Published: Thursday September 10, 2009 MYT 4:00:00 PM
Updated: Thursday September 10, 2009 MYT 4:42:39 PM

Amateur ham radio users to contact orbiting space station

KUALA LUMPUR: Fancy chatting with someone in the International Space Station orbiting the earth? You may get a chance to if you’re among the participants at this year’s HITBSecConf — an annual international network-security conference.

The special session will see the Malaysian Amateur Radio Emergency Service Society (Mares) — a non-profit, non-government organisation — attempt to establish a live communications feed with the station during the conference.

Normally, Mares members provide communications service in times of disasters or when normal communications channels are either down or congested.

The session is one of the highlights of HITBSecConf 2009, which is scheduled for Oct 5-8 at The Crowne Plaza Mutiara hotel here.

Also while the conference focuses on network security, its lock-picking workshop is popular among the participants.

This year’s workshop will be run by members from Toool — The Open Organisation of Lockpickers — and will provide attendees with the opportunity to try their hand at picking locks.

They’ll also get a chance to crack safes while some of the locks that’ll be worked on will be provided by the public.

Dhillon Andrew Kannabhiran, founder and CEO of Hack In The Box (M) Sdn Bhd which organises the HITBSecConf series, said the objective of the event is to teach people how to better protect their property — both in the real world and in cyberspace.

In the case of lockpicking, he said, “Many people are unaware of how easy it is to compromise locks and other physical security mechanisms.”

He said the lock-picking workshop would educate participants in a fun and interesting manner. “Attendees are encouraged to bring their own locks from home,” he added.

For more information on HITBSecConf 2009, go to http://tinyurl.com/mosxve.

The conference has been held in Malaysia since 2003. It is endorsed by the Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission, the Malaysian International Chamber of Commerce and industry, the Malaysian National Computer Confederation, and the Malaysian Multimedia Development Corporation.

PIC-RF Pcb

After learning how to use the EAGLE Pcb & Schematic Capture software from 9W2BSR, this is what I manage to come our with. Although I've been using Protel / Altium before, I feel that EAGLE is much easier and friendlier compared to PROTEL /ALTIUM.

As mentioned by 9W2BSR, the board below is designed to fit in a plastic box for our PIC-RF project.

UHF RF Module

Finally, the 2 weeks wait is over. I received the UHF RF Transceiver module. We purchased 10 sets of it and will be using it for some experiment.

We have yet to decide what to experiment but this module is very interesting. It has the SPI interface and can be coupled with SPI capable micro controllers such as PICxxxxx. For now, will have to start thinking again...

K9 Needs Help

While I was on my way to Singapore on 7th May 2009, I read about this in the Sun newspaper and it kept me thinking... I took a 6am bus from Chorus Hotel to Singapore for work trip. During the whole journey, the sad picture of the dogs condition prompted me to contact 9W2BSR and 9W2XI. The reason why I contacted them is to inform them the idea and seek their suggestion.

Well.. I am so happy that 9W2BSR (Basir) and 9W2XI (Wilson) actually agreed and supported the idea. The idea was "HAMS SAVES THE DOGS"...

I understand that we all have our day jobs and we may not be able to help them personally. Therefore.. to those who are willing to contribute can submit their contribution by contacting:-

The Rescue Mission Secretariat at +6012 378 3730 (Janet) or +6012 320 8090 (Zalina).The Sec's E-mail is dogrescue.pk@gmail.com

TV Smith at tvsmith@mycen.com.my or Sabrina Yeap at yeapwen@yahoo.com

As a response to this plea... I, 9W2DTR (Dexter) & XYL (Joyce) will personally contribute RM500.00 for the mission. Although it is not that much, I hope with the rest of the contribution from others will add up and makes it more meaningful.

I wish and hope that the readers of my blog will support and contribute in any way.
To those who would like to do so.. please contact

The Rescue Mission Secretariat at +6012 378 3730 (Janet) or +6012 320 8090 (Zalina).The Sec's E-mail is dogrescue.pk@gmail.com

TV Smith at tvsmith@mycen.com.my or Sabrina Yeap at yeapwen@yahoo.com


taken from http://www.mycen.com.my/rescue/



About 300 stray dogs were rounded up
by Pulau Ketam residents and deported
to an isolated island to fend for themselves.

Over half of them are already dead and the
remaining ones may not live long. A rescue
mission is being mounted and your help is needed.

Please read the full story here

Updates here

The residents of Pulau Ketam sent some 300 stray dogs to exile on a remote island where the harsh conditions almost certainly guarantee a horrible death. Of the 300 dogs sent there, more than three-quarters are presumed to be already dead. I traveled to the island with Sabrina Yeap of Furry Friends Farm and managed to save only one dog on this reconnaissance trip. We did see several other starving and dying dogs along the mangrove shore.

I am mounting an urgent rescue mission to capture and transport the remaining survivors back to Sabrina's Furry Friends Farm animal shelter. But time is running out and there might be only skeletons and carcasses left to collect on our next trip. Boat hire is expensive there. It is a tourist area and it has already cost me a few hundred ringgit for boat hire alone, so far. The rescued dogs cannot be transported on the regular ferries.

Almost nobody will lift a finger to help without a fee. This is understandable. The locals are already shaking their heads in disbelief that there are outsiders who want to save the animals they so casually discarded. Instead of pointing fingers and antagonising them, we need their co-operation to help save the unfortunate creatures. In the process, we also hope to educate the islanders on better treatment of animals. It would be an impossible mission if we didn't win their hearts.

If you are unable to help directly, please help by forwarding this appeal to other compassionate folks who you feel might be able to make some monetary contributions.

Apart from boat hire, we need money to buy cages, to pay people to help catch them, to hire land transport to send the rescued animals to veterinary clinics, pay for vet fees, send the recovered ones to the shelter and to feed and house them for life. I can go on!

To contribute or help, e-mail TV Smith at tvsmith@mycen.com.my or Sabrina Yeap at yeapwen@yahoo.com

Update:

Furry Friends Farm
CIMB 1457-000-1182-05-6 (Current Account)
*For online interbank transfer, if it prompts for Recipient ID/Business Reg: Just type in 5766

Contributors from abroad (and Malaysia) can also:

Send by PayPal to tvsmith@gmail.com

Please retain transaction record / slip for verification and audit purposes.

Update:

For info or enquiries:
The Rescue Mission Secretariat at +6012 378 3730 (Janet) or +6012 320 8090 (Zalina)
The Sec's E-mail is dogrescue.pk@gmail.com (see updates page for info)

Fellow bloggers, you can also help by embedding the appeal poster above to your blog and linking to http://www.mycen.com.my/rescue (this page)

We are aware it is a monumental task and appreciate all forms of support, assistance, suggestions, encouragement and your prayers.

Thank you and don't forget to view the pictures of the dogs in order to appreciate their plight.

Visit also Furry Friends Farm's Blog / Website

TV Smith

3rd May 2009