For the majority of iPhone owners, what am I gonna blog about is nothing new. You have been taking advantage of the Maps app the moment you first laid your oily finger on that cute little icon. For us in the Third World which don’t have detailed street maps on even the major-est of the city, calling that app useless is an understatement. A waste of icon space is probably more appropriate.

Imagine how I felt the moment I arrived in Barcelona and realizing that I have the whole city in my pocket. There is no place I could not reach, no awesome little corner shop I could not visit. I felt like a lost kid in a candy store, except I don’t need my parents because I can find my way around easily.

I knew coming in that I won’t have data connection when I arrive. There is no way I would enable data roaming at current prices. So I need a way to access Maps offline. What, a paper map? That’s madness!

No, I found a better way and it’s only available on jailbroken iPhones: OfflineMaps. It’s a sweet little app that lets you access saved specified parts of Google Maps to your local iPhone cache. If you’re interested doing that on your iPhone, this forum posting explains everything you need to do to get some OfflineMaps action. It’s also particularly useful for those who don’t have an unlimited data plan.

Cached maps is one thing but it doesn’t have one very important function: searching. Without search, it’s as bad as a paper map. I figured I needed to get a local cellular service soon. Luckily, due to plenty of competition, data prices here aren’t as crazy as the one we have in the Philippines. It isn’t unlimited but it’s cheap enough that you aren’t too scared launching an app that uses data.

It is weird how I’ve been using my first-generation iPhone for more than a year now and found a new love for it just by moving to a different city. Let me describe how I extensively used Maps navigating around the downtown area which I am not yet familiar at all. A couple of friends are here for vacation and they asked me to meet at this restaurant somewhere in the middle of the city. They asked if I know the place, I said, “no” but confidently added, “I’ll find it.” Typed in the name of the restaurant in Maps, bookmarked it and panned around, searching for the nearest Metro stop I could take.

Once I step out of the Metro station, I got a little disoriented. It doesn’t help that street names here aren’t easily visible. Then I remembered how I could use cellular triangulation to help me locate where I am. I know it won’t give me a precise location like GPS would but I was pretty surprised at how accurately it was able to place me on the map:

Locating the next tourist spot isn’t a problem, not with my trusty iPhone with me. If there’s something so awesome that I wanna show my friends right there and then, I just take a quick picture, upload it to Twitter and Facebook and it’s up in seconds. I know it’s weird seeing one guy fiddling on his phone instead of enjoying the sights but hey, I’ll be here for a year! There’s plenty of time I could scrutinize how those pylons at this certain cathedral are made oh-so exquisitely.

Throughout the day I can’t remember how many times I whipped out my iPhone. Whether it is to locate something on Maps or just simply learning more about the place we are currently in. It made me realize how some of us who doesn’t get to enjoy this kind of service before (detailed maps, sucky and expensive EDGE/3G connection) are getting screwed over so much.

At the end of a very tiring day of walking around and not getting lost, we figured we needed a drink. The old-fashioned way of finding a place is asking a local but who wants to stop someone and talk to a real person, possibly a cranky one? Not me, not when the alternative is the nice, cheery, very reliable Mr. Google.

So what have I been up to? Well you all know about me quitting my job, slacking at home for almost half a year and now I’m in Barcelona. Yes, you’ve read that right, en España. If you’re oh-so-shock then apparently you haven’t been following me on Twitter and you really should because I’m awesome. If you don’t have an account, create one just for me because you know, that’s totally the reasonable thing to do.

What am I doing here? To study. I have enrolled in a university to take my Masters in Advanced Computer Science. I have always wanted to come back to school and I’m usually the guy who chases his dreams no matter what so here I am, chasing that dream.

Am I having an awesome time? Well, not so much. You see I am missing home so badly and I can’t believe I am exchanging all the comforts I was having for this self-reliance crap. I know that sounds a bit spoiled but I’ve only been here for a week and I’m still having detachment pains. I don’t have any regrets though, not at all. I know this is all part of growing up and all this minor-but-seemingly-major hardships I am having will all be disregarded in the long run.

I haven’t really explored the city much so I can’t say anything about it yet but I PROMISE I will post regular updates from now on. Or whatever, it’s not like you will believe me. But I will.

A couple of weeks ago, I was searching for a way to have Adium show up my currently playing game on Xbox Live. Windows Live messenger automatically does this but seeing that I only have 2 buddies on that and more than a dozen on Yahoo Messenger, that feature is useless to me. I was surprised that no one has done it yet, it just seems like there is an Adium Xtra for everything now. I found out why, there isn’t a publicly available API for Xbox Live, only a select number of developers can access it.

