Having heard a friend, a renown part time photographer having lost all his portfolio accumulated for years just because of a single hard disk failure, by single I mean he did not backup his data, I decided not to take the risk of losing my life*.

I have consider few options. First, the ever popular cloud service Dropbox, Sugarsync. They backup user data onto their server and user can access them anywhere as long as there is internet access. The only problem is I have 500GB of data. That would take a week for initial backup, the reason being our tortoise speed Streamyx. Recovery time length will be the same in case of hard disk failure. Unfortunately UniFi hasn't arrive at my area. It's another indefinite wait for the TorMoise (TM) to crawl over my house. Not least, 500GB cloud storage ain't cheap.

Apple solution is Time Machine. User can either use Time Capsule or any external HDD. However Time Machine is not completely safe. Once the hard disk breaks down, the backup is gone. User will not be able to step back in time to rescue any accidentally deleted files.

RAID is the de facto in data backup. RAID cost has fallen significantly over the years. These days RM600 can get you a handsome 2TB external RAID HDD. For desktop users that's more easy since most mid range and above motherboard comes with RAID build in. But there's a problem. Say you are running RAID 1 and one of the HDD has bad sector. Data on the bad sector are lost and the lost are mirror onto the redundancy. Another scenario, you accidentally deleted a folder and empty trash only to find out days later. A RAID won't save you from that.

Thus the best backup is a combination of RAID plus Time Machine. Here's my setup.

I am using MacBook Pro 13". There's only two USB without FireWire. One is taken by iPhone/iPad sync cable. The other is connected to 7-port USB hub which is then connected to 6 USB devices, i.e. external HDD, scanner, laptop cooler, wireless keyboard/mice, monitor calibrator and card reader. Thank god I have Airport Express to run wireless printing. If I connect a USB external RAID HDD onto the same hub, that will significantly reduce the speed of my external HDD. Strangely the sync cable has to connect directly to MacBook, else iTunes can't sync successfully.

The option is to use a NAS RAID HDD. I choose Western Digital My Book World Edition II – 2TB for it's cost effectiveness, RM600. This little thing fits onto my bookshelf, connected to MacBook Gigabit Ethernet port. Just a word of reminder, even though on paper Gigabit LAN is twice the speed of USB (125MB/s vs 60MB/s), for software that utilize library files, such as iPhoto, iDocument and Aperture, putting the library on NAS will make it almost inaccessible. Slow…

Instead I setup WD to run Time Machine. Here's the guide from WD. The initial backup took half a day to complete, both my life in USB external HDD and the entire Mac OS X in MacBook. After the initial run, subsequent backup is a breeze with Time Machine running hourly in the background. My life is now in safe hands

*PS: If you still have no idea what life means, that's all your photos, musics, videos, books, magazines, etc.

What you need?

1. Visit IMI website and download the application form. Print the form on both side of an A4 paper, preferably with laser printer. Fill in all the required details.
2. 2 copies of recent photograph with light blue background (3.5 X 5 cm), a.k.a. passport photo.
3. Photocopy of MyKad (Identification Card) front and back on an A4 paper.
4. RM300 cash for 32 pages 5 years validity passport.

Most Klang Valley immigration office is filled with at least 50 people at any given operating time. There's a "hidden office" in Putrajaya that's not even listed in IMI website. IMI only posted it in the news page. The address on the website is incomplete. The full address is as followed.

Jabatan Imigresen W.P Putrajaya
Cawangan Preseint 14
Bangunan Chancery, Jalan Diplomatik 2, Presint 14
62542 Putrajaya

View Larger Map

Anyway I was just trying my luck today. It's 2:45pm after I collected MyKad. There are less than 10 people in the room and queue number 1114. I got my number, 1116! Now you know what I mean hidden

All in all,  it took 15 minutes to process my application and make payment. After that I head to Alamanda shopping mall which is 2km away to get some essentials. Come back by 4:30pm, my passport is ready. Siok!

View Larger Map

As we know Jabatan Pendaftaran Negara (JPN) offices are always crowded with people applying/renewing MyKad. As we know the chip does not last forever. I wouldn't complain. My credit card chip was damaged within a year plus. My old MyKad chip has lasted a good 8 years.

