The DJ who's not a DeeJay

I bet if you own a laptop, you'd cringe with this video even if it's not yours.

I usually don't post anything very technical here since it's my blog outside of work. But this commands immediate concern for all website owners since this trojan spread like wildfire on the internet over the weekend.

The trojan can modify all php pages of a website and add iframe codes to redirect and retrieve content from cdpuvhfzz.com. (DON'T ACCESS THAT SITE!).

It hacked one of my websites and I found out about it when it messed up a configuration on my image gallery. It also uploaded code in the form of a jpg file and a zip file posed as an image. I thought I had restored that section until my friend called me up to tell me that my website is being reported as having a virus. She used Avira anti-virus and the virus reported was Javabyte verify g.3, JS/Openconnect J.3 and HTML/Rce.Gen. My website doesn't have any java so I checked the scripts afterwards. After researching on the virus, I found code attached to some recently modified pages. It attaches this code to your page:

h t t p: / / c d p u v b h f z z . c o m / d l / a d v 9 8 . p h p

I later found out that I wasn't the only one hacked. Over the weekend, there has been a considerable amount of discussion, concern, and panic a lot of webmasters regarding this. At first it seemed that it targeted users of the Coppermine Image Gallery. But I've read that even online communities such as Wordpress, Vbulletin forums, phpBB forums and other websites have been infected. One site had to modify 10,000 php pages to remove the code which was attached in each and every page.

The domain which is included in the malicious code was registered via a Chinese registrar just last March 31, 2008 to a certain Mark Arnold.

Technical Contact:
Mark Arnold
+13.193387549 fax: +13.193387549
201 East Benton Street
Iowa City KY 522401
USA

I wonder if he's the culprit or if he's also a victim and someone's using his name and contact.

For more details, you can search for it online here.
Hope no one else has been badly hit. I'm sure this has kept a lot of webmasters on their toes for some sleepless nights.

I regularly visit local money changers whenever I need to have US dollars exchanged to Philippine peso currency. It's usually a quick process. Give your dollars to the teller, get a receipt for how much the peso equivalent is based on their current exchange rate, and get your pesos. It's that simple.

However, recently, I've been frustrated with the fact that some money changers are a bit picky when accepting dollar bills. They seem to be particular about the "series" clause usually found on the front of the bills. If I'm not mistaken, this stands for the year the bill was created. The text says "Series" and a year next to it or below it. Most bills range from 1990 to the present.
I didn't give much notice to this until the teller told me that they won't accept my bill cause it's a "Series 1996" bill. I had two other bills which they accepted. I asked what year did it have, and they showed me my other two bills had a "Series 2003" text. I even told the teller that these bills came directly from the States (My visiting aunt gave it to me). But it doesn't matter to them.

So now, I'm kinda stuck with some Series 1996 bills and trying to have them exchanged. I learned from my aunt that money changers in the provinces are not very particular with the series. In Manila though, it's not the case. If I can't exchange it, my last option would be to deposit it in a bank. But my original intention was to spend it, not save it.

And so I'm more aware when receiving US dollar bills. Always check for the series.

Nowadays, the prices of gas are really expensive and it seems that it's not going down in the near future. Unleaded gas in the Philippines goes for around P45.00 per liter, which is more than 1 US dollar.

I think that instead of trying to find sources for inexpensive gas or hope the prices go down, it's practical to own a car that in itself can conserve fuel. That's why when Honda launches the VCM 643, it's pleasing to know that this new car conserves fuel while maximizing its use. It's fuel economy and efficiency is a great feature for those who dread spending for gas.

It seems like it's the main feature of this Honda Model because the letters in the VCM 643 model stand for Variable Cylinder Management, the technology used in maintaining power and optimizing fuel economy simultaneously. The number 6 represents the powerful V6 engine while the 4 and 3 represent that in these cylinder modes, it can produce both power & fuel efficiency, and fuel saving respectively.

I'd say this car would ease the worrying about your gas budget especially when strapped for cash.

