DBAN (Darik's Boot And Nuke)

It was the first time I tried installing Windows on a hard drive that had Linux Mint installed. Windows setup wasn't even recognizing the hard drive. So, after searching online, I found out about DBAN. You can download the tool from www.dban.org and store it in a USB drive.

Once you set up your BIOS to boot from that drive, it brings you to a menu where you have several methods of nuking the hard drive. I read at first that once you begin the nuking process, it wipes all data off of all drives including the USB drive itself. So, I thought that once I was in the menu, I should unplug the USB drive since the program was already residing in memory.

I was wrong. None of the formatting methods worked after I unplugged the USB drive. All of them were giving an error. I tried pressing F4 to troubleshoot the error but there was no joy. So, I decided to restart and just keep the USB plugged in during the entire process. And DBAN did format the USB drive along with my SATA hard drive. And the entire process took 7 hours for a 500 GB hard drive. Talk about low-level format indeed.

But it worked. Windows setup was able to detect the drive afterwards.

My only complaint was the advertisement splash screen at the end of the formatting process. I don't mind having the add as long as it allows me to escape it somehow. Pressing Ctrl-Alt-Delete did nothing. I had to do a hard shutdown just to reboot my PC. Despite this, I would still recommend this tool to anyone having a hard time installing on a hard drive with Linux installed.

Baler 2014

We reserved tickets for a bus trip to Baler via Genesis Bus lines. But on the day of the trip, we found out that Genesis issued tickets with the same seat numbers to other people. I can't help but emphasize that they purchased their tickets on the day of the trip. Yet they were given preference, and we, the ones who reserved tickets three days in advance, ended up seating elsewhere.

It appears that this kind of incident happens a lot. It really reflects sloppiness on the Genesis bus company. The same thing can be said of their bus toilet. But having one on a four to six hour non-stop trip is better than having none at all.

If you are in a rush to get to Baler, you can actually get there in four hours. Take the earliest trips in the morning. The only drawback is if you arrive at Baler before six a.m., the museums and other establishments aren't open yet. You'ld have to wait until about nine a.m. before you can enter these. A tricycle driver offered to give us a tour for 500 pesos. And if you want to see the Millennium tree, you'ld have to shell out an additional 300 pesos since that tourist attraction was located farther. With nothing else to do, we decided to go for it.

First destination was a replica of a president's house. We just saw the facade of the house of former Philippine President Manuel Quezon. His car on display was more impressive than his house. But I guess I'm not being fair with this statement since I wasn't able to enter the house yet. The caretaker said that once it was open, you would have to pay 30 pesos for the entrance fee.

Just beside that tourist spot was the Baler Catholic Church. The chandeliers inside were impressive.

Our next destination was Amco beach. It was really very beautiful. The shore was filled with rocks and seashells. And it hardly had any people. Finally, a nice quiet place away from the city. There were several mini islands you could get to and take pictures at. And the beach also had a swimming pool that would be enjoyable for kids. I guess this pool is meant to offset the rocky shore.

We also passed by one of Baler's famous water falls. You could probably climb one third of the way if you're the non-adventurous type like me. If you want to go higher, you might have to cross the water from the falls a few times. Careful! The rocks are slippery and you might fall.

Next, we went to a monument that commemorated the people of Baler's survival of a tidal wave. There was no historical plaque to read off of. So we had to rely on our tricycle driver tour guide.

Beside that monument was a set of stairs which led up Ermita hill. This gives tourists a nice panoramic view of the city of Baler and its coastline. A great place for taking photos.

Baler also has a historical marker which indicates that its inhabitants did something similar to Biak na Bato, where people revolted and tore their Spanish sedulas - or residence certificates - showing they were no longer under Spanish authority.

We also stopped by Baler's fish port. There were plenty of mangroves along that area. With the waves crest and troughs, the younger plants appeared to be waving out of the water. It was awesome. God is truly amazing. His works point to His glory and majesty.

We then decided to go for the Millennium Tree. It took a long time to travel, and that might not be a comfortable ride for some in a cramped tricycle. The tricycle driver said that the tree was about 600 years old. It was a rubber tree, with plenty of vines and ferns hanging off of its branches. Again, a great place for getting selfies and groupies. They were also vendors selling fresh coconuts - which you could have cut for the juice or the meat.

We decided to cut the tour short, but still pay the driver the 800 pesos. He ended up bringing us to Yoli's grill. They served delicious grilled pork chops. The restaurant beside it, Gerry's, supposedly served buffets for 200 pesos per person. But it was jam-packed, so we ended up at Yoli's instead.

Note that a tricycle ride only costs 12 pesos per person for short distances. Their fare matrix is posted on the tricycle itself. But if you are going to ask them to give you a tour, they can charge higher.

After lunch, we checked into R and R travel inn. Their rooms were good for four people. They had twin double deck beds, air-condition, and a nice toilet. But there was no hot water in the shower and no TV. Maybe, the philosophy behind this is to get the traveler to spend more time outside than inside the room. They also served coffee and kakanin for breakfast.

