3, 2, 1… ladies and gentlemen, we have lift off… The Asus Silent Knight II

If anything, I have to be in the geekiest mood to write this… perhaps most ladies will take a detour out of this entry… nevertheless… I’ve got something pretty “cool” to rave about and here it is…

The Asus Silent Knight II. Probably be thinking “what a cheesy name…” but I find the name to be quite creatively appropriate. Its one of the quietest CPU coolers in the market emitting no more than 26 decibels. Yet… its so friggin huge…

Its surprising that this beast weighs just 610g, which is great because its so much easier to handle when you install it. There are some beefed up coolers that are just too heavy to the point that mounting it on the motherboard seems like it’ll just make the PCB snap. For those who are really lost reading this post, the Asus Silent Knight II is a CPU heatsink which is dedicated to ensure sufficient cooling on the processor chip in your PC. Processor chips (for e.g. Intel Core 2 Duo) run at extremely fast speeds which in turn generates a lot of heat. Without the heatsink to conduct heat away from the chip, its fry baby fry… I mainly decided to get this because since I’m planning to overclock my processor, its gonna need a very good cooler to preserve the lifespan of my $400+ chip.

Just look at it… its like some jet turbine engine out of an F-15… its got a little fan in between to suck in the cool air and expel the heat dissipated through the copper fins… this thing looks insane and yet it’s just a CPU heatsink.

However, I will also add, that I have never attempted to physically dismantle a PC before. But I finally got the chance to meddle around dismantling it in order to install the new heatsink.

Here’s what the inside of my PC looks like originally:

So I had to take out the side panel…

So its time to remove the original heatsink. Disconnect all the peripherals/cables and switch off the power… Just took a screwdriver to release the clipped heatsink on top of the processor chip… and then take out the old heatsink.

(above: taking off the heatsink revealing the heart of the system. Grey stain is actually thermal paste (acts to conduct heat between the chip and heatsink)

Up till this point it seemed pretty easy. Followed by taking out the processor,

(above: removing the processor. You must not touch the bottom of it… and hold it along the edges…)

I wiped off the old thermal paste with tissue and applied a fresh layer of it (using toothpick below)

And then remount it back onto the motherboard securely.

I felt pretty good at this point because it was the very first time I had physically handled a processor chip. Next thing was to disconnect all the cabling/video/audio cards and remove the whole motherboard from the PC casing… which was tricky as I had to remember where cables and connectors belonged to when I reassemble everything again after installing the heatsink (the Asus Q connectors helped a ton). Followed the instruction manual which was easy to use and understand, and managed to install the Silent Knight onto the board…

Now to get this whole thing back into the casing. Just look at how big the Silent Knight is… looks like some turbo afterburner that’s gonna make the motherboard lift off…

Now to reconnect back all the cables/screws/graphics/sound cards…

It was easier than I expected thankfully. Hence I tilted back the PC casing upright normally and moved on to connect the keyboards/mice etc… Powered on… vuala! It works!

The blue LED fan looks really cool and the airflow in the casing has also improved…

It was quite an interesting experience. Looking forward to overclock soon… =)

Interesting weekend…

Vacuumed my room, washed the laundry, and washed the kitchen floor too. Followed by a trip to the library to catch up on my POA syllabus. Not gonna order Passion Orange freeze anymore from Galilee cos its got bitter after taste despite getting a replacement. But their potato wedges are irresistable and service is not bad. Thumbs up for the Jurong branch so far.

Caught my first local play this afternoon…

I couldn’t catch all of the gags, but some of ‘em were jaw breaking hilarious. I’d probably catch it again the next time they show a new one. Went together with RN, KM, SM, LP and his Missus (AG). After the show, RN and KM had to rush off, leaving me in a slightly awkward situation with SM together with LP and AG, thankfully we settled at a nearby Starbucks to chat and do the usual crapping with lameness and a bit of pun. LP’s really larky cos AG’s really nice and they just look natural together. Way to go dude.

