Hooliganism at its best: Attack on Mangalore Pub

Monday, January 26, 2009


Sri Rama Sena and Bajrang Dal have done it again and now fighting to take credit for the attack on girls at the pub Amnesia in Mangalore at around 4 on a Saturday evening, in the name of punishing those going against “traditional Indian norms”. Don’t even get me started on the definition of traditional Indian norms, keeping in mind the fact that India is the land of Kama sutra. Coming to the Indian culture, doesn’t it also preach brotherhood, peaceful coexistence and all the usual works we keep bragging about, every second chance we get? So how come these culturally-morally-traditional-concerned folks don’t bat an eyelid when so many Dalits are treated inhumanly, paraded naked on roads. Where does the sense of decency go then?



Misguided youth is the biggest threat to our peace and society. Nothing, nothing at all can give these bunch of morons the right to handle any one that way. If you hate it, stop your own family members or dear ones. Don’t go about poking your nose in someone else’s affairs. If the desire to change society is killing you and the immorality is making you go mad, then do something constructive to destruct flesh trade which is still prevalent in our society, which has destroyed so many innocent people at large! Get a life! Live and let live.

The Sena activists accused the women of ``involving themselves in immoral activities, including consuming alcohol, dressing indecently, and mixing with youths of other faith''.

This statement proves that all the the Indian-cultural-secular talk is nothing but a big farce. Clearly, the city has gone to dogs. So fearlessly these hooligans went on a rampage, obviously having a strong political nexus. This clearly reflects on how democratic and secular the government is and how wrong was the choice made by the voters for its election. The government will back them up completely in discreet ways while again starting all over with their false reassurances and glib talk about taking strict action against offenders, the media coverage will soon die down and the rest of us will wait in horror to see the next savage rampage on February 14. Thus the unbreakable cycle continues!

Watch the video, a fine example of how our exemplary government protects its citizens.

 

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Nokia XpressMusic 5800 is at home!!!!!!!!!

Thursday, January 22, 2009

The new Nokia XpressMusic 5800 is finally at home. Nokia’s first touch phone has arrived. Priced at INR 21800 (offer price is INR 20000), this phone gives real value for money.

It comes with 81 MB internal memory, 8 GB microSD memory card, expandable up to 16 GB, preloaded with 150 popular tracks in Hindi and English. For text input it offers options such as handwriting recognition, mini QWERTY keyboard, full screen QWERTY and alphanumeric keypad. If you hate using the onscreen keyboard to touch and type messages…don’t worry…5800 XpressMusic makes it easy via use of stylus and also an attached heart shaped thing which can be used instead of your bare fingers. The handwriting recognition was something unexpected but good that it’s there, unlike iphone.

100_1058 100_1060 100_1054 



Apart from that it’s got all the utilities of modern day life such as bluetooth, Wi-Fi and you can can also synchronize it with the stereo set and the television! It further boasts of a 3.2 megapixel camera with Carl Zeiss lens, 3x digital zoom, auto focus and a dual-LED flash. It also has a second backward facing camera. It offers video recording option at up to 640 x 480 pixels and 4x digital video zoom. The phone's front camera supports video calling feature. Battery life is excellent too. My sister charges it once in 3 days and uses it heavily, either text messaging or listening to music.

All in all, it’s a great deal. Area, where it truly and thoroughly scores over iphone is that it is open to all service providers. Without a doubt, if you compare the features Nokia 5800 XpressMusic, most of them will definitely give iphone a run for it’s money. The only areas where I find iphone better, is the look of the user interface and the way you can resize pictures using your hands.

I think Nokia 5800 XpressMusic is going to be the rage in India. If you’re looking for a new phone which is a real winner, here’s one looking at you!

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Typecasting: What type am I???

