bitslice cipher's blog

Connecting Android Phone Through Adhoc Wifi Network

2009-07-18T06:37:00.006+07:00

An Android phone works perfectly when you have a wireless connection, either through wifi wireless AP or mobile network GPRS. However, when it comes to places where only wired connectivity is available, for instance an Ethernet connection or a dial-up connection, or when you're roaming and using mobile network's data roaming might cost you a fortune, some workaround must be done.

My HTC Magic works fine back at home. I got both unlimited wifi and GPRS connectivities. But when I roam elsewhere, which I do a lot, the data roaming cost would be too high and most hotels I stay have no wifi but only wired Ethernet in-room.

One thing which I know will work is to carry with you a wireless AP, plug the LAN cable in, and you're all set. But I don't want to add any more weight to my bags. So I think about turning the laptop into an access point instead.

So I did some searches and found a very useful information at modmygphone.com's forum. The thread mentioned configuring your G1 Android phone to connect to a laptop's ad-hoc wireless network. That's exactly what I need!

I didn't modify the files directly on the phone, but instead I used adb pull the 2 files onto my laptop, then edited the files, then adb push them back. So the steps were:

> adb pull /system/etc/wifi/tiwlan.ini tiwlan.ini
> adb pull /data/misc/wifi/wpa_supplicant.conf wpa_supplicant.conf
[.edit tiwlan.ini and wpa_supplicant.conf according to the guide]
> adb shell
# mount -o rw,remount -t yaffs2 /dev/block/mtdblock3 /system
# exit
> adb push tiwlan.ini /system/etc/wifi/tiwlan.ini
> adb push wpa_supplicant.conf /data/misc/wifi/wpa_supplicant.conf
> adb shell
# mount -o ro,remount -t yaffs2 /dev/block/mtdblock3 /system
# exit
>

You will see your ad-hoc wifi network name in networks list (Settings -> Wireless controls -> Wi-Fi settings). Phone modification part is complete.

Now back to the laptop. An ad-hoc wireless connection has to be created and Internet Connection Sharing enabled. There are many guides available on the Internet. (for example here.) When it's created, in "Choose a wireless network" window, select your ad-hoc network and click "Connect." Your phone and laptop should try to connect to each other and you're all done!

In case you're unlucky and your hotel network assigns IP address in 192.168.0.0 net, ICS will not work. Try create a network bridge between the wireless connection and LAN connection instead.

Have fun with your Android! ;-)

Lost My Wallet

2009-03-10T18:48:00.003+07:00

Last Saturday I had to go to Chiangmai to attend my girlfriend's best friend's wedding. We're booked for the earliest 6.30am flight.

I got up at 4.30am and on the way to the airport I stopped at 7-eleven at a PTT gas station to grab a cup of coffee and to get some cash from the ATM nearby.

Everything went fine until the plane had landed at Chiangmai Airport when I reached for my wallet to pay for the car rent and... it wasn't there!

The following hour was spent trying to locate the wallet in every bags, figuring out whether I'd left it in my car in Bangkok and finally calling banks to suspend the credit cards (some were kind enough to let me suspend temporarily).

After a while I managed to get over it and went on with the trip.

--

Later that day my girlfriend's sister was kind enough to drop by the gas station just in case someone had found it.

Guess what? It was there! A 7-eleven cashier found it!!

You might wonder why I'm so excited but in Bangkok when you lose your wallet or another valuable things you rarely get them back.

Now I'm thinking what I should do to show my appreciation to the girl.

PFT

2008-06-03T17:55:00.003+07:00

Oh, it's been such a long time. And there's nothing much to write. Anyway my simulator exam sessions, or PFT, are scheduled this Thursday and Friday. Have to study a lot.

By the way, my Twitter timeline gets updated more often so you might want to check that out.

Bye bye Gisteq, Hello Holux

2008-05-08T23:31:00.003+07:00

As mentioned in my earlier entry about logger device. I'd enjoyed using it for a while but unfortunately I'd lost it in Dubai. -_- Well, I turned it on while sitting in a cab and thought it might get better satellite reception if put in the back of the seat, near the windshield. Then when I got to the place I just jumped off, leaving the tracker behind...

It's a Gisteq Phototrackr unit. It's based on Nemerix chipset and supports 16 channels tracking. My experience with it was good. Almost all the time it's got accurate position. Supplied program, Phototrackr, did a great job downloading data and geocoding photos. It also associated photos to Google Map, letting you see exactly where they were taken.

To be able to continue tracking my photos, I've bought another tracker, this time it's Holux M-241, and it just arrived today.

This M-241 has got a MTK chipset which supports 32 channels tracking. It has a display on it which can show its status, position, etc, and can be used to edit its settings. And it's 30 bucks cheaper than my previous Gisteq. However, it doesn't have extensive software support like the Phototrackr. From my research through the net, there are a few people using it and someone's already posted an alternate solution, so I thought it'd be ok to get it.

Will give it a test run for a few days. More on this later.

Genius Pianist

2008-05-02T09:00:00.002+07:00

Ref: Star King #8 - Five Year Old Blind Genius Pianist (en) on YouTube.

She is amazing!! Blind since she's born. At the age of 3 she heard her mother sing and can play the song right away.

See her 2nd appearance in the show here.

Hello D300

2008-05-01T11:43:00.004+07:00

I've just got a new digital SLR camera--the Nikon D300. Took me a long time to finally make the decision (I was about to buy a DSLR when D200 was out to the market, that's a few years now).

After playing with it for a while, I'm getting used to its functions and controls. Quite different from my previous F90x which was bought about 13 years ago back in 1995. It's a nice camera, with good quality images comparing to affordable price.

See some pictures at my flickr page or click picture below.

BMW on the road
Originally uploaded by bitslice.

Contender Asia: Final Episode

2008-04-23T20:05:00.002+07:00

Watch it tonight 8pm Thailand time on AXN. Last episode of the series. 2 hours.

For rerun schedule, check out axn-asia.com.

