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	<title>Antinormal</title>
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	<link>http://www.antinormal.org/blog</link>
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		<title>It&#8217;s the 31st, baby!</title>
		<link>http://www.antinormal.org/blog/2011/12/its-the-31st-baby/</link>
		<comments>http://www.antinormal.org/blog/2011/12/its-the-31st-baby/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Sat, 31 Dec 2011 10:33:31 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>akinwale</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.antinormal.org/blog/?p=288</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[So I convinced Milla Jovovich to sleep with me. And she told me she doesn't fake. (Turns out she wanted to bone me when we first met on the set of the first Resident Evil movie). Then I woke up. And nothing happened. I have the weirdest dreams. 2011's almost over! The year didn't go [...]]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>So I convinced Milla Jovovich to sleep with me.<br />
And she told me she doesn't fake.<br />
(Turns out she wanted to bone me when we first met on the set of the first Resident Evil movie).<br />
Then I woke up.</p>
<p>And nothing happened. I have the weirdest dreams.</p>
<p>2011's almost over! The year didn't go exactly as planned, but it still turned out alright. Trust me when I say this, 2012 is the game changer. That, and the world is probably gonna end in 12 months. Meanwhile, I've got to say, what's up will all the bombings going on in Nigeria? It's starting to get silly. And the president says it's a <a href="http://www.vanguardngr.com/2011/12/bomb-blast-a-burden-we-must-live-with-%E2%80%93-jonathan/" target="_blank">burden we must live with</a>. Really? That sucks.</p>
<p>I published a few apps for the Nokia N9: <a href="http://store.ovi.com/content/214062" target="_blank">Football Live Scores</a>, <a href="http://store.ovi.com/content/218712">TopVideo</a> and the <a href="http://store.ovi.com/content/219448">SimpleIRC</a> port. The first two are free, so go download them if you own an N9. I've been busy fixing bugs on the Symbian version of SimpleIRC, but I've not been able to add any of the planned features yet (chat logging, SASL support and DCC file transfers). I shall be working on these features next year. Thankfully, the codebase for the MeeGo/Harmattan and Symbian versions is shared so it shouldn't be a major problem bringing the new features to both platforms. I'm also working on a couple of game ideas I hope I can complete in the next year.</p>
<p>Here's to 2012, folks!</p>
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		<title>Football Live Scores for the N9</title>
		<link>http://www.antinormal.org/blog/2011/11/football-live-scores-for-the-n9/</link>
		<comments>http://www.antinormal.org/blog/2011/11/football-live-scores-for-the-n9/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Thu, 03 Nov 2011 17:36:38 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>akinwale</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.antinormal.org/blog/?p=282</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Football Live Scores just got published to the Nokia Store, my first app for the Nokia N9 which I wrote using QML and Javascript. There have been so many improvements to Qt Quick, it's just a joy to use. It's basically just an app for keeping eyes on the goals from matches played in the [...]]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>Football Live Scores just got published to the Nokia Store, my first app for the Nokia N9 which I wrote using QML and Javascript. There have been so many improvements to Qt Quick, it's just a joy to use. It's basically just an app for keeping eyes on the goals from matches played in the top European Leagues: UEFA Champions League, Europa League, the English Premier League, La Liga, Serie A, Bundesliga and a few others.</p>
<p><a title="Football Live Scores Leagues by shockreaction, on Flickr" href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/19898004@N00/6309522564/"><img src="http://farm7.static.flickr.com/6052/6309522564_ae0d9c63b8_m.jpg" alt="Football Live Scores Leagues" width="135" height="240" /></a> <a title="Football Live Scores Matches by shockreaction, on Flickr" href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/19898004@N00/6309001925/"><img src="http://farm7.static.flickr.com/6098/6309001925_890bc045d9_m.jpg" alt="Football Live Scores Matches" width="135" height="240" /></a> <a title="Football Live Scores Settings by shockreaction, on Flickr" href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/19898004@N00/6309002121/"><img src="http://farm7.static.flickr.com/6033/6309002121_5e63569294_m.jpg" alt="Football Live Scores Settings" width="135" height="240" /></a></p>
<p>It's available for free from the Nokia Store at <a href="http://store.ovi.com/content/214062" target="_blank">http://store.ovi.com/content/214062</a></p>
<p>Apart from the SimpleIRC port (which is not as easy as I thought it would be), I'll be working on a number of other nifty apps for the N9, so stay tuned.</p>
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		<title>The N9 is a beautiful, sexy device</title>
		<link>http://www.antinormal.org/blog/2011/10/the-n9-is-a-beautiful-sexy-device/</link>
		<comments>http://www.antinormal.org/blog/2011/10/the-n9-is-a-beautiful-sexy-device/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Sat, 29 Oct 2011 11:41:18 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>akinwale</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[64gb]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[e7]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[harmattan]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[meego]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[n9]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[nokia]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[ovi]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[simpleirc]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[swipe]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.antinormal.org/blog/?p=278</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[I picked up a black 64GB N9 yesterday and it's pretty awesome! That is all. Well, there are quite a number of reviews for the device all over the Internet so I'll just run through this. I played with the device much earlier but I was too lazy to write about it. The swipe UI [...]]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>I picked up a black 64GB N9 yesterday and it's pretty awesome! That is all.</p>
<p>Well, there are quite a number of reviews for the device all over the Internet so I'll just run through this. I played with the device much earlier but I was too lazy to write about it. The swipe UI is rather brilliant. It just feels natural once you figure it out. If anything, the N9 is an example of how devices are meant to be built. The hardware also feels very solid and well built. Did I mention it's sexy? The screen is gorgeous. Video playback is amazing. The UI is fast and responsive.</p>
<p>I have a few qualms with the device though. The WiFi radio seems to be a bit flaky. It doesn't pick up as much signal strength as my other devices in the same room. Contacts don't automatically get merged, which is bad considering certain details were pretty much the same (first name, mobile number and email for instance). I configured the device to sync with my contacts using Ovi, and then I imported contacts from my E7. Since the E7 was also synchronised with Ovi, this ended up creating duplicates. Having to manually merge 100 contacts is no fun at all. I also can't set the number of emails to be stored on the device from my Gmail account. This is weird considering I can do so for other mail accounts. I'd also like to be able to add feeds from other sources to the Notifications/Feed home screen. There are software updates coming though, so I hope these issues will get addressed.</p>
<p>Overall, the good outweighs the bad and I'm very pleased. I'll be porting SimpleIRC to the platform and I'm also working on a few app ideas. Sure, it's a DOA product (Why, Nokia? Why?!), but that doesn't mean I can't have fun with it.</p>
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		<title>Faster unstable pigeons</title>
		<link>http://www.antinormal.org/blog/2011/10/faster-unstable-pigeons/</link>