The shores of Baler are known for surfing. As soon as we got near the beach, we were offered a 1-hour surfing lesson for 350 pesos. If you already knew how to surf, and only wanted to rent the surf board, you could rent it for 200 pesos. One of my friends went for it, and within the hour, he was able to stand on the board and coast a little maybe four or six times. Not bad for a first timer.

The shoreline was also very sandy - in contrast to the Amco shoreline - and was a great place to walk barefoot or build sandcastles at.

The waves of Baler are stronger than most other beaches I have been to. And I thought this was surprising since the shore was very shallow - maybe knee to waist deep only, even in the area where the people were being taught how to surf. I thought you needed deep waters to learn how to surf, but this was not the case. And it was the wind that gave the waves its strength, according to a local.

There were several nice places to eat at along the shoreline. We opted for Baler-view hotel's restaurant. They have great sandwiches and calamaris.

You could also try out food from a yellow Volkswagen grill. Pretty novel for a marketing strategy.

And that would be the highlights of my trip to Baler.

I'm a bit surprised that throughout all this time, there aren't many well know eating establishments along the beach or even at the town. No McDonald's or Pizza Hut. No Starbucks or Yellow Cab. Boracay appears to be more progressive in this aspect. But maybe this is also good for Baler. Instead of giving the profits to the multinationals, it allows their locals to come up with world class services that would benefit the town.

Big Daddy Weave - Without You Chords

Great song by Big Daddy Weave. Here's my attempt at its chords. Enjoy!

Stanza Pattern

C#       C#sus2         C#       C#sus2       

Would we hear the sound
C#       C#sus2         C#       C#sus2

Of breathing in the dark

F#                                F#m7 (G#m7 - A - B)
Where would be life's spark
C#       C#sus2         C#       C#sus2

Without You

Repeat Stanza Pattern
Would the birds ever sing
Would the wind move through the trees
Could I touch the grass so green
Under this big sky so blue
Without You

Chorus

Ebm                         Ebsus  
And the sun doesn't shine
F#                            F#m7

And my world stops spinnin' round
C#       C#sus2         C#       C#sus2

Without You
Ebm                         Ebsus

Tell me where else could I ever find
F#                            F#m7

The peace that floods this heart of mine
C#       C#sus2         C#       C#sus2

Without You

Repeat Stanza Pattern
Who could fill the emptiness inside
Who would ease the pain in my broken heart
Who would come in and abide
Promise never to depart
Without You

Bridge
C#       C#sus2
I can't live without You
Ebm                         Ebsus

I don't want to try to

F#                   F#m7                  
Live one more moment 

C#       C#sus2

Without You
C#
Without You
Ebm
Without You
F#
Without You
C#
Without You

Epic Cards Battle v2.10 Crafting System

Version 2.10 of Epic Cards Battle was released recently and players are given another opportunity to gain higher rarity cards through the Crafting system. Five cards of the same rarity and faction can be combined in the hopes of successfully creating a card of the next level of rarity. Five one star cards will result in a two star card.

So I'll share what I have been able to come up with so far.

1 apprentice swordsman + 1 silent archer + 3 dual daggers rogue = 1 haste
1 dryad + 1 harpee + 3 elf sentry = 1 tauren axe
2 hero + 3 sweety pirates = 1 kendoka girl
1 blade shield + 1 the crusader + 3 silver knight = 1 frost trap
1 kobold + 1 bear warrior + 3 harpy = 1 meteor
2 blessing of mother earth + 3 overpower = 1 centaur warrior
2 sweety pirate + 3 amplifier = 1 kitty girl
3 sweaty pirate + 2 amplifier = 1 kendoka girl
1 skeleton archer + 1 dire wolf + 3 cyclops = 1 queen of spiders
3 overpower + 2 blessing of the mother earth = 1 pit trap
3 slashing strike + 2 apprentice swordsman = 1 blade shield
3 queen of spiders + 1 troll + 1 black widow = 1 skeleton king
3 shadow assault + 2 dire wolf = 1 hellhounds
3 silent archer + 1  dual daggers rogue + 1 ice elemental = 1 silver knight
3 Centaur warrior + 1 Treant + 1 Tauren Axe = 1 Master Druid


I don't know if these results are repeatable since I didn't have the same set of cards to reproduce the same results. If it is, please note it in your comments below. And I'm hoping other players will post their results in the comments below.

How to Add More Voices for Text-to-Speech In Windows 7 32-bit

Warning: The following steps involve editing the registry. Continue at your own risk.

This tutorial is based on Voran's guide found here. The steps he outlines is for Windows 7 64-bit. If you have a 32-bit system, then follow the instructions below. Also, please note that I was only able to make this work with US voices when used with Microsoft Word. For an excellent tutorial on how to enable text-to-speech in Word, watch this video.

Now, on with the steps.

1. Download the SpeechPlatformRuntime.msi file for x86 systems from http://www.microsoft.com/en-us/download/details.aspx?id=27225

2. Just double-click the file and follow the installation instructions.
3. Download the two US voices Helen and ZiraPro from http://www.microsoft.com/en-us/download/details.aspx?id=27224 . As I said earlier, these were the only voices I got to work.