Lufthansa Airbus crosswind landing at Hamburg

2008-04-10T11:29:00.003+07:00

On Saturday March 1st, a Lufthansa Airbus A320 made a crosswind landing at Hamburg airport. With strong gust during its final stage of approach, just before touchdown, the aircraft almost had a wingstrike. Watch the video on YouTube.

News article: 24 year-old Co-Pilot Steered The Lufthansa Airbus A320.

Note: People are still misunderstanding that only the pilot (captain) can fly the aircraft. That's not true. Co-pilot (First Officer) can also fly the aircraft, takeoffs and landings, however with final decisions made and assisted by Captain.

The captain, as a Pilot-in-Command (PIC), is responsible for overall aircraft operations and safety. However, he doesn't need to be the one who fly the aircraft. (Read wiki:Pilot in command above.)

For most modern 2-crew airliners, flying is divided into 2 roles, PF (Pilot Flying, or piloting pilot) and PNF (Pilot Not Flying, or pilot monitoring). PF, as the name says, flies the aircraft. And PNF monitors flight parameters and assists PF in whatever he needs.

PF/PNF roles can be switched, i.e. if the captain is a PF, then the co-pilot is PNF, or vice versa.

Flickr now on Video!

2008-04-09T12:02:00.002+07:00

Photo sharing website Flickr introduced its new service, Video on Flickr. Videos are limited to 90 seconds, and only pro members can upload right now.

Flickr also recently increased picture upload limit to 20MB/pic for pro members, and 10MB/pic for regular members.

Check out the following sample video:

Life on Mars: Google's Virgle Project

2008-04-01T23:28:00.002+07:00

Recently Google has teamed up with Virgin to offer an opportunity to the public to participate in their newest project: a human colony on Mars!

For thousands of years,
the human race has spread out across the Earth, scaling mountains and plying the oceans, planting crops and building highways, raising skyscrapers and atmospheric CO2 levels, and observing, with tremendous and unflagging enthusiasm, the Biblical injunction to be fruitful and multiply across our world's every last nook, cranny and subdivision.

An invitation.
Earth has issues, and it's time humanity got started on a Plan B. So, starting in 2014, Virgin founder Richard Branson and Google co-founders Larry Page and Sergey Brin will be leading hundreds of users on one of the grandest adventures in human history: Project Virgle, the first permanent human colony on Mars.

Check out Virgle now!

Happy April Fools'.

Tracking My Photos

2008-03-28T20:41:00.003+07:00

Originally uploaded by bitslice

Before, when uploading photos to Flickr, I had to manually edit each picture's description to match with where it was taken, which would be a pain if I had to edit the whole set.

For as long as I can remember, Flickr has this feature that allows you to add specific position information (latitude/longitude pair) to each photo. It also integrates maps and satellite images onto it so you can browse pictures by the place they were taken. I wasn't so interested in it because I didn't have a GPS unit and thought it's too expensive, too large, and too heavy to carry along.

Only until recently I came across those special GPS units designed for tracking photographers (and their photographs, of course). They are compact, light, and in my opinion not expensive (under USD100). They don't have displays, just some status LEDs, and all they do are just recording GPS position on a time interval or a distance basis.

All you need to do is connect the unit to your PC and download the log files. Usually a program is provided to assist you in geocoding (or geotagging) each photo's GPS position. That's all. When you upload your geocoded pictures, if the web supports it, the position will be shown right next to your photo. Check out my picture above to see how it works.

Welcome to Airbus World

2008-03-15T21:13:00.004+07:00

During the past few months I'd been training for new aircraft type-rating, an Airbus A330-300. It's much larger than Boeing 737--with a capacity of 305 passengers, comparing to 737's 149.

An aircraft type determines its route. Larger aircrafts fly to further destinations. (But not always the case, I must say.) A330's destinations are located around Asia and the Middle East regions. I was so excited to explore the new places, and of course the new plane. Before each flight I tried to plan my trip during my stay at that place. (Normally after a long flight, crews get a rest period of say 24 hours before flying back.) Sounds like fun, huh?

However, that's only one side of the coin. Further destination means longer flight time, much longer than domestic routes. Sometimes it even takes the whole night. And I believe you can imagine how it's like to stay up late to like 5 or 6 am. It's exhausting! I always went straight to bed after arrival from such flight. Sightseeing? Nope, maybe next time. So far only few places were visited. And my list still grows. Anyway, that's something I've to get used to. Sigh.

I wish I have enough energy to explore more soon!

Thai Airways A300-600

2008-03-13T19:12:00.002+07:00

Thai Airways A300-600
Originally uploaded by bitslice

A Thai Airways' Airbus 300-600 en route from Beijing to Bangkok on Feb 27th, 2008.

This was shot mid-air over China airspace around Nanning. I was at 11,600 meters (38,100 feet) and they were at 11,000 meters (36,100 feet). We were both heading for Bangkok's Suvarnabhumi airport (I was back from Shanghai). The newly implemented China RVSM airspace made it possible to spot closer at aircrafts on cruise in the same direction.

The Contender Asia

2008-01-26T08:26:00.000+07:00

.. is now showing on AXN every Wednesdays at 9PM Thailand time. It features 2 Muay Thai fighters from Thailand; Naruepol (นฤพล) and Yodsaenklai (ยอดแสนไกล). They haven't fight yet but from their profiles I don't think they're gonna lose those farangs easily. Let's watch and cheer Muay Thai and Thai fighters!

Hi 2008

2008-01-02T07:23:00.001+07:00

This year I wasn't around for the new year party as usual. I had to work over the new year like few people. The trip was to Mumbai, India and it was right over the new year period--December 31st to January 2nd.

However, I managed to go to a fancy bar at the hotel for the countdown event. It's pretty expensive, imagine a 1100-Baht 60-ml shot of Johnnie's Black Label, or a 350-Baht Heineken. But at least it's better than sitting alone in the room. By the way, I'm still confused about smoking law in Mumbai because when I asked the waiter whether smoking is allowed in the bar, he said no, I had to go outside to smoke. However, not long after that I saw people smoked. Well, maybe bad communication with the waiter. Anyway, I had a few drinks and did the countdown thing and enjoyed the music. Not a bad night.

