Google Hangouts

20 May 2013

It’s fair to say that Google has been fairly fragmented in the messaging space before Google I/O 2013. Google+ Messenger, GTalk, GChat, Google Voice and Google Hangouts were just some of the company’s messaging/communications products and even Vic Gundotra, Google’s VP of Engineering admitted at the Google I/O keynote that it wasn’t ideal. Wasn’t ideal was an understatement. It was horrible. If you started a chat with someone in gmail chat, there’s no way to continue the same chat on my mobile.

So it was no surprise that Google had to rethink their messaging strategy from a scratch and the resulting product is Google Hangouts. It fixes most but not all of the issues. Instead of different versions of chat, video chat and calling across Google products, Hangouts gives me one consistent way to message people that has a…… you guessed it, a Google account.

Google is definitely moving towards the right direction with messaging but when Vic Gundotra was lamenting that messaging should be cross platform, ubiquitous and easy, everything goes out of the window if I didn’t have a Google account.

It’s not easy to try and convince my mother who has been using Yahoo mail for ages to switch to Gmail so I can message her with Hangouts. My family and friends are mostly iPhone users and Messages (iMessages is a protocol, not the app) is seamless, works with your phone number, integrates with SMS and if you have a Mac, you can message someone on their iPhones. But of course, the huge downside to Apple’s Messages is it’s locked down to Apple’s ecosystem.

In a sense, even Facebook Chat is a lot better than Hangouts when it comes to ubiquity. People that I (almost) care about are on Facebook and it’s easier to get them to respond to messages. I tried getting a few friends to respond to my Hangouts invites or groups chats and I get no responses. Friends that have used Android mobiles for years still prefer texting, Whatsapp and Facebook Chat.

Google has already committed to adding SMS integration and voice calling to Hangouts so things will certainly get better. Don’t get me wrong, the group video chat feature is very cool. I can see myself using that in many ways, just not with many friends.

PS: It’s just really with Jason Teen and no one else.

15GB For Google Users

14 May 2013

It doesn’t come as a surprise to me that Google is giving more free storage space to its users. In doing so, Google is also unifying the storage space used between Gmail, Google Drive and Google+ Photos across the 15GB bump that they are going to bestow upon users in the next few weeks.

I’m not really sure how they’re going to divvy up the space for users with grandfathered plans though. I logged into my Gmail and it’s showing I have 30GB of space available. Is that with the 20GB I have paid for yearly? (I’m on the grandfathered 20GB $5/year plan) Or would I get a total of 35GB once the new free storage kicks in?

On top of that, Google announced that app users will be getting a bump in storage above the free users to 30GB. I checked my Google App account and am still seeing the 10GB space I had before. It’s all very confusing! I’m sure Google is sorting the logistics of everything out behind the scenes and with Google I/O coming up in the next 2 days, hopefully things will be a little clearer.

I wonder if these upgrades will be enticing enough for me to give up my 100gb $99/yr Dropbox subscription?

Goodbye Sir Alex

9 May 2013
Alex Ferguson

Can’t believe I just got the news that Sir Alex has announced his retirement at the end of this season. It’s a shocking blow. I knew it was going to come sooner or later but didn’t think that this season would be his last.

There was news this morning that he might announce something about his retirement but nothing was confirmed. But half an hour ago, news started breaking out and a statement was released by Sir Alex himself saying that he will retire at the end of this season. Sources are saying David Moyes will be the new manager and I’m happy with that. He’s got good experience with English football, done well with Everton with limited resources. Everton has finished above Liverpool in the previous season and is poised to do the same this year.

With David Gill and Sir Alex leaving end of this season, United’s leadership will have a very different look soon. Hopefully whoever takes over the realms will continue Sir Alex’s work keeping United a world class team. Still can’t believe this happened. So surreal and it’s like getting punched in the chest. The last time I felt this way was when Steve Jobs passed away.

#ThankYouSirAlex

Messaging Wars

8 May 2013

These are the apps I have installed on my Macbook Pro for my texting, messaging and IM. Messages (default app from Mac OS X), Skype, Facetime, Adium (For MSN only), Tweetbot, Tweetdeck, Wedge (for App.net) and Viber.

And these are the chat services I use on my browser for other IM needs. Facebook chat and Google Talk.

These are the apps I have on my iPhone 5 that I use for texting, messaging and IM. Messages (default app on iOS), Skype, Facebook Messenger Chat, Whatsapp, Google+ Messenger, Tweetbot, Netbot (for App.net) and Viber

I would seriously pay someone a fortune for an app to consolidate all these services into a single app across iOS and Mac OS X.

WWDC 2013

28 April 2013

Tickets got sold out in TWO MINUTES flat. Apple’s developer conference isn’t like Google’s I/O event where they give out free stuff and it’s still as popular. It’s also much more expensive at $1500 per ticket compared to Google’s at $900.

Interest is waning over iOS and Mac development? I don’t think so.

Samsung Galaxy S4 Reviews

28 April 2013

Reviews for Samsung’s new flagship phone, the Galaxy S4 are popping up on the internet and the feeling from tech enthusiasts are that this is a gradual upgrade to the S3 with a ton of new features to bait you in buying the phone, but useless during your day to day usage. I’m sure it’s a capable smartphone and it will sell in the millions but according to many, it’s a cheap looking device compared to the HTC One or iPhone 5.

