Assalamualaikum,

The moment that I've been waiting for, D-day for my water bottle rocket project. After few modification and replacing the 'War-Head' for the prototype rocket, the rocket is ready to be launched in a competitive competition.

10 teams of staffs competed in the competition and what a luck, my team was up for the first launch in the staff category. After 10 students rocket was previously launched before us, it was the moment of truth. I was in charge of making sure that the bottle had enough pressure in it before lift-off while, Mr. Rosdi and Azmi was at the launching pad....and boom, the rocket was on its way to glory.

The projectile resembles the flight it took in its maiden launch but I can confirm that it was farther than before. The distance of 128.56 meter was measured at the end of the day. Unfortunately, it was not enough to win as another rocket flew 150.12 meter. We were settled for second place. The winner team then told me that they added and mixed some kind of chemical in the water to make it lighter. Huh?? I did not to submit any objection as I think that I did this just for the fun of it. By the way, in the staff category, the top five received the same price of Kingston 4Gb Data Traveller Pendrive. Hehe. As far as I am concern, I am really proud of my rocket's achievement.

KUALA LUMPUR 26 Feb. - Kadar tol di Lebuh Raya Utara Selatan (PLUS), Lebuh Raya Sistem Penyuraian Trafik Kl Barat (Sprint), Lebuh Raya Bertingkat Ampang-Kuala Lumpur (Akleh), Lebuh Raya Sungai Besi (Bestraya) dan Lebuh Raya Baru Pantai (NPE) akan dinaikkan bermula 1 Mac, kata Menteri Kerja Raya Datuk Ir Mohamad Zin Mohamad. - Bernama

Takde angin, takde ribot tetiba je nak naikkan harga tol. Sebab takde pilihanraya kot? Nanti nak dekat pilihanraya turun le gamaknya...hehehe. Minyak takleh naikkan sebab orang tau memang pasaran dunia murah. Pasaran tol dunia meningkat jugak ke??

Anyway, at this time of moment, rasanya sedar tak sedar kita semua dah dapat rasakan kesan kemelesetan ekonomi seluruh dunia. Tak boleh nak sorok lagi dah...people losing jobs, company closed, government servants patut bersyukur bukannya mendabik dada kata diri derang selamat. Kalau malas ramai lagi orang kat luar tuh yang memerlukan kerja. Hiks. Sempat lagi nak bagi nasihat tuh.

Assalamualaikum,

After knowing that my application for a move back to KL is provisionally approved, I have to make certain arrangements, both materially and also mentally.

First of all, I am swapping my teaching job for a desk job in Putrajaya. Leaving the teaching profession is one of the hardest decision that I needed to make. I am hoping that someday, maybe after furthering my studies, I would consider teaching in higher level than where I am right now.

Secondly, I am still fuzzy about the new job description. But as people close to me might know, I will normally give my heart out in whatever thing I do. I might need some time to settle in and make myself feel at home. Who knows, maybe 'this' Worn-Off Broom will magically transform back into a New Broom that sweeps well. Hehehe.

Thirdly, the thought of making new friends and possible enemy gives me a creep. I am really hoping that my presence will not create any unrest and hopefully I will fit in easily. Most importantly, I will definitely miss my colleagues here in KMJ. They are like my second family and we have supported each other all these years. I have to thank them for their love and support throughout my journey here. I will cherrish every moment that I spent here. I do hope they understand my decision was for the greater good of my family. There are some matter that needed my attention most importantly. The prospect of leaving them is ripping me apart and it really hurts. :'( .

I hope the transition will fo smoothely...[tears]

Introducing the new Maps 3.0^Beta, with better maps than ever before, enhanced Drive and Walk navigation and synchronisation with Ovi Maps^Beta.

Overview

What's new from the previous release?