I just got back to Bangkok this morning at almost 6am. Weather report at the airport said nice weather and temperature at 19 degrees Celcius. Seems like Bangkok is getting cold again. Cool. Not a bad day to start 2008 with in Bangkok at all.

Happy New Year 2008 to you all!

Missed by a Day

2007-12-22T15:18:00.000+07:00

Dubai Duty Free at Dubai Int'l Airport had its annual sale on December 20th, only one-day offer. This year is its 24th anniversary so all items were on sale at 24%. I wish I was there but unfortunately I got there (Dubai) on December 19th and left on 21st.

Next year if it has 25% offer, I'll be there.

Election Campaign

2007-12-13T19:31:00.000+07:00

A few days ago I came across this poster for the upcoming election in December. What I liked about this poster was the comment under each candidate's picture.

Under the picture of candidate No. 1 it says "ex-member of constitution drafting committee." Ok, he has some experience in politics.

Under the picture of candidate No. 3 it says "Ph.D. from Cambridge." Makes sense, he has knowledge to which he can adapt in his future political career. (If he got elected, of course.)

Now let's see candidate No. 2, under her picture it says "ex-Miss Teen". Do we need an ex-Miss Teen for this job? Doesn't she have any better qualification to put there?

What I've Missed

2007-11-20T19:55:00.000+07:00

This evening I did my usual things when I got home--get changed, turn on my computer, well actually only the monitor because I always keep my computer on, then check new emails. One of the most frequent email updates I got from those community sites is Multiply's What You've Missed email.

I skimmed through the mail quickly. Normally I just delete this kind of email right away. But suddenly something caught my attention! I just couldn't believe my eyes. Picture below was part of the message I captured. Look at topic 'Puma Ads.'

Jade? My best friend Jade's got a girl? That's a big update, to me at least, thanks to Multiply. Congratulations, dude.

The Japanese Tradition

2007-11-19T15:12:00.000+07:00

This video series on YouTube is really funny. They look so real that some people might actually believe! Ocha (Tea):

Check out more: Shazai, Sushi. See related items on the pages for more.

Short Film: Yark Ja Borg Ter Wa Ruk

2007-11-17T13:00:00.000+07:00

อยากจะบอกเธอว่ารัก - หนังสั้น หนังรักของเด็กเกรียนๆ

Balloon

2007-11-15T19:11:00.000+07:00

I wanna fly a balloon like this! P'Varan took really great pictures.

Luv is in the air : Balloon Festa !!

Productive Arguing

2007-11-12T18:26:00.000+07:00

Arguments in a relationship are not good. And I think almost every couple must have had disagreement in their relationships. But how not to let an argument become so bad and painful? This BBC article provides 10 tips that will help you argue in a more productive way. (Of course, it's Productive Arguing!)

Interesting LifeHack Articles

2007-11-09T00:43:00.000+07:00

I came across these 3 Lifehack articles relating to exercise and diet. Thought they're related to my previous post. They are:

They're from my Lifehacker feed.

Protein and Exercise

2007-11-08T11:20:00.000+07:00

Last night while we were hanging out at Saxophone, Jo mentioned himself losing weight by controlling diet without much exercise. He mentioned something about daily protein intake of 90 grams/day. I woke up this morning and was still curious so I googled it up and found this and this.

Basically daily protein consumption is pretty important if you're controlling weight. I've always thought of less carbohydrate, less fat, but no idea about protein. If you do not eat enough protein, the body will suck protein from parts of your body for essential body functions (instead of fat which we would want to lose). However, excessive protein consumption will end up as fat on your body.

I'd have to start monitoring what I eat too.

Rubik's Cube Solved in 11 Seconds

2007-10-22T08:22:00.000+07:00

Amazing!!!

Amazing Race Asia 2

2007-10-11T18:02:00.000+07:00

The new 2nd season of Amazing Race Asia which will start in November on AXN Asia features a couple from Thailand, Paula Taylor and Natasha Monks. Let's see how well they can play in this reality show.

Safety Demonstration

2007-10-07T18:10:00.000+07:00

Funny crew safety announcement on board kulula.com flight, a low-cost airline in South Africa.

The Crisis of Siam

2007-09-22T16:54:00.000+07:00

A new series of videos were posted on YouTube a few days ago. They're talking about Thai politics in the past 2 years and mainly attack Gen Prem and Gen Sondhi.

I don't know who the creators of these clips are. But I know for sure that their intentions are not good. They did this to benefit themselves without considering the consequences that follow, either to their enemy, the country, or even themselves. Don't you think?

Note: these videos may be removed from YouTube soon, so watch it now before it gets deleted.

Part I: Defame the King

Part II: Eliminate the Heir

iPod nano review

2007-09-20T19:48:00.000+07:00

Review of the new iPod nano (in Thai) by pit.

Plane Crash at Phuket Airport

2007-09-17T16:51:00.000+07:00

On Sunday at 4pm local time, a 1-2-go plane flight OG269 crashed near the runway at Phuket Int'l Airport. Of a total of 128 passengers and crew, it's reported only about 40 survivors.

I knew one of the crew on that flight. A co-pilot, Montree. He didn't make it.

Montree and I went to flying school in Hua Hin on the same year, but on different classes. Although we're not very close friends, I was still in shock when I first heard that it was him on that flight. Actually we just met 2 weeks ago at Thai Airways. He was accepted as a pilot at Thai Airways and was about to start training there. His life as an airline pilot had just started. So sad.

I mourn for my friend, and all the passengers and crew who have lost their lives in this tragic accident.

Read news: BBC UK: Search for clues after Thai crash.

A380 Evacuation Certification

2007-09-15T10:21:00.000+07:00

With every new passenger jet aircraft comes certifications. One of the certification required by international aviation law is the evacuation simulation. The goal for the simulation is to evacuate a full plane, passengers and crew, within 90 seconds using only half number of exits available, in the darkness (only aircraft emergency proximity lights allowed).

