This is how I remember Artest. That was one fun brawl to watch.

Apparently no one noticed stupid Ron Artest manning the paint. He made the rebound and the game-winning, buzzer-beating shot. Were it not for him the game would have gone to overtime, where the Suns could have won to take the series lead, but stupid Ron Artest had to be the hero of the goddamn day. So the Lakers won 101-103 and now lead the Western Conference Finals series 3-2. Game 6 is on Sunday morning (Saturday evening in the States), in Phoenix’s home turf. Games 3 and 4 showed us just how well the Suns can perform with homecourt advantage, so here’s hoping they force a Game 7.

I actually haven’t followed the NBA for at least five years now. I only started following the playoffs when the Conference Finals began. Back when I still had the time to watch the games, I rooted for the Phoenix Suns—Steve Nash, Amare Stoudamire, Shawn Marion, Rajah Bell, and Leandro Barbosa were their starting five back then, if memory serves. Only Steve and Amare are still on the Phoenix roster today. I actually don’t know why I decided to root for Phoenix when the makeup of the team has changed quite a lot. All things considered, Los Angeles probably has a much more solid lineup. (Blasphemy, I know!) Nevertheless, GO, SUNS, GO! *clap clap clapclapclap*

***

My emo-ness has gotten me published on IndieInk. This is the first time I’ve been published on II, although it’s really the third if you count the two times I was published on IndieBloggers, which was the precursor to IndieInk. Read my piece, “Feeling”, here; submit your essays here and your photos here. Learn more about IndieInk.

©2010 Deantastic!. All Rights Reserved.

A KLM Boeing 747, just after taking off from KJFK in FlightGear.

I’m an avid, if mediocre, user of flight simulation programs, being a bit of an aviation fanatic. So when I got Jamby, one of the first things I did was scout for a good flight simulator for Mac OS X. The problem is, one can say that flight simulators fall at least partly under the “Gaming” category of software, and if there’s one thing Macs do badly, it’s run games.

Windows users are much luckier, as they have a lot of options. Microsoft makes a commercial flight simulator program for Windows called Flight Simulator X, which, from what I’ve read, renders an immersive flight simulation experience. For cheapskates and open source junkies, there’s FlightGear, a free flight simulator, which is developed and maintained by a vibrant open-source community. There’s even a lightweight flight simulator for Windows called YSFlight, for those who don’t care about fancy graphics and just want the unadulterated feeling of flying a plane.

Mac OS X users have a few choices. Flight Simulator X is a Windows-only program, but there’s a rough OS X equivalent developed by Laminar Research called X-Plane. X-Plane is a commercial flight simulator for Mac OS X, as well as for Linux and Windows. X-Plane is so kickass, there’s even an FAA-certified version of it for sale! A license costs $29 plus shipping, which may sound steep, until you find out that it ships with six dual-layer DVDs with installers for Windows, Mac and Linux, and scenery for the entire world. It doesn’t make the price sound more bearable, but it sure does make it more reasonable. (No purchase-and-download option is available, which is too bad since it would be more environmentally friendly.) For those who, like me, do not have $29 to fund their aviation fantasies, there is FlightGear for Mac, a free flight simulator for Mac OS X. This is the one I use, and it works just as well as its Windows counterpart, although I have to say it’s already crashed on me a couple of times.

If you want, though, you can use Flight Simulator X on Mac OS X…well, sort of. Mac OS X has a feature called Boot Camp, which allows you to dual-boot Windows alongside Mac OS X. If you’re really itching to use Flight Simulator X on your Mac, just install Windows via Boot Camp (official Apple instructions here—WARNING, opens a PDF file), then install FSX on your Windows partition. If you’re a real aviation junkie, you can even devote your entire Windows partition to your flight simulators.

You can raise any questions about free and paid flight simulators by leaving a comment on this post. You can also contact me.

©2010 Deantastic!. All Rights Reserved.