• Start-up sequence takes you to your current position as soon as position is found. If your position is not found in few seconds, you are taken to last known position
• You can rotate the map, so you can for example view 3D landmarks from all directions. Just press 4 and 6 in map view. Pressing 5 takes you back to 'north up' view
• In 3D view mode, you can tilt the view by pressing 2 and 8
• 2D/3D mode works with all map modes, i.e. with Map/Satellite/Terrain
• My Favourites menu is cleaned up and History list is moved higher in menu
• My Places has option "Point me to" for any saved place/landmark, you the direction to that place on the map
• In addition to the synchronisation of Favourites and Collections with Ovi Maps and vice versa (use in online mode, enable Internet connection), you can now plan routings on Ovi Maps and synchronise to your device
• Finally, many bugs have now been fixed

Compatibility and system requirements

Maps Updater and Map Loader 3.0 require Microsoft Windows XP or Vista.

Maps Updater requires Nokia PC Suite to be installed on your computer.

Maps 3.0^Beta works with Nokia devices based on:
S60 3rd Edition Feature Pack 1 (E71, E66, 6110 Navigator, N95, N95 8GB, N82)
S60 3rd Edition Feature Pack 2 (N96, N85, N79, 6650, 6210 Navigator, 6220 Classic, N78)

Ovi Maps^Beta works on IE6 (Windows XP), IE7, Firefox 2 and Firefox 3 (Windows XP or Vista).

What’s new in Maps 3.0 compared with Maps 2.0

Maps 3.0^Beta is a sneak preview of the forthcoming version of Nokia Maps.

• Enhanced car navigation, Drive*, through lane assistance, speed limit warners, improved sign post design and new ‘Route overview’ mode during navigation,
• Enhanced pedestrian navigation, Walk**, through shortcuts (virtual connections) in urban areas, straight line guidance for off-road terrain and beeps and vibrations before next turn,
• Significantly improved map data quality and content,
• 3D landmarks for over 200 cities – can be displayed in 3D and 2D map modes,
• New Terrain*** map mode,
• Hi-res aerial images for Satellite*** and Hybrid*** map modes,
• Nokia Maps Updater for PC, to update your Maps application and existing map data,
• Synchronisation of Favourites and Collections with Ovi Maps and vice versa (use in online mode, enable Internet connection).

* Feature requires Drive & Walk licence.
**Feature requires Walk or Drive & Walk licence.
***To load Terrain/Satellite/Hybrid maps you need to enable Internet connection.

Coming soon in Maps 3.0 commercial release:

• Safety spot warners in selected countries
• Extended country coverage for Traffic info service
• Weather information
• Premium POI content for travel, selected events and cinemas

Ovi Maps extends the Maps experience from mobile device to the web. You can explore maps in 2D, 3D, satellite and hybrid views, save places relevant to you, create your Favourites and Collections, and then synchronise them over-the-air with Maps 3.0^Beta on your mobile and vice versa.

Beta release feature highlights

• Maps in 2D, 3D, satellite and terrain views,
• 3D landmarks for over 200 cities – can be displayed in 3D and 2D map modes,
• Saving places under Favourites and creating Collections,
• Synchronisation of Favourites and Collections with Maps 3.0^Beta on mobile and vice versa.

Coming soon in the next Beta release:

• Route planner for Drive, car navigation, and Walk, pedestrian navigation,
• Traffic information,
• Weather information.

Discover more at maps.ovi.com

p.s: Can't wait for the full version to come in. Should be a good addition for my N95

Entah
by Afgan

kutahu, kau selingkuh
kau duakan cintaku yang tulus
kau tahu, diriku
tak pernah berpaling dari dirimu
tega nya kau dustai semua
janji kita berdua

Entah masih kah ada cinta dihatiku
untuk mu
entah kapan kah ku dapat membuka hati ini, untuk mu..o...

tak pernah ku bayangkan
cerita kita berakhir begini
tega nya kau dustai semua
janji kita berdua

Entah masih kah ada cinta dihatiku
untuk mu
entah kapan kah ku dapat membuka hati ini, untuk mu..o...

masih kah ada, o...
cinta dihati ini
dihati kecilku berharap kau masih bagian dari hidupku...

Entah masih kah ada cinta dihatiku
untuk mu
entah kapan kah ku dapat membuka hati ini, untuk mu..o...