This new super jumbo jet Airbus A380 can carry more than 800 passengers (in economy-class seat configuration). With its enormous size, evacuation of the whole aircraft is not going to be easy. See in the video how they did it.

Australia Trip Pictures

2007-09-05T18:38:00.000+07:00

Check them out at my flickr photostream.

Web Trend Map 2007 v2.0

2007-07-19T16:42:00.001+07:00

Check out this web trend map modified from Tokyo train network map by iA.

Larger map here.

Int'l Driving License

2007-07-19T15:00:00.001+07:00

(note to myself)

To get an international driving permit you'll need:

A copy of your passport (photo ID and extension of validity pages).
A copy of your ID card.
A copy of your Thai driving license.
2 x 2 inches photos.
505 Baht fee.

Bring original copy of items 1-3 just in case. File request at DLT, Chatuchak. Building 4, 2nd floor. (ฝ่ายใบอนุญาตขับขี่ต่างประเทศ) About 30-45 minutes.

07.07.07

2007-07-08T15:25:00.000+07:00

I got an opportunity to ferry an empty aircraft for delivery. I was pretty excited because it's my second time since school flight in January last year. Only this time the plane was really empty, only 2 of us, my captain and me. (Last time there were another 3 flight instructors plus a friend of mine.) Here are some facts about this flight:

Flight 8430 route: Don Mueang airport to Suvarnabhumi airport. (DMK-BKK) Flight planned route BKK DCT SVB; planned distance 45NM. Flight time: 20 minutes. The flight was originally scheduled to depart Don Mueang airport at 5.30pm but unfortunately postponed till 8pm because aircraft engineers were unable to complete the maintenance on schedule.

After hanging around at dispatcher's office for almost 3 hours we left for the aircraft. It was weird because there were like only 2 engineers and nobody else. Took about 15 minutes to get ready. Took-off and landed safely at Suvarnabhumi in less than 20 minutes. Back to Don Mueang airport by company car in another 40 minutes. Then drove back home.

And that's my 07.07.07.

Am I addicted to blogging?

2007-07-05T20:17:00.000+07:00

Took the test.

71%

I don't think I'm that addicted anyway.

Old Habit Dies Hard

2007-05-11T00:26:00.001+07:00

I just realized, from Suksit's Always Plugged In? blog entry, that keeping the laptop plugged in all the time can shorten its battery life. I normally plug my laptop in whenever AC power is available. One reason is I'm using an older model of laptop which can supply only about 1:30 hours of power through battery, and I'm just too lazy to plug my adapter in and out every hour or so. Anyway, I guess I have to change that a bit.

MOS Burger in Bangkok

2007-05-08T18:40:00.000+07:00

MOS Burger on Flickr

MOS Burger, a Japanese burger fast food store, is now opening at Central World Plaza. They serve very good burgers. Tried it this past afternoon, very delicious! If you're a McDonald's fan, check this out and you'll change your mind from it.

My Cheeseburger on Flickr

My Cheeseburger on Flickr

VTPH - Hua Hin Airport

2007-05-06T11:00:00.001+07:00

This was taken when I last visited my flying school in Hua Hin in mid-April. From the picture, a plane has just made a touch and go from runway 16. (Moblog)

Happy Thai's New Year!

2007-04-14T09:46:00.000+07:00

It's another Thai's New Year (or Song Kran). Yesterday's flight was better than I imagined. (Well, it was a captain training flight and the instructor was supposed to "distract" the co-pilot, which was me, from doing his job and see if captain can handle the situation.)

Just be careful when driving and drinking. Have a happy new year!

My LOMO!!!

2007-04-11T09:40:00.000+07:00

I just can't find it anywhere. My LC-A has gone. I think I must have left it somewhere. I really really love this camera as it took many stunning pictures. *so sad* Here's one of my favorites.

Busy Schedule

2007-04-04T17:00:00.000+07:00

Now I'm at Starbucks Khon Kaen. It's just opened a few weeks ago. They claim the first Starbucks in E-san (Northeast Thailand). Well it's just the same as Starbucks you can find everywhere in Bangkok.

Today is the first day of my second trip this month! See:

April 1: in Khon Kaen
April 2: in Udon Thani
April 3: back home
April 4: in Khon Kaen
April 5: in Udon Thani
April 6: back home

Very tight. *sigh*

Another Holiday

2007-03-30T09:27:00.000+07:00

Just had 3 days off. Somehow the flights I was supposed to work on got changed. Great!

This afternoon I'll go to Motorshow at BITEC to take some pics. Will post them later.

VVIP Flight

2007-03-28T16:02:00.000+07:00

On March 26th I had a chance to fly a special flight from Gaya, India to Bangkok. One thing was that it's the last flight to operate before it's getting too hot to takeoff/landing in summer this year. Another was it's a flight with HRH Princess Somsawalee on board back home from making merit at Wat Thai Bodhagaya. It was a great honor to have served on this flight.

ANA1603 Emergency Landing

2007-03-17T14:34:00.000+07:00

Another emergency landing without nose gear by ANA flight 1603 at Kochi Airport in Japan.

Watch the video from YouTube.

Hua Hin Hideout

2007-03-10T12:39:00.001+07:00

Phuket Bedroom
Originally uploaded by bitslice.

Somehow I've got 5 days off in a row for the past week. Vacation was the first idea that came up. So I made a few calls for the reservation. Luckily I've got this Phuket Villa at Wora Bura Resort & Spa. Perfect!

More pictures at my flickr photostream.

And I'm Back Online!

2007-03-05T21:53:00.000+07:00

In previous post I mentioned about my PC passed away. That took me a few weeks to realise that fixing is just not worth it and upgrading the whole system probably is a better idea. A laptop is also a good idea since I'm away from home almost all the time.

So laptop it is. After wandering around Pantip Plaza for a few hours, I finally decided to buy an AMD Turion. Here's its specifications:

- AMD TurionTM 64x2 1.6GHz
- 14.1 inches LCD
- ATI Radeon Xpress 1100
- 120GB HDD
- DVD RW
- 512MB DDR2

With its very low price, in my opinion, the budget is under control. And I'm very happy with it. (Although it's a bit hot and eats up battery quickly.)

