The virtual key

The Internet is not a safe place!

It is easy to lock your house door, it is easy to keep your credit card password in the depths of your brain, but when it comes to the Internet, it is not that straight forward. 

There is no one lock you can see on the Internet. Unlike a key to your house door, the key to break most passwords on the Internet is simply the combination to 1s and 0s. 

The worst part of it all is that you won't even know when it is happening, you can be starring at your computer screen while the hacking virus is working it's way to your most secured files. 

After going through Internet security in class today, I realised how easy it is to be hacked...

As a gamer myself, hacking is something I am extremely afraid of. This because the items which you fought so hard to obtain, years and years of hard can be taken away by someone in a split second, and there is absolutely nothing you can do about it.

Just yesterday, my brother was Phished by someone. Yes, on steam. Hence, for those using steam often and have a precious account that you never ever want to see gone, please read on.

What happened was, at about 11pm. My brother received a message from person X that person Y wants to trade with him, then proceeded to give him the link to person Y's steam account.

Note that person X is real, he talks and response like a normal human being. He is not computer generated.

The link provided by person X is also very real, it is the kind of link that no one would suspect, because it is like any other link. 

Then my brother went to add person Y, some error occurred and steam asked for him to re-login.

And he did. 

After he logged in, he immediately realised what just happened.

He instantly changed his account password, uninstalled steam and scanned for trojans. 

He was extremely fortunate to have done that as moments later steam detected that someone was trying to log in to his account. 

If anyone were to know how valuable my brother's steam account is that is me. I gave him 80 dollars steam credit for Christmas last year.

Lesson learnt here:

1) Never ever click a link that is given to you on ANY online platform. EVEN IF IT"S YOUR CLOSE FRIEND.

2) Always consult your friend first about the link to confirm that it is not computer generated hack.

3) Always suspect a scam. ALWAYS. When you are asked to log in to anything by anything client, especially when it asks you to re-login

4) As always, keep your password to yourself

Together, we can make the Internet a safer place for all!

Have fun!!

See you all soon!

Music Friday

Time is the essence of making a music video

No DotA reference once again

There is music today!

The making of a music video is not as simple as some may think it is. 

The number 1 thing we need before making a music video is of course *drum roll* MUSIC. 

You have to record your music first! 

I normally just use raw recording from my digital recorder for my music; however, I met someone in my music class that are way more professional than I am and she taught me the use of a tool that I have had for the longest time. Garage band. 

I am ashamed to say that I have never tried using this tool. It was right there in my face starring at me everyday but I have never used it...

I didn't know that I can actually process sounds and edit them through this editing tool and it does make a huge difference. 

I am still learning how to use this! I may post a review of my progress and maybe some samples of what I can come up with! Stay tune!

In terms of movie, I have been using iMovie maker, now I am moving on to Final cut pro. Like I said, moving on, that means I still have a lot to learn about it... I will try my best.

iMovie Maker is a simplified version of the standard video editor. The 1st frame is shown at full contrast, while the ones following are faded. It's quite easy once you get used to the editing system. You can just click at a point in your clip, and then drag the resulting insertion line around the timeline. It is really simple, you just have to try it, and you will get the hang of it in no time!! Have fun making videos all!

Shouldn't say too much today, but instead show you some of the videos my group and I have made! Enjoy!!!

Don't judge. 

Micromanagement

"Micro your units please!"

"Don't just stand there!"

"Noob..."

Yes... I was in limbo once again. It took me a while to find out how I died.

When I was busy earning experience at the middle lane, I have sent my other self to the shop to buy something. I have completely forgotten that and Meepo2 was left standing at the shop waiting to get killed. And he did get killed... that's why I am here again. 

It was already so difficult to concentrate on killing minions for money and experience and at the same time I still have to tell Meepo2 what to do?

This is almost unfair, why is my ability so special? Almost everyone else has only themselves to worry about while I have multiple selves. 

But I knew I had to learn, I knew I have to get a hold of myself. My team was depending on me.

Then suddenly I recalled a good friend of mine, who specialises in combating with more than 1 unit. His name was Sylla, the lone druid. 

"Sylla of the bear clan!"

Sylla was not around but I was really eager to learn some tricks from him. Therefore, I took out my mobile phone and downloaded some replays of Sylla in action and analysed his movements and "micro skills" (Micro in gaming terms means controlling more than 1 unit). 

I found out that this method of learning is by far the most effective way for me. It is even better than Sylla being around for me. This is because, when he is here to teach me, I can only learn as long as he stays. On top of that, he may even forget important information at that moment. However, if i study his skills online, I not only can do it as and when I want, I can always go back to check when I am unsure. 