Chatted with SM… and found that she does lots of volunteer work, meeting lots of people with different needs… most of the time in emotional distress, if not plagued by medical conditions that prohibit what we would deem as a normal life. I’ve not met anyone actively doing volunteer work before… and looking at SM who does it on a regular basis and even as a passion… speaks volumes of care and kindness… but also at the expense of some emotional baggage that comes when sometimes doing your best doesn’t yield the results that you hope to achieve… especially when you’re involved with people abandoned, others with genetic defects… etc. When you see sadness, pain and suffering in its various forms and in large numbers, it can get to you and make one look at life so differently from the norm. It even seems like a convenient excuse for us not to do volunteering because of that…

Yet she still persists and mentions of having to be an “aunt agony” after receiving an sms when I sent her home. It just made me reflect about what I do nowadays…

Despite getting a blister on my toe after this morning’s run, I need continue more often now that my virus is gone. I’m in the worst shape ever since I was a little fat-ass in primary school, and there’s a long way to go to get rid of the belly. Gotta control my diet…

But I still crave for american breakfast buffet… uurrrgghh… the temptation… devil is seriously after me… and its about time to fight back.

Soulfood…

Yes its one of those days where stuff just doesn’t go your way, just about everything feels farked up even though its really not as bad as it seems. You’re just fine… in its “fine” sense. I for one, have found a small outlet of relief from “fineness”. Life didn’t feel that farked up when I had this for dinner before attending my night classes.

For those who don’t eat cow… TOO BAD… you can read further below though. But I must express the innate feelings that derived from confounded senses by the aroma that extrudes from Cowabunga… Yes ladies and gentleman… its Beef Fried Rice at its finest when you’re feeling just “FINE”. I… am tehhling you peepurl ah… this beef fried rice is Si beh ho jiak… (die father very tasty). Because this dish brings me all the way back in time where uncles have their meals while resting their foot on the same chair they sit on… no I would’ve ripped my pants if i did that… It just smells of the 1980s… and that’s the time where food is usually cheap and so much nicer than now. It smells fragrant and just the way beef fried rice should be. Simple. But how many of us know that good fried rice = master of a lost art. I’m not completely blown away by the texture and quality of the food, but when the basics are right: not too salty, fragrant, rice not too hard or soft, consistency, tender beef that’s properly marinated, a real proper “he bao dan”… there’s just no need to ask for more here. My colleague claims that the uncle cooks better when the younger (middle aged) lady is helping with the stall… so far, its the same standard with or without that lady. I shall not divulge where to find this place in my blog for fear that I’ll pollute it in the public sphere of madness. (can still ask me personally if you really want to go and try)

I really find peace and satisfaction when there’s good food around. Its like everything else can be shitty… but at least I’m not eating shit. I’ve not cooked for quite awhile since M, RN and KM came for a cook-over. Which reminds me, I wanted to blog about it but was just too tired at that time to do so… That was last year in November I think, had a long shopping session at IMM to buy the ingredients… and I personally thought that I tried too hard again… nevertheless the results were still good though it was tiring. RN and KM took forever to arrive, and M and I were taking forever to cook everything… it was the time I wished I had one of ‘ose big kitchen ovens like Jamie Oliver has. Because we made baked chicken.

Looks good right? But I didn’t feel it was as good as the chicken chop that I did the last time round. Nevertheless its the first time experimenting with the recipe so I wasn’t that disappointed. M stir fried some of the leftover veges which I thought was the highlight of dinner… she did it just right and I just wanted to keep eating it. We also steamed the live prawns with hua diao…

… which is always good. And doing all this just helps to settle one’s soul… knowing that we’ve still got the basic stuff that we need to move ahead and drive us to greater things. Although things might not look too bright in life, we still have the little things that matter… and no wonder… we can still smile here and there, and remain alive. Cheers to the soul, and to life.

Microsoft’s Sidewinder vs Logitech’s G9

Supposed to catch Dan in real life today with E, but end up she’s too tired. Luckily, I went to funan this afternoon and hooted these…

Razer eXactMat Xspeed mouse pad (comes with wrist rest), Logitech G9 Gaming Mouse and… I finally got these balls!! WooHoo!