David Pearce from The Verge sums it up:

The GS4 just flat out doesn’t feel like a premium device. It’s still made of slimy, slippery white plastic with silver edges and feels gross to hold. The device itself is relative ergonomic and relatively comfortable to hold. But I found myself constantly wiping my hands off thinking they were sweaty.

Samsung justifies the cheap material for a removable back cover which allows you the option to travel with an extra battery for a longer battery life experience. I don’t know if Samsung knows this but battery packs like these does exactly the same thing.

I’m not all sour grapes about the S4 though. I admit modes available on the S4′s camera app are pretty awesome and it wouldn’t hurt to have a little more options in the settings of the iOS camera app.

I wonder if Samsung fanboys will have the “Who would know I’m holding an S4 because it looks too similar to the S3″ attitude when it comes to purchasing the phone. Don’t worry, we’ll all know when you’re doing the air swipe on the trains like an idiot.

Psy’s Gentleman

14 April 2013

I’m not expecting it to blow up like Gangnam Style is but this new video of Psy’s new song Gentleman is what the South Korean star is all about. Lavish costumes with outlandish colours and lots of weird dancing. A lot of hate seems to be directed towards the fact that he was mean to the girls in the video and being a jerk.

Last I heard, being mean to girls on a music video in context to the song the singer is singing isn’t illegal. Stop being femi-Nazis.

I’m on the fence on whether I like this one or not. Might take a couple more watching to decide but so far, I’m not loving the MC Hammer pants.

Facebook Home

5 April 2013

I like it. The UI is clean and it shows you photos your friends have posted right on the lockscreen of your Android mobile. And the fact that you can chat with your friends on Facebook Messages even when you’re in another app is awesome because the friends I chat with most are all on Facebook chat. Obviously Facebook Home is going to be available only for Android mobiles for now (and not even all Android mobiles can support it) and I doubt that Apple will allow Facebook Home to exist in the same form on the iOS.

The only thing that worries me is that the photos/status updates on the lock screen would only look good if you have friends that do exciting stuff and take photos like a pro photographer. My friends? They prefer to flood my news feed with articles of dead baby elephants.

90s Aussie Heroes of the Singapore National Football Team

3 April 2013

As a kid growing up in the 90s with a feverish passion for football, the Singapore national team playing in the Malaysian League was the pride and joy of the nation. Even though we were playing as a country, we were allowed to “purchase” foreign players during our time in the league. We had a number of notable Aussies playing for us. Craig Foster and Warren Spink in 1991, Alistair Edwards in 1993 and Abbas Saad in 1991, 1993 and 1994.

We got kicked out of the Malaysian League in 1994 after winning the Malaysian League and Cup double and things in the national team were never quite the same again. Yes we’ve won the regional championships 4 times now but the crop we had in the early 90s were a special one. They were even dubbed the “Dream Team”, a status that many believed befitted the team at that time. The team even recorded a song in 1993 and I remembered vividly I bought the cassette tape for it.

Fast forward a decade later, I moved to Melbourne in 2005. I started supporting the local club Melbourne Victory in the A-League and have fallen in love with the passion of the fans in this country for the beautiful game.

It was also pretty awesome to be seeing Craig Foster on SBS presenting football related shows and brought back a heap of emotions I had as a kid when I watched him play for Singapore.

Abbas Saad was quite the cult figure in Singaporean football. You can mention his name in the country and everyone will remember his silky skills and how potent Singapore was as an attacking force with Fandi Ahmad, V.Sundramoorthy, Alistair Edwards and him in the same team. Abbas Saad’s most memorable performance would be his hattrick against Pahang in the 1994 Malaysian Cup final where we destroyed our opponents 4-0 to bring the Malaysia Cup back to Singapore after a 14 year wait. Unfortunately, Abbas Saad was convicted of intention to match fix in Singapore after the Malaysia Cup final and was banned in football related work in Singapore. The ban was only recently lifted in 2009 after 15 years.

Finally, it wasn’t until a couple of weeks back when Perth Glory decided to appoint Alistair Edwards as interim coach (now full time) that I realized he has been the assistant coach for the Joeys (Australian U20 team) all this while. Great to see him again and like Craig Foster and Abbas Saad, Alistair brought back heaps of memories during his time in Singapore. As it turns out, his team Perth Glory is playing against Melbourne Victory this Friday in the A-League Finals elimination game. On any other occasion, I would have been behind Alistair’s back but because they’re playing against my beloved Victory, I would have to be supporting Victory and hope they kick Perth Glory out of the finals.

No hard feelings Alistair.

I’m really fortunate to have grown up in the time where these Aussie footballers were marking their mark in Singaporean football and it was an absolutely joy to be able to see them play. The fact that I’m now living in Australia and am able to keep up with their work in football makes it even more amazing for me and my Melbourne residing, football crazy Singaporean friends.

From the bottom of my heart, I thank everyone of them for making football so special to me.

PS: I tweeted Alistair the Dream Team video and surprisingly got a reply from him on Twitter. You have no idea how happy that makes me.