MyJottingz

On Twitter now

2009-07-03T21:07:00.001-07:00

Well, finally on the Twitter band wagon. Due to time constraints posting blog entries is really difficult so jumping to the 140 character variety for now.

http://twitter.com/myjottingz

Microblogging @ Tumblr

2008-12-15T12:53:00.000-08:00

Since time is a constraint to blog regularly, I am resorting to micro blogging using tumblr which I find is very convenient to use.

Check it out http://myjottingz.tumblr.com

How to make yourself unsearchable through Facebook

2008-10-31T12:52:00.000-07:00

If you are like me, you are paranoid about identity theft etc. Also you want to keep your social network private from your professional life.

Now imagine this you enter your name like this "first name last name facebook" into Google and immediately you see your facebook picture and your friends show up.

The reason for this is the default setting in Facebook makes your profile viewable by EVERYONE. Yes Everyone under the sun.

So to turn it off go you need to take a few minutes editing your profile.

Go into Privacy Settings and explicitly say No to "Searchable".

Now try searching yourself or your friends again, and its going to say "Sorry, Page cannot be Found"

Technorati Tags: facebook, privacy, web

"It will be alright"

2008-08-06T08:52:00.000-07:00

(This was forwarded to me by a friend, author is unknown. )

This is one of my favorite sayings. Whenever I am coaching someone in a distressing situation, I quietly remind them that it will be alright. This reassurance often gives people the hope to prevail through whatever is getting them down.

When someone is overrun by a particular situation, it is generally because their focus is too narrow. All the concentration is aimed at the "problem" while ignoring the bigger picture. It Will Be Alright transfers the attention to a time in the future when everything is resolved. It breaks the emotional paralysis to allow one to take the action necessary to move forward.

Consider any situation in the past that you felt was terrible. Are you alright today with it? Chances are, short of a terminal illness, every situation was resolved and is no longer an issue in your life. Even if it did not work out to your liking, it still is in the past. The only way that it affects you is when you think about it. The rest of the time it is a distant memory.

People often make the mistake of making problems permanent. They are not. Rather, they are temporary situations that will be overcome. If the checking account is overdrawn, someday there will be a positive balance in there. If you are overweight, you need not be heavy forever. Alone? That does not mean that you will not meet the person that you will spend the rest of your life with. Any circumstance you are presently experiencing is a temporary situation and should be treated as such.

The old saying "down the road we will laugh about this" applies. Instead of waiting until a later time, laugh about it now. Tell yourself that no matter what is occurring, it will be alright. Practice faith in this statement in all that you do.

The key is action. However, often, before we can take it, we need to break the emotional stranglehold that we put ourselves under. Pumping a degree of hope into a hopeless situation frees us to take the necessary action to move forward. Remember this when you feel circumstances in your life are getting you down.

It Will Be Alright. Every problem, situation, or circumstance that you are now experiencing will be far in the past at some point in time. The overcoming of present challenges makes us stronger in the future. It is this growth that enables us to handle bigger events as time progresses. View these situations from this perspective and you will get greater results in your development.

Technorati Tags: Life, personal development, inspiration

Yahoo Mail .. now offline through Zimbra

2008-07-25T08:41:00.000-07:00

Yahoo Mail just has a way to get you back . Just when I was tired of looking at the tiny email window flanked on the right by ads and the navigation on the left.

I had almost stopped using it in favor of GMail & Hotmail both of which you can access through an email client like Outlook .

In comes Zimbra into the picture, after being acquired by Yahoo , you can download the email client and read your yahoo mail offline.

Not only this the Zimbra client allows you to set up accounts for GMail, AOL and any other POP/IMAP accounts which is pretty cool!

You can download it here

Technorati Tags: yahoo,zimbra,email client

Airline industry like a movie theatre

2008-06-09T11:18:00.000-07:00

Your market expert said that the airline industry was like a movie theater. You buy a ticket to watch the movie. If you want popcorn that is extra. So what would a movie theater look like if run by the airlines? I would never know the price of a movie ticket and while I pay $12, the family next to me pays $4. When I get to the theater, they have no seats, or there is a line of 200 people waiting to get in. The movie won't start on time and the air conditioner doesn't work. And then when you get out of the theater, you car is gone and you have to walk home. When you call the movie theater about your car, they tell you they are not responsible for lost cars. Next week, you go back to the theater and they now charge $25 to park you car. You come back out two hours late and despite paying the parking fee, your car is gone again. I would gladly pay more money for baggage handling if there was actually an improvement in service. But here in Detroit, despite a new $1 billion terminal, you can wait an hour or more after you land before you get your luggage. After spending years flying, I dread going to the airport. Today, I either drive, take the train, or telecommute.

An NPR listener has this very apt analysis of the airline industry.

Tags: airline, economic, pricing

The Hot Chocolate Story !