		<comments>http://www.antinormal.org/blog/2011/10/faster-unstable-pigeons/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Fri, 21 Oct 2011 13:14:38 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>akinwale</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[blog]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[internet]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[isp]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[mobitel]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[n9]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[nigeria]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[pigeons]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[sell out]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[wordpress]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.antinormal.org/blog/?p=270</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[In my never ending quest for a reliable Internet Service Provider in Nigeria, I decided to give Mobitel a try. I've been using the connection for almost a month now and it's been a mixed bag. It did not start out great at all. It worked alright for half of the first day and was [...]]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>In my never ending quest for a reliable Internet Service Provider in Nigeria, I decided to give Mobitel a try. I've been using the connection for almost a month now and it's been a mixed bag. It did not start out great at all. It worked alright for half of the first day and was completely useless for almost a week. Apparently, it turned out they were having technical issues, and I ended up being very unhappy.</p>
<p>It's not all bad, however. I paid for the 2Mbps plan and that speed most of the time. My Steam downloads are relatively quicker, I don't have to wait forever for Youtube videos to buffer, and it's a generally good experience. There are still hiccups from time to time though, and this can be really annoying. Like that one time I lost a very shiny ship in EVE during combat. The other plus is you're assigned an IP address so you don't have to deal with all sorts of bullshit that comes with being behind a NAT (so I'm not left to wonder how I'm banned from a random site I've never visited in my life). I'm probably gonna stick with them though, because faster downloads make the world go round.</p>
<p>In other news, the N9 is a gorgeous piece of hardware. I shall be picking the 64GB version up within the next week or two.</p>
<p>Oh, by the way, in case you didn't notice, I finally sold out. I've installed WordPress. I just didn't have the will to continue working on my home-made blog software. Now, if you'll excuse me, I need to continue with my theme and plugin search.</p>
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		<title>I like Deus Ex, and Windows 8</title>
		<link>http://www.antinormal.org/blog/2011/09/i-like-deus-ex-and-windows-8/</link>
		<comments>http://www.antinormal.org/blog/2011/09/i-like-deus-ex-and-windows-8/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Thu, 15 Sep 2011 20:53:34 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>akinwale</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[deus ex]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[metro]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[space marine]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[virtualbox]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[warhammer 40000]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[windows 8]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://132</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Deus Ex is pretty awesome. And I've started a second playthrough just to get the Pacifist achievement and take up the side quests I missed the first time around. People complained about the boss fights, but I didn't really mind. They were rather easy (even on the hardest difficulty setting), especially the final boss. Up [...]]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>Deus Ex is pretty awesome. And I've started a second playthrough just to get the Pacifist achievement and take up the side quests I missed the first time around. People complained about the boss fights, but I didn't really mind. They were rather easy (even on the hardest difficulty setting), especially the final boss. Up next, Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine!</p>
<p>I downloaded and installed the Windows 8 Developer Preview in a VirtualBox VM and I have to say it looks pretty good. Being able to access a proper desktop is nice, but I wish there was a way to get rid of Metro and revert to the classic Start Menu. Alas, whenever you click on the Start button, it takes you to the Metro interface.</p>
<p>I've had a few issues with the VM installation: the display drivers don't work and Internet Explorer 10 hangs when I open up the About screen, or whenever I try to open a URL, and Tweet@rama sometimes hangs the entire system on start up. We'll see how it goes as I'm still trying to break more things, but so far so good, I'm impressed.</p>
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		<title>Hey folks!</title>
		<link>http://www.antinormal.org/blog/2011/08/hey-folks/</link>
		<comments>http://www.antinormal.org/blog/2011/08/hey-folks/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Sun, 28 Aug 2011 07:58:40 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>akinwale</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://131</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[If you haven't purchased SimpleIRC for your S60 5th Ed or Symbian^3 phone, then I recommend you do so. I hear it's quite good. I've been adding new features and fixing bugs since the 2.0 release, and it's really nice to be able to get feedback from the users. I'm not getting thousands of downloads, [...]]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>If you haven't purchased <a href="http://store.ovi.com/content/126643" target="_blank">SimpleIRC</a> for your S60 5th Ed or Symbian^3 phone, then I recommend you do so. I hear it's <a href="http://www.allaboutsymbian.com/reviews/item/13119_Simple_IRC.php" target="_blank">quite</a> <a href="http://forum.dailymobile.se/index.php?topic=49058.0" target="_blank">good</a>. I've been adding new features and fixing bugs since the 2.0 release, and it's really nice to be able to get feedback from the users. I'm not getting thousands of downloads, but sales have been fairly satisfactory.</p>
<p>I've got a couple of apps I need to port to Qt: <a href="http://store.ovi.com/content/19849" target="_blank">Ultimate Stopwatch</a> and <a href="http://store.ovi.com/content/18555" target="_blank">Sliding8</a>. Just haven't had the time to do so due to other commitments. However, I managed to release a new app called <a href="http://store.ovi.com/content/128254" target="_blank">NSM</a>. It's a free utility for checking daily stock prices on the Nigerian Stock Market at the close of trade for the day. It was meant to be an entry for a Nokia App Challenge organised locally. Be sure to check it out!</p>
<p>A lot has happened since my last post, so I'm just gonna summarise. Have you seen the <a href="http://europe.nokia.com/find-products/devices/nokia-n9" target="_blank">N9</a>? Now, that's what you call a sexy piece of hardware. I intend to get the 64GB version once it's available. I particularly like the ease of use of the whole "Swipe" interface and . It's a shame that Nokia dumped MeeGo though. Considering the praise that the N9's been getting (even from the US media), I suppose it's safe to assume they had a winner on their hands.</p>
<p>I'm still skeptical about Windows Phone 7, but maybe when I actually get to use one of the devices, I might change my mind. Also, Microsoft, what's up with Nigeria not being on the list of Windows Marketplace countries? I'd like to publish WP7 apps, you see, but it looks like you don't want me to.</p>
<p><a href="http://www.deusex.com/" target="_blank">Deus Ex: Human Revolution</a> caught my eyes these past couple of weeks, and considering I hadn't been paying attention to the game series, I was pretty surprised. So I finally decided to stop procrastinating about playing the first one, but I just can't seem to get into it and I don't know why. Maybe everyone hyped it up a bit too much? However, Human Revolution is a sure buy for me once I get the cash.</p>
<p>Till next time.</p>
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		<title>SimpleIRC and NSM now available from the Ovi Store</title>
		<link>http://www.antinormal.org/blog/2011/06/simpleirc-and-nsm-now-available-from-the-ovi-store/</link>
