Enter The SG

Happy Birthday My Dearest Sister

2011-12-30T05:55:00.000-08:00

Today is my Sister's birthday, and this post is dedicated to her. Currently I think she is in Thailand or whatever, enjoying a nice holiday with her fiancee and his family, so I can't really contact her hehe...

HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!! I wish you all the best. Sorry I can't be home with you or even mom or dad this Christmas and new year. I remember you called me on my birthday and cried saying that you missed me. Well, I miss you guys too, but I guess I'm still afraid to go home. I mean, I literally failed my exam, and I really have so much to catch up with the geniuses here. I'm not thinking to go home until everything is settled here, sorry. When is that? Well, someday maybe, when I feel that my PhD career or Master (Should I be downgraded later...) is more secured, if I already got the big idea of what I'm doing here, If I don't have to worry too much about meeting my supervisor's expectation any longer because I have been able to fulfill it. Rest assure that I have never stopped thinking about you guys and will always pray for your well being. How's Thailand anyway? I hope you have a lot of fun with Yuven and his family. Say Hi to his family for me. I wish for the best regarding your wedding next year. I promise I'll be there.

I've been thinking on how to get to you since this morning. How will I be able to say happy birthday to you, but as the day gone by and I was kept busy with work, I kinda forgot about it. I think I should let it go this year. Hope a simple facebook message and this post will be enough hehehe... I can't stop thinking how you used to give me birthday presents. Till now, I haven't been able to give you anything hehehe. I should start thinking on what presents to give you guys next year. Anyway, once again, happy birthday my dearest sister. I really can't make this anymore special than what it is, a simple and humble post dedicated for you. Have a nice birthday, enjoy your life to the fullest. No matter what hardships you have upon you, I'm sure you'll get through it. Life is not always easy, but I know we're tough enough to handle it, both you and me, although maybe sometimes it may let us down and we can't really help with those angry cursing and crazy stupid ideas of wanting to just give up (or maybe it's just me hehe). We'll survive! Also take care of the others while I'm not there, especially mom, because I think she's becoming more fragile than she used to be as she grow older. And of course dad, since I haven't been the nicest son he can possibly hope for.

Lastly, please pray for my success too hehe... I really want to make this work. At this time, I really don't wish for anything. Well, it will be nice to have those appreciation and all should I manage to become a big person, but the most important thing for me right now is to be able to make you guys happy and return all the kindness and thoughts you've given me all these years. Okay I honestly have to stop before I become teary. For the last time happy birthday. Merry Christmas and Happy New Year.

Love you all,

Stevie

Merry Christmas!!!

2011-12-25T01:06:00.000-08:00

Let me bring the bad news first... For all of you who hasn't known, I failed my QE hehe... Out of the six subjects, I only pass two (bummer). So, as mentioned before, no PS3, PSVITA or whatsoever. The good thing is, I survived. Well, it is depressing but I guess I've grown up a little bit more. As we're living our lives there will be many times when things won't go according to our plan. Surely you have tried your best, but maybe you are already at your limit. Sometimes it just doesn't work! As simple as that. Now, I won't give you all those encouraging words like "Take this as a lesson for next time" or "You'll do better next term". I know how painful the struggle is, and even just thinking about having to go through all of those again NEXT TIME will be so excruciating. So yeah, I won't be talking about what you should do next, but for me, I guess I'll try my best again next term. And should I fail again... well, with all of the things I've been through, a master degree won't be that bad at all. It's not about the title anyway, It's whether I will graduate having absorbed all of this knowledge. And by that time, I will be confident enough to say to the world "Hi, I'm Stevie... What do you have in store for me? I'm ready to take on anything!" I just hope my Supervisor won't give up on me hehe... I know I'm lacking many things and I might have disappointed her in many ways, also with my QE result, but with all of her knowledge and success, I believe I'll learn a lot under her supervision.

This post turns out to be not the standard Christmas Greetings hahaha, but anyway, Merry Christmas to everyone. This Christmas feels so lonely, having to spend Christmas eve alone with chips and soda. I also didn't see "her" at church yesterday hahaha (and the fact that I was going to introduce myself should I had met her... haeeehhh...). I guess I'll see you guys next year.

P.S. : Celebration week on Alien Visitors and Ghost Trappers brings new loots and most importantly Snow Unicorn contract! hahahaha... Don't know why, those unicorns just make you want to collect them all.