Download

Assalamualaikum,

After giving it a thought for quite some time, last weekend I finally took the leap of faith by terminating my Streamyx Account and acquired myself the Celcom Broadband.I know it sounds silly to make such a move and is considered to be a step backward in connecting to the internet. But considering that I am currently on a tight budget and limit myself to a twice a month traveling back home in KL. I think I am paying that RM88 for my Streamyx for nothing. No one besides me is using that thing at home.

On the contrary, I do realize that the shared IP will disable me from downloading from Rapidshare servers and that is the risk I am willing to take. By the way if I ever needed to download anything big, I can always drop by my big bro's house Streamyx. Hehe.

I chose that D98 package because surprisingly in Tangkak there is a 3G connection. Hehe. I think it was worth to try. By the way, I am not bounded by any contract and I can terminate it if I am not satisfied with it. But so far, I am happy with it.

Assamualaikum,

Semalam merupakan hari yang bersejarah bagi team Roket aku. Hiks. Semalam juga berlangsungnya peringkat saringan pelancaran roket botol air bagi pelajar-pelajar kolej. Aku pula hadir untuk melihat prestasi mereka sambil-sambil cuba mencedok idea untuk roket aku.

Pun begitu, roket aku yang berada dalam peringkat prototype tuh sudah sedia untuk diuji untuk julung kalinya. Nak tengok keberkesanan rekaan sayap.

Waktu petang tuh, bila tengok design-design budak-budak nih, aku jadi malu nak bawak kuar roket yang tersorok dalam keter aku. Hiks. Al maklumler, ada yang bombastik tak hingat dunia. Sayap lagi besar dari botol. Tapi bila launch, huhuhu... ala2 citer Madagascar 2 masa nak launch kapal terbang tuh. Hahaha.

Selesai semua peserta menunjukkan kehebatan roket masing2, tiba masanya team aku plak cuba tunjuk belang. Dengan roket yang serba asas dan tempekan pelekat bersepah2, maka masuklah roket aku kedalam pelancar untuk pertama kalinya. Mulanya tak sanggup lihat, tapi aku beranikan diri untuk lihat sejauh manakah kehebatannya.

Ternyata tidak mengecewakan, dapat melepasi seluruh padang bola kolej nih. Haha. Not bad for a test run. Nanti bleh modify bagi sampe Israel terus. Hahaha. Dengan kelajuan, ketinggian dan jarak yang jauh, seperti roket2 lain tak lari dari berlakunya kecederaan parah pada muncung roket aku. Tapi takpe, bahagian itu ada spare part dia. Yang penting, main body langsung tak rosak apa pon. Itu yang penting.

Jangan pernah katakan bahwa
Cintamu hanya untukku
Karna kini kau telah membaginya

*Maafkan bila memang kini
Harus kutinggalkan dirimu
karna hatiku selalu kau lukai

**Tak ada lagi yang bisa ku lakukan tanpamu
Ku hanya bisa mengatakan apa yang ku rasa

reff:
Ku menangis membayangkan
Betapa kejamnya dirimu atas diriku
Kau duakan cinta ini
Kau pergi bersamanya

Ku menangis melepaskan
Kepergian dirimu dari sisi hidupku
Harus slalu kau tahu
Aku lah hati yang telah kau sakiti

repeat *, **
repeat reff

Ku menangis
Harus slalu kau tahu
Aku lah hati yang telah kau sakiti

Assalamualaikum,

Woke up this morning and discovered my school is featured in the Malaysia Hari Ini (MHI) slot. I sat and listened with my fullest attention to discover that my beloved high school have been declared as a National Heritage. I totally forgot about it as I recently very busy with ISO and never had time to open the website, but I remembered the announcement were to be made somewhere in February. What an achievement. The first school in Malaysia to achieve that status.

KUALA LUMPUR (Feb 13, 2009): The iconic Victoria Institution, more popularly known as VI, which will be exactly 116 years old tomorrow, will become the first school in the country to be awarded national heritage status.

Founded by Sultan Abdul Samad, William Hood Treacher, Loke Yew, Thamboosamy Pillai and Yap Kwan Seng on Aug 14, 1893, VI has steadfastly maintained a record of academic excellence and produced many leaders and luminaries.