Tabletop

Envelop Desk attached to wider desk for non-computer stuff. Photo from ikea.com

The core component of any fancy workspace is the tabletop. I’ve always wanted the kind that has a corner, like Ikea’s GALANT corner-desk left. A much more extravagant (and much more expensive) solution is the Intent Furniture setup from Herman Miller. I’d personally prefer a modification on the Intent Furniture setup—one that includes the Envelop Desk, also from Herman Miller, attached to a longer work desk for non-computer-related tasks  (see picture on left).

Seat

Profile of the Embody Chair. Photo from Flickr / Bfionline

For the past four years, I’ve had to contend with sub-par seating in my small study desk/workspace here at home. Since freshman year in high school, I’ve used only three chairs: a monobloc plastic chair that feels more at home in a government office lobby than in a home setting, a wooden dining seat with a comfortably high backrest but ridiculously low seat height, and another wooden dining chair with a nice seat height but  an inconvenient seat depth. Throughout the years, I’ve experimented with ways to make the most out of this poor situation: I often pile a pillow or two on top of the seat so my ass doesn’t break after hours of sitting on such a hard surface, and place another pillow against the backrest so my back doesn’t break while I’m working.

My dream workspace is a world away from this problem. I’m sure many a person will vouch for the Herman Miller Celle Chair as the chair to have in a workspace. As far as I know it’s one of the best work chairs you can get out there. Here’s a review by tech blogger Paul Stamatiou back in 2007. A more recent Herman Miller model, the Herman Miller Embody Chair, has received similar acclaim; in fact, tech blog Gizmodo calls it “the best chair we’ve ever sat on“. If there’s anything backbreaking about these seats, however, it’s the price tag attached to them. The Embody is priced at a ridiculous $1,600 (I repeat, $1,600—that’s more than an iMac!) while the Celle Chair sells for $450 in Amazon.

Computing

The Apple iMac. Photo from Flickr / stephenhackett

Let me be frank: although I constantly praise FOSS and use Ubuntu as my main OS for my day-to-day activities, I make no bones about the fact that I really want a Mac. It’s not just because it’s shiny and has a picture of a half-eaten fruit on it, either. The Mac is the computer of choice of professionals, businessmen, tech geeks, and artists. Its amazing hardware custom-built for its remarkable operating system makes it an excellent choice regardless of your inclination or profession. It doesn’t have the clunkiness and vulnerability of Windows and offers a wider array of software and a better user experience than Linux.

The crown jewel of the workspace of my dreams would be a 27-inch iMac complete with a Logitech mouse + keyboard combo. The iMac should also be loaded up with incredible software: Adobe Creative Suite 4, iWork, and Microsoft Office for Mac, among others.

My workspace should also feature a number of devices that take my computing experience to the next level. For my printing needs I’d like the super badass HP Officejet J3680 All-in-One Printer, Fax, Scanner, and Copier. For networking I’d definitely need a Netgear router, maybe a Wireless-N 300.

I’d also need some other gadgety stuff. For example, this fancy iPod dock from JBL. For backup purposes I should also have at least three Western Digital external hard drives (three for redundancy).

Writing

A Montblanc Meisterstück and a Moleskine. Look at that thing. It's gorgeous. Photo from Flickr / idreamoutloud

The crown jewel of the workspace of my dreams would be a Montblanc Meisterstück 149. I would dedicate a drawer to it and the bottles upon bottles of only the best ink there is to be had. For writing that doesn’t require or befit of the use of a fountain pen, I would need a Montblanc Bohème rollerball.

I would also keep a Moleskine 12-month daily planner on my table for scheduling and organization. For everything else writing-related I would have a couple of ruled Moleskines. Perhaps there would also be a few boxes of stationery for letters, notes to friends, addenda to my Grand Plan for World Domination, and the like.

Other

I’d also like a good desk lamp, such as the Forså work lamp from Ikea. Some implements from Rolodex like their letter tray and pencil cup, too. (Not their actual rolodex, though; no one uses that anymore.)

