Disqus - Latest Comments for hengwoon

Re: The Martian Surprise and Birthday Gifts

hengwoon — Fri, 10 Oct 2008 05:08:16 -0000

wow martian is teh awsumness =D

eh, why does he sleep with his glasses on ??

Re: The Martian Surprise and Birthday Gifts

hengwoon — Thu, 09 Oct 2008 04:58:06 -0000

wtf abortion? surgery? lol ... might as well have gone with the house burnt down and im homeless T.T or the dog ate my cellphone so I will be out of reach for awhile.

Re: Twentieth

pinkpau — Tue, 07 Oct 2008 05:43:26 -0000

hahahaha that is the most ridiculous accusation i've ever heard. but it made me laugh at 5 in the morning, so.. :P

Re: Twentieth

hengwoon — Tue, 07 Oct 2008 02:49:50 -0000

lies! i'm sure it was because 2/3rds of the paper had no questions =p

Happy birthday!

Re: pig is testing new comment system

hengwoon — Sun, 05 Oct 2008 04:27:50 -0000

sweet commenting system xD

Re: Pinkpau’s Guide to US College Applications, Part 1

hw — Sat, 04 Oct 2008 03:26:03 -0000

For people that are kinda tight on budget, you could always apply for a community college in the US, and then transfer to the uni of your choice. Community colleges are much cheaper, and you can usually do your first 2 years there and then final 2 years in the uni you want to transfer to. It is also easier to get into a community college, and for some unis, it's easier to transfer from a community college to uni as some unis take in more people from community colleges than from straight-up international applicants. So if you don't have a 4.0 gpa or super results coming out of SPM / Pre-u, might want to consider this approach.

However, not all unis accept transfers from community colleges, probably will be competitive / difficult to transfer in some cases, so as in any other decisions one makes in life, please do some research =p

Also, one advice when choosing a university to attend is to choose one that is highly ranked for your intended major. Ivy schools might be prestigious, but might not be the best for a certain major/field. Harvard is probably the best for business but not necessarily for other majors, ie chemistry.

Every year, USA Today ranks colleges and unis in the States and is generally regarded as the 'best' rankings you can find, and many corps/companies use them as well. Link: http://colleges.usnews.rankingsandreviews.com/college

or you can try Princeton Review: www.princetonreview.com/college-rankings.aspx?uidbadge=%07

The US education is great in the sense that you get to pick your classes as long as you satisfy the requirements for your major and graduation. I think all universities also have a broad general education requirement for the first 2 years, so at least when you graduate from uni you know some history, chemistry, physics, music etc and not just whatever you're majoring in. Basically as many others have pointed out, in the first 2 years is mainly general education and satisfying requirements for your major. Then in your sophomore year you declare for your major and depending on your results in the first 2 years, you might or might not get admitted to your major. In the final 2 years is usually when you do your major classes and finishing off whatever classes / technicals you need to graduate.

As for the college/university confusion, in the US as far as I know a university is a collection of colleges. I went to the University of California - Berkeley, which comprises of Haas School of Business, College of Letters and Sciences, College of Engineering, etc.

Also, Pre-U is a good thing to have, but not necessary IMO. I went to a community college in California (De Anza College) right after my high school , using my SPM trials results (because official spm results weren't out when I applied), and then transferred to UC Berkeley after 2 years at De Anza, and did my final 2 years majoring in Computer Science at UC Berkeley and graduated. Saved me a couple ten thousands usd, and also time (graduated 1+ years before some of my friends, would've graduated 2+ years earlier if I took summer classes), though like mentioned earlier ivy league = pre-u at very least

Oh, and the Malaysian American Commission on Education Exchange (MACEE) is a good place to go to learn about colleges/unis in the US. http://www.macee.org.my/

Re: I Am Speechless

hw — Sat, 13 Sep 2008 11:21:54 -0000

"there is something very, very, very wrong if a POLITICIAN who makes RACIST STATEMENTS AND THREATS is protected by the law"

not only is one politician protected by the law, but another one is being arrested because of our country's draconic laws (or rather a specific one). Took them a few days to throw a suspension for one, and the other ISAed in less time.

in any case, with the latest reversal of the arrest on the SCJP reporter, I think the govt itself is trying to incite hatred and racial tensions so we would all fight against each other, and probably the one way that could unite the Malays together.

funny thing is that this is not like decades ago, we aren't that susceptible to such tactics anymore...

Re: Things I Learnt About College And NYC Part 1

hw — Sun, 07 Sep 2008 05:57:38 -0000

I so agree that the bubble milk tea in the States is much better than any that they serve here in Msia, plus they arent so kiam siap with the pearls over there.

My average expenditure for books/literature per semester is about 400 usd for 3-4 classes ... and I buy used books too. There are probably much cheaper ways to get books than go to the used bookstores that are overly advertised everywhere on campus. I found that the best way would be to trade textbooks or attend student-organised used book sales. much much cheaper. If you plan to buy from Amazon, look early and plan your classes early, sometimes books can take pretty long to arrive especially if they are from 3rd party sellers and not Amazon itself.