Overclocked these babies to 1066 Mhz… *silly grin*

Also decided to do some review/comparison with my Microsoft Sidewinder Gaming Mouse. Quite frankly I’m putting myself to shame doing this review, on the basis that my writing sucks now. Nevertheless, I will base this review along this set of criterion:

1) Comfort
2) Functionality
3) Value/Price
4) Features
5) Cool factor

Also, I’m strictly reviewing right-handed mice… no offence to lefties. =p

here’s the Microsoft Sidewinder up close…

Its probably the biggest gaming mouse ever seen in the market as of late. I’ve used this coming to about 2 months without a mouse pad/rest till now, and thankfully nothing bad has happened to it yet (even after slapping the mouse onto the desk when I keep dying while playing Call of Duty 4). Which really makes me pretty glad that the construction is solid. For someone who has longer fingers, I found the grip to be very comfortable, and despite its size, its actually quite light. But that’s really subjective because it might feel a little bit too chunky for others with smaller hands. There’re many other mixed reviews in gaming websites with regards to the Sidewinder. Some say its just too big, whereas some end-users really adore it (think its the bigger hands). Just to set the tone right, its one of those types meant for gamers who have more palm/large movements as opposed to finger/delicate movements.

(above) a look at how the mouse fits. Notice that my fingers are quite extended but not reaching the front, and my palm’s fully in contact on the mouse.

The Sidewinder has a flurry of buttons that seem to bode really well for the hardcore gamer. Its the 1st mouse to have an LCD display showing the dpi (2000, 800, 400 default) with 3 red led buttons at the topside just behind the mouse wheel to toggle the desired sensitivity. The mouse wheel feels really solid without the side to side clicks found on other mice. I found this to be good because you don’t have to worry about accidentally clicking on the wrong button (cos there isn’t one). There are 2 silver thumb buttons strategically placed and only work if you deliberately click them. In front of the silver buttons is a macro button that I’ve not tried yet.

Another really nice touch was the fact that Microsoft actually went the extra mile to think about how to make the mouse even better. They did that by introducing a weighted box that actually clips on to the mouse wire to prevent excessive wire slack that messes up the desk. The box also doubles up as case containing interchangeable weights, and even 2 sets of interchangeable mousefeet. Makes one wonder, if only MS did the same for Windows Vista… (they must be playing too many games with this to do real work…)

On the downside, I found that the weights made the mouse too heavy and sluggish. I also felt that the smoothest set of mouse feet, is still brought down to its knees compared to the G9’s slick glide. Its also only 2000 dpi at max, which is kind of low for gaming mice. Having got this at Sitex for S$139 together with Gears of War was a really good deal, now its probably retailing for about S$120 just by itself. Rather average price-value ratio if not for the additional features like the weighted box that solves the wire slack problem. This mouse is a real looker with the Sidewinder logo embedded at the top (actually brings up the Games folder when clicked) and the red lights shining out under the mouse yells out awesome coolness. The macro button is a good idea from MS that separates the Sidewinder from its competition with additional functionality.

On a score out of 10…

1) Comfort – 7
2) Functionality – 8
3) Value/Price – 8
4) Features – 8
5) Cool factor – 9

Overall – 8/10

Next up……

Logitech’s G9 Laser Mouse

Logitech has been at the forefront of the PC peripheral market churning out tons of gaming hardware (i.e keyboards, speakers, mice, media controllers etc). If there’s any company that knows how to make great mice, its Logitech. Their stuff is always good, and hard to beat. And this G9 mouse is nothing that I’ve ever experienced before.

The G9 is light and seems to make more sense in terms of size compared to the Sidewinder. There’s also a box of interchangeable weights that can be inserted for the hardcore gamer. Logitech have also included 2 different types of “grip-casing” which provides a choice of soft satin feel, or rugged dry feel. And both grips are equally comfortable. Its just a matter of preference to which feel you like. Shown above is the soft satin casing, below is the rugged dry casing.

Interchangeable weights for the G9

Moving the G9 is a very soft and delicate affair. The mouse is extremely nimble without weights and even though it doesn’t have interchangeable feet, it feels like the mouse is floating on a cushion of air. Its nothing I’ve felt before and its insanely smooth. This thing glides like nobody’s business, and it requires such minimal effort to use. Its ergonomically sound in design and very suitable for those with smaller hands, or those who prefer smaller movements relying on fingers.

(above) my palm is hardly touching the mouse so its moving more delicately with my fingers.