		<comments>http://www.antinormal.org/blog/2011/06/simpleirc-and-nsm-now-available-from-the-ovi-store/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Fri, 03 Jun 2011 01:49:09 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>akinwale</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://130</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[That's right! The new and improved SimpleIRC is now available from the Ovi Store for Symbian^3 devices. NSM is also available for free for Symbian^3 devices. Since these were my first Qt app submissions, I exclusively selected the Symbian^3 target in my builds. This however caused failure on the Symbian^1 devices during the QA process. [...]]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>That's right! The new and improved <a href="http://store.ovi.com/content/126643" target="_blank">SimpleIRC</a> is now available from the Ovi Store for Symbian^3 devices. <a href="http://store.ovi.com/content/128254" target="_blank">NSM</a> is also available for free for Symbian^3 devices.</p>
<p>Since these were my first Qt app submissions, I exclusively selected the Symbian^3 target in my builds. This however caused failure on the Symbian^1 devices during the QA process. Apparently, I should've targeted Symbian^1 so the binaries could work on both Symbian^1 and ^3 devices, but I guess I had to find out the hard way. The new builds are currently in the QA process so they should be available on the store within the next couple of weeks at most.</p>
<p>In other news, I've got this neat idea that I'd like to enter for the <a href="http://code.google.com/android/adcafrica/" target="_blank">Sub-Saharan Africa Android Developer Challenge</a> but if I told you, I'd have to kill you. At least, until I've got my submission in.</p>
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		<title>New Content</title>
		<link>http://www.antinormal.org/blog/2011/05/new-content/</link>
		<comments>http://www.antinormal.org/blog/2011/05/new-content/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Wed, 25 May 2011 18:44:51 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>akinwale</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://129</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[I've been rather busy for the past few weeks but I figured I should be able to get in blog post. And let's face it, I'm just incapable of churning out content too often. I finally finished up with the new and improved SimpleIRC and submitted it to Ovi Publish. It should be appearing on [...]]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>I've been rather busy for the past few weeks but I figured I should be able to get in blog post. And let's face it, I'm just incapable of churning out content too often.</p>
<p>I finally finished up with the new and improved SimpleIRC and submitted it to Ovi Publish. It should be appearing on the Ovi Store anytime soon. I also developed a new application called NSM which essentially means Nigerian Stock Market. As the name implies, it's an application for viewing stock market prices at the end of each stock trading day. It's also been submitted to Ovi Publish, and it's free. You can find screenshots <a href="http://www.rigfoundry.com/community/viewtopic.php?f=10&#038;t=5">here</a>. I intend to extend the functionality to include price histories, charts and basic portfolio tracking.</p>
<p>So I've got this contract which requires me to extend Microsoft Dynamics CRM 4.0 for a client, which means I may not be able to publish new applications for a couple of months. I'm hoping I should be able to finish up with the Qt version of TopVideo within the next few weeks though. It's also gonna be a free application, with the ability to watch the videos within the app itself. We'll see how that goes.</p>
<p>I redecorated the screen of my E7 and it looked great. I should've taken pictures but I was too sad to think about it at that point. Either way, I'll have to wait till it makes it out of Nokia Care. At least, I've still got my trusty N8 which serves me well.</p>
<p>On to video games, I still have a few to beat - Borderlands, Fallout: New Vegas, Metro 2033. This is just sad as I haven't booted my gaming PC in a while (thanks to EVE Online running quite nicely on my HP Envy). I did finish Portal 2 within a week after I got it though. It's pretty cool but some of the puzzles kinda got frustrating. Maybe I'm just getting too old for that sort of shit. However, Spaaaaaaaaaace!</p>
<p><a href="http://www.google.com.ng/search?q=Africa+Day&#038;ct=africaday11-hp&#038;oi=ddle" target="_blank">Happy Africa Day</a>!</p>
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		<title>Porting SimpleIRC to Qt</title>
		<link>http://www.antinormal.org/blog/2011/04/porting-simpleirc-to-qt/</link>
		<comments>http://www.antinormal.org/blog/2011/04/porting-simpleirc-to-qt/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Sun, 17 Apr 2011 16:37:35 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>akinwale</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://128</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Hello Internet. Decided to spend the weekend implementing SimpleIRC in Qt using C++ and QML. I had already started on this a while back, but I sort of lost interest due to other projects I had to take care of. I'm happy with the results so far since the Java version got seriously broken after [...]]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>Hello Internet. Decided to spend the weekend implementing SimpleIRC in Qt using C++ and QML. I had already started on this a while back, but I sort of lost interest due to other projects I had to take care of. I'm happy with the results so far since the Java version got seriously broken after Nokia implemented kinetic scrolling on the touchscreen devices where you couldn't scroll through the chat history.</p>
<p>I've also been able to add nifty new features: The ability to open links in your device browser directly from chat, auto-join channels on a per-server basis and UTF-8 support. DCC file transfer support is still in the works. I just can't for the life of me figure out the protocol properly.</p>
<p>Of course, this post wouldn't be complete without screenshots. First of all, the basic stuff. Here's the main UI showing just a status tab and the main menu. All shots were taken in portrait mode but the UI auto-adjusts nicely when the screen orientation changes.</p>
<p><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/19898004@N00/5628767540/" title="The status tab by shockreaction, on Flickr" target="_blank"><img src="http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5261/5628767540_aee6f4b2e5_m.jpg" width="135" height="240" alt="The status tab"></a> <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/19898004@N00/5628774924/" title="Options menu by shockreaction, on Flickr" target="_blank"><img src="http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5142/5628774924_41a849b497_m.jpg" width="135" height="240" alt="Options menu"></a></p>
<p>Revamped settings and servers configuration sreens built using QML. The QML views are actually integrated with the application UI using a dialog.</p>
<p><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/19898004@N00/5628185383/" title="Settings and Servers screen by shockreaction, on Flickr" target="_blank"><img src="http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5230/5628185383_9335468a3f_m.jpg" width="135" height="240" alt="Settings and Servers screen"></a> <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/19898004@N00/5628768758/" title="Server list by shockreaction, on Flickr" target="_blank"><img src="http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5263/5628768758_f48b17a911.jpg" width="135" height="240" alt="Server list"></a> <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/19898004@N00/5628190259/" title="New server by shockreaction, on Flickr" target="_blank"><img src="http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5070/5628190259_ba093c925a_m.jpg" width="135" height="240" alt="New server"></a></p>
<p>Links are underlined in the chat window and will be launched with the native device browser when pressed.</p>
<p><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/19898004@N00/5628822918/" title="Clicking links by shockreaction, on Flickr" target="_blank"><img src="http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5144/5628822918_cb2e046473.jpg" width="135" height="240" alt="Clicking links"></a></p>
<p>Other fancy stuff: editing servers, error and confirmation dialogs, copying text and UTF-8.</p>