2008-05-10T13:07:00.000-07:00

(A friend of mine sent this to me, I think its worth a read)

A group of graduates, well established in their careers, were talking
at a reunion and decided to go visit their old university professor, now retired.

During their visit, the conversation turned to complaints about stress in their work and lives. Offering his guests hot chocolate, the professor went into the kitchen and returned with a large pot of hot chocolate and an assortment of cups-porcelain, glass, crystal, some plain looking, some expensive, some exquisite -- telling them to help themselves to the hot chocolate.

When they all had a cup of hot chocolate in hand, the professor said:

'Notice that all the nice looking; expensive cups were taken, leaving behind the plain and cheap ones. While it is normal for you to want only the best for yourselves, that is the source of your problems and stress. The cup that you're drinking from adds nothing to the quality of the hot chocolate. In most cases it is just more expensive and in some cases even hides what we drink. What all of you really wanted was hot chocolate, not the cup; but you consciously went for the best cups...

And then you began eyeing each others cups.

Now consider this: Life is the hot chocolate; your job, money and position in society are the cups. They are just tools to hold and contain life. The cup you have does not define, nor change the
quality of life you have. Someti mes, by concentrating only on the cup, we fail to enjoy the hot chocolate we have.

The happiest people don't have the best of everything.

They just make the best of everything that they have.

Live simply. Love generously. Care deeply. Speak kindly. Thank the Lord for your blessings in 2008.

And enjoy your hot chocolate!

My Favorite Firefox addons

2008-05-09T09:03:00.000-07:00

If you are a great fan of Firefox you have to use these extras, here is my list:

Customize Google : You know how all the ads on the side are annoying when you google something. Well this addon removes Ads in your search and also shows links to other search engines such as Yahoo, Ask ,Live Search etc.

Read it Later: You come across a lot web pages which you want to save for later when you actually have the time to read it.. This provides the shortcut to having to specifically book mark each link. Just click on the icon and boom it saves it in the Read it Later Bookmarks folder.

Foxmarks : If you work across different computers this one is for you. After you save all those links you need to be able to access them on different machines too. This add on enables you to synch up your bookmarks.

Shareaholic : A one stop way to share your link with a whole lot of social bookmarking websites like Digg, Delicious, Stumbleupon etc.

Better Gmail2 If you really want to use Gmail efficiently, this one really packs a punch with all the best Greasemoney scripts packed into one nice extension.

IE Tab: There are some websites who simply refuse to get away from Internet Explorer, this is the solution for them. This add simply allows you to render a page like IE would.

Forecastfox : Weather forecasts in your status bar without having to download a desktop weather forecast application

FireFTP : If you are a techie and you need to move files across servers then this one's for you. Very simple FTP client inbuilt into the browser saves you the hassle of opening another application.

Tags: Firefox, addons, tech, browser, utilities

Change the margins & save some trees

2008-03-27T11:33:00.000-07:00

A project founded by Los Angeles-based actress and writer Tamara Krinsky advocates a simple change that anyone can believe in: By altering the printing margin preference for Microsoft Word documents from the standard 1.25 inches to 0.75 inch, Americans can save a whole lot of paper -- and trees, and money.

The result is an online petition petition at http://www.changethemargins.com to get Microsoft to reduce the preset margins in Word. To date already 2000 people have signed up.

Via : The Small Margin Movement

Free Phone Calls to the USA or Canada

2008-02-09T08:51:00.000-08:00

Calling the US is always expensive but www.ooVoo.com is offering free calls to the US & Canada through the month of March.

How to test your internet speed

2008-01-21T16:53:00.000-08:00

Have you ever wondered how fast your internet connection is. Does it even come close to what your ISP advertises.
There are several websites which help you test your speed. But my favorite is the Speed Test from speakeasy.net
You have to choose a server which is near your geographical location and immediately the tool calculates not only your download speed but also your upload rate.

Link : www.speakeasy.net

Save the Ocean, bag the plastic

2007-12-22T08:22:00.000-08:00

The average American discards hundreds of plastic bags every year. Many of them will end up in the ocean, where hungry sea turtles often mistake them for food.

You can start making a difference for the oceans right away by helping reduce the amount of plastic bag waste.

And for joining in this cause you can even get a reusable Oceana Chico Bag.

Donate Rice by playing a word game

2007-11-20T10:16:00.000-08:00

At FreeRice.com, you can "donate" 10 grains of rice to the needy simply by choosing the right answer to a word definition problem. Each correct answer results in another donation

FreeRice.com is the creation of 49-year-old American computer programmer John Breen, and is the sister site of Poverty.com, launched in January 2007 with a counter showing one person dying of hunger every 3.5 seconds. Breen is no stranger to such programs, having created The Hunger Site in June 1999.