Looking for a workaround, I stumbled upon a Twitter app by Duncan Mackenzie that kinda does what I wanted, replacing Twitter with Adium. He was kind enough to create a service that relays the Xbox Live data and make it available to those working on small sites or writing scripts.

Anyhoo, a whole afternoon and four cups of coffee later, I was able to create my very first AppleScript in the form of an Adium Xtra. I know it’s not exactly a feat since AppleScripts are very easy to write but it just warms my heart a little bit when I contribute something, even if it’s not the most useful thing in the world.

Usage instructions and download link are detailed on the Xbox Live Status Adium Xtras page.

Late last year, I made a somewhat snarky post about WiGO and their free WiFi service. I admit, I was a little hard on them, after all they were just starting out and naturally they would not try to roll out features all at once. Now that they have enough time to settle in and get comfortable, maybe it’s time to give them a fair review.

Armed with my MacBook and iPhone, I went to the Power Plant Mall last weekend. WiGO blankets the whole mall and surrounding areas, which is awesome. I can be anywhere and still get a signal but I’ve decided to stay at my favorite coffee shop, find a comfortable spot and order a latte. I woke my MacBook from sleep, connected to the WiGO hotspot and launched the WigoBar application which I downloaded from their website. On the Mac, the application is a Java jar file which is really jenky but will do until they realize that it sucks and write a proper Cocoa application. So anyway, I launched my browser, logged-in on their customized welcome page and off I go, pretty much free to do anything I want.

Now there is a bit of a problem here, the WigoBar. Remember the bar that sits on top of all your windows and display ads? That bar and the business model behind it died during the dot-com bust. Now, WiGO dug it out from the grave and renewed its sole purpose of annoying the hell out of us.

Fear not, Mac users (sorry Windows), there is a solution. Despite their efforts of keeping the ad bar on top at all times, we can hide it the same way we hide all application windows—by hitting Command-H. If you’re using Leopard and have Spaces enabled, you can also just simply switch to another space and open your browser from there.

I’ve discovered something even cooler and that is WiGO Mobile. If you are using a mobile device with WiFi, such as iPhone, you can still connect to WiGo without installing any application. All you have to do is connect, launch your browser and login to their mobile-optimized page. If you don’t have an account yet, signing-up is fast and free and you can do it right there. One minor thing though, each WiGO hotspot at the Power Plant Mall has a different SSID. So, you can’t just roam from one hotspot to another automatically unless you’ve connected to each one and configured your device to remember it. I was expecting that each page that I visit will have a frame at the top that will display ads yet again (hope I’m not giving them any ideas). Luckily, there is none and it is just like connecting to any other WiFi hotspot, paid or not.

Fine, WiGO, you have managed to turn me around and actually use and like your service. This is because 1) I can hide the ad bar and 2) use it on my iPhone. And yes, your speeds are pretty decent too. Please keep it up and you will have lots of happy users like me who are loving the convenience of having a free and reliable WiFi service.

As I am writing this, Firefox 3 Release Candidate 3 just came out for the Mac an It has also been recently announced that the final version will be ready for download on Tuesday, June 17. As a long-time Safari user, this marks the week that I am finally ditching Safari and will be using Firefox 3 as my primary browser.

I have always been a Safari user ever since I got my first Mac. It has an excellent user interface and is blazingly fast. Minor annoyances such as not remembering tabs on exit and the lack of option to open new windows in tabs were fixed by Saft, an excellent Safari plugin. However, I’ve been experiencing lots of lockups lately which will, of course, cause the Spinning Beachball of Death to appear. I don’t really know if the reason for this is the website I am visiting, Safari itself or Saft, all I know is it happens often enough that writing long paragraphs in textareas makes me feel uneasy. That finally made me download the latest Firefox 3 RC.

All problems I had with Firefox 2 had been fixed in the new version. The user interface now feels like it belongs to a Mac desktop and the huge drop in memory usage makes it much snappier. The new address bar is amazing as I don’t even have to remember the domain of the site that I went to but few words from the page’s title. Starring a bookmark is even more useful as I use it quite extensively in Gmail and Google Reader so the concept can easily be applied to any websites that I stumble on.