I tried the procedure with GB_Hazel and CA_Heather but no joy. If you get these voices to work, please leave a link or comment below on how you were able to make these work.

4. Again, just double click each .msi installer for each voice and follow the installation instructions.
5. Now it is time to edit the registry. Run regedit. Initially, if you go under Under - HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Speech\Voices
you should only see Microsoft's default voice Anna. While if you look under
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Speech Server\v11.0\Voices
you should see the two voices you installed (Helen and ZiraPro). If you're wondering why my image has four voices, refer to my comments above.

Our goal is to edit the registry so that the image above becomes like the following image

 
6. To do that, right click the "Tokens" folder under
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Speech Server\v11.0\Voices
and choose Export. Save this file to your desktop as voices1.reg so it will be easy to find later.

7. Open voices1.reg in Notepad. Then do a Find-and-replace. Enter \Speech Server\v11.0\ into the "Find What" field and enter \Speech\ into the "Replace With" field. Click "Replace All". Then save the file. Note, after you save the file, its icon might change into a notepad icon, meaning you might have saved it as a text file instead of a registry file. If this happens, make sure you save the file with a .reg extension instead of a .txt. If the file still won't open using the registry editor, try right-clicking it and opening using regedit.

8. Double click the newly saved voices1 registry file. You will then receive a registry warning prompt. Click Yes.
9. To check if you were successful, go to Control Panel > Ease of Access > Speech Recognition > Text to Speech.

10. You should now be able to select additional voices (Helen or ZiraPro) aside from Microsoft Anna in the dropdown box. You can then press on Preview Voice to check if they sound right. If you're satisfied with the voice, then click on OK. Now, you should be able to use the new voice to read portions of your word document. Really useful in proofreading, and hopefully less annoying than Anna.

I hope this tutorial was able to help you out. Feel free to leave me feedback below.

Addendum: I tried changing the voices in Narrator and it was able to recognize GB Hazel and CA Heather. But MS Word still wouldn't recognize these two non-US voices. Again, if you are able to come up with a solution to this issue, please let me know. Thanks.

Clash of Clans: Hearbroken or a Proposal?

The image above, to me, seemed so funny, I just had to write about it. Three theories come to mind.

First, the player who made this is madly in love. He (or she) is so in love that he has ceased to be rational and has forgotten about the basic principle of protecting one's resources in Clash of Clans using the walls. Instead, he has used the walls to declare his undying love for the other person. He is probably in love with a fellow Clash of Clans player, a clan mate perhaps. Maybe they met through Clash of Clans and this is the most memorable way for him to tell the other person about his love. Maybe it is a marriage proposal, or maybe a be my partner proposal.

The second theory is that the two players are already in love. But they are in rough patch. And this is one of the player's way of saying sorry. He's probably a Clash of Clan addict and gives the game more time and attention rather than his partner. So, in order to say "Sorry" and to make amends, he sacrifices his well built town, allowing any other player, even novices of the game, to completely obliterate it because of poorly constructed defenses.

Finally, the last theory still revolves around lovers. But they have broken up, and it is a complete split up. The other person refuses to get back with the player who made the town set up. He is completely heart broken. In utter frustration, he allows other players to trample on his town in the same way that his partner trampled with his heart.

I rarely see poorly made defenses on Clash of Clan. I've seen people who use the walls artistically. I've even seen a bat symbol reminiscent of the logo used in the Christian Bale movies. But I haven't seen a player do what has been done in the image above. Out of the three theories, I probably like the one where the player quits Clash of Clans for good to devote more time and attention to his girlfriend or wife. So he leaves the game completely, and this town setup is his proof for his loved one that she is more important to him.

Globe Acquisition of Bayantel, A Worsening of Service

Bayantel used to at least send technicians within a promised period of 24 hours. Now that Globe Telecom has acquired it, they are instilling worst practices in order to minimize on expenses. And that probably includes downsizing on manpower, and using technology that is prone to failure.

This year alone, I've had to deal with internet connection failures for the past three months, and a no dial tone issue this month. Instead of receiving service, all I get are sloppy excuses and insincere apologies. "We are upgrading our services", "Sorry for the inconvenience".

The no dial tone issue is still unresolved after six days, and Bayantel won't even give us the courtesy of sending a technician. "Your phone is ringing whenever we call it." That doesn't mean that the phone works. I've tried calling our number with the unit disconnected and it is still ringing. Shouldn't you as a service provider verify that you can actually talk with the customer before closing the case?

So for people who are thinking of applying for a Bayantel connection, think twice. Better yet, just find a different internet and phone service provider. If you don't believe me, just look at all the customer complaints on Bayantel's Twitter page. ( @askbayan )

And as for you, Bayantel, don't be sorry. Just refund the payment for the days when we can't avail of the services we paid for.

Post Script: It took Bayantel 11 days to fix the issue.