Late Review

2011-12-16T02:51:00.000-08:00

I think I should have done this sooner, but seriously, I didn't have the time to blog in the past few days. So, Diviad's new game -Waraxe- is out for you guys who sometimes find that you have nothing else to do at work, bored to death while waiting for the time to go home. After the first few minutes experiencing this game, I am totally into it right now hahaha. As always there are regions in the game. In each region you are going to finish some quests (and side quests) before you can advance to the next region. When you are doing quests, you are going to fight your army against the enemy's. There are two factions to choose, the forces of good and the axis of evil, both with their own distinctive units. These two factions are fighting against each other, so if you pick one faction, your are going to battle the other one. You will be busy building your army, getting them stronger to fight your opponents. When constructing your army, first you will choose the formation that you are going to use. A formation consists of slots where you put your unit into. There are four types of slots so far Hero, Core, Elite, and Reserves (heard there will be Support later). Oh, and there is also PvP feature, where you can battle other players from the opposite faction. So guys, I encourage you to try this game (also partly because of the great arts they use).

Capturing December

2011-12-07T06:05:00.001-08:00

Just got home from another motion capture session. Actually, I was out to buy additional equipment for tomorrow. Went to Clementi Mall to search for power cord extension and sony handycam adapter (or charger???). Got the extension for 48 SGD!!! Yeahhh... expensive. I didn't find the charger, so I need to go to the sony center (IPhone was such a big help to find the nearest sony center in Clementi), but still I only got the separated battery charger, even after all that.

Today was okay, I guess. We ended up not capturing a lot of things cause we're busy with the setup, and the guys from Vicon was kind of training us on how to do face and hand capture. To be honest, there was some confusion cause we've actually been trained to do some of the things a little bit different, but we did learn some new things like the grayscale mode, the focus and aperture thing, and other adjustable parameters, and of course the camera arrangements for face and hand capture (all of which we hadn't done before). Still, Vicon Blade can definitely be improved. Felt a little pity for the Vicon guy, we all kept complaining about the software while he wrote all these notes hahaha...

Hand capture cameras arrangement (we do have cool stuffs, right???)

Another thing to note is that during today's session, the capturing process is not well directed, I guess. We concentrated too much on getting good quality data that we did the capturing just like a bunch of testing. It wasn't clear when I should start or stop recording with the handycam, and I believe the same thing goes for the actor, it was not clear whether we're recording or not. There was "Oh we're recording already?", "Ow should we do it again?", and things like that, but I guess that's why we need practice, right?

A little preview on what we're going to do tomorrow

Well, I guess I better get some rest. Tomorrow we'll have another session and hopefully we'll be more ready and it will be a lot of fun. The people from Vicon are going to train us on post processing tomorrow too, how we create new skeleton, calibrate actors, filling gaps, and stuffs. You need to refresh your memories on these things once in a while since the Vicon Blade software is not very intuitive, or should I say it has too many features to remember unless u're a pro who do these things on daily basis. Okay then, I've posted some pictures from today for you guys, see you next time.

Face markers. Hope you don't mind, Aditya hehe...

Looking good in there haha...

another one

Camera arrangements for face capture

P.S. : Oh!!! Today is Jing Ying's birthday! Happy birthday Jing Ying, all the best for you!!!

The Right Time... And Surely A Better Place...

2011-12-02T04:29:00.001-08:00

So, this happened yesterday. I was walking down the hall going to the toilet and came across this scene, which in my opinion is pathetic. There was this couple passionately making out on the roof of the central library. Yes, on top of it. Take a look...

First of all, how in the world did you get to that place guys? I don't see people walking around near that spot. Which is why, I don't think that was a good place to make out. Okay, so you want a nice quite place to do it, that "special place just for you and me", but Does it have to be on the roof of the central library? And by the way, everyone can see you from over here. See that building on the back? I believe it was quite a show from over there too, not to mention any other buildings around here. Oh, I see... You actually want people to see it, declaring your love to the world ehhh??? With all due respect... Find a nicer place.

I'm not being old-fashioned or conservative at all. As a matter of fact, I do enjoy public display of affection, but please... not like this. When it comes to making out, I always imagine a lovey-dovey romantic scene. It can be sweet, in a cafe, or even just as you stroll in the park. Or, it can be cheesy, with all those candles. Though it won't be the best choice, it is tolerable. Now, how should I even call this scene?

