbook, going for a cool RM5,700. Another excellent deal, although about RM1,000 more to spend.

Decisions. Decisions. Decisions.

The initial option was a year-old 2nd hand 12.1″ 1.2Ghz PowerBook found on LowYatt.net. After several attempts to contact the owner though, it seems the seller isn’t quite interested at all. Hope it isn’t a scam of some sort. If he doesn’t contact me today, will be reporting to the moderators. And I’ll sue him for wasting my time. With the win in court, hopefully I can get a new Powerbook…

Anyone knows of any deals? Drop me a line!

Time Stood Still

Time stood still
When you laid there
Beside me

Time stood still
When you gazed
With those sleepy eyes
And smiled
With those tasty lips

Time stood still
When you touched me
Like you always do
I still taste you
Like I tasted you

Time stood still
And your warmth lingers
Your whispers vivid
Whilst we embrace
Still
As one
For a lonely minute

Time stood still
And I’m still
Waiting

Black Stallions Invade SIC

The morning started off early as 4 Satria R3s (No.6, 7, 8 and 9) assembled at Dengkil Rest Area with Faisal (R3 Marketing) and Amin (R3 Media Manager) in their Proton Perdana Pace Car. It was quite a sight to see a small convoy of ‘Incognito Black’ hot hatches led by a fiery red Perdana cruising towards the Sepang International Circuit.

The black convoy on the way to the SIC.

We were greeted with another 2 SR3s there. Car No.19 arrived later (owned by a 15-year old girl!) but did not participate in the track session. Upon settling the RM150 entrance fee, we assembled at the pits where Faisal gave us a brief on the circuit. The circuit was decorated with Porsches and Elises with a few Evos to add some spice. The odd VTEC-wail of the Integra DC5 and Scooby burble broke the silence of the not-so-vocal Evos and Elises. An even more silent Nissan 350Z (which later experienced clutch problems) added some luxury too.

Listen up fellas, no driving in reverse gear ok?

We were did a circuit familiarisation lap with the pace car leading the pack. We took turns after each lap to tail the pace car.

Playing follow the leader

The excited flock of SR3s burning rubber on the pit straight

We were also treated to a tips session by the famous Tengku Djan Ley, talented racer and Head of Race Rally Research (R3) before we were given a free reign of the track. I later got a ride with Djan in the infamous drift machine – the R3 Lotus Elise. Funny how two big fellas fit in such a small car. If there was such a thing as ‘being one with the car’, it was clearly defined by Djan and the Elise. Impreccable control. The smoothness of his gear changes and slick steering control was a sight to behold. I got a first person view of the cornering lines. He braked late. Really late. And the Elise obeyed every single time, without fail. Excellent stuff.

Djan + the Elise at Turn 2.

It was an absolutely thrilling and educational experience to say the least. It was my first time at Sepang although no stranger to track days (I miss BT3!). My car just hit 5,000kms but was as eager as I was to burn some serious rubber.

There is nothing majorly wrong with the car, in fact it feels very at home on the circuit. It has pace and acceleration is commendable. Mid-range to top end power/torque is good as demonstrated with a pretty quick 165km/h on the pit straight before the tricky 2nd-gear Turn 1. The only quirk where engine performance is concerned is at the low-end, which lacks some punch. This is also influenced by the gearing which is awkward when downshifting from 3rd to 2nd. I found, perhaps to my inexperience of the track, that at 2nd gear corners, it the car was either suffering from too low an rpm at 3rd, or too high in 2nd gear. This was especially true at the dreaded Turn 9, which took me many laps before I could get it at least somewhat right. I believe car No.8 actually spun here after his self-admitted jerky heel-and-toe technique upset the balance of the car.

Throttle modulation is no doubt key in this sense, but I find the gearing here a weakness.

Handling-wise, the SR3 remained neutral throughout, with very little roll, which instills a lot of confidence on a tricky track like Sepang. Most of us fought understeer due to too much entry speed, not due to the geometry nor dynamics of the car. Over-enthusiasm on the approach certainly brought much headache trying to power out later. This was however rectified after a couple of laps with Djan in the Elise, which helped me sort out the proper gears, approach technique and cornering lines. The 2nd round of laps proved to be a big improvement, although hampered later by a rather slipping clutch after some laps.

A clutch upgrade is certainly something to look at here.

Steering feel was excellent throughout the session despite the bouts with understeer on some turns. Direct and honest, to put it in words.

If there was one thing the SR3 REALLY excelled in was the braking. WOW. With no apparent signs of fade AT ALL, we could all brake really late (which explains the understeer! hahaha) without worrying that we’d end up in the gravel. The braking system really, really did a splendid job of stopping the car where it mattered. Hats off here.

All in all, a fun-filled day. This is what the SR3 was made for, and for that matter, the principal reason why I bought the SR3 in the first place. I look forward to more track sessions to not only be a better driver, but ultimately to be ‘one with the car’.

The ride with ‘The Bitch’ (the development car – Car No. ‘0′) was awesome too, with expert Faisal at the helm. No words to describe the smoothness of the delivery and the confidence at the corners. The SR3 seemed like it was born at the track, which is great to say the least. Very neutral handling and a confident drive. The chassis screams give me a bigger engine, but for now, sufficient to satisfy.

One thing I did notice while in the Elise + ‘The Bitch’ with Djan and Faisal respectively was the toe-and-toe technique. I always thought that I was cheating by doing that and recently switched to a heel-and-toe which is still dodgy to say the least. Now that it is ‘acceptable’ I’m gonna switch back. Much easier in actual fact, and smoother too. smile.gif

By the way, much thanks to Djan and Faisal for the rides and the important pointers + advice. Cheers guys!

Pics courtesy of Amin of R3 Media.