I'm Alive!

2007-03-05T20:19:00.000+07:00

I've been away for a very long time, havn't I? The Christmas had passed, New Year had passed, Chinese New Year had passed, and Valentine's had passed. My life is still the same--go to work, eat, drink, and sleep. Nothing's changed.

Since the new year of 2007 my schedule has been very busy. It's because some of the pilots in my fleet got transferred to another in order to free some spaces for new trainees. However, the trainees were a bit behind schedule so there's a few months gap which the number of pilots is less than required. The result is a very tight schedule and less days off.

That was not an excuse for not updating my weblog, though, well, just a part of it. In fact, it's because my 6-year-old Athlon-1-GHz desktop just passed away earlier. It just suddenly went dead. My personal PC expert Maytha, a friend from undergrad school, suspected either the mainboard or the CPU was gone. And with my tight schedule recently, I just had to live without the 'net for a while.

Bangkok Jazz Festival

2006-12-09T23:16:00.000+07:00

4th Bangkok Jazz Festival at Sanam Suapa during December 15th-17th, 2006. Don't miss it. Tickets available at Thaiticketmaster.

Event schedule as follows.
Friday, December 15th: Hiromi, Salena Jones, Lee Ritenour, Tower of Power
Saturday, December 16th: Asia Beat Project, Jazz Kamikaze, Lisa Ono, Yellowjackets
Sunday, December 17th: Jirapan Ansvananda, A.S.G.P., Dave Grusin, World Star Jazz Jam

Laos Trip

2006-12-06T10:24:00.000+07:00

I just got back from Laos trip. There're 9 of us with 2 cars. We drove all the way from Bangkok to Luang Prabang, about 2000 kilometers round trip. (See Jesse's trip schedule here.) The toughest part of this trip was from Vang Vieng to Luang Prabang, which was slightly more than 200 km but took about 6 hours to drive. And we spent only half a day there! Should have spent another night in Luang Prabang, there're so many places to see. (Luang Prabang is one of the world's heritage, in case you don't know.) Another 2 nights in Vang Vieng were great. We took a kayaking tour which was fun.

There're so many foreigners in both cities we visited and in Vientiane where we drove passed by. In Luang Prabang there're an older group of foreigners sightseeing cultural sites, and in Vang Vieng, a younger group chilling out with a bottle of Beer Lao in their hands. I think it's because of the nature of Lao people that makes Laos the place to relax yourself. It's like time is ticking so slowly that you don't have to rush for anything. I really enjoy this trip--because Laos is a very nice place, and because I was there with great friends. And I will definitely go there again.

See the pictures here: My flickr album, Jesse's album

My new lens

2006-11-30T23:10:00.001+07:00

It's AF Nikkor 50mm f/1.8D! I don't understand why it's so hard to find one, but I had to wait for almost a month for it to arrive. Can't wait to try it out at Laos trip.

Quick Update

2006-11-21T08:54:00.000+07:00

It's been a long time since my last entry. This is a recap of what's happened during the past month.

Annual physical exam showed lower Cholesterol level (230) than the previous year (260)--good. Garlic Pearl really helps!
Got a new mobile phone, a Sony Ericsson. I now have a phone with large screen that plays music and can connect to the Internet--great.
My best friend Joe got married. Wedding ceremony was held in Chainat on Nov 10th, and in Bangkok on Nov 11th. I was at both events. I'll post pictures to Flickr soon.
Annual work rewards (aka bonus) was finally out. There're so many rumors about how much and when.
I turned 27 last week. There's no party cause I was away for work--sad.
Got my car tires replaced. They're more than 2 years old and almost 50000km. Expensive: 4000 Baht each.
Beer gardens are open around Bangkok. My favorite place is Heineken's at J-Avenue, Thonglor. It's not crowded, not too loud, and plays some jazz in early evening. The live band which played old Thai pop wasn't good though.
Early next month I'll go on a road trip to Luang Prabang with friends. We'll drive from Bangkok to Vang Vieng through Udon Thani, Vientiane, and Luang Prabang. See our schedule (in Thai).

That's all. Write later.

West Side Story

2006-10-11T17:10:00.000+07:00

..in Bangkok! A total 8 shows starting Oct 10th to 15th at Thailand Cultural Center. Got to see it last night by chance--my first broadway experience. It's a good show indeed.

See also: West Side Story on Wikipedia

Farang Sings Carabao

2006-10-01T14:51:00.000+07:00

See him sing Made in Thailand. A Carabao classic written in 1980's.

Welcome to Suvarnabhumi

2006-09-28T22:37:00.000+07:00

Today is the first day that Suvarnabhumi Int'l Airport fully operates. Bangkok Int'l Airport, known as Don Muang Airport, is now closed for commercial flights. The transition started shortly after midnight when last flights departed Don Muang.

As a passenger, I'd known Don Muang forever, and as a pilot, I'd been flying to Don Muang for hundreds of times. Seeing it got closed down made me feel sad. It's like we had some kind of bond between us. Anyway, we have to move on cause Don Muang can no longer serve as many passengers.

See also:

TG8862

2006-09-24T17:43:00.000+07:00

TG8862
Originally uploaded by bitslice.

From Sep 15th, Thai Airways operated a few domestic flights at Suvarnabhumi, the new Bangkok Airport, in order to test the airport facilities. This was taken on Sep 22nd when I was about to enter boarding gate A2 for my second flight to Phitsanulok (PHS).

More About Coup

2006-09-20T12:11:00.000+07:00

See more:

Wikipedia: ปฏิวัติ (Revolution) / รัฐประหาร (Coup d'etat) / รัฐประหารในประเทศไทย พ.ศ. 2549
Search Flickr for pictures

Coup!

2006-09-20T11:57:00.000+07:00

It's finally happened. Early last night, military force moved into Bangkok. At 10pm, television feeds were cut off, all channels were broadcasting H.M. the King's videos. Then later there were announcements made by the army commander that they had seized the government house and situation was in control.

