Geek Speak #3 - RSS

After repeated queries about RSS from my dear friend JC, I decided to do a short intro about what I know about it here. Really Simple Syndication or RSS for short, is a web protocol for sending and reading news feeds and content. It is a format used to syndicate news and other web content.

Typically, a website with a RSS feed will be indicated with . But my experience tells me it may not have any indication that it has RSS feeds. On Mozilla Firefox browser which I uses, identification of sites with RSS feeds is easier as there will be a small icon indication at the bottom status bar. Just click on the icon to subscribe.

A screenshot of Sage in Mozilla Firefox

Reading RSS feeds is a bit tricky. It depends on what is your preferred way of checking the feeds. I tried "adding live bookmarks", a feature of Firefox, and it worked, just for feeds in XML format. There are some feeds in other formats, like those OPML files which contains multiple RSS XML links. OPML (Outline Processor Markup Language) is an XML format for outlines. OPML files cannot be opened by just adding them as live bookmarks in Firefox. This is one limitation of the live bookmarks function of Firefox. I personally uses an extension for Firefox called Sage to overcome the problem. It has an easy to use layout and works perfectly. Highly recommended for Firefox users. Other prominent RSS readers for Windows include NewsGator, FeedDemon and Pluck (Sorry I can't help Linux and Mac users). Some are standalone programs while others are plug-ins for Internet Explorer.

To get the RSS reader which suits your needs best, do check out Mozilla and CNet. For a more detailed intro about how to read RSS feeds, go to CNet or just search for RSS in Google.

Globtrotter's iTunes Hot Spin of the Day: 心中的日月 - 王力宏

Globtrotter's iTunes is currently huming to the tunes of:

心中的日月 - 王力宏

gloBsiP of the Day - 李圣杰的歌曲撮合了三对情侣的姻缘

Stumble on this 联合早报 article on 李圣杰 songs in one of the discussions in NUS SOC's BBS newsgroup. Interesting, but is it just a publicity gimmick? Read the article yourself here.

Globtrotter's iTunes Hot Spin - Cry of the Celts

Cry of the Celts (From Michael Flatley's Lord of the Dance OST - 1997)

Movie of the Week - Alfie

Source: http://www.themoviebox.net

A remake of a 1966 classic, Alfie is a sexy, philosophical comedy about a womanizer called Alfie Elkins (Jude Law), who is forced to question his seemingly carefree existence. Film rated M18 in Singapore.

"I subscribe to the European philosophy, my priorities leaning toward wine, women and - well, women. Although women and women is always a fun option."
- Alfie Elkins

With slick acting, packaging and great music, this movie is a must watch.
Definitely 4.5 out of 5 stars.

Animations of the Day - 21st January 2005

Animations on Bush's Inauguration that even made it to Mediacorp's News....

Good to be in DC!

This Land

Hot Tipz #1 - Look before you tap your EZ Link card at the front entrance of buses

Do take a closer look at the EZ Link Card Reader's LCD display at the front entrance of buses before tapping your card. This is especially crucial for those buses with the new Vehicle Location System (VLS) enabled. The Auto-Mode feature of the EZ Link system enables commuters to alight from the entrance without informing the bus captain. However, when this is implemented with the new VLS system, which updates fare stages automatically, there will be some problems. I observed on a chanced occasion (on a super-crowded SBSTransit Service 23 bus) that the front readers will be in "entry" mode when travelling between stops. Only when, the bus nears the bus stop will it switch to "entry/exit" mode.

Geek Speak #2 - Cheat your way to 250MB Hotmail

It has been a long time since Microsoft announced an upgrade of its hotmail service, with an increased space of 250MB. Except a handful of people, most of people are still stuck with 2MB of space. After numerous research and failed attempts, I have finally found a way that works thru here. Now, my hotmail has finally been upgraded. You can upgrade yours too.

Here's how:
1. Turn off any running MSN Messenger and sign in to your Hotmail account.
2. Click on options/personal and then go to My profile.
3. Change your country code to USA, pick one of the states and enter a zip code. (eg. Florida and 33332)
4. After you change this, click on update to continue.
5. While you are still logged into Hotmail go here and deactivate your account (I have tried and I have not lost any mail. If u don’t feel safe, just back them up first before trying).
6. After this, you go back to hotmail.com and log in with your username and password and you will automatically re-activate your account.

After the re-activation, you should initially have 25MB. After a few days (or even a few hours like me), your account should be upgraded to 250MB.

Enjoy =)