Without waiting in the queue and sit in the office for whole day just to renew a damage chip, the fastest way is to get it done thru MYEG. To be frank I am not a fan of MYEG. Their advertisement during World Cup 2010 is terrible. A bunch of idiots dancing for no reason and not related to the services MYEG offer.

First register an account on MYEG. Strangely JPN online application is from 8am to 11pm (Mondays to Fridays), 8am to 2pm (Saturdays) and 8am to 9pm (Sundays). Follow MYEG website and submit all the required details. Make payment RM12 with your credit card. RM10 for the new MyKad and RM2 for MYEG service. Yes, they are people who complain about the RM2. For god sake, RM2 saves you hours queuing at JPN office. It's cheaper than the transportation to get there.

Once done. Sit back and relax. Go do your things and get a good night sleep. You can check the application status online the following day.

If you don't mind driving down to Putrajaya JPN headquarters which I did since it's only 15 minutes from my house, the MyKad is ready to collect after 24 hours. For other Penisular offices, that will take 10 working days and 30 working days for Sabah and Sarawak. I got mine within 10 minutes arriving JPN office

Lastly, MYEG did not ask me nor pay me anything for writing this article.

Syndromes are in escalating order.

Syndrome no.1
Feel anxious, anxiety of the bugs as the infected patient cannot do anything but wait for a new release.

Syndrome no. 2
Keep searching the web, forum, blog for solutions.

Syndrome no. 3
Reports to developer, protest in forums and blog comments.

Syndrome no. 4
Browsing thru App Store in hope to find an temporary alternative. Worst case spent money purchasing few apps and in the end found out they do not meet your requirements or contains more bugs than the original apps. Syndrome repeats itself from no. 1 all over again.

Cure and only cure for now

Turn off all devices, head to the nearest swimming pool and dunk yourself into the water to cool down. It's the only place you can't use the devices, at least for now. (Start thinking of a waterproof case for iPhone and iPad…)

While waiting for Apple to release a fix, here's a temporary workaround without the need to go thru the painful restore process.

1. Download iPhone Configuration Utility. Mac OS X. Windows. Install and launch it. For Mac, it's installed under Applications-> Utilities.

2. Go to Library-> Configuration Profiles. Click on File-> New Configuration Profiles. Under General fill in Name and Identifier. They can be anything.

Goto Advanced. For Maxis, APN: unet, Username: maxis, Password: wap. Leave other fields blank, for Maxis customer. For other carrier please refer this link.

3. Connect your iPhone. Devices -> YOUR iPhone -> Configuration Profiles. Install the profiles you just created. Your iPhone will pop up and ask for install verification. Just click install. Once done, check under iPhone Settings -> General. There should be a new Profile selection. You should be able to access 3G/edge network now.

Voicemail and MMS still broken. For Malaysia iPhone we cannot change the APN settings without going thru some hardcore jailbreak + terminal hacking. Since iPhone 3GS new Bootrom jailbreak isn't available yet, and since I never use any of them, I don't bother to go further. 3G network is all I need.

Footnote: For those who are interested to enable voicemail and MMS you can study this article.

1. It's so much more expensive.
2. I waited long enough.
3. I already subscribe to Maxis data plan. I won't pay for another data plan.
4. I have iPhone 3GS.
5. I have a BT GPS receiver.

If you have iPhone 3G/3GS and BT GPS receiver you can save few hundred ringgit and go for iPad WiFi. Again, jailbreak saves the day and my wallet.

To turn WiFi iPad into iPad 3G you need MyWi. Yes they sound similar, but MyWi has nothing to do with ill-fated half breed national car Perodua Myvi. Sorry for Myvi owners, I am a fan of BBC Top Gear. The app is simple. On your iPhone, goto Cydia, search MyWi. Install it, not on iPad, but on iPhone. It gives free 10 days trial. Basically what it does is share your iPhone 3G/3GS 3G connection by creating a WiFi hotspot. In other words, MyWi turn your iPhone into a wireless router. The same way MacBook shares LAN connection thru WiFi. Desktop, laptop and any WiFi devices can connect to iPhone WiFi hotspot, not limited to Mac products. It too supports Bluetooth tethering and cable. Only thing is I don't see any 30-pin to 30-pin connector cable around. The advantage of WiFi tethering is multiple devices can tether at the same time. So far I only tested with three devices tether simultaneously. MyWi runs in background even with screen switch off to save battery. It supports 40 bit and 104 bit WEP Security to prevent others from accessing your WiFi HotSpot. For more information visit Rock Your iPhone.