Wednesday, January 21, 2009

Times Life dated 18 January 2009 had this article about typecasting. According to psychologists, we all belong to one of the following types:

  • Obsessive compulsive
  • Dependent
  • Histrionic
  • Narcissistic
  • Borderline Personality
  • Avoidant personality

These set of questions among the 6 set of questions, each for one personality type, sealed my personality type,

image

  1. Do you find it difficult to delegate work to others?-  Yes, big time. My biggest cause for worry is that what if it gets messed up? I’m very very particular.
  2. Are you a workaholic?Umm..I guess I am. I can’t rest until the work is done with. Until then I’ll be restless and busy with it.
  3. Are you a perfectionist?-  Yes.Totally! And unbearably when it comes to writing formal letters or dealing with some project or presentation especially. I also take a very long time to slice vegetables ‘cause I want them to be perfectly and equally cut! My fate is sealed!!!
  4. Do you feel recreational activities are a waste of time?- No way! This kind of stuff keeps me going. I love recreation! In fact I wish I was Garfield…then I could eat, sleep and watch TV all the time without feeling like a waste!
  5. Are you rigid about morals and values?-  I stick to what I believe. I don’t enforce stuff on others. Debatable topics like live-in relationships, one night stands et all are not for me but for whom it is, I don’t judge them. Live and let live. Peace. So the answer to this one is- Not really!

Yes! So I have a 3/5 so I’m confirmed obsessive compulsive personality type! So this is what it had to say about positives and negatives…

  • POSITIVE I : Over achievers
  • NEGATIVE I : Disturbed family life, prone to physical ailments, easily stressed

But, the types mentioned are too stringent, too classifying I felt. I personally feel that human behavior is very diverse to typecast this way actually. Everything in life is not black and white, they are countless, incredible shades of grey too. What if someone gets 2 questions right from each set? At any rate, if you haven’t had a look at that article, go for it and determine your type. If not for anything, atleast for a good laugh! And for those who did, what type were you? Do you think it matched you correctly?

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Windows Live SkyDrive

Today, I decided to upload all project related files on Windows Live SkyDrive instead of mailing it to all my team members. I could’ve set up a Google group, I know. But I use my live id primarily. I hardly ever use my Gmail id. There is life beyond Gmail and very good one at that. Lets talk about SkyDrive in this post.

SkyDrive is an excellent storage media integrated into Windows Live. From your Mail page you can choose More at the top and choose SkyDrive from the drop down to use it. It offers a storage space of 25 GB. The interface looks like this:

 skydrive1 

Files or photos can be uploaded and shared. You can either select the existing folders or create a new folder by choosing Create Folder on top, enter the name and set the permissions.

image

To upload files, navigate to required folder, Click on Add files, choose a file and upload it! Maximum size of each file that can be uploaded is 50 MB.

skydriveadd    skydrive uploading

Ok, so all my team members are Gmail users and they mightn’t be willing to sign up for Windows Live to view my files, so, here’s what I did. Chose Send a link from my specified folder as shown below (right). Added whoever I wanted and essentially checked the Don’t require recipients to sign in with Windows Live ID option and sent. You can revoke these permissions whenever you choose to.

sendalink  sdsendlink

Windows Live SkyDrive has a very appealing and easy to use interface. You literally carry whatever you want with your mails et al. You should definitely try this one out!

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Ramblings of an overflowing mind-part 1.

Another couple of months and I'll finally be well on my way to become an engineer. The past four years have been so amazing and I can hardly believe that time flies so fast. When I joined engineering, I just knew get a B.E degree then do MBA at country's finest business school and then life is set. But...something unpredictable happened.

Somewhere down the line, amidst the tryst with computers and technology, I fell in love with it. Never did I once imagined that I would begin to love the technology surrounding us with such ardent fervor. You know you're an engineer when you see a camera that shoots when you smile automatically and immediately start thinking what's it about and how's implemented instead of just sitting awestruck; When someone mentions some problem and your mind immediately starts racing...thinking about what can be done...cannot be done...several tradeoffs...overhead etc.

