Priced at less than 60 cents each, one CD-R can store a humble 700MB. It was once the ultimate storage media, but as DVD and larger and cheaper harddisks pick up, this media is becoming more and more obselete.

But that's not all, TechARP reports that 10% of all CDR burned actually goes to waste - they do not last long. So before you lose all your precious childhood memories, or important files. Do make multiple backups. On another hard disk or pendrives, or perhaps make multiple copies of each discs. They are dirt cheap nowadays.

Forget what the manufacturer claim, whether it's made from super durable material, whether it's claimed to work for a century or so, better be prepared than to be sorry.

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After reading numerous good reviews on this laptop, I decided to get not one but two of this laptop, not for me of course. This is probably the best laptop that you can get if you do not wish to pay for a Windows license, perhaps you already have a license, perhaps you want to install open source like Ubuntu.

As this model is being phased out, I went to great length, calling few dealers and I finally managed to obtain the very last 2 units. The total for both laptops are slightly above RM4000.

These are the laptop specifications :-

AMD Turionâ„¢ X2 Dual-Core Mobile Processor RM-74 2.2Ghz
14.1" TFT WXGA high definition widescreen LCD panel with brightview technology;
3GB 667MHz
320GB HDD
DVD +/- RW Double Layer Drive with LightScribe;
Bluetooth;
802.11b/g;
Integrated 10Mbps, 100Mbps;
ports include USB 2.0 (3), VGA, HDMI, RJ-11, RJ-45, 1 headphone, 1 microphone jack,
Compaq Webcam with integrated microphone;
5-in-1 intergrated digital media reader slot;
ATI Radeon HD 3450 Graphics with 512MB
Free Nylon Carrying Case;
One year International Limited Warranty (parts/labor/carry-in)

Within hours, RM4000 is exchanged for 2 laptops. From this...

to this...

It comes with a nylon bag as well.

Then I started installing all the operating systems, drivers, softwares and updates.

Installing Windows Updates. (No, the pictures are authentic, no Photoshop duplication)

After using this laptop for few days, I can say that the performance is very good. Windows Aero works without any issue, the only concern is the heat. It get's very hot, up to 100C at times, so it's time to invest in a Cooler Master Notepal cooling pad.

So if you have a gaming computer , powered by Core 2 Duo E8400 and a Nvidia 9600GT, ain't these the games that you should be playing?

I remembered many years ago, when I was still in primary school, I would always go to my neighbour's house and play this game on his PC - RollerCoaster Tycoon 2. It's a roller coaster theme park management game, where you work on an existing theme park, manage the funds, obtain loan from banks, build rides, attract customers, etc. I would spend hours playing that game because back then.

I would prefer to play on 'sandbox' mode where the cash is unlimited and there is no mission to accomplish. I hated playing on mission mode, because after spending hours setting up the park, the whole park is gone when the mission is accomplished and we would have to start again from scratch.

This is how RCT2 looks like.

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I feel like wanting to play this game again, and hence I am now installing the RCT3.

Screenshot of RCT2

Ren Kwan recently told me about this local hosting company, TNN hosting which provided a cheap yet fast hosting service. If you have been following me on my blog, you would realize that it loads much faster now. I would have stayed with my previous hosting provider, Byethost , but they simply could not provide fast surfing speed over here to Malaysia users.

On top of that, it comes with a buy one free one promotion, so it seems to be a good deal. The speed can be felt immediately, try accessing the photo album , the photos now load instantly.

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Thanks to SGregory and others from xda-developers, the latest Windows Mobile 6.5 Standard custom ROM is released. The WM6.5 files are extracted from the emulator as currently HTC seemed to be focusing on PDA devices that they sort of neglected smartphones. For HTC Tornado users, my guide has been updated and you can get the ROM now.

Let's flash the ROM

Side by side comparison of Windows Mobile 6.1 and Windows Mobile 6.5 homescreen. (Left is WM6.1 previewed using MyMobiler and right is WM6.5)

Windows Mobile 6.5 also features a new File Explorer and Widget installer

Overall, the ROM seems to be much faster and more responsive.