I had to do some researching the other day on the Centennial Terminal, also known as Terminal 2 of NAIA. I had to send off some family friends there and I am only familiar with The Domestic Terminal and NAIA Terminal 1. I read up on Wikipedia about Ninoy Aquino International Airport before going there and asked some directions from friends. Here are my 10 personal discoveries.

1. Terminal 2 is home to Philippine Airlines and Air Philippines, its sister company.
2. It looks like NAIA Terminal 1, only better.
3. It seems less crowded since other airlines are not bunched up here.
4. The parking lot is cleaner. The restrooms are more presentable.
   
5. There's a building that appears to ba a control tower right in the middle of the parking lot.
6. Departures are on the upper level while arrivals are at ground level.
   
7. There's a Figaro coffee shop at the North Wing near international arrivals.
8. There's a separate entrance for 1st class, business class, diplomats and VIP. I wonder when I'll be any of those any time soon.
9. Getting to this airport means having to go through traffic caused by both domestic and international terminals.
10. Because of No. 9, get there as early as possible to avoid panicking car passengers who keep on checking their watch in fear they may miss their flight. (I blame C5 traffic due to the elevated flyover construction).
    

And while I was reading up on Manila's airports, here's an interesting tidbit I got:

"The original airport that served Manila, the Manila International Air Terminal, was opened in July 1937 on Nielson Field, the runways of which now form the Makati Triangle of Paseo de Roxas, Ayala Avenue, and Makati Avenue. In 1948, when the airport ceased operations in Makati to relocate elsewhere, ownership of the airport’s permanent facilities was passed on to the owner of the land, Ayala y Cia." (Source: Wikipedia)


No wonder that triangular block seems so straight.

1. Listen to podcasts on your mp3 player.
2. Look at what's happening in other cars beside you.
3. Clean the insides of your car. (You can clean the outside too if traffic is really bad).
4. Initiate a honking war with other drivers bored.
5. Scratch every part of your body.

And if you're really bored, how about this ?

I've always been a fan of computer modding, the art of transforming a boring computer case into an interesting form of art. Whether it may be character or movie themed like Alien vs. Predator, Finding Nemo, 101 Dalmations, Counterstrike or a kick-ass original design like infusing a lava lamp and aquarium in your cpu case, the possibilities are endless.

I found this mod designed for a keyboard, simulating a manual typewriter. The keys were actually taken from an old typewriter and fastened to a steel-plated keyboard. I just find it a cool concept.

You can read more about how it was built here.

Lined up for Day 2 of our delectable journey were TAPS, Food Processors Association of Davao, Kasagingan and Polo Bistro at Marco Polo Hotel. All I can say is that everything we sampled that day was delicious.


Details and locations are below:

Taps (Filipino Cuisine, all day breakfast)
Branches: Torres Street / Matina Town Square, General McArthur Highway / Bolton Street / Legaspi Street / Sta. Ana Street

Kasagingan (coffee and banana desserts)
Torres Street, Davao City

Polo Bistro (Continental Cuisine)
Marco Polo Hotel, CM Recto Street, Davao City

I just discovered a new feature of Google. It's a simple word game that Google provides online, called Google Image Labeler. It has a simple concept, yet is addicting in terms of gameplay.


When you join the game, Google will find you an online partner and both of you will be given 2 minutes to look at a series of images, wherein both of you have to describe it. You can type as many keywords or phrases describing the image. If both of you come up with a match, you both score points and you proceed to the next image. If you think you're taking too long on one image and both of you can't come up with a matching keyword, you can pass and your partner will be notified so they can pass too and proceed to the next picture. You can play as a guest or log on using your google account so points will be accumulated under your name.

It's a nice game, and very ingenious of Google turning a tedious task into a game. If this were a task someone would do, they'd find it monotonous and boring. But since it was presented in a gaming aspect, it adds much fun to the task, not to mention, bringing in a whole lot of gamers who in turn double as volunteers for labeling images.

The concept of pairing with another person on the internet, makes the keywords more credible cause of the keyword matching. You can type in bogus keywords and incorrect descriptions all you want but as long as it doesn't match the same keywords your partner is entering, then it won't be accepted as a keyword.

