General

A4Tech X-710 Gaming Mouse

I bought a new mouse last sunday. I decided to get a new one because although my previous mouse is still working, it is not ergonomic and not responsive because of its ball mechanism. It was also already scraping material off my tabletop because the mouse “feet” had already fallen off. My friend Vinz, who was also looking for a mouse because his mouse is also not ergonomic and was probably a major contributor to his shoulder ache.

I had wanted a Razer or Logitech gaming mouse but they were either hard to find or too expensive. Luckily we chanced upon some A4Tech gaming mice at one shop. We tested a few. They felt right and the price is also right so we each got one. I also had good experience with my second mouse ever, also an A4Tech, so the choice was easy.

The build was excellent. Almost as good as a good Logitech mouse. Mine has a matte black finish with glossy black trim. It is symetrically shaped: important for a lefty like me. It has the usual primary button, secondary button, and wheel. In addition, it has 2 thumb buttons on its left side for additional functions. Unfortunately, it is only easily accessible to right-handers. Somewhat disappointing but no matter, I mostly just use the standard controls anyway. At the bottom is not 4 but 6 mouse feet, for better gliding. Finally, it has a thin mouse cable to reduce drag.

Its optical mechanism can be switched between 400, 600, 800, and 1200 dpi resolutions with just the press of a selector button situated unobtrusively behind the wheel. When you change dpis, the wheel changes color from white, to green, to yellow, to red. This dpi switching mechanism allows you to easily and quickly switch mouse responsiveness depending on your needs e.g. office applications, to RTS (real-time strategy) game, to FPS (first-person shooter) game. I kept mine at red or 1200 dpi. Not only because I like the response at that resolution but the red glow is so cool and sinister as befit a gaming mouse.

As expected, the mouse was very responsive in actual use: office applications and Starcraft. Unfortunately I couldn’t test it with an FPS game since my laptop doesn’t meet system requirements. However, I’m sure it would perform just as well.

Rating: 5/5

Undetectable USB Devices in Linux

Finally was able to find a solution to the problem that had been bugging the Linux laptops at the office for quite some time already. The problem was that USB devices were not being detected. The error messages go like:

USB: device not accepting address 2. Error -110
USB: device not accepting address 3. Error -110
USB: device not accepting address 4. Error -110
USB: device not accepting address 5. Error -110
Unlink after no-IRQ? Controller is probably using the wrong IRQ

After quite a bit of searching. I finally found this thread. It turns out that the solution is quite simple. You’ll need to go open your boot loader configuration file (in my case it’s /boot/grub/grub.conf) and put irqpoll as one of the kernel parameters. Reboot and voila! USB devices are now detected.

Tanabe Super Medalion Racing (SMR)

Today, I finally installed the Tanabe Super Medalion Racing (SMR) that I had bought second-hand six months back.

The SMR is a canister-type free-flowing perforated-core muffler developed specifically for racing. It features Tanabe’s Advantex muffler packing material. Advantex is a chemically treated composite material that resists acid, heat, rust, and many other forms of deterioration. So it supposedly lasts far longer than fiberglass wool which is the most common muffler packing material. In addition, the SMR is riveted so that if need be, you can open it up, refill the packing material, then rivet it close. Nifty.

The SMR looks great but it was bigger than I had anticipated and I had reservations about installing it. But after a long time, I eventually realized it’s just gathering dust and I finally relented.

Early in the morning, I went off to MufflerLand where they ripped off the stock muffler and welded the SMR in place. It was reasonably quick and I was driving off in no time at all.

The first thing I noticed about the SMR is the sound: a full-bodied bass across the RPM range. The sound does not break up at some RPMs like lesser mufflers. As for power, many people claim mufflers lessens restriction and thus increase power. I’m not sure about that but one thing is: It sounds powerful :P

BTW This is a huge muffler and if you are on lowering or– heaven forbid– cut springs, you might scrape the tip on the pavement once in while especially on steep ramps.

Rating: 4/5

300

300 is the story of the Battle of Thermopylae where the Spartan King Leonidas and 300 Spartans warriors fought a last stand against the invading hordes of the Persian Empire. It is based on Frank Miller’s graphic novel 300 which in turn was inspired by the movie The 300 Spartans.

The movie is a frenetic, chest-thumping, testosterone-laden, adrenaline-pumping action fest of a legendary, even mythical scale. The computer enhanced contrast and minimalist CG background makes sure you focus on one thing: the action (and the muscle-tone of the unbelievably buff Spartan warriors). This is further enforced by a rousing, high-energy sound track that make you want to stand up and have a go at the Persians yourself.

The almost non-stop action is punctuated only by short breaks of relative peace as if to ensure you don’t get a heart attack. Or perhaps it’s for moving the story onwards. Whatever it is, you sit back, listen, perhaps understand, and wait eagerly for the next action sequence because that is the reason you watch this movie.

Rating: 5/5

The Last King of Scotland

The Last King of Scotland is not a Braveheart sequel :P It is the story of a Scot doctor’s experience as the personal physician and adviser of the infamous Ugandan dictator Idi Amin.

The movie claims it is based on true story. Actually, it is loosely based on a book which in turn is loosely based of the life of Bob Astles. So to me, claiming it’s based on a true story is a little bit of a stretch. But that doesn’t really matter, it’s still a good story.

James McAvoy as the doctor did a great job of playing the doctor trapped in a surreal, inescapable descent into an orgy of horror and madness. But this movie is more of a tour de force of the thespian skills of Forest Whitaker as Idi Amin. Before seeing the movie, I was incredulous about him being Idi Amin. But he pulled it off brilliantly!!! He effortlessly transforms from warm to terrifying, from friendly to paranoid in the blink of an eye. He is just plain awesome!

Rating: 4/5