Traditional learning in my opinion has been taken over by online learning, or Internet learning. 

I have a feeling that in the future, there will not be any DotA classrooms anymore, the future classroom will look exactly like my room. This is because it IS going to be my room. Everyone can study in the comfort of their rooms and be as efficient if not more efficient than any classroom. 

As the respawn timer began to run out, my determination for destruction grew.

Time for a show down.

MEEPAWN

*Spoiler alert* I am breaking character in this post about e-commerce

Being successful in e-commerce 

My name is Alejandro

No DotA references this week

As you know by now, I am fulfilling the requirement to write blog posts about things which I have learnt in class. To spice things up, I mixed it with my favourite game - DotA 2. Of course the main character in my story is nonetheless my favourite hero, Meepo. 

However, for this week's topic, it is impossible to add in any of the DotA references. I am sorry, I am not as creative as some may think I am. 

If you have any suggestion of how I can turn this post into a DotA post, please teach me, comment or something. I may add you as a friend and we can play online together. I am not a bad teammates +)

Soooooooooooo, here goes! Welcome to Alejandro's list of 5 e-commerce trends in 2014!

1) BIGGG DATA, MOREEEEE

Big data has been around for a while now. However, it seems like most e-commerce companies are still not tapping into it's full potential! Tapping into big data's full potential will allow companies to make better decisions. An intuition or an idea is just an intuition or an idea at the end of the day, as the data will reveal the truth.

2) Subscription services

Subscription models opens up opportunities for better reoccurring revenue and also allows for companies to foster more personal, and deeper relationships with their customers which is great to improve brand loyalty. 

3) More personalised shopping experience

With the huge amount of data that companies are getting from costumers online nowadays, companies are able to customise the shopping for the consumers. This has not only increased sales but also improve the shopping experience for many.

4) Support on all devices

The importance of a device-friendly platform cannot be further emphasised. A service not available on Android devices, is the same as losing a portion of the market right from the start. It is like calling quit before it even starts. Imagine that. 

5) Transparency

There is a sea of e-commerce sites out there who are looking to succeed. Users have so many choices and so many alternatives. This means that competition has also increased. Hence, users are demanding more transiency from the companies in order to build trust and liking. Without this element of transparency, users can simple type in a google search and look for an alternative. 

There you go!

See you soon~~

You can't run from heaven!

"Don't take it badly if I look down on you, from when I sit, you all look like tiny insects"

The global power is unstoppable 

"If I own the world, do you expect to hide from me?"

Zues - The owner of Thunder

If you don't know by now, when a DotA hero dies, they are transported to limbo for  period of time before they respawn back into the map. 

As I was completely destroyed by Crystal Maiden, that's why I am here in Limbo, reading this DotA magazine, featuring Zeus.

Zues is famous for his ability to control thunder; he is able to strike everyone, no matter why you are with his powerful thunder. 

Back in the days, there were a few major players that have access to thunder. Medusa and razor used to be able to control the power of thunder. 

Razor

Medusa

It was until Zeus decided to monopolise thunder. 

He discovered a way to make use of a device called the Observer ward to observe what people are doing with thunder, the market for thunder and the companies that supply it. This observer ward allows Zeus to have a clear vision of the industry of thunder.

Zeus knew exactly who to look for and who he can work with in order to expand his power of thunder.

Some say that these observer wards are spying tools, but in fact, it is out there for everyone to use. However, too many have overlooked the importance of Observer wards. 

With that knowledge, Zeus was able to come out with more powerful thunder before Medusa and Razor could, rendering their thunder useless. 

In another world, these observer wards are more popularly known as social networking. It serves the same purpose, it allows people to go online to study what is happening around the world and most importantly, understand the market. 

For example, Mark Zuckerberg saw on opening in the social media site industry, as more people are adapting the use of Internet and communication through. Therefore, he created Facebook and now, he is the founder of the most used social media site in the world. 

Zues saw the opening for a powerful thunder item and went on to develop the maelstrom which later became the almighty Mjolnir. This invention put thunder users to shame; hence, they drop thunder from their skill tree, allowing Zeus to be the sole owner of thunder. 

In this interview with the DotA team, Zeus mentioned the most important values of succeeding in the world:

1) Always buy wards to know your market, know your competitors and know your openings.

2) Know where and when to put your wards, having wards in the wrong places is the same as not having any.

3) Interact with the market in order to cater to their needs.

Oh... I guess I got to go! 

Respawning in 3...2...

"Meepo the genomancer"

To be continued...