<p><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/19898004@N00/5628191135/" title="Fancy error dialog by shockreaction, on Flickr" target="_blank"><img src="http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5227/5628191135_92ebdfe099_m.jpg" width="135" height="240" alt="Fancy error dialog"></a> <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/19898004@N00/5628769760/" title="Editing a server by shockreaction, on Flickr" target="_blank"><img src="http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5181/5628769760_56f25c20b8_m.jpg" width="135" height="240" alt="Editing a server"></a> <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/19898004@N00/5628771046/" title="Edit server screen buttons by shockreaction, on Flickr" target="_blank"><img src="http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5030/5628771046_dd1cdc5387_m.jpg" width="135" height="240" alt="Edit server screen buttons"></a><br />
<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/19898004@N00/5628772102/" title="Fancy confirm dialog by shockreaction, on Flickr" target="_blank"><img src="http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5148/5628772102_44a7e5e71d_m.jpg" width="135" height="240" alt="Fancy confirm dialog"></a> <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/19898004@N00/5628822912/" title="Channel tab by shockreaction, on Flickr" target="_blank"><img src="http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5063/5628822912_c38e8fba8e_m.jpg" width="135" height="240" alt="Channel tab"></a> <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/19898004@N00/5628193461/" title="Copy text by shockreaction, on Flickr" target="_blank"><img src="http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5308/5628193461_dd58f26e53_m.jpg" width="135" height="240" alt="Copy text"></a></p>
<p>Overall, this is a very, very nice improvement from the Java version. I'm looking to finish it up within the next week so I can get it published once the Ovi Store starts accepting Qt 4.7 applications (within about 2 weeks from what I've heard). As usual, comments and feedback are appreciated.</p>
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		<title>Well, that&#8217;s disappointing</title>
		<link>http://www.antinormal.org/blog/2011/03/well-thats-disappointing/</link>
		<comments>http://www.antinormal.org/blog/2011/03/well-thats-disappointing/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Wed, 23 Mar 2011 04:31:12 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>akinwale</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://127</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[I take back all the good things I may have said about SWIFT Networks. I was pretty excited and upgraded to their unlimited plan. What I didn't know (and wasn't told) was that the unlimited plan has a reduced speed. It's pretty much the same as my former provider, but at twice the price. I [...]]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>I take back all the good things I may have said about SWIFT Networks. I was pretty excited and upgraded to their unlimited plan. What I didn't know (and wasn't told) was that the unlimited plan has a reduced speed. It's pretty much the same as my former provider, but at twice the price. I have not renewed my subscription and I don't plan to unless they fix that.</p>
<p>Nokia announced a switch to Windows Phone 7 for smartphones and Qt is not going to be one of the development platforms going forward. Now, I'm a bit familiar with Windows Phone 7 development, and it's nice, but I feel like I wasted quite a bit of my time learning Qt. It's not all bad however since there's Qt Quick which is fairly straightforward and easy to use, and I'm liking it. It's probably what I'll solely be using to develop applications for Symbian devices going forward. I also will be getting a free <a href="http://europe.nokia.com/find-products/devices/nokia-e7" target="_blank">E7</a> as a Forum Nokia Launchpad member, then a Nokia Windows Phone 7 when they start shipping as encouragement to keep developing for Nokida devices. Sounds like bribery, but hey, I'll take it!</p>
<p>I haven't been doing much development work lately as I've been feeling a bit off, but I should get past that phase in a bit.</p>
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		<title>Things are good</title>
		<link>http://www.antinormal.org/blog/2011/02/things-are-good/</link>
		<comments>http://www.antinormal.org/blog/2011/02/things-are-good/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Wed, 02 Feb 2011 02:46:15 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>akinwale</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://126</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Happy New Year, folks. Sure it's a month and a day late, but I was just too lazy in January to even bother. However things are looking up this year. First off, I finally took the plunge and purchased the HP Envy 14 after the Radiance displays were made available for a limited time (they [...]]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>Happy New Year, folks. Sure it's a month and a day late, but I was just too lazy in January to even bother. However things are looking up this year.</p>
<p>First off, I finally took the plunge and purchased the <a href="http://www.engadget.com/2010/08/03/hp-envy-14-review/" target="_blank">HP Envy 14</a> after the Radiance displays were <a href="http://www.engadget.com/2011/01/13/hp-envy-14-aficionados-rejoice-radiance-displays-are-back-for-a/">made available for a limited time</a> (they initially ran out of stock). It's got a Core i5-560M processor with 8GB of RAM and a 500GB hard disk drive along with an AMD 5650HD graphics chip for high performance gaming. It's gonna make me productive.</p>
<p>I changed my ISP again. This time, I switched to SWIFT Networks and they've been pretty good so far. Current max download I've got is ~200KB/s which is good enough for my 10GB+ Steam downloads. At least, I don't have to wait days to complete them anymore. See:</p>
<p><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/19898004@N00/5407097392/" title="Swift &quot;4G&quot; max download speed by shockreaction, on Flickr" target="_blank"><img src="http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5100/5407097392_a6e2c0f9fa.jpg" width="500" height="313" alt="Swift &quot;4G&quot; max download speed" /></a></p>
<p>I've also recently got back into EVE after taking a break for a whole year. The new character creator is pretty. My new <a href="http://image.eveonline.com/Character/865809324_512.jpg" target="_blank">character portrait</a> is pretty. I'm currently focusing on PvP in faction wars which is pretty fun for the most part. I've still got quite a lot of skills to train though before I become a deadly pilot.</p>
<p>I haven't started with university yet. There was a bunch of delays which resulted in me having to move my departure from Nigeria forward to August. Meanwhile, I've got a few things to look forward to while I'm still here, like Nokia organised programmes for Ovi publishers.</p>
<p>So yeah, things are looking good. 2011 looks like it's gonna be awesome. And don't forget, the world ends next year!</p>
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		<title>Moving forward</title>
		<link>http://www.antinormal.org/blog/2010/12/moving-forward/</link>
		<comments>http://www.antinormal.org/blog/2010/12/moving-forward/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Wed, 15 Dec 2010 02:08:09 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>akinwale</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://125</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[I haven't been posting regularly (as usual), and I'm not going to say that that's gonna change but it looks like I'd have to go with the I'll post when I can copout. I'm not going to university yet, which is a long story and a bit of bummer but it'll get get sorted out [...]]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>I haven't been posting regularly (as usual), and I'm not going to say that that's gonna change but it looks like I'd have to go with the I'll post when I can copout. I'm not going to university yet, which is a long story and a bit of bummer but it'll get get sorted out in 7 to 8 months but I've been doing interesting things! Aside from TopCoder competition madness, I'm almost done porting SimpleIRC to Qt and I plan to develop a couple of mobile games before the year runs out.</p>
