PS3 is out (in Japan) and some of you might be lucky to get one of the early 80,000 units shipped worldwide. I *could* join the lucky-ps3-owners club right now if I want to, as I just saw this huge baby in the local game store, but the price is killing me. The original price for this next generation of gaming console in Japan is around $500, but the store in my place is selling it for $1,444 (today’s currency convertion rate)! I know that they have to pay for the shipping and such, but isn’t that too much???

The console itself looks… BIG. And honestly, that’s my first impression. It’s bigger than XBox 360 and it’s too big for my little bedroom. However, the Ridge Racer 7 that was running on a Sony Bravia LCD TV (not remember the exact model number) with around 40-inch size looks AMAZING. Eventhough I only saw the demo, not the in-game event, the graphics is quite impressive.

Anyway, for the real review, check out the PS3 Review from Danny of DannyChoo.com. Lot of pics too.

The verdict? Prepare 5 changes of underwear and a mop to clean up all the skid marks you are going to leave behind. Fan bloody tastic. It does get a little hot and I did have to update the system software as soon as I turned it on but apart form that it really does rock!

Yup, I’ll be going for a holiday until around October 27th or 28th. As usual, I’ll visit my other family members in Jogjakarta. But don’t worry, I have prepared some articles for the next few days, so you will still receive cool gadgets and computer news until I arrive back home. I’ll also try to update the web from Jogja, let’s just hope I can find any (free) WiFI hotspot there.

See you on Friday, guys.

I’m looking forward to replace my Nokia 3250 cell phone and replace it with another handset from Nokia, the E61. The reason is, I want to have a business-oriented device with WiFI support and QWERTY-style keyboard. My first choice was Sony Ericsson M600 but it doesn’t seem to have Wireless connectivity support, so it’s out from the list. Communicator series (N9300 and N9500), also from Nokia, are too bulky, and so they’re removed from the list as well. The last one, Nokia’s E70, is having a weird (on my opinion) flip mechanism, and the only model remains was the E61. However, I’m not too sure whether this handset is good or not.

From various reviews I’ve read on the net, it does seem to be a wonderful cell phone for business usage (not for entertainment purpose). Beside the poor USB 1.1 connectivity and bad memory card placement, I don’t mind the bundled mono earphone, the missing camera module, and not-so-smooth display. The price has been reduced as well when I ask the nearby store.

So guys, anyone has some experiences with this E61 phone? I’d like to hear them (if any)

Hooray, I finally “upgraded” my home wired network into a wireless one. Precisely, I replaced my Prolink’s Hurricane 9000P ADSL Modem / Router with Asus’ WL-500G Premium Wireless Router. After canceled my previous ADSL internet service and using dial-up for about two months, I’m now using a wireless broadband internet service, so there’s no point to keep that ADSL modem / router anymore. But why did I choose that WL-500G Premium (or WL-500gP) Wireless Router?

The main reason is that this router can functioned as more than just a router. No kidding, the WL-500gP can be used as a Media Server and a Download Machine as well. All of them can be done without having to turn off the PC. That’s right. Thanks to the provided (two) USB connectivity, I can connect the router to an external HD enclosure and have it download any files I want (HTTP, FTP, and even BitTorrent protocols are supported) and store the downloaded files on the external HDD. I’ve tested it with LAN Server, a 3.5-inch HDD enclosure from Lexcron, and it works just fine. As for its Media Server capability, I haven’t got a change to try it since I don’t have any wireless media devices. Btw, it said to work with XBox 360 as well, and it makes me want to buy one right now…

Still with its USB connectivity, the WL-500gP router can be connected with a USB printer and USB webcam as well. I want to try the printer connection, but it seems that my Windows XP is missing its TCP Lib module or something, and it made the printer’s TCP port’s setup failed. About the USB webcam, I’m going to give it a try tomorrow.

Other features include:

• 125 High-Speed Mode
• 300% increased signal coverage compared to conventional IEEE 802.11g routers, while remaining interoperable with the WL-169gE, WL-138gE and WL-100gE.
• EZsetup enables convenient wireless connection configuration
• More secured: 64/128 bit WEP, WPA/WPA2/WPA-PSK/WPA2-PSK

[ More ]

Hurricane 9000P is a combination between a 4-port Ethernet router and an ADSL modem. It costs me around $75. That’s about half of the wireless version price (Hurricane 9000G – around $135). Since I always use my computer near my “work desk”, I guess a wireless router is not really necesarry.

So, here goes the (long) list of detail specs and features.