The buttons also have a softer feel to it, but in no way should be misunderstood as risk to misclicking. Everything about the G9 is simple and delicate. When its movements replicate running your hand through silk, it almost feels feminine and sexy even. The mouse also comes with its own inbuilt memory, and requires no software to install. Just plug and play. There’s a toggle switch on the topside to adjust up to a max of 3200 DPI, and the red led indicates the amount of sensitivity of the mouse. The thumb buttons are in their usual traditional location, and have a very nice solid feel to it as well.

Logitech have again produced another strong contender for gaming mice. Aside from the Razers, this thing glides as smooth as butter. Its really the most comfortable mouse I’ve ever used. The high sensitivity also makes it great for quick sharp movements needed for competitive gaming. Despite its rather awkward looks, it should satisfy the most nitty picky gamer looking for a good gaming mouse. However, this is also the most expensive gaming mouse in the market at S$159 (after discount pay in cash only, S$169 on credit) which is really expensive taking into account there’s not as many features as the Sidewinder.

On a score out of 10…

1) Comfort – 9.5
2) Functionality – 9
3) Value/Price – 6
4) Features – 7
5) Cool factor – 8.5

Overall – 8/10

Conclusion:

At head to head, the Sidewinder loses out to overall performance due to its size compared to the G9. But it does however make up for that with value added features with the box solving wire slack and doubling up as a casing for interchangeable mice and feet. Not to mention the macro button for added functionality.

The G9 makes up for lack of features with a sublimely smooth glide and exceptional nimbleness and quickness. But you have to pay a high price for sublime. The interchangeable grip-casings feel fantastic and its very easy to change them whenever you want to.

I really have a hard time deciding which is the one to own… so coming to personal preference, I’ll choose the G9. Because this thing feels so good once you use it… nothing else really matters.

More details of the products can be found at the following links:

Microsoft Sidewinder Gaming Mouse

Logitech G9 Laser Mouse

Penryn chips coming out…

And the 780i nForce SLI motherboards also coming out… also Nvidia came up with a new GPU that has 2 cores (9800 GX2) that runs 30% faster than a pair of 8800GTX Ultras… Urgghh!! the poison!!

I just wanna run Crysis in MAX settings and get to play it butter smooth… though Call of Duty 4 is running on max now and looks freaking gorgeous and sublimely real. Playing Crysis for the 2nd time in normal difficulty… made me realize that enemy AI is pretty cockanaden. Probably can starting playing “Hard” and “Delta” difficulties.

And… mua finally got my first credit card. *grin* planning to read the thick booklet that came with it when I’m more free.

I really wanna try to overclock my PC but just have no time and no balls… despite my intense curiosity to know if Crysis will perform any better at 3 Ghz which a lot of people with the Q6600 have attained easily. But I might need to get custom CPU cooling to be safe. My 8800GT stock cooling also sucks… feels like its always running at 60-70 degrees celsius (card is so hot even at idle).

Going to be quite occupied this weekend again, dinner with M, C and E, then Sat badminton… plus have to help mum with CNY shopping, and gotta mug my principles of accounting.

Reservist call-up came and I’ll be away for my “holidays” come late April. Hate Jurong camp.

New Games I’m looking forward to:

1) The Witcher

2) Mass Effect

3) Assassin’s Creed

but then… I still haven’t completed all my current games yet… so much to play and so little time…

Little things that make me happy

Yes its another meme… I have no idea how to pronounce it. This one’s “10 things that makes me happy on a regular basis”.

In no order of importance:

1) Alcohol and jokes with friends.

2) Break and run out a rack of 9 ball.

3) Kiwi (RN’s cat) resting on my lap while watching TV. I find it therapeutic and calming.

4) A sweaty workout (running, bball)

5) Taking a drive on a sunny Saturday morning to have breakfast.

6) Payday.

7) Using my uber Quad core PC.

Knocking off for the week on Friday.

9) Watching the sunset at a coastline.

10) Being good company and having good company at the same time.