<p>First game is meant to be a collection of five card games called Five Card Games. Maybe I'll just add in Classic there somewhere. I'm very creative, I know! The other's gonna be a clone of <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LdEJkJ5OX9k" target="_blank">Paratrooper</a> which is an old DOS game. It's gonna have improved graphics, of course. Five Card Games will consist of <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Klondike_(solitaire)" target="_blank">Solitaire (Klondike)</a>, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Last_Card" target="_blank">Last Card</a>, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hearts_(game)" target="_blank">Hearts</a>, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blackjack" target="_blank">Twenty-One (Blackjack)</a> and <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Texas_hold_'em" target="_blank">Texas Hold 'em Poker</a>. There will be single-player and multiplayer options available through peer-to-peer (bluetooth) or Internet servers (3G or WiFi). Obviously, there won't be a multiplayer Solitaire option, but on second thought, that sounds like an interesting game mode. Co-op solitaire, anyone?</p>
<p>You'd think coding card games should be a very easy task. Let me tell you, it isn't. But that probably has more to do with the fact that I'm just learning OpenGL ES. I haven't touched any form of OpenGL in years now, so I barely remember anything.</p>
<p>I've been playing Batman: Arkham Asylum which is rather good. You should watch me break several mice as I try to fight off up to 10 baddies at a time! My progress is very slow though since I've got a lot of work to do. And regarding games I'm looking forward to, there is only one (sorry, Dragon Age 2 but this is my first love).</p>
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		<title>I&#8217;ve been busy with cool things</title>
		<link>http://www.antinormal.org/blog/2010/10/ive-been-busy-with-cool-things/</link>
		<comments>http://www.antinormal.org/blog/2010/10/ive-been-busy-with-cool-things/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Fri, 22 Oct 2010 15:54:53 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>akinwale</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://124</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Literally. So much that I forgot to renew antinormal.org. Who does that?! I guess the lesson to be learned here is that I need to update my blog more. A lot's happened since the last time I posted. Spammers took over the Comments section and they really need to fall off the face of the [...]]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>Literally. So much that I forgot to renew antinormal.org. Who does that?! I guess the lesson to be learned here is that I need to update my blog more. A lot's happened since the last time I posted. Spammers took over the Comments section and they really need to fall off the face of the earth. And check out my new Windows Experience Index score! Look at all the sweet, sweet GTX 460 goodness! However, it looks like it's time for me to jump on the SSD bandwagon.</p>
<p><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/19898004@N00/5096871895/" title="Slow hard disk is slow! by shockreaction, on Flickr" target="_blank"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4144/5096871895_31586bd272.jpg" width="500" height="400" alt="Slow hard disk is slow!" /></a></p>
<p>Windows Phone 7 phones were announced and Windows Phone 7 launched. I particularly like the <a href="http://www.engadget.com/2010/10/20/samsung-omnia-7-review/" target="_blank">Samsung Omnia 7</a>, but I'm personally waiting for the first wave of updates before I get one. I still don't like the fact that basic features like copy-and-paste and proper multitasking are missing from the OS but since Microsoft has promised good updates, we'll see how it goes.</p>
<p>I got called up by Nokia yesterday which I thought was interesting. I didn't even know they had an office over here! But I suppose we learn something new every day. Basically, they're reaching out to developers because they want to do everything they can to support us to write apps and publish to Ovi. It was completely unexpected and was very nice. I also got to do an impromptu presentation today about the apps that I published and it went quite well, considering I don't usually do presentations. Funny enough, I've never actually done a real life presentation before. Based on this, I believe we can safely conclude that I've clearly got skills. No, I didn't get a free N8. So yeah, I was impressed and excited about the whole thing and it actually made me reflect on the apps I wrote in Java ME and the planned features considering all the limitations. Here's the good thing though, Qt is my new friend. So my old applications will be ported, I shall develop and launch new applications, and they will all sell millions of copies. Gotta take care of the revenue disparity first, though.</p>
<p>Speaking of the Ovi Store, a lot has changed (for the better) since my initial <a href="http://www.antinormal.org/blog/Post/115/publishing-to-the-ovi-store" target="_blank">Publishing to the Ovi Store</a> post so I intend to post an update detailing the current process. The applications I published are currently not available for purchase due to the code signing certificate expiring and a hiccup I experienced while trying to renew. Thankfully, Nokia signs apps for free now (refer to future post) so I don't have to bother with that anymore.</p>
<p>Back to the GTX 460 goodness I was talking about, Prototype is pretty awesome. You can fly! Yes, I know it's just gliding. BUT YOU CAN FLY! And kick helicopters out of the sky. Any game which allows you to kick helicopters out of the sky is a proper definition of awesome in my book. There's no dispute about that. I've also been playing Borderlands which is quite good and Dragon Age: Origins which I've beaten once. I quite liked the story in Dragon Age, but the sex scenes were pretty lame. I think everyone who decides to put sex in a game should use Fahrenheit as a point of reference from now on.</p>
<p>Lastly, I bought Fallout: New Vegas today, which is funny because I decided I wasn't going to buy any more games this year (after the spending spree on Steam summer discounts), but you know, it's Fallout. It's meant to be great by default. It's gonna take about 4 days(!) to download all 7GB of it on Steam, but I'll manage as usual. I am still in desperate need of a high speed Internet connection. Anyone?</p>
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		<title>On to Qt and C++</title>
		<link>http://www.antinormal.org/blog/2010/08/on-to-qt-and-c/</link>
		<comments>http://www.antinormal.org/blog/2010/08/on-to-qt-and-c/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Wed, 18 Aug 2010 18:49:05 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>akinwale</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://123</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[My C++ is absolute rubbish. But that's probably due to the fact that I haven't written any C++ code since 2005. I'm gradually picking it up again though as I'm exploring Qt (pronounced "cute" by the way, which I find amusing) for developing mobile applications. Qt is actually a very neat framework. I particularly like [...]]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>My C++ is absolute rubbish. But that's probably due to the fact that I haven't written any C++ code since 2005. I'm gradually picking it up again though as I'm exploring Qt (pronounced "cute" by the way, which I find amusing) for developing mobile applications. Qt is actually a very neat framework. I particularly like the <a href="http://doc.trolltech.com/signalsandslots.html" target="_blank">signals and slots</a> feature. Think about signals as events and slots as event handlers and you'll see what I mean. I've spent a couple of weeks coding an application and I'm rather liking the experience so far.</p>
<p>My C++ is still absolute rubbish. Or just the bit that has to do with pointers and references. I've been thinking of buying <a href="http://portal.acm.org/beta/citation.cfm?id=1050953" target="_blank">C++ Primer</a> for a long time now (~3 to 4 years) and I think it's about time that I actually do that. The other development option is PyQt which uses Python, and I may be wrong, but I believe it requires some additional libraries to be installed on the target device before your applications can run.</p>