Finally, my whole workspace and workflow should be designed in accordance with David Allen’s patented Get Things Done (GTD) system.

* * *

What does your dream workspace look like? Anything you would add to, subtract from, or change about mine?

©2010 Deantastic!. All Rights Reserved.

The skillfully written piece reads in part:

At buti na rin lang mayroon tayong sariling wika. Di sapat ang Inggles para iparamdam sa inyo ang suklam na nararamdaman namin sa inyo. Di sapat ang Inggles para ipakita sa inyo ang pagkamuhi na nararamdaman namin sa inyo. Di maarok ng Inggles ang lalim ng poot na nararamdaman namin sa inyo.

Isinusuka na kayo ng taumbayan, mahirap man sumuka ang gutom.

Bravo.

©2010 Deantastic!. All Rights Reserved.

Written in the caption: "Military honor guard carefully removes the coffin of Mrs. Arroyo out of the Manila Cathedral."

Just so we’re clear, it was former Philippine president Corazon Aquino who was interred yesterday. President Arroyo, the current Philippine president, is in fact still alive.

So why the mishap? It’s probably an honest mistake. Ade suggests an MS Word macro might be the culprit.

Still, it carries a whole lotta LULZ. You have to wonder: with the names of Tita Cory and Pres. Arroyo being switched around in TV, online, and now print media a whole lot these days, you have to wonder: could this be a Freudian slip? An omen from heaven?

(President Arroyo, I wouldn’t wish death upon even you, OK? Please to take this in jest, kthxbai.)

[Props to Ade.]

©2010 Deantastic!. All Rights Reserved.

I was first introduced to The Fray last year. I was on a trip to Baguio and, while in Manila the day before I came back home, grabbed a copy of their album How to Save a Life from Oddysey. The emotion in their music captivated me—from the pain of losing a loved one in How to Save a Life to the unexplainably familiar feelings encapsulated in Over My Head.

You Found Me thrives on tangible emotion. Isaac, the band’s vocalist, puts the story behind the song well:

“You Found Me is a tough song for me. Its about the disappointment, the heart ache, the let down that comes with life. Sometimes you’re let down, sometimes you’re the one who lets someone else down. It gets hard to know who you can trust, who you can count on. This song came out of a tough time, and I’m still right in the thick of it. There’s some difficult circumstances my family and friends have been going through over the past year or so and can be overwhelming. It wears on me. It demands so much of my faith to keep believing, keep hoping in the unseen. Sometimes the tunnel has a light at the end, but usually they just look black as night. This song is about that feeling, and the hope that I still have, buried deep in my chest.”

My first reaction after obtaining and listening to the song was simply wow. The lyrics are powerful, and the music (which has become characteristic of The Fray) only adds to its appeal. If you haven’t gotten a copy of the song yet, you should check it out.

You Found Me is available now on iTunes. If you’re looking for lyrics, here‘s a nice page. They’ve also put up a viral video on YouTube, but unfortunately they’ve disabled embedding. Here’s the You Found Me Viral Video page for you.

©2010 Deantastic!. All Rights Reserved.

Aviary is a creativity suite geared toward all genres of art, be it typography, music, photography, video—name it, Aviary’s got it. They’ve listed a total of 18 applications on their tools page, although as of now only two—Phoenix, a Photoshop-like app I’ll be talking about later, and Peacock, a pattern generation service—are available to users, with a third one, Toucan (a color swatches and palettes creator) available to a select few.

Although the service is in invite-only beta, it looks to be very promising and, with further improvements, could prove a tough competitor in its market.

Phoenix, Web-based photo editor

Trying out Phoenix's magic wand tool. If you squint hard enough, you'll notice that it's running in a Firefox window.