So, pass to these people. You may choose to tag others or respond at your own free will… and you will NOT be cursed if u decide not to carry on. I just think its nice to appreciate the simple things in life that matters to us.

a) http://allocohappybutt.blogspot.com/

b)  http://www.mybrainisstillat.blogspot.com/

c) http://ianlum.blogs.friendster.com/my_blog/

d) http://lexandria.wordpress.com/

e)  http://fleaflyflooflum.wordpress.com/

Its been a very mixed year… simplicity, complexity…

The year’s coming to an end, and I just feel like writing stuff down about the things that happened this year be it good, bad, ugly, beautiful… etc. Starting with a quiet but nice Christmas. I’ve known E since I was in TMC doing my higher diploma in Mass Communications, I recall that we met in 2002. We met up a few times for breakfast and supper if time permitted, but after a year or so we lost contact with each other, despite pinging her many many times but no reply. But having learnt my lessson with W, at times people just need to be with the people they’re with. Its just fate… but it never means that you’ve lost a friend. I guess real friends stay friends for life… really… and I’m glad that W still remains as one of the best of friends, even though we don’t meet as often as the rest of our good friends.

Till recently, E started to initiate hi’s and hello’s. We’ve not had a real, proper conversation for a few years, and only a few months ago we start to know about what’s going on in each other’s lives. It’d been about 5 years since our last meeting, and we finally decided to meet at the last minute on Christmas Eve. I was watching “Hero” which is a very old jap serial about this public attorney… got an sms from E and went online to see if she was there, since we’re both so pathetically alone on a Christmas eve, we decided to meet up nearby at a multistorey carpark to have beer and ciggies on the top floor. The moon was full and the air was fresh, and the conversation… quite amazing… there was chemistry and it was intellectually stimulating. A fine example of doing the right thing at the right time, at the right place. It’s been a really long time since I’ve had such a good conversation. Feel quite lucky to have met up with E during Christmas… perhaps the best company I’ve had in the past 5 years.

Looking back at the year, feels like its gone by in a flash. I have to think really hard about the stuff that’s happened in 2007, basically because I tend to take things too easily. In terms of work, quite a few colleagues have left for other companies, and quite a few new faces in the office at the moment. It does feel like a year of transition with my GM having left the company and replaced by another one… new procedures and rules put into place… basically quite a bit of new things came up in 2007. Not just colleagues but also spending time with new people like LP, M, Princess, KM, and just recently E… and I have to say life has become a lot more colorful being around such mixed personalities. I also decided to stop thinking too much about life… and just live the life that I want to live, to the fullest and just appreciate the good and get around the bad.

On the other hand, I’ve also stopped going to church. For various reasons that seem hard to comprehend… in my personal opinion, I don’t see much difference in me being christian as compared to other non-christians. In fact we are all the same people, with the same sinful nature who can never escape from the so called “devil’s grasp” till the day we re-unite with the heavenly Father. The bible seems too paradoxical and profound at times… in fact too profound for any human being to comprehend, not even sparing the religious leaders, pastors and priests. My belief in a higher power still stands… but I have doubts that anything of this world can comprehend that power… yet in the bible it says that we are made in God’s image, and its because of that we can comprehend… its only because of sin that we can’t comprehend… That I do agree. But yet, God has allowed evil to take place, not because He approves of evil, but He hopes that by His word we can learn. And if knowing that isn’t enough, living out the word in the flesh… Its plain impossible to be like Jesus, to be like that of a saint… at least for me that’s the case. I’ve since looked at churches as social institutions instead of God’s temple, and I just can’t help it. But I do believe in due time, I might finally understand what this is all about.

Its been a great year for friendships, I feel much more alive than before. I’ve done just about most of the things that I wanted to do other than travelling… and I’m just really glad that I didn’t continue the relationship with S. I would have missed out too much on the new friends and the new discourses…

In terms of money, I definitely have a mountain to climb… with less than a thousand dollars saved in the entire year, it’s not a good sign for the future. On the bright side, I now know how impt it is to prioritize and get your life right… and I’ve got the things I’ve always wanted and saved for. Lasik surgery has made life feel completely different, its given me a boost of confidence and assurance… and aside from visual clarity, I felt a lot more clear about life’s principles and who I am and where I belong. Anyway… I still gotta save more dosh for… ehem… marrying my soulmate if I do find her eventually.

Of course its not been a year of flowery optimism… 2 of my ex-colleagues have filed for divorce, and one my sec sch mates, Clauson, just passed away due to a very rare condition that has hounded him since childhood. The condition he had prevented him from growing normally… he looked like he was still in primary sch when in fact he was already in his late teens. People with his condition would live to a max of 28 years old… I believe he was 26 when he passed on.