Thaksin is still out of the country. Heard he flew to London. I think he knew what was going on before he left Thailand to the US. I do hope Thai politics will be better after the reform, of course without men like Thaksin.

Seasons Change

2006-09-14T09:06:00.000+07:00

เพราะอากาศเปลี่ยนแปลงบ่อย..

I first saw this movie's teaser a few months ago and thought it's just like a previous hit "Puen Sa Nit." I mean same plot: which one to choose; the one you love, or the one who loves you, you know, that kind of thing. Frankly it didn't catch much of my attention although I liked the characters of those kids--they looked young and innocent and that reminded me of my teenage years.

Last week I just got too much free time to kill so I went to a movie with Nat (pilot friend). "Seasons Change" came up in my mind and I decided to give it a try. And it's better than I expected. It's fun and enjoyable. The director and script writer did a good job. Actors were natural. Nat agreed, although he admitted later that when it came to 2nd round, which he went with his girlfriend, it wasn't as good as the first one.

Now everyone's talking about this movie. Not just how they love it, or how much they love the casts, but whether it's the first love, or the best friend that matters. Which one would you choose?

Blogger Beta

2006-09-14T08:21:00.000+07:00

Been waiting for a long time for Blogger Beta, finally I got an option to migrate to the beta. New features include labels for posts (aka tags), more flexible template handling, dynamic web page, integration with Google account, etc. Migration was quick and easy (unless you'd edited the old template to include your own codes, you wouldn't notice any changes). I'm posting this entry with the new beta.

Stand 301

2006-08-31T18:34:00.000+07:00

Stand 301
Originally uploaded by bitslice.

I just went to the new Bangkok airport, Suvarnabhumi Airport. There were aircraft taxi trials going on during the past few months. Participants were pilots from Thai Airways (TG), Bangkok Airways (PG), and air force (RTAF), air traffic controllers (ATC), and airport staffs (AOT).

The purpose of the trial is to familiarize staffs concerned, mainly ATC and AOT, with the new procedure at this new airport, opening at the end of September. Fire department trucks (pick-ups) were used as aircrafts, and we just drove around as if we were taxiing aircrafts.

The trial went OK. However, I couldn't take many pictures because it's at night. Wish I had the day trial.

Another accident!?!

2006-08-15T08:28:00.000+07:00

As I mentioned in earlier post, I just had another car accident last night! :( Well, it's only a few scratches but my car had to go to repair shop anyway.

Breitling Aerospace

2006-08-02T20:55:00.000+07:00

There's this watch and jewelry fair at Siam Paragon from July 27th to August 14th which features more than 100 brands from the luxury and expensive to general watches.

I can't say I'm a big fan or a collector, but I really do love watches. Someone once told me that it's the only "jewelry" that a man can wear. It's true. A watch reflects its owner's taste and personality.

So last weekend I went to the fair. One of the top 5 items in my wishlist is this Breitling Aerospace Avantage.

It's light-weighted cause it's made of titanium. Features functions like chronograph, timer, 4 years day/date, 2nd timezone, alarm, minute repeater. Very nice. And it looked good on my wrist too. Fortunately I didn't have enough money, so maybe next time.

Shit Happens

2006-07-27T21:23:00.000+07:00

In the past 2 weeks I ran into many troubles about my car. First I hit another car at a parking lot. Then I found one of the fog lights was cracked. Got close to running a flat tire cause I ran over a nut.

Finally, this morning I lost my car key! It took me this whole afternoon to get a new key and set new encryption code. (New key costed me THB4300.) I hope that was the last trouble I'll get. Gotta go make merit tomorrow. -_-

A Promotion!

2006-06-30T15:05:00.000+07:00

As I'd mentioned in earlier entry, my training period ended yesterday when my instructor finally promoted me as a co-pilot. Yeah!!

SEIKO Fireworks

2006-06-20T07:16:00.000+07:00

SEIKO Fireworks
Originally uploaded by bitslice.

I just had a chance to shoot fireworks last Saturday at Sanam Ma Nang Lerng (Nang Lerng Horsetracks). There were actually 4 fireworks events held during the past week in order to celebrate the 60th anniversary of the king's accession to the throne. I wasn't in town the other 3 nights so the SEIKO Fireworks event was the only one I could join.

The firework were from many award-winning Japanese fireworks artists. The hilight was, in my opinion, the Thai and Arabic "60" which represented the anniversary. (Unfortunately, I missed that set.) They're so large that they'd look beautiful only when looked from a distance. I was lucky enough that my mom's colleague had an apartment in Hua Lum Phong area, which was a perfect place to watch and take photos.

I had never shoot fireworks before so I did some Google-ing just before I left home. It didn't sound hard at all when I read those articles: you just make a long exposure with smaller aperture. But later I realised it's harder than I thought. With real fireworks, you wouldn't know what pattern or the location or how high or how large that shot was gonna be, until it was shot which would be a bit too late. You wouldn't know how many shots there were on each set. etc.

Anyway, the result came out better than I expected. Some pictures were blurry because I didn't use a shutter cord and I just couldn't hold my hand steadily. Check them out at my Flickr album.

Just PASSED!

2006-06-18T09:42:00.000+07:00

I just passed a flight exam last night. So glad I made it. If nothing else goes wrong I'll be based as a co-pilot by the end of this month.

By the way, at about 8pm last night I flew over Bangkok and saw fireworks at Muang Thong Thani. View from above was very beautiful cause you'd also see a lot of flashes from cameras of people trying to take pictures.

Fisheye 2

2006-06-09T23:49:00.000+07:00

I was about to blog about a new Fisheye 2 camera a few days ago, when I decided to order it from a website abroad. Fisheye camera is one of lomography.com's products. My earlier entry features sample pictures taken with the original Fisheye.

What's new with this version 2 are a flash hotshoe, multiple exposure mode, and bulb exposure. These features make it a lot better, in my opinion.

And, this morning a DHL guy came with the package. I was so surprised that it took only 3 days to arrive (placed order on June 6th, got here June 9th). However, fast and reliable shipment came with price. Apart from USD 25 I'd already paid for the shipping, they just charged me another THB 626 for Thai tax and tax handling(?).