Phoenix is Aviary’s flagship product. It’s a Web-based photo editor with a lot of the functionalities we’ve all come to know and love on Adobe Photoshop. For example, it has a Layers feature, eerily similar to the one in Photoshop, and the menus and tools in the app may strike as familiar, as well. While at present its features are limited (lasso doesn’t have a “magnetic” version; no masks for me to refine my selection), I don’t see why its developers can’t integrate more functionalities to it in the future.

At present, though, I can’t say I’ll use Phoenix for all my hefty photo editing. It’s no Photoshop (at least, not yet ). I will tell you, though, that it is one step ahead of Picnik and Photoshop Express, since it does more than touch up the brightness and contrast of your pictures.

The other Aviary app available to me at the moment, Peacock, generates patterns for you to use. I haven’t tinkered with it much yet, and I figure it’s going to take some training before I can use this thing without having to look at its Help page every three seconds, so I’ll get back to you on this one.

Side notes

Aviary can be easily classified into the “cloud computing” category, and as earlier mentioned, it can be a viable alternative to that expensive photo editor that’s eaten up half your hard drive space. Loading times are an expected qualm about services like this. Even now, it takes a considerable amount of time for Phoenix to load up (I’m on wireless broadband), and I wonder how its developers can keep it streamlined and responsive enough without having to sacrifice functionality. (The same goes for the other members of the Aviary suite, such as the Myna audio editor and the Starling video editor.) Still, as new technologies continue to break the surface, and as existing technologies continue to get better, I’m confident Aviary will—eherm, excuse the pun—fly pretty well.

As I said, it’s an invite-only thing. I have a very limited number of invitations, so if you want to try it out, you can panhandle for an invite from me by commenting on this post or by contacting me.

Aviary is developed by Worth1000, LLC, a company I heard about only now.

[Link to Aviary website]

©2010 Deantastic!. All Rights Reserved.

From that little congregation in Punta, Sta. Ana, Manila, the Iglesia has grown and expanded vastly, even establishing a congregation in Honolulu, Hawaii only 50 years after its conception. The Church now has a presence in around 90 countries and territories worldwide. More than 100 different races and ethnicities comprise its population. Truly, the Iglesia has gone far since its early days—farther than its adamant detractors could have ever imagined.

To God be the glory on this auspicious occasion.

[The author is a member of the Iglesia ni Cristo.]

©2010 Deantastic!. All Rights Reserved.

Daniel says that a bunch of bloggers had thought about a bloggers union a few years back, but in a totally different way: they were concerned about healthcare, insurance, etc.—you know, like writers or labor unions. Of course, it would be difficult to form, much more manage, such a union which is heavily Web-based.

Scocco is thinking of a totally different bloggers union—one that would protect its members from such problems as content-scraping, online scams, and threats to their safety (and even their life) because of what they blog about. Moreover, Scocco suggests that the union could have a fund from bloggers’ contributions, and that this fund could be used to help bloggers who are facing legal issues (related to their blogging, or what they’ved blogged about, I presume). “Ideally, we would have some attorneys on board,” Daniel writes, “counseling the members on what action to take on the different situations.”

Scocco goes on to explain how a massive amount of bloggers—he puts the population of the hypothetical group at ~2,000—could become a huge impact. He gives the example of a blogger who has been scammed by an online company. That blogger would report the incident to the union, and the group, after verifying the validity of the problem, would then ask its members to write blog posts revealing the scamming company’s deeds. That’s around 2,000 posts condemning a company (which could have a healthy reputation!). That’s a lot of influence.

I love this prospect, and I hope it comes to fruition. I’ve contacted Daniel to show my support for the initiative, and I’m inviting you to do the same. You can read the article here, and if you wish to be included in the mailing list for the prospective organization, you can tell Daniel.

(Finally, a blog post. I was getting uncomfortable with the eerie silence of the site. I’m cooking up a quite lengthy post, and with any luck, it’ll go live on the site within the week. School has started, of course, and while I had previously planned on writing about the re-opening of classes, I forewent with it. Stay tuned, and thank you for reading the blog!)

©2010 Deantastic!. All Rights Reserved.