Some might complain iPhone 3GS battery life is short and they want 10 hours internet surfing on iPad. That's a no brainier request. Imagine how expensive data plan is. With iPad, you probably use up half the monthly bandwidth within hours.

As for GPS, there are two apps in Cydia that connects your iPad to most BT GPS receiver in the market. The first is BTStack GPS (USD5), second is roqyBT (8 euro). Unfortunately Euro crisis is not as bad until Euro drop below USD. Hence I settle with BTStack GPS. I am using Holux M-241. It runs for 24 hours with a single AA battery. Matter of fact, I actually save my iPad battery with this method as we all know iPad/iPhone GPS antenna consumes a lot of power. Driving for half an hour, my iPad battery only reduce by 2%! In addition, iPad speaker is loud. I do not need to connect it to my car stereo. It's a dream to drive with a 9.7" navigation device. So far I tested with TomTom, Google Maps, Motion-X GPS HD, all fully compatible.

Overall I pay USD15 extra and upgraded to iPad 3G 

There are tons of reviews on iPad all over the web, hence I won't go into details. Instead I want to give few useful advice for iPad users.

1. iPad aluminum body is smooth, which translates to slippery, which means it is hard to hold and easier to slip and fall to the ground. Ouch! Most people will purchase a case to protect their precious iPad, as do I. Similar to iPhone, they are the soft case, hard case and leather case. My opinion is get a silicon case. For few reasons. One, it's cheaper than the other two. Second, silicon case provides natural grip. Third, it's the lightest of all three.

Since you are likely to use iPad for web browsing, books and magazines reading, chances are you gonna hold it for hours. Hard case generally doesn't do much good except protecting the surface. It's still slippery and requires more strength to hold it. Your hands will feel fatigue sooner than silicon case. Leather case too is nice to hold but most are bulky and heaviest of all three. iPad weights 680g. Adding a silicon case bring it close to 900g, that's equivalent to the thickest magazine you can find in market. Leather case means over 1kg. Unless you don't mind the weight of a hardcover bibliography.

There isn't much choice for now in Malaysia Mac shop. I am using Capdase Soft Jacket2 Xpose (RM128). I like it transparent and comes with removable stand. What I don't like is the hollow circle around the Apple logo, which isn't so bad as a round protector is included.

2. iPad is not scratch resistant, a screen protector is a must. There are two types, matte/anti-glare and crystal/clear. I prefer clear type because matte type spoil iPad crystal clear display. They are many below RM50 screen protector but they likely gives rainbow effect, a big trade-off for such a good screen. A good screen protector should not affect iPad screen performance. You wouldn't wanna spoil the experience of such a good screen with a cheap protector. I am using Power Support Crystal Film.

3. Use only Apple original/approved charger. iPad requires 10W charger, which is double of iPhone. The box comes with one. If you need spare, get the original. Don't toast your iPad just because you want to save few ten ringgit and purchase unauthorized China brand charger. It's a no-brainer vs no-branded case. After all, original charger cost less than RM100. Same goes to car charger.

4. There's really no left right up down for using iPad. Whichever way you position it the screen will rotate accordingly. In fact in portrait mode I prefer to have the home button on top for easy access and not blocking the speaker. Apple is considerate enough to include a disable rotation button (on iPhone it's the mute button) for NASA astronaut. 

5. Jailbreak is not really necessary. With the lack of many iPhone features, and few compatible Cydia apps, jailbreak doesn't make iPad performs magic besides SBSettings, Backgrounder (multitasking) and MyWi. Some would add, "Installous". Anyhow, to keep the jailbreak spirit running, I had mine prisonbreak.

6. Lastly, DO NOT borrow your iPad to anyone to bring home ! Yes, be selfish. It's too addictive! Your friend will give all the excuses and drag on returning. Two of my friends "lost" their iPad for being too generous. One is forced to sell to the borrower. Beware!

PS: All photos are taken from iLounge.com