- We're too young to love my sweetie pie. Let's go some place quiet (which turns out not to be the best place) and be naughty...
- Oh my darling, my parents are against this relationship. Let's end this by jumping off this building. But before that... one passionate make out!
- Let's elope my honey bun... (don't even know where this come from, but it does say that)

The worst thing is, they actually put up this show for as long as half an hour. What's up with you people? I thought that thing with the couple making out behind the shadow of a brick wall near the parking lot in the basement, back when I lived in Boon Lay was an exception. But it seems that you guys don't know how to pick the right time, and surely a better place to do this kind of stuffs. Shout out to all those couples in love : Don't start making out under the bridge on that grassy field, covering yourself with those tall weeds, thinking that it is beautiful... you don't want to be seen as a sugar daddy with his one night stand hooker, do you?

I'm Excited!!!

2011-11-29T03:47:00.001-08:00

Counting down the days for the new game by Diviad. Advertisement about the game had been put on Ghost Trappers' website since about two months ago. It began with a banner "First we brought you the ghosts" and the writing have changed constantly with "Then we brought you the vampires" and followed by "Then we brought you the aliens". The latest one has the new game's logo called Waraxe along with the hopefully fixed release date (12-12-2011). There have been small talks on Diviad's forum of the possible gameplay or who you're going to play. Here's a quote from Andi:

Waraxe will be a strategic fantasy game in which you lead heroes and units into battle. The combat system is unlike anything else on Facebook since your skill as a player determines the outcome of the battle. It is not simple clicking, you have to develop a strategy and have to react to your opponent's actions. If you know “Magic the gathering” and /or “Warhammer” you will feel at home. You have to choose one of two factions in the “Realms of Tygoria” (that is where Waraxe takes place). Think of good versus eveil in a high-fantasy world such as in “Lord of the rings”, “Warhammer”, “World of Warcraft”, “Game of thrones”.

And here are some screenshots posted by the team.

Well, all I can say is I'm so excited about this new game. Hopefully they have a great artwork to support the game (hate COB's artwork). I think this will be a great variation since I personally feel AV is starting to become a little bit boring (hmmm... maybe now I'm more into GT???).

Something to be Proud Of

2011-11-27T17:21:00.001-08:00

Hi, it's 9:45 A.M. GMT+8, currently have nothing much to do, just chatting with my friend and waiting for my download to finish (downloading Ubuntu). I guess I should prepare all the stuffs I am going to need later when I work with the American interns. I haven't really enjoyed my Linux experience from undergraduate. I have only thought of it as this highly sophisticated and mysterious operating system which all those geniuses use. Anyway, the two interns from America are more familiar with the OS, so I better catch up with them (I need to at least be able to compile and run their program if I'm going to be involved in the project later hehe...)

Speaking of projects, I think this is a good time to announce (or re-announce) my first paper publication. I should have done this a long time ago since it was actually part of my summer project, the first real work I've done with my supervisor. The paper itself was accepted for Motion in Games 2011 which was held on November 13th-15th (My supervisor was there to present it while giving another talk as an invited speaker), but since I was quite busy lately, I haven't had the time to mention it in any of the posts. I was actually thinking of making a personal web page so I can start behaving like real post-graduate students, putting all my work related stuffs online, but I guess it will take lots of efforts and having to go through that phase where you just look at your web page and you feel like it's so empty since you only have one or two (literally...) stuffs mentioned in there, you know... So I think the best way is to mention the work itself here and refer to the project page.

As a brief explanation, the project is about porting a walking controller on top of different simulation engines. I didn't actually build the controller, just porting it. You can see the original work here. Nevertheless, I got the chance to actually learn something and be more familiar with physics based animation. I'm not saying that it was a huge project, but one thing I've learnt from my supervisor is to always be proud of whatever work it is that you have done. So, I hope some of you guys are actually interested in it. Check out the project page.

Okay, looks like the download is finished. See you guys next time...

P.S. : BK's grilled chicken salad is back in Singapore, yaaaay!!!! Just ate it again last night after five months.

Look Younger as You Grow Older

2011-11-24T03:37:00.001-08:00

First of all, thank you so much for all the birthday wishes guys. Yes, I'm 23 now!!! (Oh my, getting older day by day...)

I finally finished all my exams this semester. Not so sure about the result though. I hate those people who thinks that I always nag and exaggerate when it comes to my exam result. If I act as usual, you will think that I actually did it well. And if I cry to you, you will say I'm making a big fuzz out of it. So let's make it simple for now, I only want to pass, and I really don't want to retake all those exams anymore. Personally, I find it hard to be able to pass since I feel I couldn't do much during the exams. But I do still hope that GOD will not let all my efforts go to waste (Dear GOD, please let me pass...). Please do not think of this as me being not to depressed about it means that I could actually do the test well, cause that is not the case. I will very much appreciate it if you all could keep supporting me and pray along ^_^

Anyway this post isn't supposed to be about my exams. So, how do I feel about my birthday? Well to begin with, I think most people have forgotten about it. Really... I don't get as much birthday wishes as last year on facebook hehe. Well, I guess that's the consequences for starting a new life abroad. But, nevertheless I do know who is truly my friend (especially the closest one), and this isn't a sarcasm to all who forget. Even when those who I think are close to me forget, I do know you care for me.