More pics available here:
Satria R3 Owners Track Day
Satria R3 Owners Track Day 2

Jobs Before STEPping Back to Apple

A MyMUG forummer posted this interesting link of Steve Jobs, founder and CEO of Apple Computer, demonstrating NextSTEP 3.0. This 30-minute long video demonstrates features of NeXTSTEP 3.0 including applications, networking capabiliites and development tools. Pretty amazing stuff.

It’s amazing how much NeXT technology we see in the Mac OS today. NeXTSTEP was simply way ahead of its time. Mind you, it being conceived and developed pre-90s, v3.0 coming in 1991. The object-oriented development environment, multi-tasking and dynamic memory management, the graphics and networking capabiliities. Absolutely advanced.

Check out the demo and see how much of NeXTSTEP you can find in Mac OS X now.

Rubber Burning With Lotus Club / Track Day Tips

A total of 10 Satria R3s will be joining 20 Lotus cars for a special track day at Sepang International Circuit tomorrow morning. For most of us, except car no.6, who popped the cherry last weekend with the K-cars at the Japan K4 Grand Prix, this would be THE inaugural track day. And for the hardcore few like me, I am pissing my pants in excitement. Tengku Djan, successful racecar driver and Head of Race Rally Research (R3) will be there to give us tips and tutorials on proper control of the SR3 as well as track familiarisation. Djan, evidently, was trained by Lotus, and he personally tuned the suspension of the ‘one of the best handling hot hatches in the market’ (as quoted by Autocar – Feb 05 issue).

Luke, owner of Satria R3 no.13, who is disappointed for not being to make it for the event posted some track day tips and tricks.

Track Day Tips
If you ever take you road car on the track, remember these golden rules: Enjoy yourself and drive your car home afterwards!!!

Pre-Event checks
a) Make sure the car is in a well maintained condition
b) Check ALL fluid levels
c) Replace the brake fluid if not changed at service specified interval
d) Check the condition/pressure of all your tyres, Make a note of the pressures
e) Check your brake pads for condition/thickness, preferably put new fast road/comp pads such as Pagid Blue pads in, front and rear*
f) Remove any accessory’s not securely fitted
g) Check the speed rating of your tyres, Make a note of this and never exceed it on track
h) Remove any floor mats from the drivers footwell
I) Remove the spare tyre if you have secure storage
j) Take some basic tools with you, enough to change brake pads at least
k) Take at least one axle stand for when you change the pads
l) Take some rags/swarfega for cleaning your hands etc
m) Fill up with SUL(super unleaded) even on standard spec engine, you wont get more performance, just gives the engine more protection from destination. If you run on SUL normally put 1% octane booster in for safety.
n) Take a can of Red Bull, it gives you wings you know!

Spares etc to take
a) One set of brake pads at least, front and rear
b) One 5 litre can of oil
c) Some tape to cover your light lenses
d) A helmet
e) Some thin soled sports shoe’s, aids with brake feel

Pre-track checks
a) Recheck your tyre pressures, if one is down you may have a slow puncture which could blow when at high speed
b) Increase the tyre pressures by 4-6PSI higher than you run on the road**
c) Tape up your headlights
d) Ensure you understood the driver briefing, if you are not sure about any aspect, ask for clarification. Ensure you understood the passing rules in particular!
e) Drink your can of Red Bull and put on your helmet

First lap on every run
a) Never thrash the car on the first lap, speed up gradually bringing the oil/water temperatures to normal working parameters
b) Gently bring the brake temperatures up to temperature
c) use this lap to get familiar with your new, rather alien surroundings
d) Try and give yourself space front and rear, don’t be tempted to follow the car in front too closely as you will be concentrating on him/her and not learning the track
e) Get used to checking your mirror before and after each corner, you will be amazed how quickly some cars will catch you if you are a track novice.

Rest of laps
a) Bring up the speed gradually if you are a novice, you will learn more
b) Give it Death, remember your there for fun
c) If you experience brake fade/boiling don’t think it will go away before the next corner, slow down, it is very likely to be worse the next time
d) If you feel a power loss coming out of a tight bend back off, don’t keep it planted, you are probably getting the first sign’s of fuel surge, if you keep it planted you are risking detonation due to a weak mixture. return to the pits and refuel. This can happen with half a tank of fuel on board, don’t get fooled into thinking it can’t be happening already, it can.

Last lap in
a) Do a slow last lap in
Try to avoid using the brakes at all to give the disks/pads some chance to cool down
c) Don’t stop looking in your mirror, there might be some idiot still on max attack

Entry to pits/stopping
a) Enter the pits slowly, look out for kids/spectators, it is easy to not hear you coming
DO NOT SWITCH OFF YOUR ENGINE
c) Allow the engine to idle for at least 2 minutes
d) DO NOT PUT THE HANDBRAKE ON OR SIT WITH YOUR FOOT ON THE BRAKE PEDAL.
e) The above is to stop the pads from being destroyed by the heat sink effect from your red hot brake disks, stop on a level surface or arrange for someone to chock your wheel.
f) Let everything cool before you check the following

Post run checks
a) Check the brake pads for wear, you will be amazed how quickly they are used up
b) Check ALL fluid levels, You may never use oil on the road, you are almost guaranteed to do so on a track day run
c) Check your tyre pressures, if one has dropped you may be on the way to a blow out
d) Check the tyres for wear/cuts
e) Check you are still not wearing a silly cheesy grin

*The stock R3 Mintex M1144 racing pads are one of the best pads in the business! Change not needed!
**The R3 recommended tire pressure is 2.1bar and 1.9bar respectively, for both road and track use.

I am looking forward to the event with anticipation and zest. Can’t wait for a good test Now where is my Aerotech Afterburn Octane booster supply?