Since images are visuals, it can't be fully categorized, classified nor comprehensible by a computer program. Even with Artificial Intelligence, it may not provide accurate results. Describing images needs the complex human mind to interpret it. And what better way to do it in the form of a game. Play, have fun and help Google all with this game! What a great strategy !

Check it out at
http://images.google.com/imagelabeler/

I've been covering music events for years and so I don't get starstruck anymore unless it's an artist that I've been a fan of for a long time.

And so when I learned from a friend that Swing Out Sister is set to perform in Manila this April 2008, I told myself that this time, I will be a fan. I will set aside work, even though my work involves music.

Swing Out Sister's music has been one of my favorites since the '90s. I first heard the song "Breakout" when my cousin played it in her car cassette player while we were on the way to a beach in Batangas. All my older cousins were singing to it and there I was, unfamiliar with the song, but liking it's catchy beat.

One of the very first CD's I bought was a Swing Out Sister CD. I still have it and it's one my most played CDs in my collection until now. I have 10 out of 18 of their released albums and I remember I had a hard time trying to build my SOS collection. Most of the CDs are rare and hard to find. I found two albums on Ebay and won the bid. I had to place a special order on the Swing Out Sister Live At The Jazz Cafe album (Japanese release) and wait for 6 weeks for it to arrive. I am happy with my collection cause I know it took a considerable amount of effort in building it. Then I knew that I was a true fan.

Funny thing, I lined up at the ticket booth of the Araneta Coliseum where everybody else in the line were buying tickets to watch Ne-yo in concert that night. I was the only one who lined up to buy tickets for the SOS concert more than a month in advance.

I may be too nervous to say anything coherent if I may happen to meet her in person (which has a considerable amount of probability since I cover music events). So as early as now, I am going to rehearse what I'm gonna tell them. There's just too much to say being a fan and so little time to do it. Anything longer than a minute is certainly going to get security's attention. I just want to let SOS know how a huge fan I am.

I am so ready to enjoy my personal Swing Out Sister experience.

I just finished watching American Idol a few minutes ago and I was blown away with the awesome performance of David Cook with his version of "Billie Jean".

Michael Jackson's song "Billie Jean" alone is a momentous chart blockbuster and one of my all-time favorite dance songs. Along with Michael's dance moves, including the brilliant moonwalk, I couldn't have visualized this song in a different genre other than a dance hit... until now.

David Cook's rock version of "Billie Jean" is simply amazing that I just had to blog about it (even if this is my 3rd post for the day).

Check it out.

It's a quote from Chris Tucker to Jacky Chan in the movie "Rush Hour".
Incidentally, it's the exact same question I had when I watched this hilarious video.



What the hell are you saying ???

Who would've thought that a dance popularized by Edu Manzano from a 70's revival song would gain international exposure ? I was dancing to this song months ago to cheer up my best friend (now girlfriend *wink*) and now, you got the hosts of the US morning show, Good Morning America dancing to the Papaya Dance.




I take this be the power of youtube.

Since it was a Holiday last Sunday, there were lots of people at the mall. With that huge a crowd, expect the restrooms to be filled with people too.

While washing my hands inside the restroom, I looked into the mirror and saw a 3 year old girl accompanied by her father. I heard the father telling his daughter to stay in the corner and close her eyes and not to look at anyone, while he'd go to one of the urinals. Just before I left the restroom, I saw another father-child tandem entering the restroom but this time, it was a dad and his son. The two kids, having the same height, looked at each other in passing. I figured each may have wondered what the other one was doing in that restroom.

A few hours after, in another restroom at the other end of the mall was a mother and 3 year oldish son in front of me about to turn to the ladies restroom. And I thought that this time, it's a little boy entering a room filled with ladies.

There aren't any problems when a kid is accompanied by both parents cause the child can be accompanied by the parent of the same gender. I remember last year, a mother didn't want to leave her 5 year old son to wait outside the restroom. But the kid didn't want to accompany his mom inside the ladies' restroom. But it was apparent in the kid's face, that he needed to use the restroom. So the mom asked each guy about to enter the male restroom if they could accompany her son inside. I think eventually, the kid gave in out of urge to pee, and went inside the ladies' restroom with his mom.