How come you have to walk so far, tak de campus buses or free public transportation that you can take from your dorm to classes?

As for credit cards, you should just get a debit card from your bank in the States. Don't use credit cards in Malaysia.. transaction rates and the extra charges on exchange rates will kill you. Ringgit is damn weak now too.

Now that you're in the States, internet's probably fast enough for you to stream tv channels online too, though might eat up your bandwidth limit if your dorm has one =D

Re: Pinkpau’s Guide to Hong Kong

hw — Sun, 17 Aug 2008 13:37:20 -0000

sigh.. reminder to self... dont read pinkpau's posts when extremely hungry at 130am

nice guide SA, will bookmark this for next trip to HK.. hopefully XD

Re: Randomosity

hw — Fri, 08 Aug 2008 03:04:29 -0000

su ann, i think you can just call dell customer support and have your warranty transferred over. They have some regulations/restrictions/t&c on the transfers but should be no problem going from MY->USA or vice versa, at least i had no problems. just make sure you get the same warranty/years transferred over.

the reason why it is cheaper in the States is because of the great deals/offers you can get for laptops over there. Minus that, the price is about the same (maybe more expensive because of the tax there). Dell Malaysia has some crappy deals like rm100 off or free laptop bag etc, while Dell US has discounts like usd 500 off, but not all the time though. End of year is near, so should start keeping your eye out for discounts and coupons.

Re: Randomosity

hw — Thu, 07 Aug 2008 03:29:08 -0000

I've been using dell all my life, have bought 3 laptops, 2 desktops from dell and 1 widescreen 22" lcd from them so far for myself and family. Like WunMin mentioned earlier, Dell has the best customer service in Malaysia amongst other similar companies.

The Dell 9300 laptop I've been using is about 3 years old, still working fine, except for an issue on LCDs for machines shipped around my purchase time where vertical lines appear after a year or so. Though my warranty expired, Dell acknowledged it was their fault shipping systems with faulty LCDs (produced by some other company) and when I called them they sent a technician over to my place to get the lcd replaced FOC and in under an hour.

I haven't had any overheating problems with my Dell... unless of course you rest your laptop on your bed which will obviously prevent hot air from dissipating via the bottom of your laptop.

The Dell xps m1330 is damn sexy. I've been contemplating getting either that, or the xps m1530 (which has better specs, albeit heavier and slightly more bulky) as a replacement for my 3 year old inspiron. One thing I can advice you, is that you should definitely buy your system in the States. Dell US has much better rebates/discount vouchers and if you look around online for them, you can get like up to 750usd discount on some systems. I have no fracking idea why Dells in Malaysia are more expensive, considering they are all made in Malaysia.. I bought my laptop from the States and it came inside a box that said 'Made in Malaysia'...

So yeah, look out for great deals online from Dell. Make sure you get the 3 year full warranty as well, as usually that is when most laptops start to malfunction or need repairs. No point getting 1 year or 2 year warranty, as the problems usually dont surface till after 1.5-2 years.

Get a 9cell battery as well if you are going to travel around alot.. it adds abit to the weight but it's well worth it..

If you do end up buying your laptop in Malaysia, you can always request for transfer of ownership to the States, and if I'm not mistaken the warranty transfers over as well. Also one reason why you want to buy your laptop in the States is that the power/voltage etc and sockets over there are different, so save you some trouble.

but yeah, dell laptops do jolt you if you rest them on your bare lap, not sure about the new xps 1330 though, but that can be easily solved by just taping the screws/contact points that cause the jolts with some tape/rubber/pads

other great laptops are lenovo/ibm , toshiba.

and omg you're going off already! have fun in the States, blogs lots + lots of pictures!!

Re: The X-Party and Gifts for the Martian

hw — Thu, 31 Jul 2008 23:09:01 -0000

those chopsticks look really cool... i love stainless steel chopsticks and wth they can be split into two

he just got the psp so sure lar he so obsessed about it, give it a while...

or you could hide his psp =p

Re: Who I Would Share My Last Oreo With

hw — Mon, 28 Jul 2008 13:44:38 -0000

aw pau =( i has teers in mah eyez.... such a touching, honest, heartfelt, sincere video/post... just amazes me how you can connect to your readers so damn well and convey your feelings like that

we all take certain things for granted at some point of time and not realise it... we can all get distracted by our own personal stuff that we often forget the ones who brought us into this world.. after watching your video it dawned upon me that despite me working at home and being at home most of the time, i dont get to see my parents much at all because i wake up when my parents (and everyone else) is asleep and sleep when they are awake.

anyway, you're a good person and a good daughter, your video and post exemplifies it. though your dad does have a point, imo you should spend more time with your family especially since you'll be heading off to the States very soon for a long time...

but yeah, no matter what you do your dad (and mom) will still love you... i'm sure if your dad sees the video he'll be really touched and happy.