The package included 1 Fisheye 2 camera, 1 Colorsplash flash, and Fisheye Circle Cutter, all for USD 77. I used my USD50 gift coupon I got as a prize from LHTD so it came down to USD 27. S&H was USD 25, plus tax THB 626 (approx. USD 15). That means I paid more for the shipping and tax than the camera itself! Very crazy.

Tiger Moth

2006-05-16T21:54:00.000+07:00

Airliners.net Photo ID 0067689:

Click photo for large version!

Yesterday, while my captain and I was waiting for my plane at Phitsanulok Airport, a foreigner approached us with questions about flying private aircrafts in Thailand.

He told us that he's moving from England to Thailand. And in September he'd ship his airplane, a De Havilland Tiger Moth, dated back in World War II, to Bangkok. Then he'd assemble it and fly from Bangkok to Phitsanulok. He loved flying and that plane so much that he just couldn't leave it behind.

Though not very easy to fly a private aircraft in Thai airspace, but it's not too difficult to do. However, I wonder if he could get all the paperworks done.

Unfortunately it was such a short conversation that I didn't have an opportunity to ask for his contact address. I'd love to see his Tiger Moth flying here in Thailand!

Laugh (or a smile?)

2006-05-04T19:21:00.000+07:00

Laugh (or a smile?)
Originally uploaded by bitslice.

I just had time to upload a few rolls of photos today. They were taken during the past week around Bangkok, Chiangmai, and in Suphanburi during a day trip on Sunday.

I choose this particular picture as a sample because I really like the tone of it, makes me happy. Afterall, it's my first LOMO roll in black and white.

Check out my photostream for the latest, or go to Suphan Trip photoset.

Schedule

2006-04-30T22:34:00.000+07:00

This month's flight schedule was out a few days ago. I've got even more flights than last month ( which I thought was too many already!). I've been flying for 4 days from April 23rd to 26th, and another 2 days last Fri and Sat. Today's off. Then I'll start next month with 3 days of flights and a day of CBT, computer-based training. How's that?

And since I was free today, I accepted Jack's invitation to join a one-day photo trip to Suphanburi. There were 4 of us; me, Jack, Jesse, and Ning. The weather was very nice, for taking photos, with few clouds and very strong sun (definitely not good for human beings though). We went to an old market, 100 years old, at Sam Chuk. Had lunch there, then moved to Bueng Chawak. Had dinner, then leave for Bangkok.

Very tired, but it's worth it. Took a roll with my new Nikkor lens. I'll post photos later (with more detail, of course). ^^

LHTD: LOMO Home of the Day

2006-04-28T17:53:00.000+07:00

This morning I received an email from lomohomes that I just won lomohomes' Home of the Day. It was my first profile wall there consisting of pictures from the very first roll I took with my LC-A. Although a bit surprised cause that profile wall didn't even have a theme--I just put together some nice pictures from my first roll, that definitely sounded great. I got a lot of new guestbook entries from people I don't know and they all just congratulated. Thank you all.

(blogging from Chiang Mai)

New Calendar

2006-04-17T09:33:00.000+07:00

Pit talked about this new service Google Calendar earlier. Sounds nice, isn't it? Now I have an idea of sharing flight schedule of my classmates. Let's see if that would work.

Happy Thai's New Year!

2006-04-14T10:27:00.000+07:00

And I have to work during the holiday! Now I'm in Surat Thani, and tonight I'll be in Krabi.

Also today is my sister Mod's birthday, so happy birthday to her too.

Exchange Rate

2006-04-10T10:36:00.000+07:00

Earlier, when I used my Visa card on a different currency, I always thought that the rate is calculated from the bank (financial institute) which issued the card itself.

Well, the rate the bank charges you comes from Visa rate plus "foreign transaction fee" ranging from 0-5%. There is an exchange rate calculator at Visa which you can use to calculate approximate exchange rate for your transaction.

Fisheye's View

2006-04-07T11:42:00.000+07:00

Originally uploaded by bitslice.

Just got a new toy camera (again!). It's called fisheye camera. What's special about this camera is it can capture a really wide angle of up to 170 degrees.

I've just uploaded my first roll taken with this camera at Flickr. Check it out!

Colorsplash Flash

2006-03-27T16:49:00.000+07:00

Room
Originally uploaded by bitslice.

I took a few shots to see whether my new colorsplash flash really worked. Well, as you can see that's where I bought my flash.

I had to exchange for another new one cause I didn't test it the first time. That really wasted my time. Anyway, I've got a working CF now, let's go lomo!

General Election

2006-03-26T11:22:00.000+07:00

I'm going to the general election today as I won't be in town next week. You can vote early on March 25-26 during 8am-5pm at district office.

Motor Show

2006-03-25T22:28:00.000+07:00

motorshow2006_67
Originally uploaded by bitslice.

A few days earlier, I got a phone call from Khun Pocky at Nissan Krungthai. He was so kind that he gave me free tickets to Bangkok Int'l Motor Show '06.

On Friday afternoon I had some free time so I visited the event at BITEC. I also thought about bringing my camera to take pictures of the "pretty" presenters at each booth.

I used 2 rolls of slide films I'd bought earlier for my LOMO camera so I wouldn't have to buy new negative films. That idea turned out to be a disaster. I havn't touched this camera for so very long time that I just didn't remember its character and how to use it fluently.

As a result: almost all pictures are under-exposed due to my incorrect flash setting. Some are out-focused or blurred. And since I used slide films it's even more difficult to correct the error. Plus it's more expensive processing slides. (Honestly, I really thought they process color negative and color slide films similar ways these days, due to the so-called "digital" technology in labs.)

Fortunately I could get those 2 rolls of film scanned. The lab was so kind that they took time to pre-adjust the colors for me. I got home with the CD and adjusted/resized them a bit more , and then I finally got the finished result. (Thanks to digital technology!) Follow link above to see the pictures.

Lomo Siam T-shirt.

2006-03-20T19:20:00.000+07:00

Got one a few days ago.

