Unsurprisingly, it isn't happy.

But there are some technical nuances to the story that I thought I’d try to elaborate on here in my blog.

All the major studies so far on pathological gaming (read: addiction, to laymen), suggest that it is correlated to some negative effects.

Now, this does not mean it causes the "Bad Stuff To Happen" to you.

I’ll paraphrase this example I picked up from an excellent book, The Invisible Gorilla (available from our very awesome National Library).

Ice cream sales go up at the same time drownings do.

Does selling ice cream cause people to drown? Obviously, not (well, not unless you eat a dozen pints of 40% proof rum and raisin anyway…okay, I kid, I kid).

So, there is probably a third factor that causes both.

In this case, the cause is hot weather – which results in higher ice cream sales, as well as more people going swimming and thus drowning.

On ethical grounds, researchers can’t try to induce addiction (already bad) in hopes of seeing if anything worse comes about.

ADDICTED

So, there will be no way to actually say for sure, if being addicted to games will cause Bad Stuff To Happen.

Now however, because the Singapore study looks at addicts over a few years, it can track how their problems worsen, or improve.

The result: Being addicted to games worsens depression over time, and if they fix their addictions, the depression improves too.

Now, this is still not quite "game addiction causes Bad Stuff To Happen", but as Dr Douglas Gentile said, it does hint at a causal relationship.

This result is probably as good as it’s going to get.

And it also explains the game companies’ umbrage – it has just gotten harder to sit there and say, it’s the gamers. Games have zilch to do with the problem.

Nonetheless, note that the ESA is arguably correct in saying that: "There simply is no concrete evidence that computer and video games cause harm."

It should also be noted that games have a lot of positive points (it’s all right to do research to test for benefits, thus the plethora of such studies).

I’ve written a lot of articles on those benefits, and some basic Google-fu will yield results on those.

I will end with this point: If games are so powerful that they can yield benefits, it stands to reason that they are powerful enough to cause problems. You really cannot have it both ways. 

chuahh@sph.com.sg

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"Video games are the blackest evil," goes one (typically, non-gamer) camp.

"No, they are the best thing since sliced bread," goes the other (typically, the can't get enough games camp).

Well, the jury is still out.

Nonetheless, the impact of video games is undeniably growing, both here in Singapore and overseas.

Many parents, especially those who don't play games themselves, remain unsure of how to deal with their kids' hobby.

National Institute of Education professor — and World of Warcraft (WoW) raider — Dr Angeline Khoo's new book, Welcome to Our World, is timely in that regard.

Welcome to our World: Connecting Parents with Gamers is published by McGraw Hill.

Co-authored with a friend she met via the game, Mr Matthew Hall, the book provides a quick primer into the world inhabited by the people behind the orcs and elves in the massively multiplayer online role playing games like Maple Story and WoW, which are played by hundreds of thousands of Singapore youth.

The 150-page volume jumps straight into the usual concerns parents have — addiction and violence — and answers them in a straightforward, easy-to-understand manner, sans the jargon that dot academic journals on the topic.

Can slaying demons 24/7 turn my placid kid into a serial killer?

No way, not unless there are other aggravating factors.

It also helps modern parents, especially those who don't play video games, understand why their kids cannot get enough of games, no matter how many hours they spend on it daily.

It does come with its share of frightening, sordid tales of gamers so hooked they were no longer functioning people, and provides a helpful checklist of signs to watch out for.

The current research on this issue is also laid out for readers clearly, and more importantly, advice on how to handle this.

Tip: Contrary to what some other professionals, usually non-gamers, advise in situations like this, forcing a gaming addict to go cold turkey is the wrong approach to the problem, and could aggravate the situation instead.

If nothing else, this is one key take-away from the book.

There is plenty of other valuable information and advice, like the link between games and violence, and how to adapt your parenting styles when your child starts gaming.

Beyond these push-button issues, the book also devotes a significant section to the good points of games – developing problem-solving skills, imagination, how to cooperate with others, delayed gratification, and other important life skills.

A copy of Welcome to Our World, published by McGraw Hill, was given to The Straits Times for review purposes.

The Straits Times technology correspondent Chua Hian Hou has been playing online games since he discovered text-based multi-user dungeons, the predecessor of games like WoW, in the 90s. He greatly misses his alter-ego, a Dwarven Templar in the game EverQuest 2, after real-life got in the way of his online gaming.

Singapore's second largest telecommunications company loaned The Straits Times a mobile broadband modem to test out its service just before its commercial launch last week. SingTel and MobileOne are expected to launch similar services later this year.

The first, slower incarnation of the service was launched in 2007, and since then such services have become increasingly popular amongst notebook computer users that want Internet access on-demand, for instance, going online in areas not covered by wireless networks like the Wireless@SG service.