<p>I finished up at <a href="http://www.topcoder.com/tco10?module=ContestDetails&#038;eid=3432&#038;ct=477" target="_blank">15th place</a> in the develompent track of the 2010 TopCoder Open, which means I qualified but since my visa application was refused, I won't be able to attend. The interview official this time around was an even bigger douche than the one I was stuck with last year which I found hilarious. Eventually. In any case, looks like I should be looking forward to next year's experience.</p>
<p>Meanwhile, I have a <a href="http://www.antinormal.org/blog/Post/122/im-still-alive-fyi">lot of games</a> to keep me occupied at the moment while I'm still stuck in this country saving up for university. My ultimate departure's getting close. I can feel it. But before that, I have to acquire an <a href="http://www.shopping.hp.com/webapp/series/category/notebooks/ENVY14_series/3/computer_store" target="_blank">HP Envy 14</a> and a <a href="http://www.anandtech.com/show/3809/nvidias-geforce-gtx-460-the-200-king" target="_blank">GTX 460</a> graphics card.</p>
<p>And just to let everyone know I haven't been living under a rock<br />
<b>The greats:</b> Inception, The Expendables (I haven't seen it yet, but it automatically qualifies), current Burn Notice season, N900 PR 1.2 update<br />
<b>The good:</b> Caprica (first episode is quite rubbish, but trust me, it gets better albeit slow), current True Blood season, N97 v22 firmware update<br />
<b>The funnies:</b> iPhone 4 antenna issues (aka Antennagate)<br />
<b>The fails:</b> Apple's Antennagate response, Windows Marketplace doesn't have Nigeria in the list of countries for developer registration</p>
<p>My TCO qualification rush is over so I should be posting more regularly now. Stay tuned!</p>
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		<title>I&#8217;m still alive. FYI.</title>
		<link>http://www.antinormal.org/blog/2010/07/im-still-alive-fyi/</link>
		<comments>http://www.antinormal.org/blog/2010/07/im-still-alive-fyi/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Mon, 05 Jul 2010 06:37:32 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>akinwale</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://122</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[It's been over 3 months since I made a post on this blog and with good reason. I've been too lazy to make a post. Actually, I've been mostly occupied with trying to qualify as a finalist for the component development track of the 2010 TopCoder Open. I'm currently placed 20 and they're only taking [...]]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>It's been over 3 months since I made a post on this blog and with good reason. I've been too lazy to make a post.</p>
<p>Actually, I've been mostly occupied with trying to qualify as a finalist for the <a href="http://www.topcoder.com/tc?module=Static&#038;d1=tournaments&#038;d2=tco10&#038;d3=development&#038;d4=description" target="_blank">component development track</a> of the <a href="http://www.topcoder.com/tco10" target="_blank">2010 TopCoder Open</a>. I'm currently <a href="http://www.topcoder.com/tco10?module=ContestDetails&#038;eid=3432&#038;ct=477">placed 20</a> and they're only taking the top 15. It's not been very easy as I've been on a <a href="http://www.topcoder.com/tco10?module=MemberResults&#038;eid=3432&#038;ct=477&#038;cr=22678937">second-place streak</a>. To put things in perspective, 1st place winners get a significantly greater amount of points. I actually managed to get two first place wins, but I was moved to second place for one of them because my score was <a href="http://www.topcoder.com/tc?module=CompContestDetails&#038;pj=30010898">tied with a developer who had a higher rating</a> (you're interested in the DR points column). However, I remain the true winner for that component irrespective of what they say. I bet I currently hold the record for the most second places during a qualification period.</p>
<p>I went against my principles and purchased a Blackberry Bold 9700. Blackberry devices are overhyped. However, the unlimited (yes, it's truly unlimited) plan for always-on connectivity (at ~$33 a month) on MTN is actually very useful. Apart from the obvious Blackberry Messenger usage, you also get normal access to the Internet. I'm not sure if this works with tethering as I've never bothered to try it, but the mobile browser is good enough. I haven't tried downloading large files though. I'll see how that goes when I can get around to it. There's another side of the story as to why I got a Blackberry, but I'm not telling you.</p>
<p>Meanwhile, the Steam summer sales which ended yesterday were pretty awesome! I think I bought about 1000 games for ~$200. Okay, so maybe just about 62 games which include Just Cause 2 (which I hear is the funnest game ever), Batman: Arkham Asylum, Warhammer 40,000: Dawn of War II, Prototype, Dragon Age: Origins, Red Faction: Guerilla and Borderlands. Tell me that's not an awesome deal. All in all, I have a long list of games to play once I have plenty of free time.</p>
<p>Other important notes: The <a href="http://www.forum.nokia.com/info/sw.nokia.com/id/e920da1a-5b18-42df-82c3-907413e525fb/Nokia_Qt_SDK.html" target="_blank">Nokia Qt SDK</a> is pretty rad and <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vuvuzela" target="_blank">vuvuzelas</a> are officially the worst invention, ever. I'm not even going to say anything about Nigeria's performance at the World Cup. Just know this, there's a certain individual who missed a clear cut goal chance, he's the new poster child of epic fail.</p>
<p>Till next time.</p>
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		<title>Quick N900 Review</title>
		<link>http://www.antinormal.org/blog/2010/03/quick-n900-review/</link>
		<comments>http://www.antinormal.org/blog/2010/03/quick-n900-review/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Thu, 25 Mar 2010 06:19:08 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>akinwale</dc:creator>
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		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://121</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Verdict: The N900 is an awesome piece of hardware. Or if you prefer the long version: I picked up a Nokia N900 about a week ago (after several months of resistance which turned out to be clearly futile) and it has effectively replaced my N97 as my primary mobile device. I'm not going to go [...]]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>Verdict: The N900 is an awesome piece of hardware.</p>
<p>Or if you prefer the long version: I picked up a Nokia N900 about a week ago (after several months of resistance which turned out to be clearly futile) and it has effectively replaced my N97 as my primary mobile device. I'm not going to go into details in this post, so I'll just outline the main points I've observed in this speedy review. Also, I haven't used the camera yet (sorry, folks!) but I probably will when I get out more.</p>
<p><b>The Good</b><br />
- Maemo 5 is very fast and responsive and the interface is very nice. I've read a few posts saying that the interface is unintuitive, but I don't see anything unintuitive about this.<br />
- Conversations. This is by far the best feature in my opinion. Particularly useful for SMS messages as they are treated like IMs. Basically, SMS messages from the same sender are grouped in a single view with your replies to that sender. It's also used for IMs which function like, well, IMs.<br />
- Seamless integration with VoIP and IM accounts in the Phone application and Contacts view. Only Google Talk, Skype, Ovi and Jabber are supported but it's nice being able to make a call using any of these options when you open up the Contact View.<br />
- Web browsing experience is superb. But then again, everyone already knows this.<br />
- Desktop widgets and shortcuts. Quick access to anything and everything.<br />
- Media Player plays practically everything. Or at least all the different audio and video file formats I have.</p>
<p><b>The Bad</b><br />
- The touchscreen became unresponsive on me once which led to having to reboot the device. I've not experienced this again, though.<br />
- Can't resume firmware updates if the connection breaks, but my slow connection takes most of the blame for this. Resume functionality would be nice, though.<br />
- Email application could use pagination settings. Not being able to set the number of emails to display at once isn't ideal.<br />
- Maps application is limited. It'd be very nice to have the S60 Ovi Maps edition on this with free navigation.<br />
- No Ovi Suite support.</p>
<p><b>The Ugly</b><br />
