Alvin Chan

I’ve played through the open beta for Diablo 3, and there is alot of thoughts going on now within me.

Probably the best read about the difference between Diablo II and Diablo III could be found here. While I personally think that the change is pretty drastic, I am also incline to reason out that these changes have been made to assume that every players will be playing co-op games. And they probably have that in mind and start thinking through the game plays from there.

Like it or hate it, the story should be nothing short of epic. A newcomer might take it as it is, while a Diablo II gamer will find it hard to accept these...

I went into trouble of finding a solution to format my old PC which uses Intel D865PERL motherboard. The only option left is to format using USB Flash Disk method which the motherboard supports, though it does not recognises flat file structures of the USB Flash Disk. I had 2 failed DVD drives so the only option left is through USB.

However, turns out that with Production 21 (P21) version of BIOS, the motherboard cannot understand a normal Windows Preinstalled Environment (WinPE) structure and it keeps giving a Boot Error as it does not understand how to read the bootmgr normally.

Therefore, after couple of days figuring it out, I managed to use FreeDOS to boot up a WinPE ISO image stored in the USB Flash Disk, installed Windows 7 on it, and let manage to get all components to work and successfully completed my Windows 7 32bit installation on the old PC.

I have detailed out the ways and method to prepare and install your WinPE on old motherboards (which mostly affects Intel boards) should you encouter unable to read boot file error when attempting to perform normal Windows boot from USB installation.

This workaround works well and once it is able to install the simple setup files it will ask for Media files to be loaded and gives an error that it cannot detect the necessary media to load drivers (your USB Flash Disk with winpe.iso Image file), you will need to switch to the normal USB Flash Disk with all the bootable flat file structure files (prepared using WintoFlash or RMPrepUSB, called PD2 in this guide).

Here is the guide and good luck.

Probably one of the best speech given by Vladimir Putin at 43rd Munich Conference on Security Policy

Full text after the jump.

After visiting Singapore’s latest 2 main attractions, the Universal Studios Singapore and Marina Sands Bay casino, I’ve decided to continue adventuring into the city itself and check out the night spots downtown.

First thing most, one should take the MRT and alight at Raffles Place MRT Station and head out to the open. Immediately right after I head out of the station, I got captivated by the surroundings. All around me, towers and towers of building are climbing to the sky. A check on the signs hanging on the towers got me surprised. I’m standing at the centre of the financial district of Raffles Place, the area which helps propel Singapore’s service industry and boasts one of the main reason in which they excel in and help bringing them into a developed nation. All around me, I can see many big names in the finance industry setting up their operation centres here.

Raffles Place, the financial hub of Singapore 

Down the road, I walked down to the bank of Singapore River curving back into Clarke Quay. From here you can catch a glimpse at the famous river which was the reason Singapore came to existence where Raffles made it as the first trading port in Singapore. On the right side, there’s a building shaped like two durian shell which houses the musical concerts and show for talents, the Esplanade theatre and Fullerton Hotel. Along this lane, one can find many statue carving dedicated to the cultural presence of origination of Singapore such as the depiction of people of different race having conversation with the British, the young boys having fun at the river banks and the traditional means of transportation – cow cart.

Overview of Singapore River 

From the Fullterton hotel’s re...

Singapore is a city-state located just south of Malaysia in the South East Asia region. It is a developed state with alot of city planning mimicking United Kingdoms. The addressing system is fairly similar to Western countries. Stepping into Singapore is like stepping into a little England, minus the cold breeze. Being a small city-state with limited land spaces, you will be welcomed with skyscrapers and a modern, efficient and organized transportation infrastructure. There’s the SBS transit bus network, SMRT train system and one of the busiest airport, Changi Airport to bring you into and around Singapore. I must admit that the bus and MRT network is very efficient and comes on time.

The last time i visited Singapore was some 10 years ago where Singapore was an attraction for its shopping district and its well-planned and structured civil operations for those living in the South East Asia region. We always admire the efficient and clean country down south. However, my impression coming into Singapore 10 years has changed compared to before. Singapore as of now is flooded with China migrants, be it permanent resident or coming into the country to work. You can find them at every spot of the country right now. From the bus drivers to the restaurant waiters and chefs, the promoters in shopping malls and hawker centres, there’s never a time you will not spot them. They are just everywhere. I finally understand the grouse and frustration of the Singaporeans against their government’s policy which lead to PAP’s worst election result in history.

I have broken up my Singapore trip into two post, with this post focusing on Universal Studios and the 2 casinos available in Singapore. If you’re looking for Singapore’s city centre life, nightlife and others besides Universal Studios and Marina Sands bay, do click here.

This time around, my main purpose for coming to Singapore is to visit the 2 new main attraction in the country, the Universal Studios at Resort World Sentosa and Marina Sands bay. Universal Studios is a theme park situated in Resort World Sentosa. While the park rides were nice, I find that the theme park as a whole is relatively small in size as compared to Disneyland in Paris. The prices were similar for both, yet the number of rides choices in Universal Studios is limited in comparison, hence I find that the price is abit steep. But I got in with complimentary tickets, so I couldn’t complain anymore.

Welcome to Universal Studios Singapore

Ancient Egypt! 

A must try ride is...