Setup was a breeze. Insert the finger-sized device into a USB port, double click on the icon for it, and double click one more time to install the software.

Once this is done, the mobile broadband icon now appears on the desktop. To get connected, just click on it and select "connect".

The modem connects users to StarHub's 3G cellular network for Internet access. This means that users should be able to get online as long as there is 3G service – pretty much all of Singapore at this point in time.

During the trial period, I was able to use the service across a good range of locations, from Ulu Pandan Road to Yio Chu Kang to the Suntec Convention Centre.

Getting a connection was never a problem; I always connected on the first try.

As I was also concurrently on a work-from-home trial, I also occasionally used it in place of my home fixed broadband network.

It performed admirably here as well, at times outperforming the wired connection.

That said, reliability was not perfect, and the connection dropped several times through the two-week trial. Nonetheless, there were days when I would use it for four-hour blocks or longer without problem.

Within that trial period, I uploaded some 12GB of data, and downloaded slightly less using it for a range of activities, from accessing my office secured network to check my e-mail, to working on stories, reading news articles, updating my Facebook status and playing web-based games.

YouTube videos, a good gauge of latency, also did fairly well, and I could watch most videos without stutter.

In short – the service is good and convenient.

This though, comes at a price - $118 per month, to be exact. Customers who sign up for a two-year plan now get a 30 per cent discount, so they effectively pay slightly more than $80 a month; the modem itself comes free.

So, who should get this? At this price, probably those who depend on high-speed mobile access for work – insurance agents or mobile sales teams, for instance.

Another possible use scenario: as a replacement for fixed home broadband.

This would work well for those that do not use it during work hours or those who do not need to access the Internet at home urgently and thus can afford to wait for the person who has the modem to come back.

The show, held at Suntec Convention Center, only opens at noon, nearly three hours after this picture was taken.

Waiting for the best deals at the Singapore PC Show.
PICTURE: Chua Hian Hou

While this is clearly overkill, it does bring up a good point: When is the best time to go to Singapore's four annual tech bazaars, if you want to actually shop rather than shove or get shoved by sweaty geeks?

On Thursdays and Fridays, typically the first two days for such shows, the showfloor is noticeably less quieter if you go between two, when the office crowd return to their cubicles, and before five thirty, the time early birds clock out.

On weekends, there is really no good time, period.

Expect crowds from the opening bell until the "show will be closing" announcements.

For weekends, it might actually be good to go during lunch, in the hope that some of the crowd might actually feel physical hunger pangs over the more primal new-toy-must-buy urges.

If you know it's going to be bad, some advance preparation can help.

The layout of the showfloor is usually available, and if you can narrow down the shops you want to hit, it can pay to plan out your route in advance, to avoid backtracking in a six-deep crowd.

This has worked  for me in the past, although I must admit that I've avoided going to such events on weekends.

Are there other successful shopping strategies that work out for you? Share them with The Straits Times Blogs below.

I’ve had a driving licence for 16 years now, and bought my own vehicle six years ago.  Within months  I was involved in a hit-and-run.

The other driver had cut in front of me. He misjudged and grazed my bumper.  He raced off, and I gave chase, finally cornering him in a cul-de-sac.

He didn’t deny what happened.  But he was defiant, and taunted me.

His exact words escape me, but it went along the lines of:  “So I did it. But I’ll lie to my insurer, and it’ll be your word against mine. Given the option of going to court or making you pay for my mistake, guess what your insurance company will do?”

I was taken aback. Speechless. Furious.

Suffice to say events panned out exactly as he predicted, and I repaired the (minor) damage at my own cost since it amounted to than the excess anyway.

There's no honour with Singapore drivers, I would say whenever the topic of accidents or car insurance came up, and trot out this story as proof of that.

Fast forward six years to last Monday night, when another driver reversed into me.

In the weeks preceding the accident, The Straits Times had published a number of stories about scammers making false medical and workshop claims, something that has resulted in escalating insurance premiums and blood pressure on the part of Singapore car owners, it was probably not surprising that my first thought was: I’m screwed.

Just three days ago, in fact, The Straits Times published another story about a car owner who sent his car in for repairs.

The repairs though, cost almost the same price as the car would had fetched if sold, and resulted in the owner’s insurance premium shooting up from $970 to more than $5,000.

Luckily, this experience was very different to my first.

The other driver — let’s call him Mr R — was instantly apologetic. He had been driving an unfamiliar car and did not notice me parked behind him, he said.

He admitted that he was at fault and offered to fix the damage to my car, which had sustained a slight dent to its bumper.

Nonetheless, I regret to admit I was suspicious, demanding he show some form of identity and taking copious photos of the two vehicles.