Hurricane 9000P specifications:

• ADSL Compliance
  • Compliant with ADSL standards
  • Full-rate ANSI T1.413 Issue 2 and ITU G.dmt (G.992.1) standards
  • Splitterless ITU G.lite (G.992.2) specification
  • ADSL over POTS (Annex A) and ADSL over ISDN (Annex B)
  • DMT modulation and demodulation
  • Full-rate adaptive modem
  • Maximum downstream rate of 8 Mbps
  • Maximum upstream rate of 1 Mbps
  • Tone detection for low power mode
  • Supports splitterless ADSL implementation
  • Supports Dying Gasp
• ATM Protocols
  • WAN mode support: PPP over ATM (RFC 2364) and PPP overEthernet (RFC2516)
  • LAN mode support: bridged/routed Ethernet over ATM (RFC1483) and Classical IP over ATM (RFC 1577)
  • ATM Forum UNI 3.1/4.0 PVC
  • Up to 8 VCs (Virtual Circuits)
  • ATM SAR (Segmentation and Reassembly)
  • ATM AAL5 (Adaption Layer type 5)
  • OAM F4/F5
• Bridge Mode
  • Ethernet to ADSL self-learning Transparent Bridging (IEEE 802.1D)
  • Supports up to 128 MAC learning addresses
• Router Mode
  • IP routing&RIPv2
  • Static routing
  • DHCP (Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol) Server and Client
  • NAPT (Network Address and Port Translation)
  • NAT (Network Address Translation)
  • ICMP (Internet Control Message Protocol)
  • Simultaneous USB and Ethernet operation
• Security
  • User authentication for PPP
  • PAP (Password Authentication Protocol)
  • CHAP (Challenge Authentication Protocol)
  • Password protected system management
• Ethernet interface
  • Compliant with IEEE 802.3 standard
  • 10/100 Mbps auto selection
  • 4-port 10/100 port (MDI/MDIX Autosensing)
• USB host interface
  • Compliant with USB Specification, Revision 1.1
  • USB full speed (12 Mbps)

Bagian kedua dari tutorial singkat mengenai pembuatan aplikasi mobile dengan menggunakan J2ME. Bagian sebelumnya dapat dibaca di sini. Pada bagian terakhir ini, akan ditunjukkan pembuatan database yg diperlukan serta script² server side yang dibutuhkan dng bahasa ASP.

Knp tidak menggunakan JSP? Krn tutorial ini lebih ditekankan kpd pemula, maka sengaja dipilih bhs ASP yg lebih ‘merakyat’ dibandingkan bhs JSP. Sehingga proses belajar bisa lebih terfokus pada pemrograman client-side dng J2ME. Suatu saat nanti, mungkin akan Anda tutorial JSP juga

Pembuatan Database

Dlm tutorial ini, database kita buat dng format MDB dng menggunakan MS Access. Ada 3 tabel yg perlu kita buat, yaitu tabel film, tabel jadwal, dan tabel pesan. Siapkan dulu sebuah database baru, beri nama database.mdb kemudian tambahkan tabel2nya sesuai ketentuan di bawah ini:

1. Tabel Film, digunakan untuk menyimpan informasi ttg film. Field-fieldnya:
   • id, tipe Autonumber
   • title, tipe Text, ukuran 50
   • actor, tipe Text, ukuran 50
   • genre, tipe Text, ukuran 50
   • sinopsis, tipe Memo
2. Tabel Jadwal, digunakan untuk menyimpan informasi ttg jadwal pemutaran film, termasuk kapasitas studio dan biaya HTM. Field-fieldnya:
   • id, tipe Autonumber
   • studio, tipe Number
   • jadwal, tipe Text, ukuran 50
   • movie, tipe Number
   • midnight, tipe Yes/No, format True/False
   • kapasitas, tipe Number
   • harga, tipe Number
3. Tabel Pesan, digunakan untuk menyimpan informasi ttg pemesanan tiket. Field-fieldnya:
   • id, tipe Autonumber, format Replication ID
   • tanggal, tipe Text, ukuran 50
   • jadwal, tipe Number
   • nama, tipe Text, ukuran 50
   • alamat, tipe Text, ukuran 50
   • noktp, tipe Text, ukuran 50
   • jumlah, tipe Number
   • status, tipe Number

Server-Side Programming

Ada 5 file ASP yg harus disiapkan, yaitu batal.asp, jadwal.asp, lihat.asp, movie.asp, dan pesan.asp. Fungsi masing₂ tentunya sudah dapat dikira₂ sesuai namanya. Untuk source code-nya dapat dilihat pada halaman berikut.

Penutup

Meskipun gak banyak pembahasan yg bisa disampaikan, tapi pasti Anda semua sudah sedikit banyak bisa memahami cara pembuatan aplikasi J2ME. Kalo ada pertanyaan, silahkan saja komentari langsung tulisan ini.

Semoga sukses )