If a kid would wander around and happen to go towards the opposite sex's restroom, I'd assume the parents would quickly run after and teach the child not to enter because it's wrong. But if they were accompanied by the parent, the parents' gender overrules since they need to be together.

When you're trying to teach a kid at an early age the difference between genders and what you can and can't do, bringing a kid to the opposite sex's restroom seems like the child may wonder why after what is taught to him, the child is now facing a situation which is opposite to what is taught to him.

I'm not here to say which is wrong and which is right. I just try to place myself in the shoes of the kid who is learning and grasping everything around their environment to find themselves in an ironic situation which may not be comprehensible for their age.

Yesterday was Easter Sunday and my relatives and I enjoyed a celebratory lunch buffet at Kamay-Kainan at the Trinoma mall. Their buffet consisted of over 60 dishes, free tempura for every table and a salad and dessert bar.

There was a huge array of meat-based dishes like bistek, liempo, nilagang baka, sinigang na baboy, kare-kare, dinuguan, mechado, kaldereta and chicken adobo. The seafood-based dishes included hito, tilapia, calamares, and tahong. Other dishes included chopsuey, kuhol and pancit bihon.

I found it a bit unusual that out of all the dishes there, my favorite had to be the bird's nest soup. I guess if one would go to a buffet with over 60 dishes, they wouldn't be going back for soup.

There was only one kind of soup there, as opposed to the rest of the dishes. I was so fond of the soup, that I had 2 servings before and after my main meal, and added a bit to my rice serving too.

I wonder if there's a place that serves bottomless soup.

I saw this car the other day. This car's spoilers are as high as the rooftop. Much as I think spoilers add pizazz to a car, I prefer spoilers to be closer to the car rather than declaring a state of independence.

I thought of one good use for it though, a clothes hanger. If you happen to forget to remove the clothes and drive, think of it as a faster way of drying them.

There are 2 highways I know named after the former President Marcos. (The band by former Eraserheads member, Markus Adoro called "Markushighway" doesn't count)

There's one in Antipolo stretching to Marikina City but not as long and scenic as the one in Baguio. Marcos Highway starts from Agoo, La Union, and slowly ascends through several curved roads leading to Baguio City. Compared to Kennon Road, this is a longer but safer route as the roads are much wider. Also there is a long tunnel along the way.

"Suka" in Filipino means vinegar. "Suka" could also mean "vommit" if you use it as a verb.

So I'm kinda bothered seeing this bottle of vinegar with the label "Suka" with no translation or hint. The unusual shape of the plastic container doesn't help either.

(Taken at a Tropical Hut Fastfood outlet)

Note: I had an '80's song in mind while posting this, hence the title. (My name is Suka...I live on the 2nd floor)

The escalator is a great invention. It prevents having to walk up and down a stairs. It gets you from point A to point B without much effort. It provides you time to look at your watch, tie your shoelace, use your celphone, look around or simply just wait a few seconds till you get off.

Sometimes, escalators are under repair. I don't quite understand how an escalator breaks down. Probably through use. I don't see any maximum weight limit or maximum passenger capacity like in an elevator. I haven't seen an elevator break down midway due to maximum capacity.

Sometimes, escalators aren't under repair but not functioning. It's either off or busted. Then, it turns into a staircase. I find it more tedious to use when it's stationary. If you tried walking up or down an escalator that isn't moving, you'll realize that it's even harder to use. The mechanical stairs are far wider apart than regular stairs. So it's like taking 1 1/2 steps. Sometimes it feels the same as taking 1 huge leap over 2 steps on a regular stairway. It becomes harder to use when you're hungry.

It's not totally useless, since you still can use the escalator to get from point A to point B. The convenient escalator just suddenly turns a short joyride into an exercise program against your will.

Last night my family and I went to several churches as part of our annual Visita Iglesia during Holy Week. One of the churches we visited was inside the campus of my alma mater. This church wasn't built yet while I was in college.

Yet the mere fact of coming back to the campus brings a sense of peace, a sense of belonging. I guess it's because spending more than 4 years of your life day in day out in the campus you've studied in, provides you with that sense of belonging.

It's nice to feel you've been a part of an institution.