As for my divorced ex-colleagues, both ladies, it makes one ponder how fragile a marriage can be… and the divorce wasn’t due to something like having an extra-marital affair, or whatever that seems understandable… but it was the realization that they cannot continue living together anymore, and that living together would stunt their growth and aspirations for the future. Of course at this time and age its really common to get a divorce… but as a romanticist, I’ve always believed that marriage is more than just 2 people getting together. Its about finding your soul mate, your partner for the rest of your life… someone not just there for emotional punching or excess baggage to throw onto… but someone to grow with you and live life with. No offence I’m sure that everyone thinks about this before getting married… don’t they? I realize probably not after listening to S’s account on why she got a divorce… which is of cos too private to reveal. Though perhaps a determining factor was getting married at a rather young age.

There’s just a lot of things to write but I just can’t seem to regurgitate anymore highlights of the year… but I’m thankful that friends like G, W, RN, E, I, WQ, M, L, are still around, asking how I’m doing, asking me to hang out and have fun. I’m really lucky to have great friends.

I’ve not much luck with love… but I do believe that the appropriate person and time will come by… besides being single is just so awesome. I get to meet anyone just about any time and place… I get to do whatever I wanna do whenever I want, I get to buy things without having to think too much about the future. I get to play pool, play games, basketball, watch football… the stuff that many women just can’t understand why we men love to do.

Well, I guess all there is now is to look back once in awhile, and move forward towards what I’m destined for… which I’m still in the process of finding out…

What’s life without music?

RN got me this new CD by Shin (lead singer from Xin Yue Tuan).

Ok… I know I jiak kan tang, but when something is good, it certainly gets my stamp of approval including chinese songs. This dude ROCKS! And I’m quite sure that this album’s gonna be one of those “look back in time and reminded of one of life’s stages”. Just like Luna Sea sends me back to my poly days, Chage and Aska back to sec sch days. At times, the tracks I listen to regularly just can’t seem to represent that mood or feeling… doesn’t really perk up the mood… and I keep surfing for a song to fill that void… this album has filled that void. I’m damn glad to find the right music at the right time. Thanks RN!

Xmas wish list

This is in no way asking you to buy me a present. I really mean it. Just listing only for fun.

1) Barracuda Juggernaut Mousepad
2) Command & Conquer 3 Tiberium Wars
3) Call of duty 4
4) Supreme Commander Forged Alliance
5) Creative Live! Cam Optia webcam
6) Creative Aurvana X-Fi Headphones
7) Xin Yue Tuan CD
Erdinger Pack Thanks RN!
9) Transformers movie Dvd
10) The full Matrix Dvd collection
11) A friggin drawer… need to buy that.
12) A new chair
13) Mahjong Table + foldable chairs… gonna get it soon
14) Lost in Translation poster

How materialistic can one possibly get?

Beware: Extreme Poison below

Finally managed to install Bluetooth and post pics of my new PC

Asus P5K-Pro Motherboard
Intel Core 2 Quad Q6600 (2.4Ghz)
4GB Kingston DDR2 667Mhz RAM
Western Digital 320 GB HD SATAII
MSI nVidia GeForce 8800GT 512MB OC Edition
Creative Sound Blaster X-Fi Fatal1ty Xtremegamer (64mb X-RAM)
Creative Gigaworks T40 (2.0 Speakers)
Coolermaster Centurion 5 casing
Antec 650W Power Supply Unit
LG 20x DVD RW
Viewsonic VX2235wm 22″ LCD monitor
Logitech G15 gaming keyboard
Microsoft Sidewinder gaming mouse

Yup did a couple more upgrades compared to the previous post. Speakers are just insane. In fact the whole setup looks insane… proof that I’m a typical Taurus single male. Now I seriously love my room.

Creative Gigaworks T40 speakers at an angle.

The 2nd gen Logitech G15.

Microsoft Sidewinder. Sleek and poised for action.

The heart of the tiger, where all the stuff happens. Quad core processor, Geforce 8800GT, X-Fi sound card… etc. Gets pretty hot with just stock cooling.

Crysis. The game of all games… currently. Beats the crap out of my PC specs.

Damn shiok. I wanna play all day… all week… grrrr…