Tuesday, March 31, 2015

Check for Malaysia goods/services price reasonability with MyKira GST app

Just before Malaysia implement Goods and Services Tax (GST) on 1 April 2015, the Ministry of Domestic Trade, Co-Operatives and Consumerism Malaysia (a.k.a. Kementerian Perdagangan Dalam Negeri, Koperasi Dan Kepenggunaan, KPDNKK) has released an Android app called MyKira GST which enable us to check for the price reasonability of over 10,000 products and services in Malaysia.

The price is checked from the online database of KPDNKK and based on the location (parliament area) of selling.

To do the checking, you need to provide the name of the product/service, which has autocomplete search while key-in.


Then, specify the weight/size/packaging information, which is also having autocomplete search during key-in.


After that, key-in the price you see, and optionally its price before GST (old price) if you remember.

Then provide the information of the shop (premise) and area (parliament). There is a map showing your current location, which can help you in identifying the area you are in.

After that, tap on the submit button to do the checking. It will show you whether the price is within reasonable range, or too expensive (out of range) accordingly.


If the price is found to be out of range, you can tap on the e-Aduan button and immediately file a complaint to KPDNKK.


You can click here to download and install the MyKira GST app from Google Play Store to your Android phone or tablet.

Monday, March 30, 2015

DIY write your own will in Malaysia for free with template download

Have you written your will? If not, are you deterred by the charges of will writing and maintenance services?

Well, the good news is, under the Malaysian Wills Act 1959, you are empowered to write your own will which is recognised as legal document, even without the need of a lawyer or professional will service provider.

So, if you believe that your will is quite unlikely to be challenged, and is very simple and straightforward, you can try DIY your own will. Otherwise, you should think about getting the professional to help you in will writing to avoid any unexpected trouble after you die.

Why you should write a will, be it DIY or drafted by professional will writer? With a valid will, when you pass away someday, you are said to die testate and your will and testament will be executed accordingly. You will be able to inform about:

  • Who should execute your will? (the executor)
  • Who shall inherit your wealth (a.k.a. estate) and what portion they will get? (the beneficiaries)
  • Who you entrust to distribute your asset? (the trustee) Before the actual distribution to beneficiaries, your asset might need to temporary parked under this name to facilitate the distribution process.
  • If both your spouse and yourself die together, who will take care of your minor children? (the guardian)
  • Do you want to donate certain portion to charity, NGO, etc.? (the special bequests)
  • How you want your funeral to be? (burial, cremation, ...) Done under ceremony of what religion? (the additional request)
  • Any last words you want to speak to your family members?
After you die testate, your executor will need to perform the following duties:
  • Locate your Will
  • Make funeral arrangement
  • Apply for a Grant of Probate (GP)
  • Call in assets
  • Pay remaining debts
  • Prepare Statement of Accounts
  • Distribute assets according to your Will
  • Carry out your wishes mentioned in your Will
 
If you die intestate without a valid will, your family members will need to:
The possible problems due to die intestate could be (and not limited to):
  • Taking longer time to process.
  • The LA is generally more expensive than the GP.
  • Might need legal services, accountants, tax consultants and other professionals arises, which could end up more costly.
  • One asset being distributed out to too many beneficiaries, which might cause problem for them to sell the asset later, as all signatures are needed when disposing the asset.
  • The guardian of your minor children is not appointed when they become orphan.
  • Your funeral might not be carried out in your preferred manner.
What do you need to write a will?
  • Yourself as the testator, who is above 18 years old, be of sound minded. If your will is written when you are sick, you might want to get your doctor to sign and certify that you are of sound minded the moment when you write your will.
  • At least 2 witnesses, who are above 18 years old. The witnesses cannot be any one from your beneficiaries.
  • Have your will hand-written or computer printed on paper, and the testator and all witnesses to sign on it.
When you die, all your loans and debts need to be settled first, before the remaining to be distributed to your beneficiaries.

If your loans and debts are unable to be settled by your assets, then your estate is insolvent, and there is nothing left to distribute to your beneficiaries. Your beneficiaries will get nothing from you, but they also need not taking care of your remaining debt.

If you are able to clear off all your financial obligations and have a solvent estate, then your beneficiaries will inherit your estate accordingly.

Now you are pretty clear about the requirement and knowledge of writing your own will. You can download this template courtesy of Struan Inc. Sdn Bhd, fill in the necessary, and get it fully signed by all of your witnesses and yourself.

Note that under the Malaysian Inheritance (Family Provision) Act 1971, your surviving spouse and/or children might be able to challenge your will if they are not agreeable with it, regardless they are stated as beneficiaries or not. If you wish to make your will unchallengeable, you should better engage the service of professional will writer to assist in your will writing.

Note: The above only applies to non-Muslim in Malaysia. There are separate laws and treatment for Muslim will writing.

Saturday, March 28, 2015

BIOS security update for Lenovo Yoga 2 Pro and Yoga 3 Pro laptops

On 27 March 2015, Lenovo has released the latest BIOS update (version 76CN42WW) for Lenovo Yoga 2 Pro ultrabook laptop.

On the same day, Lenovo has also released the latest BIOS update (version A6CN49WW) for Lenovo Yoga 3 Pro ultrabook laptop.

This latest version BIOS for Yoga 2 Pro and Yoga 3 Pro respectively fixed all merged issues from previous, and also fixed the security issues in the Intel UEFI (Unified Extensible Firmware Interface) module.

You can click here to go to the download page of the latest BIOS update utility for Lenovo Yoga 2 Pro, and click here to go to the download page of the latest BIOS update utility for Lenovo Yoga 3 Pro.

The BIOS update is pretty straightforward. Make sure that the battery level of the laptop is at least 80%, and it is plugged on to the AC power supply. Then, run the downloaded BIOS Update Utility.


The new BIOS will be flashed with the InsydeFlash utility from Windows 8.1. After that, the system will reboot itself, and the BIOS update will be performed.
After the BIOS update completed, the laptop will reboot itself again and back to the Windows login screen.

There is no data lost for this BIOS update. Even the BIOS settings and passwords remain after the update.

Hint: Click on the "Older Posts" link to continue reading, or click here for a listing of all my past 3 months articles.