bill gates

I can't exactly say I've always wanted to be an engineer. I remember in grade 5, my dad introducing the computer to me and telling me about Bill Gates, the richest guy at 18 and how he did it all. It held a fascination for me which I can never really express in words. That was the time of Windows 3.1.1. Then, after making up my mind to be a doctor and an investigative journalist, I finally settled on computer science and engineering. Whoever knows me will vouch for the fact that I'm a confirmed Microsoft evangelist...Seen Windows from 3.1.1 to Vista and the journey it embarked on has been really the stuff dreams are made up of. Though the world may condemn Bill Gates as a capitalist and so on, I've always held him in high regard and thought that he's a brilliant combination of an excellent programmer and a very good entrepreneur. For me, Bill Gates is Microsoft. He's long left the running affairs of his company but he's still around, isn't he? After him, I really cannot envisage Microsoft.Well...there's still Steve Ballmer but even then.

This year, however, I can say that some sort of a funny transformation seems to have taken place which I think is good. I'm flexible now...ready to try Linux and Mac perhaps. Now, it's not like I want to give Linux a chance due to the aforementioned reasons but only because I really love technology and I want to learn new stuff without any prejudices and really appreciate it for what it is. I've used Linux very briefly but my inclination has always been heavily towards Windows due to the aforementioned. It also caters to my need of daily dose of excitement. Running Windows without antivirus is exhilarating... It keeps me on my toes...It provides me with constant challenges and urges me to dig deeper and deeper into the system looking for some malware or viruses. Now, Windows security is not all that bad provided you're using a genuine version but it's just that I'm paranoid and I love dissecting it. I've been using Vista for quite a long time without an antivirus without any serious security issues. If you ask me...the root of most security issues, considering any operating system,  lies between the keyboard and the chair. If you're click-happy, may God save you from impending doom!

Ah!At any rate, I've rambled enough for part 1. So adios!

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Can Tigers Really Be Pets?

Sunday, January 11, 2009

One of the other things I'm deeply in love with and fascinated with are tigers. I religiously follow most tiger documentaries and shows on Nat Geo and Discovery. I wish I was princess Jasmine of the Walt Disney movie 'cause she has a pet tiger. They are the most beautiful creatures I've ever seen in my entire life. A dream that'll probably only remain a dream is having a pet tiger.

normal_felines40

Owning a tiger involves a lot of factors. Firstly, you need to have a lot of money....because you need to have a house with huge area around it...lot of land and that's expensive nowadays. Secondly, you first need to find a vet that deals with tigers and their medical bills, in case there's a problem, is mighty high. Thirdly, you'll end up spending a lot on tiger food. Fourth, you'll probably need to higher a trainer to train your mighty cat. Fifth, perimeter fencing and a strong cage. Sixth, procedure and gear to safely move a tiger to any place say a hospital or something. Seventh, complete all formalities with the law and animal rights activists. Lastly, say goodbye to vacations...you can never really tell your neighbor to pop in and feed your pet tiger after all!

tiger-hugging-man-791658

Though a lot of tigers lead suburban lives, it's really a gamble after all. They are wild animals after all, the world's most feared predators. It'll take generations and probably an evolution for tigers to become actually tame. You need to be on guard with a tiger no matter how trained it is or how much love you might've given it. After all the predator instincts are as natural to them as it is for us to see. If you ever happen to crumble or fall or faint in front of a tiger, no matter how well trained it is, it will go for you. Training them is also not easy. Most trainers begin training at the age of 1 and trying to train them using food alone is like a suicide mission, where there's no food you're finished! It takes a lot of hard work and dedication to train them and this is not possible by an individual or even a team of 2 people. You probably need a fairly huge team comprising minimum of 5 people. They are manageable till the age of 3...it'll probably tear your curtains and chew your prized center table though. After that they begin to develop into the powerful creatures they are meant to be and you need to be more wary every waking moment with them around.

And yes. You can't feed a tiger everyday. They don't get food in wild everyday and their digestive systems are not designed to handle daily intake of food so around 2-3 days in a week are kept aside as fasting days. As far as I know, their diet comprises mostly of meat. But the zoo at Mysore actually feeds the tigers with one hen per week!!!!!And their kept in such cramped cages!!!! Tigers love open spaces, it's healthy for them and it must be provided.