Next!!! 23... Oh gosh, am I that old? I personally think after 21 you are not young anymore (no specific reason). On my birthday last year I was like the 1 in 21 is now 2, and this year, it has become 3!!! You know what I regret so far? Up until now, I haven't really had a girlfriend hehe. I feel like I just missed all that sweet vibe of teenage love. Will I ever experience that "let's go to the mall", "watch a movie", "go on a date" or will it be the boring "okay, we should grab something to eat", "so how's work?", "Let's just stay at home tonight..."

So, as for the best! I don't feel like I age too much hahahaha... In fact, I feel great. After I got home, I grabbed my IPhone and as always took some pictures haha. Amazing isn't it? The fact that you can be 23 but look as young as a teenage boy? (Thank You GOD for this awesome blessing, please let me keep it. I'll treasure it so much hahaha...)

Last but not least, my plan ahead. I don't really know. I feel I have so much possibilities after QE (hopefully, I'll pass). I went to my supervisor today and discussed my long term plan. She actually had already planned something for me, so better keep up with the schedule. I also still need to finish my term project report, due Monday. I'm still thinking about buying PS3 hehehe (forgot how many times I've said this but GOD! PLEASE LET ME PASS MY QE SO THAT THEY WON'T REVOKE MY SCHOLARSHIP AND I CAN BUY PS3 WITHOUT FEELING GUILTY). Other than that, I'm thinking of getting more familiar with programming (you won't believe how well they code their program here...) and learning the game development pipeline. Yes, I'm positive, I want to continue my career in the gaming industry after this, should everything works. Maybe I should develop simple games, try out some game engine and physics engine. I'll definitely do that if I have the time. But first things first... spare sometime to clean my room!!!

Rooting For Ghost Trappers

2011-11-16T10:03:00.001-08:00

After today's Ghost Trappers' maintenance, I got all my GTP dropped to 50k from around 2 million and my XP from around 600k back to 10k. Searched the forum and found out many people had the same problem as me. They say they are fixing it right now, but being the first few people who realized the bug, I sent messages to the admins Bob, Shannon, and Brooke. Guess what, after waiting for around two hours I logged in to Ghost Trappers and got a whooping 7.5 million GTP and 1.7 million XP. As honest as I can be, I thanked the admins for it, though it might have been even better if they sent me SMG.1 document too to complete my Sarah Michelle Gunther contract. I don't know whether they did the same to other guys who face the same problem. Anyway, if any of you encounter this bug, I guess feel free to contact the admins.

Long Live Ghost Trappers!!!

Don't Laugh!!!

2011-11-16T05:13:00.001-08:00

Just some random stuff I like to do to relieve stress. It won't be like those people in youtube who come fully equipped with lots of musical instruments in the background hahaha...

P.S. : Sorry to have ruined your day... hahaha...

My Wife is Having a Baby????

2011-11-14T01:01:00.001-08:00

Had this strange dream last night where I was waiting in a hall, inside some hospital, with my family. There were my mom and dad, and also my sister and her husband. I seemed so worried about something. Then my mom asked whether I have prepared a name yet? Apparently I had thought of a name for a girl and a boy, so as I turned to face her I said yes, with a huge smile on my face. You all know how in dreams, you can see yourself as if you are looking into a mirror. I should say, by the time I smiled in that dream, I looked extremely happy and peaceful. Then I remembered the door to where my wife was giving birth opened and I saw light... Then I woke up...

It was not until this afternoon, when I was reading a paper, that everything suddenly flashed across my mind again. So I quickly browsed the internet to find the meaning of my dreams (I'm so superstitious haha...). Anyway, look at what I've found :

1. If you dream that you are on your way to the hospital to have a baby, then it signifies your issues of dependency and your desires to be completely care for. Perhaps you are trying to get out of some responsibility. If you are pregnant in real life, then a more direct interpretation may simply mean that you are experiencing some anxieties of making it to the hospital when the time comes.