- Phone application doesn't support <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/USSD" target="_blank">USSD</a> out-of-the-box. To perform operator requests (those numbers that contain * and #), I have to run a script on the terminal or use a 3rd party desktop widget.<br />
- Can't create playlists with the Media Player.<br />
- Based on some posts I've seen, I'm scared the USB port might come off at any time. But let's hope it doesn't.</p>
<p>Overall, I think it's a well-rounded device that does just about everything. I'm hoping for firmware updates that will fix the feature omissions and USSD issues.</p>
<p>Over the next few weeks, I plan on doing a series of reviews of ISPs in Nigeria. I'm also thinking of setting up a community forum on antinormal. Because I can. And all the cool kids have one.</p>
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		<title>Ovi Maps free navigation license, for life</title>
		<link>http://www.antinormal.org/blog/2010/01/ovi-maps-free-navigation-license-for-life/</link>
		<comments>http://www.antinormal.org/blog/2010/01/ovi-maps-free-navigation-license-for-life/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Fri, 22 Jan 2010 04:02:24 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>akinwale</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://120</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[In case you haven't heard yet, Nokia announced that the Walk and Drive everywhere navigation license for Ovi Maps is completely free. Who says you can't get good things for free? This is probably a response to Google's free navigation service available on Android devices, but Ovi Maps is a better option for me considering [...]]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>In case you haven't heard yet, <a href="http://events.nokia.com/ovimaps/index.html" target="_blank">Nokia announced that the Walk and Drive everywhere navigation license for Ovi Maps is completely free</a>. Who says you can't get good things for free?</p>
<p>This is probably a response to Google's free navigation service available on Android devices, but Ovi Maps is a better option for me considering it's available in my country (Google is only limited to the United States as far as I know) and it doesn't require a data connection since you can preload maps onto your device.</p>
<p>The N97 currently isn't on the list of supported devices, though, which  was a bit of a downer. They're delaying it till the 28th but there's a workaround for people like me who are completely incapable of waiting, sometimes. You need to have at least 20MB of free space on C:. I only had 19.7MB free but I coincidentally discovered the Memory Reorganiser update (from the phone's Software Updates application) for my phone which was able to free up about 5MB of space.</p>
<p>When you've got 20MB of free space on C:, you can use <a href="http://nds1.nokia.com/PRODUCT_METADATA_0/Explore_Services/Ovi_Maps/maps_installer_3.03_10wk1_b05_s60_5.0.Nocs.sis" target="_blank">this installer</a> to get all the Ovi Maps 3.3 goodness you've ever wanted. They've also improved on the interface which is very nice.  And there's the English voice with street names, which in theory is meant to call out the names of streets during navigation. It's going to be hilarious listening to this with Nigerian street names, if it works.</p>
<p>Meanwhile, I picked up an <a href="http://www.lge.com/us/tv-audio-video/televisions/LG-plasma-tv-42PQ30.jsp" target="_blank">LG 42PQ30</a> yesterday which happens to be my first HDTV purchase. And in case you're wondering why I picked plasma over LCD, it was cheaper. What can I say? I'm a slow and cheap adopter of new technology.</p>
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		<title>2010</title>
		<link>http://www.antinormal.org/blog/2010/01/2010/</link>
		<comments>http://www.antinormal.org/blog/2010/01/2010/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Wed, 06 Jan 2010 03:26:24 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>akinwale</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://119</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[I wasn't able to make any posts late last year due to having quite a lot of work on my hands. But here I am, now, writing this. First, and most importantly, it's 2010! I should actually be starting with university by September this year. I know I've probably said this several times, but it's [...]]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>I wasn't able to make any posts late last year due to having quite a lot of work on my hands. But here I am, now, writing this.</p>
<p>First, and most importantly, it's 2010! I should actually be starting with university by September this year. I know I've probably said this several times, but it's definite now. I've been considering Computing at the <a href="http://beds.ac.uk/" target="_blank">University of Bedfordshire</a>.</p>
<p>Which brings me to the next point. Based on my experience online, being called a fraudster and all either in jest in chat rooms, indirectly or even directly by a number of online stores, I've always said we're this close to being labeled terrorists. And then some <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Umar_Farouk_Abdulmutallab" target="_blank">idiot</a> decided to blow up a plane. And he didn't even do it right. He's got to be the ultimate moron I've ever come across. When I apply for a visa, not only am I gonna be discriminated against because I'm a young adult (who's not likely to come back to his country - which I clearly disproved, but hey, no second visa for me anyway), or a potential fraudster, I'm also going to be considered a potential terror threat. Very nice, I'd say. I did find the media hype surrounding the issue to be rather sensationalist and ultimately amusing, though. I guess when someone tries to blow up a plane, it's an exponentially greater threat than shooting up a bunch of random people or trying to blow up a bus or a building.</p>
<p>Next up, Nigeria doesn't have a President. It's been ~43 days now and we haven't heard anything about his whereabouts or his condition yet. Hilarious.</p>
<p>Okay, I'm done with sad stories. The <a href="http://maemo.nokia.com/N900/" target="_blank">N900</a>! I was a bit upset when Nokia got around to announcing this considering it was 2 months after I purchased my N97, but I've got to say, it's a particularly attractive device. And it runs Linux. I've not been really impressed with desktop Linux lately as it's still a hassle to get some basic things to work (I'm looking at you, NVIDIA driver installation on Ubuntu and your max 800x600 resolution) but it'd be nice to tinker with it on a mobile device/phone. I'd probably pick it up when I get some spare cash. At least, there would've been a few firmware upgrades and improvements before that.</p>
<p>The <a href="http://www.google.com/phone" target="_blank">Google Nexus One </a> also looks really appealing but I'm holding out. Perhaps, when I've got "extra" spare cash, I'd probably pick it up along with the Samsung Omnia II. Speaking of, I also quite like the Nokia E72. I initially wanted to get an E71 back in late 2008, but since the N97's release was close, I skipped it. At this rate, I think I'd probably go bankrupt from buying a lot of mobile devices, but we'll see.</p>
<p>The v20 firmware for the N97 broke my touch input scrolling implementation in SimpleIRC and I have not been able to fix it. I've got a post up about it <a href="http://discussion.forum.nokia.com/forum/showthread.php?t=184088" target="_blank">here</a>. If anyone has any ideas or solutions short of rewriting the user interface to be based on a Canvas (which I'd probably have to do anyway in order to get an onscreen QWERTY keybaord implementation up), I'd appreciate the help.</p>
<p>Finally, when I get a spare $250,000+ or thereabouts, I'm gonna purchase a <a href="http://www.ferraricalifornia.com/" target="_blank">Ferrari California</a>.</p>
<p>Happy New Year, everyone! 2010's gonna be awesome, yeah.</p>
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		<title>Ovi Store Sales (or the lack thereof)</title>
		<link>http://www.antinormal.org/blog/2009/11/ovi-store-sales-or-the-lack-thereof/</link>