Owning a tiger is probably something I would do at some point later in my life. It's definitely not feasible now. However, while discussing this with my sister, she asked me one question which really made me think. She asked, "Is it really fair to keep them as pets?". It was like a ton of bricks fell over me. If you look at it one way, it is unfair. They are not supposed to be tamed... it'll be probably be happier living in the wild and using its innate skills to the fullest. Nor can you suddenly change your mind and release your pet grown tiger into the wild because it will die. Tigers bred in captivity have to be trained under the tough conditions they will face in the wild to survive.

But then again, they are endangered...maybe this way we can really take care of it but only at the cost of endangering our own lives. Tigers are no doubt beautiful but it is a lethal beauty they possess. The best thing probably would be to make sure they are safe in wilderness. Maybe it really is inhumane for making these animals into something that they are not meant to be and then punishing them for doing what it is supposed to do. What do you think?

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Recruitment Fiasco

Tuesday, January 6, 2009

cgon215l

It's that time of the year when you companies will start trickling in to hunt for freshers and hire them. After attending TCS, Infosys, Aptuit, Tesco, Novellus I'm simply not bothered anymore or so I think. Of all these companies I reached the personal interview stage save for Infosys and Tesco. However the interviews conducted by Novellus and Aptuit were utmost in professionalism. TCS was a nightmare. It was the first that came to our college. I thought I really had a good chance but fortunately destiny had something else in store. All through the holidays I fervently hoped that I would get into TCS but I’m glad I didn't make it. Surprised? Initially, their company policies which were environment friendly really awed me until their interview procedure.

cgo0161l

The entire procedure was so horribly organized, wasting a lot of our time! Some very good students in my class didn’t make it 'cause they were too good like they reached the upper cutoff crap and all that. My interviewer actually gives me the feedback much later that I never maintained eye contact. What the hell?? I'm sure I can't talk without looking at the person...I don't know about others but I can never do that. So, even though I didn't get through I'm glad because I know I would have never been able to fit in such a kind of a place. Novellus personal interview was really good. It was designed in such a way which tested your process of thinking rather than the result and it gave me a lot of confidence. Though I didn't make it to the final PI at Bangalore, I realized that in some aspects of my field I’d been underestimating myself. I loved the way how they gave people who were asked to write programs during their interview their own time and didn't rush them but made them feel comfortable. But again, no regrets because I learnt a lot and they were heavily into semiconductors and all.

Now, again 2 more companies lined up. What's going to be my approach? Nothing. I'll just be myself. If asked I won't hesitate to tell that temper, impatience are my shortcomings! Come on, you think everyone who works in the company are all perfect sans any shortcomings? So what if I'm that way, it doesn't make me lesser than someone who can go out and win the world. If I don't try I'll never know. Nor will I distort my perception to suit the 'right' politically correct thing not that I did it till now but I was always told to give politically correct answers, to do this and not do that and all those things.

So this time, the idea is to be completely me and be completely at ease. At any rate before college ends, I want to try out all possible styles of answering interviews and see what happens! After all, it's just a job not the end of my life! right? In the end, whatever happens, happens for good. It's like one of those dark gifts. It seems horrible at first but only later we realize what happened was for the best. smile_wink

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Switch to Windows Live Writer today!

Monday, January 5, 2009

The blogger online editor is really irritating. Firstly you need to be online to post anything and secondly the user interface is really not all that great. So, any alternate option? Yep....Windows Live Writer.

  • You can easily align pictures and text around it as you please.
  • It's very easy to embed videos. Just click on Insert Video, add URL and click Embed!
  • You can also add tags by customized tag providers.
  • Plug-ins can be easily used from Windows Live Gallery which let you add "Blog this" feature on the browser, Translation, Yahoo-MSN smileys and many many more power-packed stuff.
  • You need not be online to write your post. Just right and save the draft. Whilst online, preview and publish with just a few clicks.
  • You can publish to most blog services!
  • And guess what? It's free. Go to http://get.live.com/writer/ and get it!

