A 3G (phone) army?

Nowadays, its not an easy task to communicate through a handset of our times. there's more than one way to communicate with 3G, this means more information is being passed to and fro at one time and long messages get dismissed or ignored. There is a tendency for attention span to shorten, an example is if a user receives a lengthy message via an application on their phone and he/she is busy with something then the next step would be to simply "acknowledge" it. Now, how often do we reply a short "okay" or "noted" to an instruction by a friend or superior and then carried on with whatever we were doing with a the-rest-can-be-read-later repose. When I was on the train going to back to base the other night, one glance over the isles and at least a handful of commuters had their handsets in front of them. Some watching dramas; some reading and some playing virtual games on their touch-screens. If you can be engrossed enough to have missed a train stop before, would an interrupting message pop-up on your screen be treated with the same kind of late reaction?

With such changing needs, even MINDEF has allowed the usage of some camera-removed phones in their camps around Singapore. These phones however, have to be MINDEF-approved, that means the phone together with a certificate has to be acquired from a local telco that comes with the phone and a sticker will be issued to be stuck on the phone to certify it. After all these steps are done, only then can you use it in camp. But as of 1st September 2012, MINDEF has allowed the usage of camera phones but only within certain areas in camps. These are called green zones, and red zones are prohibited for such usage.

I rejoiced upon hearing this piece of news, but then it slowly comes to realization: What are the choices of such phones commercially available in the market? And with these restrictions surfaces the inconvenience of using a camera phone thats allowed ONLY in a green-zone bound.

I will add that because the needs of mass communication today is much more complex, we communicate differently through different apps on our phones that serve different functions. Whether you are in the workforce or not, 3G technology and the simple handset is now a growing entity in our society.

Since MINDEF has announced the usage of camera phones in some of its military camps for the convenience of national servicemen and the proliferation of smartphones, do you think this was a neccessary step? More importantly, in what ways would it compromise national security?

(the bookout crew will ponder upon this and get back to you asap)
cheers! :))

National Day 2012

Well technically, it was Singapore's 47th year of independence yesterday. Or two days ago. Whatever it is, let us remember in celebration that as brothers; men; soldiers, it is our duty to defend the land our friends & families built together. This year's theme was 'Reflection'. What better way to do so than to remember the sappy NDP songs we used to sing in primary school.





We salute all our elders and Happy Birthday Singapore!
the bookoutloh crew

National Day 2012

Well technically, it was yesterday. Or two days ago. Whatever it is, let us remember that as brothers; men; soldiers, it is our duty to defend the land our friends & families built together. This year's theme was 'Reflection'. What better way to do so than to remember the sappy NDP songs we used to sing in primary school.

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We salute all our elders and Happy Birthday Singapore!
the bookoutloh crew

3 broke and hungry guys (Upper Thomson Road)

We met up on a Saturday evening and took bus number 165 from opposite AMK Hub to Upper Thomson Rd to bring you pictures of gastronomic delights. Not quite exactly, since our stomachs were already full from fried chicken at Popeye's.

Stopped at Upper Thomson Rd right after Thomson Plaza and you'll find this place filled with many western cafes, local food eateries and a hawker food centre; Long House. The family-style Nam Kee chicken rice store is there too. However, it was a hot day and we were looking for desserts only...

Salted Caramel (Ice cream parlour)

Flavours worth trying: Earl Grey, Salted Caramel and Baileys

We ordered Salted Caramel, Earl Grey, Avocado, Baileys and Lychee flavors. Nothing much to complain about except that the Lychee flavor was quite bland, though there are Lychee bits in the ice cream.

Prices: $3 for a scoop, $5 for two and $7 for three. 

Rocher Beancurd House

Apparently if you mix two simple drinks like Soy milk with glass jelly drink you can get the king of pop, Michael Jackson. The drink was named such after Michael Jackson's song Black or White, in which the colours represented the soy milk and glass jelly. We felt awkward when we tried to order by saying out Michael Jackson, but the stall owner assured us that other customers are doing it too. :)   

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One more day to book out day!

The Dark Knight Rises #TDKR

I guess there's no movie that's deserving to be the movie of the month other than The Dark Knight Rises, the third of the Batman trilogy written and directed by Christopher Nolan & Co. Can't imagine anyone not going to catch the concluding film for the trilogy. Went to watch it on my off day, Monday and left the cinema thoroughly impressed. Anyways the film can't go wrong when you have casts like Christian Bale, Morgan Freeman and Joseph Gordon Levitt. And at one time I suspected that maybe the bat-mobile was specially designed for Anne Hathaway so that she can erm...ride it.