Rotiboy

2006-03-05T10:57:00.000+07:00

Originally uploaded by bitslice.

Yesterday I walked past the infamous Rotiboy bakery. There was a very long line of people waiting just to buy the bread. It's 25 Baht each and the store limits 10 pieces for person.

Personally I think that's crazy. It's not that good and not worth it.

And if that's not insane enough, later I saw a few teenagers carrying bags full of Rotiboy bread walking past me. And I noticed many people asked them whether they'd re-sell the bread. Yes, they actually were re-selling. How much would a bread cost, you might wonder? For half-hour queue the price went up to 55 Baht each!

tags: complaint

Bye Bye Sally

2006-03-04T08:38:00.000+07:00

I just got back from Krabi last night when Jon called that Sally was gonna leave for her flight attendant training in Dubai. Yes, she will be flying for Emirates. And I thought I'd go say goodbye, well I was at the airport anyway.

Unfortunately, by the time I got out of domestic terminal, she's already at the gate. So, I could only wish you luck, my lovely sister. Good luck and take care!

2006-03-01T09:57:00.000+07:00

This morning I was about to write a comment on my friend's blog and I was wondering which one of "วิญญาน" or "วิญญาณ" is the right spelling. Spent a few minutes browsing around Google search result for a dictionary, and to my surprise, the Royal Institute's dictionary is available on-line!

How many people do you know give a damn about word spelling? .. Damn, I must be crazy!

2006-02-28T08:46:00.000+07:00

BBQ Party at Boat's place.

2006-02-22T14:28:00.000+07:00

Went to Boat's BBQ party at his house last night. It was great. Delicious ribs and burgers. Plenty of alcoholic drinks too.

This morning I had to get up early cause I thought I had an appointment with my dentist. But it turned out later that the clinic informed me a wrong date. :(

2006-02-14T12:52:00.000+07:00

Earlier in January I spent a few days at Wora Bura Resort and Spa, Hua Hin. It's a new boutique resort just opened in October. It's built on and inspired by buildings and atmosphere in King Rama V era, those historic western/Thai combination we can hardly see today except in old palaces and museums.

Check out photos here.

2006-02-07T08:56:00.000+07:00

Last Sunday, a Nok-Air-operated leased-from-Thai-Airways Boeing 737-400 aircraft, HS-TDD, slipped off the runway at Bangkok during its one-engine emergency landing. My friend, Jon, who witnessed the aircraft rolling on fire that afternoon had also flown this exact one on his school flight and his first route introduction flight earlier last month!

Also, Thai Airways will accept new pilot application in March and April. This year Internet application will be available. Check out tgpilotrecruitment.com for more info.

2006-02-02T08:24:00.000+07:00

I'd been on a few flights and I still got nervous everytime I stepped into the briefing room a few hours before aircraft depature time. It's just because I'm not so confident. I'm afraid things would go wrong. However, so far so good.

Happy New Year 2006!!

2006-01-13T14:46:00.000+07:00

How are you guys? Having a good time?

I've been away for a very long time, havn't I? Well I've been busy with these simulator classes, which are taking away all my time. And it's not over yet. There are 3 more sessions coming next week. After that, I'll fly one school flight (meaning: to fly a real airplane without passengers) and, if passed, get released for real route training (to fly real commercial flights with experienced flight instructors).

Gotta go. Books are waiting..

Bitslice goes LOMO!

2005-12-12T19:38:00.000+07:00

I've got this LOMO camera from eBay last week. It was a pretty good deal (US$120). I just got my first 2 rolls of film developed today and the result came out very nice (to my surprise). I've posted the one that was cross-processed (meaning shooting with a slide film but get it developed using negative film developer) because the colors are more aggressive. Here are a few samples:

More of this album here.

2005-12-09T10:32:00.000+07:00

I went on 2 SN flights yesterday: 251/252 Bangkok-Trang-Bangkok, and 010/011 Bangkok-Udon Thani-Bangkok. It's very exhausting because I had to spend more than 7 hours on the plane. And the observer's seat wasn't comfortable at all.

2005-12-07T05:41:00.000+07:00

Had an oral exam in the simulator on Monday. It focused on aircraft systems (18 systems total), how everything worked in detail. I'd been studying hard since about 2 weeks before the test. Reading the textbook over and over is exhausting. Anyway, I did okay, eventhough I've got one system failed.

2005-11-30T10:53:00.000+07:00

My car is supposed to be finish later this afternoon. Great! During the past week I just had to get around by public transportation which was pretty tiring. Maybe I'm just addicted to having a car.

2005-11-24T06:49:00.000+07:00

Last night my car got hit by a motorcycle. However the bike happened to have right of way. :-( (It was a Saab teenager riding so fast and carelessly while I was making a turn into a Soi.) Will get my car repaired this morning.

2005-11-22T17:51:00.000+07:00

Finally the rainy season was over. It's been getting colder in the morning since Sunday. Reminds me of beer gardens which would pop out everywhere in Bangkok during this time of year.

2005-11-19T15:58:00.000+07:00

About 2 weeks ago my mom got this delicious candy (?) from her colleagues from Japan. They said it was made by a very famous shop in Japan and it's made of chestnut (เกาลัด). My guess is it's sweetened chestnut. Anybody knows what exactly it is?

2005-11-16T18:17:00.000+07:00

My simulator.

2005-11-13T09:46:00.000+07:00

Jon got tickets to join this party on Friday night at Route 66. I was with Jon and Jazz. It was pretty boring cause I just had to hang in there for almost 3 hours before the concert actually began. And those chics weren't as hot as I expected. haha.. Anyway, the good thing was the unlimited drink until 10pm. That just made my day!

2005-11-10T22:08:00.000+07:00

This book was written by Chris. He's Boat's friend at MUIC and now a lecturer at Rangsit University.

The book focuses on Thai's English communication problem and how to solve it. It was written in Thai, of course. Chris made it easier for young people to read and understand the content. I just read it and thought it'd be very useful especially for Thai teenagers having problems speaking English or thinking English is too hard.

2005-11-03T22:32:00.000+07:00

This photo reminds me of my undergrad class.