Here's a screenshot of me composing this post...

livewriter

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The World Is Just Awesome!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Man! This Discovery Channel video has me bowled over! I just love it. The opening sequence is a dream come true. What a feeling it might be??? THE WORLD IS TRULY AWESOME!!!!!

(Dialogue)
Astronaut 1: It never gets old, huh?
Astronaut 2: Nope.
Astronaut 1: It kinda makes you want to...
Astronaut 2: Break into song?
Astronaut 1: Yep. Two astronauts on a space walk
I love the mountains,
I love the clear blue skies
I love big bridges
I love when great whites fly
I love the whole world
And all its sights and sounds
Boom-de-ah-da, boom-de-ah-da (twice)
I love the oceans
I love real dirty things
I love to go fast
I love Egyptian kings
I love the whole world
And all its craziness
Boom-de-ah-da, boom-de-ah-da (twice)
I love tornadoes
I love arachnids
I love hot magma
I love the giant squids
I love the whole world
It's such a brilliant place
Boom-de-ah-da, boom-de-ah-da (repeating until fade)

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My New Year Resolution-40 things to do.

Saturday, January 3, 2009

  1.  Become self actualized!(top priority)
  2. Devote at least 2 hrs to exercise (yoga, Pilates, weight training, aerobics and a lot of running to be precise).
  3. I will not be accident prone and upset my fitness regime!
  4.  I will eat 100% healthy! I’ll try to eat 70% healthy (No pizzas, No Fischer Cheese Balls etc).I’ll exercise harder on the day I eat junk.
  5. Early to bed and early to rise! I will not be nocturnal anymore! (This one’s really tough!)
  6. Try to curb my temper and not fly into a rage.
  7. Do NOT throw words like pots and pans if I get angry.
  8. Be nice and patient with people even if they are mean. I’ll try to be diplomatic.
  9. Do NOT be lazy.
  10. Do NOT procrastinate.
  11. Become disciplined and pull my socks up.
  12. Learn at least one form of martial arts.
  13. Try Linux.
  14. Learn at least one Latin Language.
  15. Try to keep my room from looking like a hurricane hit disaster.
  16. Use my organizer and take notes. No! Get rid of the organizer and use my grey cells for the same.
  17. Save more paper and electricity. (Electricity part is tough though!)
  18. Go rock climbing.
  19. Practice daily and participate in the Online Scrabble Tournament.
  20. Learn swimming completely with correct breathing. (Right now I can just float enough to save my life!)
  21. Keep Blogging regularly.
  22. Do some creative and useful programming.
  23. Concentrate on IELTS.
  24. Try not to be like the-glass-is-half-full-but-it-is-also-half-empty-so-to-minimize-the-overhead-do-blah-blah-blah!
  25. Take less stress.
  26. Google daily and learn on the Internet.
  27. Do not keep my cell phone on silent all the time.
  28. Learn to cook steamed tasty healthy vegetables with minimal oil and perfect my Pasta recipe.
  29. Find Kashmiri tea to drink! (I drank once in Jeddah 10 years ago… Been hunting for it here… No luck… What pretty pink it is!)
  30. Try to get a paper reviewed for an International Conference at least.
  31. Learn to detect and clean all kinds of unwanted malicious stuff manually on the computer.
  32. Find the perfect antivirus for my computer.
  33. Back up my PC regularly and not become lax when it comes to doing that,
  34. Do NOT color hair. On second thoughts, one last time I’ll try the ammonia free one??? No way…No coloring anymore.
  35. Teach my sister basic programming and photo editing during my holidays.
  36. Learn Java, PHP and PERL inside out, very thoroughly!
  37. Attend all classes daily even if it’s the one I hate and find utterly useless.
  38. Manage time better and effectively!
  39. Use my 124 IQ level properly. (Right now, I’m such a waste!)
  40. Stick to these aforementioned resolutions.

I hope all of you stick to your resolutions like super glue too! Good luck! Au revoir….

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