Watching TDKR also reminded me of the totally different versions of Batman movies we watched in primary school:

1992 - '97

Ah...yes, Batman and Robin. I remember back then I was really fascinated over Mr Freeze's suit in Batman & Robin and his weapon, and really enjoyed the fight scenes. Who cares if it was badly reviewed as one of the worst Batman movies, at least the characters' costumes portrayed were rather accurate to the toy figurines we grew up with. Remember those bat nipples?

 Pokies.

That aside, we appreciate the darker style of the Nolan trilogy. It makes more sense that emphasis is placed in the story line and also the bat mobiles, they are more complex and the two most intriguing things in this movie besides Anne Hathaway. Can you imagine these dream vehicles cruising down the expressway? I swear I wouldn't mind paying COE if I could drive one of those. 


Christian Bale remains the actor for 'The Dark Knight' throughout the trilogy so we thought if you could choose which actress to play Catwoman, who would you pick?

...to replace Anne Hathaway?! Hell no!

Here's our writers' picks of who would play Catwoman well:

From left to right: Jessica Alba, Emma Watson, Carey Mulligan, Alexa Vega

Or who do you nominate? Tell us your fantasies...


Whether you've watched TDKR already or not, at least you have one more thing to look forward to. The London Olympics has just begun and by looking at all these national athletes who have been training so hard for this day, makes me so motivated train harder for IPPT. Or is it just me?

Anyways the 2nd year of NS means a second window for IPPT! To those who are working towards a goal, here's wishing your training only the best. We are training for it too, to get the moolah at the end! :)))))

To the movies,
BOOKOUTLO!

Pulau Ubin and Saving Gaia!

How do a bunch of guy friends spend their book out time together instead of catching up on Diablo?

Previously, we were always looking for stuff to do in town eg. watching movies, playing games at lan shops...the list goes on.While there are still activities we have yet to explore in the land we defend, we decided that for this book out, we are going back to nature.

And nope, we are not influenced by the Saving Gaia campaign.

Spare us the torment please.

Pulau Ubin was our destination and so we met up at Pasir Ris station on a Sunday morning and took bus number 109 from to Changi Ferry Terminal for the tuck boat. Taking the tuck boat to Pulau Ubin brought back many memories of participating in the Outward Bound School camp during my secondary school years. And this time a round I'm heading there with my poly friends. The trip itself was a 10 mins ride which cost $2.50 per ride, and if you are intending to bring your own bicycle to the island you need to pay an additional $2. Along the way we even spotted Pulau Tekong, the island where we once trained as army recruits. 

no longer a botak!

Upon arriving, you'll be greeted by many bicycle rental stores and if you see $2 bicycle rental signs don't be fooled. The MOST reasonable price we got was $6 per bike for the rest of the day until 6pm. If you're a bike enthusiast, there are mountain bikes and double-seat bikes too. We cycled to Chek Jawa which is a mangrove area, parked our bikes and walked on the boardwalk. If you like viewing scenery the boardwalk provides a good view that includes Pulau Tekong and some parts of Malaysia. There is a 3-storey high observation tower at the end of the mangrove route too, which provides even better viewing.

From Chek Jawa, we continued our embarkation to a place they call the Ketam mountain bike park, near Ketam quarry.

If the murky waters you see on our shores remind you of polluted water, there are a few reservoirs in Pulau Ubin that will leave you in awe.

Just look at the clarity of the water collected!

At the bike park there are many kinds mountain bike courses that you can try if you're a skillful enough. For us, the terrain and slopes already proved to be quite a tricky task but challenging. If you're looking for a good strength exercise, cycling here is an effective way to do that. Just be careful NOT to jam your brakes on a steep downward slope.

After we were done with our exploration and fun, the bicycles were returned and we ended the day with a cold 100-plus at the coffee shop. And that was our day! Overall, if you're looking for an outdoor adventure Pulau Ubin would be a good place to start with, whether you want to cycle or trek with a bunch of friends or your partner, there will be stuff you can do. It was a rather fair and cloudy day when we went, although it threatened to rain towards the end. And if it does rain, be reminded that it would be quite hard to find shelter if you're far in the open.

We only had one gripe and that was the bum boat fare. We are not very highly paid NSFs and so $2.50 per trip is quite a high price. That's $5 for a to-and-fro trip and for us it's quite a pinch. Maybe next time we could settle for mainland cycling and do another post!

That's it! Book out lo!!!!!

test

A: "BOOK OUT LO!"
B: "GO WHERE? DO WHAT?"
A: ......
.
.
.
B: ......
A: "BOOK OUT LO!"