		<comments>http://www.antinormal.org/blog/2009/11/ovi-store-sales-or-the-lack-thereof/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Tue, 24 Nov 2009 13:23:01 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>akinwale</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://118</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Short version: No, they have not been very encouraging. Long version: I currently have 3 applications published to the Ovi Store, SimpleIRC, Sliding8 and Ultimate Stopwatch at €5, €2 and €1 respectively and between them, only 136 units have been sold (41, 28 and 67 respectively). Total revenue so far is just €147.53. I thought [...]]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>Short version: No, they have not been very encouraging.</p>
<p>Long version: I currently have 3 applications published to the Ovi Store, SimpleIRC, Sliding8 and Ultimate Stopwatch at €5, €2 and €1 respectively and between them, only 136 units have been sold (41, 28 and 67 respectively). Total revenue so far is just €147.53. I thought I was supposed to be getting 70% (yes, I read the small print on the front page of Ovi Publish and thought it'd probably turn out to be at least 60%) but this works out to only 44% (of €5*41 + €2*28 + €1*67). And they call it estimated revenue. Good thing I don't exclusively depend on the sales as my source of income. </p>
<p><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/19898004@N00/4131641410/" title="Ovi Store Sales Summary by shockreaction, on Flickr" target="_blank"><img src="http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2642/4131641410_77572f64da_o.png" width="371" height="135" alt="Ovi Store Sales Summary" /></a></p>
<p>How'd this happen? The amount you earn per sale varies greatly depending on where your app gets sold. I'm going to use SimpleIRC as a case study. With screenshots. Everyone loves screenshots. It's also been on the store for the longest period of time (almost 3 months). A couple of user reviews have complained it's expensive, so it's only fair to show how much I'm earning per sale in order to justify the cost. It also bothers me that some people think that they're entitled to get something for free. Fact: developing applications takes time and money. Free applications are a great thing, yes, but there are developers who are out to make money as well.</p>
<p>For each sale in most European countries - and this is probably due to high taxes or operator billing or both - I make ~€1.70 to €2.87 per sale; for example, €1.88 in the United Kingdom, €1.76 in Germany and €2.87 in Italy. It's a bit of a mixed bag outside Europe. In Australia, I make €1.89 (probably operator billing?) or €2.60 (direct store sale?) per sale. In the United States, it's €2.14. In Kuwait, Turkey or Japan, I make €3.22 on each sale which is closer to what I was expecting. In Israel, I make €3.50. Seventy per cent! That's more like it. But I've only sold one there. Dear Israel, buy more units of SimpleIRC. Thanks.</p>
<p><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/19898004@N00/4130879503/" title="SimpleIRC sales in September by shockreaction, on Flickr" target="_blank"><img src="http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2618/4130879503_33e933c9ca_m.jpg" width="240" height="166" alt="SimpleIRC sales in September" /></a></p>
<p><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/19898004@N00/4131641588/" title="SimpleIRC sales in October by shockreaction, on Flickr" target="_blank"><img src="http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2701/4131641588_a9c661ab1a_m.jpg" width="240" height="156" alt="SimpleIRC sales in October" /></a></p>
<p><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/19898004@N00/4130879271/" title="SimpleIRC sales in Novebmer by shockreaction, on Flickr" target="_blank"><img src="http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2747/4130879271_84539b18ac_m.jpg" width="240" height="176" alt="SimpleIRC sales in Novebmer" /></a></p>
<p>Looking at the sales reports, I think there were a few problems with the store during the later part of September which caused the application not to show up in the store search results. The good thing is that the application actually sells. Perhaps, if I had a jumbo-sized marketing budget, there would be considerably more sales. The only sort of promotion I've been able to do for now are forum posts and paid ads on GetJar. I'm also hoping to get a few popular review sites to take a look at my application and give a verdict. We'll see how that goes. Of course, other developers may have had more success than I have but I haven't found anyone who's released sales figures. So to keep in line with Internet tradition, I'd say "FIRST!"</p>
<p>Perhaps, I also need to give the store more time to become widely adopted. Most sales come from the touchscreen devices which already have the Ovi Store client installed out of the box. I also have an application and a game that I plan to develop and release at the end of the year and I'd be developing more applications when I get the ideas and the time. Ultimately, I'm happy there are people out there who use my applications and it'd be nice if I could interact with them. I have <a href="http://rigfoundry.com/forums/" target="_blank">forums</a> set up for each of the products for user feedback, suggestions and bug reports.</p>
<p>So we wait!</p>
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		<title>Sliding8 is my first commercial game</title>
		<link>http://www.antinormal.org/blog/2009/09/sliding8-is-my-first-commercial-game/</link>
		<comments>http://www.antinormal.org/blog/2009/09/sliding8-is-my-first-commercial-game/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Sun, 27 Sep 2009 13:10:36 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>akinwale</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://117</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[I used to play with the sliding puzzle game when I was young lad. I didn't even know what it was called back then. The numbers were detachable from the puzzle board and my quickest way to solve the puzzle was to remove all the numbers and arrange them in order. It was genius. Sliding8 [...]]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>I used to play with the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sliding_puzzle" target="_blank">sliding puzzle</a> game when I was young lad. I didn't even know what it was called back then. The numbers were detachable from the puzzle board and my quickest way to solve the puzzle was to remove all the numbers and arrange them in order. It was genius.</p>
<p>Sliding8 is a sliding numbers puzzle game I developed for Nokia S60 touch devices which features the 8- and 15-puzzle. It's the first complete game I've done in years. Although it's not much considering I've been looking to get back into game development for a long time now, I feel it's a step in the right direction. It's also my first commercial game which is an added bonus. Obligatory screenshots follow:</p>
<p><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/19898004@N00/3916511762/" title="Start screen by shockreaction, on Flickr" target="_blank"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3475/3916511762_474764115e_m.jpg" width="135" height="240" alt="Start screen" /></a> <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/19898004@N00/3915726265/" title="8-puzzle solved. by shockreaction, on Flickr" target="_blank"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3447/3915726265_6160950114_m.jpg" width="135" height="240" alt="8-puzzle solved." /></a> <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/19898004@N00/3915727373/" title="15-puzzle with sound enabled by shockreaction, on Flickr" target="_blank"><img src="http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2559/3915727373_3bd5b19984_m.jpg" width="135" height="240" alt="15-puzzle with sound enabled" /></a></p>
<p>I submitted it to Ovi about a couple of weeks ago and it's already passed QA (this took only 5 days, surprisingly, but there's still room for improvement). Still waiting for it to get published to the store.</p>
<p>Meanwhile, I was able to update SimpleIRC with a few improvements which include timestamps (should've been there from the start), adjustable font sizes for the tab bar and text area (which limits support to only Nokia S60 touch devices - Nokia UI API 1.2+) and the names in the nickname list are now arranged in alphabetical order. I'll be providing the version with fixed font sizes for sale through <a href="http://www.rigfoundry.com/" target="_blank">rigfoundry.com</a>, eventually.</p>
<p>There were a couple of comments by readers on my previous post asking about Ovi Store sales. I gave a short response, but I intend to write an extensive post on the subject sometime in the future. Stay tuned.</p>
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