Re: Wong Wenqi Is Weird!

hw — Thu, 24 Jul 2008 02:42:27 -0000

after reading this post i was thinking ... wtfwwqhax......

haha love the thai flies one..

Re: The Dark Knight and Martian’s Birthday

hw — Sun, 20 Jul 2008 13:07:37 -0000

Happy (belated) birthday martian!

wah psp! i want one too! qq... everyone has one of those nowadays.... hehe...

wei dont need blog about you and martian.. got enough stories to become tv drama series?

Re: Rainforest World Music Festival 2008 and Other Things

hw — Thu, 17 Jul 2008 10:41:19 -0000

i think it's just better to have a few really close friends that you can rely on, than an army of friends that .. well... are just friends ie people you know and hang out with every once in a while... too much maintenance and expectations.

I totally understand how you feel about your friends whom you so cared about, backstabbing you or offending you etc, had that happen a few times and even one of my closest friends back in sec school turned on me...

Sometimes you just wonder how these people can be that insensitive, evil, selfish, treacherous etc and take advantage of your friendship just like that... well I guess there are just that kind of people in the world otherwise we would be living really peacefully and no this world is not like that unfortunately.

the highest layer of friends will be the ones that come to you whenever you need them, whilst the despicable rest will come to you whenever they need you.

Re: Early Morning Peanut Butter Cup-Induced Commentary

hw — Wed, 18 Jun 2008 19:40:24 -0000

wah get to spend weekend at ritz carlton so niiiice... i want also ><

omg dcfc aug 12 confirmed in singapore... wtf!! tickets go on sale in about 10 days...so yeah it's in singapore.... who's goinggg???

O.o and I like the new upside down photo =D

btw, you should be glad you're going to the States soon, malaysia is getting politically more and more screwed up and messed up.

Re: Things To Look Forward To

hw — Tue, 17 Jun 2008 16:13:29 -0000

I'll be going to Beauty & the Beast on the 25th. 30% CIMB discount is too hard to pass up, and although I didn't get the best seats for the rm250 tier which I would've gotten if I had chosen maybe sat/sunday, trying to save up at the moment :p

Re: Things To Look Forward To

hw — Mon, 16 Jun 2008 14:25:57 -0000

i share your sentiment......

but i might just head down to sg to catch them if so.... not sure when they'll be coming around again.

Re: I Am Going To Manchester!

hw — Mon, 16 Jun 2008 11:53:48 -0000

omg free mr potato for the police? like they arent out of shape already but i guess the chips compliment coffee real well.

Re: The Homecoming

hw — Fri, 13 Jun 2008 09:36:52 -0000

5/5 emo

=p jk . beautiful post . sometimes i wish i could write just like you.

father's day is around the corner, and I just realised that I haven't planned anything in the midst of getting all caught up with work these past few days. I read your post again, and it struck me how my dad's been real good to me ie sending me to and from the train stations, driving me wherever I ask him to even though he was halfway doing something of his own, getting things done for me without even me asking him to, and basically just being there for me the entire time...

at the end of the year my parents will be migrating to australia with my brother, and i'll be staying back for my own reasons.. happy i was initially that i'll be by myself and be totally independent, but somehow now i'm not looking forward to that and i'll be missing the unconditional tlc that i receive day after day from them not just via their gestures and simple questions of 'have you eaten dinner? want me to buy anything back for you? ' but also their presence in the house that they built for my brothers, for them, and for me.

getting all emo now, but yeah. see what your posts do to people? :P

Re: Things To Look Forward To

hw — Wed, 11 Jun 2008 16:23:29 -0000

Ooooh I probably will be going for Beauty & the Beast too, just haven't decided on a date yet.

Yeah, I'd go to Miss Saigon too if they had it here.

And wow, didn't know there were so many dcfc fans in malaysia too.

Re: Things To Look Forward To

hw — Tue, 10 Jun 2008 19:39:51 -0000

O.o DCFC coming to KL? Where you get that news?

Transatlanticism is a great album/song. A lil emo though.... I love 'Passenger Seat' and 'A Lack of Color', and of course 'Transatlanticism' =D

Heard they have a new album couple months ago, haven't listened to it yet but jsut wondering if you have.

I wish Malaysian radio stations have some DCFC songs on their playlist, most of my exposure to them have been from listening to US radio both online and while I was studying at Berkeley.

Do you listen to Secondhand Serenade? They're a great indie group as well.

Re: Ice Cream Moments

hw — Sun, 08 Jun 2008 15:04:18 -0000

Heh been real busy lately with work and rl stuff, but the hectic days and sleepless nights are gone (for now at least, till my boss dumps another pile on me) ...

Re: Ice Cream Moments

hw — Fri, 06 Jun 2008 10:14:31 -0000

coldstone creamery is imo the teh best ice cream place.. to me it's like krispy kreme for ice cream. you have got to try it when you get to the States. They have less choices than BR but the stuff you can mix with your ice cream and the taste of it imo is better than BR or even HD. HD is overpriced anyway.......

i must try NZN, went past the stores multiple times in Bangsar Village and Midvalley but never actually tried it.