There are some habits that I had to forego which hopefully can be fixed by Add-ons. Managing tabs is not as easy as it is in Safari. Sure, you can still arrange tab orders but you cannot drag out a tab to open it in another window or combine it with tabs from other windows. Syncing bookmarks to my iPhone does not work anymore as iTunes will only sync to Safari on a Mac. A possible solution, Bookit from Everyday Software is not yet updated to work with Firefox 3. For now, bookmarking links in del.icio.us is a temporary fix.

One particularly useful add-on for those who are used to contextual “go to” link on Safari is Fetch Text URL by Jeff Chien. I’m sure you have encountered some links which are not clickable and what this add-on does is add items to your right-click menu and gives you the option to open it in a new tab, current tab or new window.

I’m sure you’ll find even more reasons to use Firefox 3 over Safari. Safari is a great browser but the new version of Firefox 3, with its significant enhancements, deserves the previous dock space even more. Either you’re already using Firefox or are planning to switch, remember that the final release of Firefox 3 is due on June 17. You can pledge your support to download it on that day and help set a Guinness World Record right here.

Here it is, the moment we have all been waiting for ever since Steve Jobs announced that there will be a 3G iPhone in 2008, and they are calling it iPhone 3G. The rumor sites pretty much got everything on the dot this time by predicting 3G, GPS and a 50% price drop over the previous model.

As previously reported, Globe Telecom will be bringing iPhone 3G over our shores here in the Philippines. Apple’s iPhone Philippines page does not detail anything specific. Availability, pricing and plans are still up in the air. I hope Globe releases this information as soon as they can so we can prepare our wallets.

Speculations abound as to what kind of arrangement Globe has for iPhone 3G. Will it have Visual Voicemail? If you are a Globe subscriber right now, you couldn’t even use the regular voicemail as they shut it down in favor of Voice Txt or whatever they call it. Bigger question is what kind of rate plans will iPhone be offered in. Globe already offers specialized plans for Blackberry users, will we see the same for iPhone? We are very much used to pay-as-you-go and Globe has already confirmed that they will also offer iPhone on prepaid and will most likely be unsubsidized.

Data is another thing as iPhone 3G can take advantage of Globe’s HSDPA network. Unless they are really greedy, there is no possible way that Globe will insist on its current data scheme–P5/15 mins or P0.15/KB, because of all the Push stuff that will be happening. Looking at their Visibility plan, the most expensive at P1499/month only has 100 hours of internet use. With iPhone, you can use up all that in a week! Although not in their official website, some blogs are saying that they are still offering unlimited Visibility plans at P3000/month. I cannot imagine paying that much on top of the regular voice plan. An ideal price for me will be P1000/month on top of regular voice, maybe even up to P1500 if their HSDPA coverage is pretty much everywhere I need to go.

Whatever happens, for sure this Apple zealot is going to get an iPhone 3G. I absolutely love my iPhone and the only time I feel that I want to throw it against a brick wall is when I’m surfing in Safari over EDGE. Luckily, that problem has been solved in this new release and I can only imagine what great (or not-so-great) things we can do with having the internet on our pockets everywhere and actually use it.

What made it even worse are the people. Although majority of the passengers are disciplined, as with every place in this world, there are some people who are uneducated, rude and arrogant that ruin the supposedly peaceful commute from home to work and vice versa. Some of these “characters” are described here so that you are prepared the next time you ride the MRT during rush hour.

The Right-Hand Drivers

The MRT stairway in most stations is usually divided by chains to separate those who are coming in from those on the way out. During rush hour, the line on the right going in can be so ridiculously long that it actually overflows to the street causing an insane amount of foot traffic. Some people, who obviously think that they are royalty therefore deserve to come in the station without much hassle, climb up the other side. Now when a train arrives and passengers get off at that station, the dimwits have already blocked their way causing yet another insane amount of foot traffic upstairs. Next time you encounter these kind of people, feel free to push and let them fall down the stairs. They are better suited lying against the pavement.

The Tourists

No, I am not talking about the actual tourists. These are the ones who obviously think that they are in some unexplored territory therefore will take their time walking, appreciating the dull peach-colored wall paint. Never mind that almost all passengers are rushing to catch the train because they don’t want to be late for work or school.

This actually happened just this morning, one guy is taking his time texting while walking down the stairs to the platform at Taft station. Since the stairs there are narrow and the people beside him are also slow walkers, a lot of people, including myself, are bunched up behind him making us look like his own entourage. One guy excused himself and bumped him to catch the waiting train. The “texter” got offended by this and shouted “madapa ka sana!” (”Hope you trip over!”). I just don’t understand what is going on in this person’s head thinking that he is the victim. I want to push him in front of an oncoming train but hesitated because I don’t want blood splattering on my crisp white shirt.