The next day, we ended up at a workshop to get some quotes. The first asked for upward of $400. The second asked for “$100 plus”. We settled for the latter.

On Thursday, my dented bumper was repaired for $180, at Mr R’s cost, and he even paid for my taxi rides that day.

We shook, and parted on friendly terms.

Thanks to Mr R’s honourable conduct, my faith in my fellow drivers has been restored.

Thanks to him, I will have another story to tell when the topic of accidents and insurance comes up.

Hopefully this is a sign of a more gracious society, and in future more drivers here will have similar tales to tell.

It’s a fascinating peek into what my fellow Singaporeans are up to online, irresistible and admittedly voyeuristic all at the same time.

Unsurprisingly, news, information and reference sites like Wikipedia and AsiaOne came up tops amongst local users, comprising 16 of the top 100 sites.

I’ve arbitrarily decided to exclude search engines like No.1 site Yahoo or No.4 site Google, as they can be used for a variety of purposes, as well as some of the more boring, pedestrian sites - sorry, boring, pedestrian websites.

Here's another easy conclusion: Singaporeans love staying connected to their friends via the Web: nine blog and social networking sites like Blogger and MySpace made it to the list.

Yep, Facebook too.

I mean no, of course I don’t go there during work hours.

Hardcore Internet pornography sites are also a hot favourite amongst Net users, with five such sites making the list.

And this is after repeat culls of such sites by the Media Development Authority in previous years, following complaints about them.

PS, to SPH internal audit folks: I was forced to click onto these sites for research purposes to do this story, to verify their content. Yep, that’s my story and I’m sticking to it.

Singaporeans are also big fans of pirated movies and software, if their visits to three sites notorious with the file-sharing community – Mininova, Rapidshare and MegaUpload – is any indication.

Beside this trio, here are a significant number of sites within the Alexa list that serve up pirated materials including Baidu and Crunchyroll, although these sites do offer legit content as well.

Many are also going online to buy and sell products, with four e-commerce sites including Amazon and Golden Village making Alexa’s hit-list, and a number using the Web to make online banking transactions, check share prices and adjust home loan payments.

These broad categories aside, individual entries also offer a glimpse into some Singaporeans’ interests and tastes.

Like gossip rag Gutter Uncensored (No. 86), where the indiscretions of celebrities, tycoons and politicians around the world can be found.

And, do check out Adult Friendfinder (No.77) – the site name should explain what its users want – but don’t do it in the office unless you have an ironclad work-related reason to visit it.

Ahem, like me.

In a recent phone interview with The Straits Times, she said that the best way to reduce Internet piracy was to "offer desirable legal alternatives".

Desirable though, means different things to different people.

At a guess though, desirable for Singaporeans is cheap and hassle-free, since respect for intellectual property doesn’t appear to have quite taken root here despite our Government’s best efforts.

And while the Government can take action against end-users for Internet piracy, let’s just say that this is unlikely to go down well with Singaporeans, considering about one quarter of Net users here regularly download music and movies.

So, “desirable legal alternatives”.

Nokia’s Comes With Music service, which will be launched on Saturday, falls short on a few fronts *cough* copy-protection, limited to Nokia handsets *cough*.

But it is a tremendous leap from what was available just a few years ago. Then, the only legit music was pay-per-track, copy-protected, platform - Apple or Microsoft, pick only one - specific services.

Today, there are many more services, and existing ones have become much more consumer-friendly.

Per-track services like Apple’s iTunes – which by the way, is still not officially available here, five years after its April 2003 American launch, and despite it being available in New Zealand which has a similar population size to Singapore – have become cheaper and some songs are no longer copy-protected.

Other services like music subscription service Rhapsody are also available in some markets – just not here, unfortunately - and while local services like SoundBuzz exist, they have seen limited success.

Nokia’s Comes With Music is a move in the right direction.

The download-all-you-want model is a huge draw in the local context. You also have to give Nokia props for not holding the consumer hostage to continuing to pay user charges if he no longer wishes to continue after the first year,  yet is still able to enjoy previous downloads.

In fact, I’ll stick my neck out and say, this is a great model for the Singapore market.

Unfortunately, the service won’t work for the non-Nokia user who is willing to pay for legit music to listen on his computer, car stereo, or MP3 player.

And this is where most of the world enjoy their digital music.

In other words, a decade after Napster, pirated music still reigns supreme compared to legit offerings, not to mention, “free”.

For many Net users, who have long since figured out that there is no real penalty for end-user piracy, this is where the rubber hits the road.

If the music industry is serious about wanting more consumers to go legit, they need to stop complaining about piracy’s impact on them and how it is illegal – I’m sorry, Net users know, they just don’t care – and come up with a Comes With Music – for all devices.

