The AT&T Tilt… No, HTC Kaiser 8925 done up by ZeroXR

(Correction: The 8900 designation was for the AT&T Tilt that lacked the 3.1 Megapixel camera)

So I finally sold my P990i off to get a device that is a little more future proof via firmware updates and also compatible with digital pharmacology books for my schooling needs. Got a slick deal on a used AT&T Tilt with a 2GB microSD card, however it had one slight issue… the phone was locked down. Not really too much issue with that, cause I had plans to break the phone open myself.

Sure, it’s not a “true” HTC TyTN II with the 3G video conferencing cam, but not a big issue for me. My first task was to repeat the same steps involved in liberating my assistant manager’s phone. I would have to get JumpSPL do a few flashes and then get the unlocking code. After that was when the real fun of choosing a hacked firmware began. I wanted to play with some of the spiffy things like the HTC Cube, TouchFLO and a few other things so I gravitated toward the last Windows Mobile 6 release of Alex’s HTC Cube rom pack. That would only be the beginning… I’d get the free student edition of Epocrates for medical and drug reference information on there just in case I ever need technical data when I am in the office or out of the office.

Once I got most of the phone configured, I had to get to playing with some of the fun stuff like TouchFLO and the HTC Cube as ’cause in America those features are only available in the Sprint HTC Touch, but not on any of the other HTC Windows Mobile phones in America. It’s a rather trick looking but it does have some “productivity” to it. Personally I like it as I can quickly access functions quickly without the need to flip through menus and prompts just to do something as easy as say… turn on my wi-fi or jump to my photo albums.

My seller also had included the full version of Tomtom Navigator 6 with my phone, so I would get the pleasure of having GPS but however… The software came on an SD card, so I would have to finagle with it to copy to my microSD card. After I get on my microSD, it would be a matter of letting my Kaiser to sync up with the GPS satellites. Inside my home, I was able to get a lock on 3-5 satellites with the internal antenna… Pretty good, I would think. However, on going outside and loading it up for use in my car, I was able get a lock on 7-9 satellites. The navigation and narration are clear visually and audible.

It’s no wonder a bunch of the American TV news stations were raving about this phone last year when it dropped as a truly great phone. I remember being a previous HTC Wizard owner (from my T-Mobile MDA) that the Windows Mobile Phones were ill equipped with enough RAM for their functionality and lacked the processing power. The HTC Kaiser/TyTN II/AT&T Tilt seems to have fixed both issues in one shot. The phone doesn’t lag and the best part is it just zips along.

I would like to thank the folks over at XDA Developers for scouring and experimenting to give users the ability to unlocked their restricted devices for use on other networks. For those who want to unlock their AT&T Tilt devices and seriously do them up just like mine… Check out the XDA Developer’s HTC Kaiser Wiki here! Enclosed below are pictures of my phone and screens. The screen shots are edited by Aviary’s Phoenix online based photo-editor, which I’ll be reviewing pretty soon. Enjoy the visual porn, I am going to enjoy the rest of my weekend with a gut buster set, some almonds, whey protein and some straight razor shaving. Expect the obligatory birthday post tomorrow.






















































Death Phone Acquired – Write-up will commence soon!

I bid farewell to my P990i for an AT&T Tilt and it is well worth it! It was however a suicidal mistake to be up since 4am doing all the hacks and tweaks to get it all running.

I have been coping with some personal problems, so I know I haven’t been documenting my workout’s as of late, but most of them have been gut-buster sets on intermittent days. I’ll probably do a super set tonight before my super write-up.

Update on spoiler function

I do have my RSS feed streaming into Facebook as a means of propping my site for more viewers… so apparently it does show a “preview” in the mini-newsfeed. I am also assuming that on reading my post via my mini-feed that it will reveal everything. I highly endorse those who wish to read my game reviews to read them via ZeroXR.com to avoid reading about my thoughts on plot, puzzles, etc.

Bad_httpd Error & Wally World for “Coffee Break” Materials

Had an error from a messed up DNS file basically kick my site offline. I ended up fixing it and then heading out to Wal-Mart while Dreamhost said to give my site some time to regenerate the DNS entry. Ended up picking up some materials for my lunch kits and wandered off to the games for fun. I ended up picking up Patapon and Final Fantasy VII: Crisis Core for cheap. I ended up playing the games on and off while doing sit-ups and waiting for the site to regenerate on getting home… They are rather addictive that you almost forget to take a break. Patapon is more due to a simple concept while Crisis Core being a wicked cool chain of action that’s almost non-stop.

I’ll probably post up my reviews on both when I get a chance to really delve into them.

For now… I just want to be thankful that my site is back online without much hassle like from the WordPress upgrade.

Insomnia Attack: Quick Gut-Buster Session

Well, seems like I couldn’t tire my energy out… so I remembered I didn’t do my short gut-buster session, so I figured why not? It has my abs nice and sore, but nowhere near what I plan to do for tomorrow. I have quite a bit of work to do, as today being the beginning of my IV training, I lose gym time. It’ll be gut-busters for sure tomorrow. Whey protein will probably be my savior and possibly eating a well loaded lunch as well to keep me from going hungry during my IV course.

V-up’s – 2 sets, 10 reps
Jack-knife sit-ups – 2 sets, 10 reps
Crunch-ups – 2 sets, 10 reps.

Workout Log – 4/1/2008

Today, it was a bit of a quick session due to the fact I was running just a tad late and had to do laundry… I managed to do a good round of sets before having to call it quits. It was a short but intense set, though it wouldn’t be until now that I can feel the pectorals, deltoids, and quadriceps hurting from the torn adipose tissue. I am sure the “punishment” will rear it’s ugly head tomorrow. It’s about 11:30pm so I may just work in a gut-buster mini-set before tomorrows festivities. Due to tomorrow’s 12 hours of work and IV training, I won’t have time to hit the gym. I plan to awake tomorrow morning with an intense round of gut-busters and then end the day with another round of gut-busters.