The Medieval Women

The first coach of the MRT train is always reserved for the women, children and the elderly. Naturally, the second and third coaches are occupied mostly by men but there are women who choose to board these coaches thinking that they have better chances of sitting as some men will offer their seats. Base on experience, a number of clearly able women in their twenties or thirties sometimes stand right in front of you and say things in a sarcastic voice like “Yung iba dyan hindi gentleman!” (”Some guys are not being a gentleman!”). I don’t believe in chivalry, I believe in good manners. If I saw a pregnant woman, a disabled person or an elderly, I would gladly stand up and offer my seat. Now for the others who expect that they deserve to be seated more than me, I would gladly let them seat on a train going to the 15th century.

The Blockers

The blockers are probably the most annoying of them all. These are the ones who are too freakin’ excited to board the just-arrived train that they all stand right in front of the double-doors blocking the exit. They probably think that the passengers inside who want to disembark will do so in some secret portal that will magically transport them onto the platform. And yes, pushing using the collective body weight of all the exiting passengers is necessary to get them out of the way.

Now that you have learned some of the different folks that you might encounter in the MRT, you are now ready to face the horror and stand in line at the security guard with the wooden stick that seem to magically detect bombs. If it turns out to be calm and uneventful, lucky you! Now go play the lottery as I think you have a good chance of winning the jackpot.

Last night I was playing Portal on my Xbox 360, which I got just a couple of posts down. I am extremely close on solving the final level when the screen suddenly froze. I did not think much of it since my progress have been saved before that so I turned it off and turned it back on. What happened next is the one thing that all Xbox 360 owners are afraid of, the omen of an impending doom, the red rings of death:

Like a scene from a movie wherein a loved one died, I let out a loud and grim ‘NOOOOOOOOOOOO’ as I say goodbye to hours of fun that my Xbox 360 has brought me. I have read about it on the internet, heard it on the news and still I could not believe that something like that could really happen.

The good news is that the store is offering me a replacement—as soon as they get new stocks. In case you didn’t know, Microsoft Philippines is not supporting Xbox 360 units as it is not officially distributed here.

For now, there’s nothing I can do except wait.

Everyone on the interwebs is talking about the new MacBook Air and how mind-numbingly thin it is. I swear, you could use it as a weapon to slash a mugger’s face when one tries to steal it from you.

As if I did not show enough evidence from my last post that I’m a gadget-whore, I’m actually thinking of buying this thing. Why? I don’t know, it’s so pretty. It’s not just that but the thought of actually carrying around a full mac and not feeling the weight in your bag and the ability to whip it out in just about anywhere is pretty amazing. It will be a downgrade power-wise and I still have to add a hefty sum so it’s something that I really need to think through.

I was talking to some friends telling them how sad and lonely I am lately. Understandable since it’s the new year and 2008 is pretty uncertain for me with masters application and not knowing for a while if I l get accepted or not. I often walk down Ayala Avenue with a blank stare lost in deep thoughts. Then I thought about what I could do to take my mind off this and one option immediately crossed my mind: buy a new gadget.

I have fallen into the pit of consumerism a long time ago and I could never climb out again. New stuff really does make me happy and when I think about the last time I felt contented was when I bought my iPhone back in September.

So what it is that I bought this time around? Well, it’s something that I don’t really need but I’ve been wanting to buy roughly a couple of years ago. An Xbox 360. I just thought I could totally justify buying it now since we now have an HDTV, DSL connection is pretty fast and I have a bit of cash saved up for “emergency”.

I bought Halo 3 as my first game because, you know, why not? I am also planning on renewing my Xbox Live gold subscription for a year after the free trial expires because the online aspect of the 360 is pretty awesome and the console feels lacking without it. At 2000 pesos a year, it’s not really that much of a burden financially.

There is also a service called Gamehopper which is basically like a Netflix for games for Metro Manila residents. At 600 pesos per month, you can rent any game you want, one at a time and they deliver the games for free. I cannot comment on the service yet since my subscription won’t start until the end of the month but they have an OK selection of games. Their website is crappy though but if they happen to have excellent service and I get the games that I want then I won’t complain.

Overall, I’m pretty happy with my purchase as it does fill the void on the times that I have absolutely nothing to do. I only get to play with it for an hour or two on weekdays though because my mom has to watch all those stupid ABS-CBN teleseryes and they want to see it on the big TV which I don’t get because it doesn’t really make much of a difference since it still in standard definition. (Breathes…)