Those who passed through its hallowed halls include Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah of Brunei, Cabinet ministers then and now like Tan Sri Rafidah Aziz, Datuk Seri Zulhasnan Rafique, Datuk Seri Shafie Apdal, Datuk Seri Dr. Ng Yen Yen and former judge Datuk Mahadev Shankar.

Other former students include corporate giants like Tan Sri Shamsuddin Abdul Kadir, T. Ananda Krishnan and Tan Sri Francis Yeoh while in the field of sports the school has produced luminaries such as Datuk Dr. M.Jegathesan, the late Mokthar Dahari, Datuk Misbun Sidek, Foo Kok Keong, Datuk P.S.Nathan and Ishtiaq Mubarak.

During the Second World War, VI was used as the administrative headquarters by the invading Japanese army and after Japan's defeat in the war in 1945, the hand-over ceremony of the administration of Malaya to the British was also held there (on Feb 22 1946).

Unity, Culture, Arts and Heritage Minister Datuk Seri Shafie Apdal will present the award to VI tomorrow morning in a special ceremony at its school compound and many of its former students are expected to witness the historic event.

It will also hold a special meaning for Shafie, himself an alumni of VI.

Zulhasnan, the Federal Territories Minister, said: "I would not miss it for the world. It is such a great honour for VI and as a former student, I am particularly glad VI was the first school chosen to be awarded the status. This is a momentous occasion not only for VI but all its students and former students, like me."

For Zulhasnan, Feb 14 this year also holds a special meaning as it will mark three years he has been Federal Territories Minister.

In conjunction with the historic event, many celebratory programmes have been lined up including a gala dinner, charity golf tournament, centennial concert by VI's marching band, a cross-country charity run in the city and a football tournament in memory of Mokthar Dahari.

For VI's Parent-Teacher Association president, Raja Amir Shah Raja Abdul Aziz, VI's main goal after getting the status is to continue with its tradition of excellence for hundreds of years to come.

Also tomorrow, VI's marching band's cadet corps, which will be celebrating its centennial, will hold a special performance to mark the occasion. -- Bernama

Other news on this event is here.

Congratulation to my beloved school.

"Be Yet Wiser"

Assalamualaikum,

Assalamualaikum,

Elton John once sang, Sorry seems to be the hardest word. I believe this is more likely to be true during his era. People were then too egoistic to even mention the word sorry even though they deeply truly know from their bottom of their heart, they were the guilty party. It just shows that sorry is a serious word and should be use appropriately.

I strongly believe that the word "Sorry" is too solemn and just too important to take lightly and should not be spilled out so easy as if it is at the tips of someone's tongue. I think when people say sorry they should truly mean it and don't just simply said it to make amends of wrongdoing. Sorry is not a ticket for somebody to simply treat other people wrongly. It's not that easy if you ask me.

Forgiveness is not something people would give away that easily. One might tell that they are forgiven, but damage have been inflicted. There is no word in this world that could undo this damage.

"What's done is done" and "Let bygone be bygone" were just phrase created by those wrongdoers to comfort themselves, but in reality could a person recover from heartache? Somehow another, we tend to remember bad things people do to you. And one day, we are going to use those bad memories as leverage in another ill argument. The damage this time is going to be beyond repair.

I needed to let it out here. I am seriously sick of the word sorry being mass used by people mainly among my students.

Assalamualaikum,

Apparently, lecturers will do anything to release some of their work stress nowadays. This coming 29th of February, a contest among lecturers to build a rocket with ability to go the highest into the sky. As usual, I was interested in joining with two of my fellow friends. Did some research throughout the internet and this is the best step-by-step description on how to build us the bottle rocket.