Squats – 40 lbs 3 sets 12 reps.
Lunges – 30 lbs 3 sets 12 reps
Seated Shoulder Press – 30 lbs 2 sets 10 reps.
Dumbbell Bench Press – 25 lbs 3 sets 12 reps
Dumbbell Fly – 25 lbs 3 sets 10 reps

[Review] Two Years of Faithful Service – 1999 Mazda MX-5 Miata (NB8C)

November 5th… I still remember that day like it was yesterday. I was doing the morning shift and I’d receive a call at home from a dealer saying “We’ve drop shipped your car to our lot! Come on over to take a look at it before we close… It is first come first serve even if you did pay the deposit to get it brought over.” I would get to the dealer at about 6:00pm and take a peek. The gauges reminded me of the days I toyed with FD3S RX-7’s but most of the car stood out like a British roadster. The sales rep would end up teaching me refined manual on the fly… so that yielding to be an interesting experience. After signing off the papers and having my car polished up, I’d roll home to Dallas in my first set of wheels that I paid with my own hands for. It was a tiring day, but it would be the beginning of even more exhaustive training for me to remember my “fancy footwork”.

It wouldn’t be until I hit the 6th month of ownership that I would come to realize the true merits of my MX-5. Sure, it’s not the prettiest one. It has bare nothing as far as features go. No premium leather seats, no power windows, no power locks, no tricked out sound system, no sport suspension pack, no aerodynamics pack, no ABS, no power steering. However… it’s been one of my more forgiving experiences with a driving machine. Before the MX-5, I was plunking around town in a Honda Integra sedan which had more heft to toss around and simply not enough power to back it. The MX-5 however feels like a zippy go-kart that could push endlessly. However… the car is not without it’s caveats. The stock steel 14″ tires are far from adequate compared to the later models getting a wider 15″ wheels or even the 17″ wheels on the later Mazdaspeed turbo versions. The gears are short so those addicted to high speeds may feel a bit “cheated” on this vector.

From the 2 years I have become attuned to the MX-5, I have been rather impressed it’s been a forgiving teacher to me. The maintenance is a bit easier than the rat’s nest that I had to deal with in the Integra. The best part being the ability to break the top down when the day is looking great! The community of folks who drive MX-5’s is staggering! So help, tips and advice are almost always readily available no matter where you live.

For a worthy car to really learn the roots of essential and proper rear-wheel shenanigans, the MX-5 is one hell of a car to do it all in. The cost of one from the 1999 – 2005 era is much lower than the newer ones, so they are plenty cheap. Truly one of the best cars to learn about spirited driving and the essential techniques to hone it properly.

A Year of Change, Progress from Darkness

It’s amazing to look back and just think “Damn… it’s been that long?” I can still remember hopping out of high school and getting rejection letter after rejection letter from some big time schools saying that I wasn’t “qualified” so my only recourse was community college. From there… I remember the fighting with family that made me strike out and just try to fight the world with my bare hands. For a while, my battle went well… until everything fell apart on the inside.

I would finally hit the rock bottom. It was like being hit by a mass public transit bus at high velocity and then forcefully being dragged to the hospital and stuck with IV’s. It sucked just looking at my battered state and thinking “Damn…” Sure, I am not as “accomplished” as my younger and older family members. Sure, I am dressed in rags rather than lavish linens. All I have to my own name is courage, integrity, and the drive not to be beaten dead. There was one thing I knew that was clear… I had to improve everything about myself. I looked like I was stoned in the gutter, blazed eyes, bleeding profusely, and possibly… rabid. (I kid on saying the latter two. – Zero)

Obviously, the first task that had to be done was washing the debt off of me. I lucked out there with a “deal with the devil” but I am grateful for it. My job at the office has been kind enough to load me the hours I require to adequately stack my paycheck to repay my demonic deal. The biggest change was picking up the slack and getting my sorry tail to the gym. Though I did have a snag that left me working out at home until I had my car parts in hand… It was a small hurdle that would lead me to where I am now.

With retrospect to my “morphology” (as my on-call boss, today called it), the definition is getting there much faster. To think I started supplements back on March 18th and it’s about 2 weeks of whey protein, hard workouts that throughly put me through the wringer… It’s a huge step compared to where I started back in December. I can wait to see the results of my toiling come December 10, 2008. Diet changes have seriously helped, as high proteins and carbs seem to help me patch up a little faster than say junking out. I simply want a return to the body I used to have… Before the stress, poor eating, reckless drinking, and poor sleeping destroyed my body. But on top of that… I want to have more bulk and strength behind it. My change to Optimum Nutrition’s 100% Natural Whey Protein mixed with organic milk seems to work quicker than when I was just using soy milk, but it could be all in my head.

Academically… I will be seeing my shot for personal progress soon. This week I begin my IV and aseptic training course to get my national recognition for that. Then I have Texas A&M Commerce in the Fall to look forward to and hopefully progress further in my life. For me, it’s the big break I have been looking for… for a very long time. I know what is next… just making the steps towards the prize is the main thing I have to hope for and I pray that nothing else falls right in front of me. I have faith that there isn’t any more sorrow for me to behold, the journey to perfection awaits me!

Ironically an oracle has said my star signs are in good alignment this year and that if I pick up the slack, this is the year that all things will change for the better. I will give it my all and I don’t intend to back down.