Such a service may well be the only way to make inroads into the entrenched pro-piracy Internet culture, and more importantly, to make money.

This time next year I will probably be reporting  how 30, 40, 80 per cent of Singapore Net users are downloading music.

The only unanswered question will be whether it is pirated or legit music.

Read more about Nokia's new music service for mobile phones.

Earlier this month, a technology reporter recounted a conversation between himself and a recruiter friend on gaming message board F13, in which the latter said a client had told him to avoid candidates who play WoW. 

This conversation has since spawned dozens of follow-up articles from sites like the BoingBoing to the Times of London. 

Many of the biggest fans of these games are, unsurprisingly, indignant over the alleged discrimination. 

What may be surprising, however, is the number of gamers who have acknowledged that there is basis for such employer behaviour, going by their own gaming experiences. 

For many of us who grew up playing games like WoW, EverQuest and their ilk, the heart of the issue – that hardcore gamers who play all night and then surf gaming sites in the office often don’t make the model employees – really isn’t a huge surprise. 

This doesn’t apply to everybody, of course. 

I’m sure there are some truly casual online gamers who play 20 minutes a day from the time they click “sign-up” to when they hit the “quit” button - although I’ve yet to meet such a player in 15 years of online gaming. 

And yes, there were periods when I was playing far too much myself – making me a less-than-ideal candidate for operating heavy machinery or calculating complex mathematical formulas. 

Do I regret this? 

Well, I certainly could had used the time I spent collecting magic swords and gold improving my Mandarin or exercising. 

But it wasn’t all wasted time, and studies have shown that online games like these can teach skills from leadership to project management. 

Well, I don’t know about leadership and project management, but my computer skills definitely went up several notches trying to learn how to play MUDs (multi-user dungeons, the text-based predecessor of online games like WoW). 

More recently, I learned something of the psychology of stock market trading, via playing the virtual economy in games like EverQuest 2, to the point that my character was, for several months last year, the fifth richest character on his server. Hopefully, this learning will translate to real life gains in the stock market IRL (in real life). 

But the most important lesson I learned while dragon-slaying is self-control. 

I’ve gone to the addiction abyss and hurled myself in - and managed to climb back out again. 

That day - over a decade ago today – was when I finally realised how addicted I was and quit for good.

"For good" didn't last very long, however, and I eventually picked up gaming again. 

But online games had lost the strangle-hold they had over me. 

And I suspect the lessons I’ve learned from that episode will stand me in good stead when confronted by other lures life throws at me.

Read the full report on employers attitude towards gamers by Chua Hian Hou, Level 72 Templar, in The Straits Times today.

UP UNTIL two years ago, I left my home wireless network unlocked. 

It wasn’t by accident either. 

I had simply thought it would be a nice, neighbourly gesture, since I live on a second floor apartment that overlooks the children’s pool. 

This meant my network should be in range of parents there keeping an eye on their kids at play. 

Might even keep those cute girls in bikinis sun-tanning there longer… I kid, I kid. 

But there were people there every weekend with their notebook computers open, and I’m sure some made use of the free Internet I offered. Watching them from my window gave me a warm and fuzzy feeling. 

Then, in 2006, I covered the trial of then-17-year-old Garyl Tan, accused of illegally tapping his neighbour’s wireless network. 

Overwhelmingly, the reaction online was: Tan did nothing wrong, people who did not secure their wireless networks are “asking” others to use them. 

Later that same year, the police raided the homes of seven users for downloading music. 

This created another online uproar, with many pro-file-sharing users recommending that those who want to continue downloading music and other materials do so using someone else’s network, to make someone else their fall-guy. 

Several days after those recommendations began appearing online, I removed my wireless network.  

I got the message: Few, it seem, are likely to have any sympathy for those who do not lock up their WiFi. 

Since then, there have been more reports of crooks abusing unlocked WiFi networks to commit crimes, and many hacking and file-sharing sites recommend using such networks to pin the blame on someone else. 

Now, I’ve no issue with people that want to flame their bosses online, post naked pictures of an ex, download Quantum of Solace, hack some video game account to steal magic swords or run Nigerian scams. 

These events happen all the time anyway, as anybody who spends any time online would know, and I could not care less. It's their business, and who am I to judge their actions anyway? 

But leaving my WiFi open means that I might get caught in the crossfire if their boss, ex – or worse, the police – decided to take action.  

And while I would probably be able to clear myself eventually, it’s certainly trouble I can live without. 

So call me chicken, but no thanks. 

I might be less neighbourly now, I might not get that warm and fuzzy feeling anymore. But at least I won’t be collateral damage either.