Before building, we need these materials to start with:

• Two 2-liter bottles
• One small plastic cone (athletic)
• Duct Tape
• Scissors
• String
• Manila Folder
• Large Plastic Trash Bag
• Masking Tape or Avery Paper reinforcement labels (you'll need 32/chute.)
• Hole punch

Procedures:

1. Cut the top and the bottom off of one bottle, so that the center portion or a cylinder remains.
2. Tape the cylinder to another bottle to create a fuselage (a place to store the parachute).
3. Get the manila folder; fins will be made from it. Cut three shapes out of the folded bottom in the shape that the diagram shows. Your fins will be triangular.
4. The next drawing indicates how the fin should look once folded.
5. Mark straight lines on the bottle by putting the bottle in the door frame or a right angle and trace a line on the bottle with a marker. Use these lines as guides to place the fins on the bottles.
6. Make three fins and tape them on the rocket. Be sure that the fins are spaced equally around the rocket body. This can be achieved by using a piece of string and wrapping it around the bottle and marking the string where it meets the end. Mark the string and lay it flat on a meter-stick or ruler. Find the circumference of the bottle by measuring the length of the string to the mark. Once you know the circumference, then you can divide it by three to find the distances the fins should be separated.
7. Use the athletic cone to make your nose cone. Use fairly rigid scissors and cut the bottom square off of the cone. Depending upon your project's mass limitations, place a golf ball sized piece of clay in the tip of the cone. This will add mass to the cone and give the rocket/cone more inertia. Then, using scissors, trim the cone to make it symmetrical. (Hint: the diameter of the bottom of the cone should be a little wider than the diameter of a 2-liter bottle.
8. Attach the cone with string to the top of the other two-liter bottles so that it looks like the diagram. Tie a knot in the end of each piece of string to give it more friction and tape it using a piece of duct tape to the inside of the cone and to the inside of the rocket body.
9. Many students have trouble with their nosecone getting stuck on the top of the rocket and not coming off. This can be prevented by making a pedestal for the cone to sit on. It should be high enough up so that there is space between the cone and the top of the parachute compartment. You can make a pedestal out of the same material you will make the fins, the manila folder. Make three mini-fins, invert them and tape them on the rocket where the cone should sit.

Making the Parachute:

1. Don't forget a good parachute has shroud lines that are at least as long as the diameter of the canopy.

   Lay your garbage bag out flat. Cut off the closed end. It should look like a large rectangle and be open at both ends. Lay down the bag on a flat surface and smooth it out.

2. The bag has a long side and a short side and is open at both ends. Fold it in two so that the short side is half as long as it was originally.
3. Make sure the edges are perfectly lined up during each fold. Now fold it in half along the long axis.
4. Make a triangle with the base of the triangle being the closed end of the previous fold.
5. Now fold it again. Fold the hypotenuse so that it lines up with the right side of the triangle in the above drawing.

6. Examine the base of the triangle and find the shortest length from the tip to the base. This is the limiting factor for chute size. The most pointed end will end up being the middle of the canopy.

   For an example; if you want the diameter of the chute to be 34 inches then measure 17 inches from the center of the canopy (the most pointed side of the parachute) along each side, mark it and then cut it.

7. After cutting it, unfold it. If you have been successful there should be two canopies.

8. Fold the canopy in half, then into quarters, then into eighths. Carefully crease the folds each time. Crease it well and fold it again. Now the canopy is divided into 16ths. Unfold the parachute. Notice the crease marks. Get masking tape and put a piece around the edge at each fold mark. You may also use Avery reinforcement tabs. Place one on both the inside and outside of every crease, making sure that they are overlaid on top of each other.

   Punch holes through every piece of masking tape or Avery tab pairs and use these to attach the kite-string shroud lines.

9. As mentioned earlier the minimum length of the shroud line should be the same length as the diameter of the canopy.

   After punching the holes fold the canopy in half. Pick four holes and tie the shroud lines to the holes. After doing this tie the four lines together at the end most distant from the canopy.

   Repeat this four times until the chute is completed.

   Once you have it complete attach it inside the fuselage. Generally a couple of pieces of duct tape will hold the parachute to the rocket. Pack the parachute loosely and put the nosecone on the rocket.

   You are now ready to launch your rocket.

Now all we have to do is put it in the launcher provided by the Psychics Unit and see how high it will go...


Wish me luck

Let's take a look at how this thing actually works...

Simplified animation of how a water rocket works. 1) compressed air is added which creates a bubble which floats up through the water and then pressurizes the air volume in the top of the bottle. 2) The bottle is released from the pump. 3) The water is pushed out the nozzle by the compressed air. 4) The bottle moves away from the water because it follows Newton's Third Law.

credit for Mr. Hayhurst for this lovely explanation