2. This classic dream usually comes to people who lead productive, responsible lives. It is all the more upsetting or distressing for precisely that reason. In most instances the neglected baby is the Jungian archetype of the divine child. The infant represents aspects of the dreamer's self that are neglected or ill-defined. It might seem funny to write in our waking-life appointment book "reserve time for self-exploration," but, in order to be healthy and whole, that is exactly what we have to do. (Even if it looks like the height of laziness or irresponsibility from the point of view of the waking ego, which is driven to make the most of every precious moment.) This dream informs you that ignoring one's deepest spiritual needs and desires is the truly irresponsible activity--as irresponsible as agreeing to look after a baby, and then forgetting about it.

3. Giving birth in your dream can also symbolizes the beginning of a new project, ability, or stage of life.

I cannot find the exact phrase that tells you what is the meaning of dreaming your wife is giving birth to a baby, but I guess I do feel a little bit (okay, it's actually a lot...) anxious because the approaching QE (qualifying exam). And I have been freaking out about that thing that I cannot do anything else beside spending each and every day studying, and of course focusing with my term project (at least I should be able to submit something T_T). The last interpretation that I found seems to be the only soothing answer I could find, but don't you think it will only work for women???

I just wish everything goes well. ONE MORE WEEK!!!

P.S. I don't have a wife...

(source)
http://www.greatdreams.com/baby.htm
http://www.dreammoods.com/dreamthemes/characters.htm
http://www.whispy.com/dream_dictionary/symbols_p/dreams_about_being_pregnant_pregnancy_dreams.htm

My Sister's Engagement, A Date With The Undead

2011-11-05T07:26:00.000-07:00

So, this is the only picture I can get from my Sister's engagement, and it seems the wind doesn't go so well with my soon to be brother-in-law. Still waiting for other pictures (if they exist haha...), since I missed my chance to be there. Congratulation on your engagement guys. Hope everything goes well and I'll see you both on your wedding day.

Meanwhile in Singapore, I asked some friends to go with me to Spooktacular at Sentosa (a halloween event). To be honest, I have never gone to events like this, so for me, I think it's a good way to see the outside world and catch up with my friends, but maybe it's quite boring for them (sorry guys... ^^). Anyway, it's nice to see them smile when one of the ghost (or was it two?) chased after me, at least they find it fun to watch. Took a picture with one of the ghost after that, though it's kinda crappy.

Also took a video of the crane dance on our way home. I guess everyone enjoyed it hahaha...

Well, I have to get back to my study!!! See you next time ^_^

Sweet November Wish List

2011-11-02T20:09:00.000-07:00

Pass my QE in one try
Succeed in my term project
PS3 (and the monitor of course)
A girlfriend (Agnes, I luv u hahahaha)
Pictures from my sister's engagement (So when will you upload them for me to see guys???)
A break
Going back home...

Actually, I have already given up for my birthday ever since they announced the two QEs (Qualifying Exams) will be held on 23rd and 24th of November, not to mention the term project presentation on 23rd haha. I guess they will suspend my scholarship and downgrade me to master if I fail. I just want everything to go smoothly. Pls pray for my well being hahahaha...

Alien Visitors Wormhole Week and Ghost Trappers Haunted Week

2011-10-25T08:21:00.000-07:00

For those who may not know these two games. They started as facebook games created by Diviad, which turn out to be fun to play. The gameplay basically requires you to click a button on the webpage every 15 minutes to catch aliens (or ghosts in GT). Your in game stats determine whether you will succeed or not in trapping these creatures. It may not seem so interesting at first, but as you start acquiring more and more loots, more options will be available for you to enhance your setup for additional stat increase such as reducing your cool down time or improving your catch rate.

I will be biased to say that I prefer AV over GT. Since AV is quite new compared to GT and the fact that I've just started to play these games recently, I find AV to be slightly more enjoyable. But nevertheless, each of them has their own unique traits.

For this halloween, Diviad has released new updates for both GT and AV. The wormhole week in AV includes new halloween themed aliens and UFO, new upgrades, new missions, and most importantly a new place to hunt (Russia). And for GT, the haunted week event includes new castle, new loots, unicorn contracts, and the return of the seasonal ghosts.

Anyway guys, try out these two games at Alien Visitors and Ghost Trappers. They're really fun once you get the hang of it. Who says you need console to play games??? ^_^

A New Beginning

2011-10-22T23:52:00.000-07:00

Hi All,

I've decided to delete my old blog and start with a clean sheet. I still keep the old one as exported version though (sometimes it's nice to reminisce about the old days ^^). Anyway, as you might have known, I'm in Singapore right now, pursuing my PhD. in computer animation at National University of Singapore. Been busier than ever hehe... So, wish me luck. I'll try to keep in touch. Happy Sunday everyone.

P.S. : The SG in the title is not Singapore, it's "S"tevie "G"iovanni