As to who foots the bill for the food being donated, the site says: "The rice is paid for by the advertisers whose names you see on the bottom of your vocabulary screen." As more people play the game, the site racks up more advertising revenue, which in turn is converted into food donations for the hungry.

Via : Urban Legends Reference Page

Easy Disposable Email

2007-11-03T15:30:00.000-07:00

You know how you have these websites which force you to enter your email address to read any content.
And once they get your email address you're sure to be spammed with junk email forever.

Well now you do not have to give your personal email address anymore. 2prong.com provides you an email address which you can use.

And you have to nothing but simply load the page and it copies the new email to your clipboard.

They even provide a bookmarklet for Firefox which you can drag to your bookmarks on the tool bar. That's neat.

Gmail has enabled IMAP

2007-10-25T19:48:00.000-07:00

Why is this great news? Simply because with IMAP you can read your email through multiple email clients like Outlook & Thunderbird and unlike POP mail you do not have to worry about synchronizing your mail on different email clients. For those who need more on POP versus IMAP question click here

I am still waiting however, for my personal email to show the IMAP settings.

For more details : Gmail Supported IMAP Client List

The Law of the Garbage Truck

2007-10-08T10:33:00.000-07:00

A good friend of mine emailed this to me :

How often do you let other people's nonsense change your mood? Do you let a bad driver, rude waiter, curt boss, or an insensitive employee ruin your day? Unless you're the Terminator, for an instant you're probably set back on your heels.

However, the mark of a successful person is how quickly he can get back his focus on what's important.
A learned lesson - in the back of a New York City taxi cab. Here's what happened.
I hopped in a taxi, and we took off for Grand Central Station. We were driving in the right lane when all of a sudden, and I mean without warning, a black car jumped out of a parking space right in front of us.My taxi driver slammed on his brakes, skidded and missed the other car's back end by just inches.

Here's what happened next. The driver of the other car, the guy who almost caused a big accident, whipped his head around and he started yelling bad words at us. How do I know? Ask any New Yorker, some words in New York come with a special face.
Now, here's what blew me away. My taxi driver just smiled and waved at the guy. And I mean, he was friendly. So, I said, "Why did you just do that? This guy almost ruined your car and sent us to the hospital!" And this is when my taxi driver told me what I now call, "The Law of the Garbage Truck."

Many people are like garbage trucks. They run around full of garbage,full of frustration, full of anger, and full of disappointment. As their garbage piles up, they need a place to dump it. And if you let them,they'll dump it on you.When someone wants to dump on you, don't take it personally. You just smile, wave, wish them well, and move on. You'll be happy you did. I guarantee it.

So this was it: The "Law of the Garbage Truck." I started thinking, how often do I let Garbage Trucks run right over me? And how often do I take their garbage and spread it to other people: at work, at home, on thestreets? It was that day I said, "I'm not going to do it anymore."
Well now "I see Garbage Trucks." I see the load they're carrying. I see them coming to drop it off. And like my Taxi Driver, I don't make it a personal thing; I just smile, wave, wish them well, and I move on.
One of my favourite Football players of all time, Walter Payton, did this every day on the football field. He would jump up as quickly as he hit the ground after being tackled. He never dwelled on a hit. Payton was ready to make the next play his best. Good leaders know they have to be ready for their next meeting. Good parents know that they have to welcome their children home from school with hugs and kisses.
Leaders and parents know that they have to be fully present, and at their best for the people they care about.
The bottom line is that successful people do not let Garbage Trucks takeover their day. What about you? What would happen in your life, starting today, if you let more garbage trucks pass you by?
Here's my bet. You'll be happier. I guarantee it.

Tips on Saving Time in your Daily Life

2007-09-28T13:32:00.000-07:00

Dumb little man has some interesting tips on how to save time
Here are some that I really liked

Prepare as much as you can to make mornings stress free. Set out clothes. Have bags packed and by the door. Make your lunch and have your breakfast chosen and partially prepared. Have a travel coffee mug ready. Put the coffee in the coffee maker.

Don't put your car keys or cell phone in a different spot each night after work. Choose a spot and make it a habit. There is nothing more frustrating in the morning than looking for the stuff you need. You WILL go nuts if you go through a scavenger hunt every single morning.

Wake up 15 minutes earlier and prepare breakfast instead of waiting in line and paying extra at the coffee shop.

For more on these see 35+ Spectacular and Practical Time Saving Tips

Friday Edition

2007-09-21T13:15:00.000-07:00

Vivek Sharma talks about India's Twenty20 quarterfinal win and coming through in a crunch (@ Desicritics.org)

Amit Varma has this curious story about a couple who had online affairs only to discover that their online beaus were themselves. Love gone wrong in 2007 (@ Indiauncut)

And finally Amit Agarwal has a cool way to find out if your computer is connected to the web without your knowledge(@ Digital Inspiration)

How an IT guy became a script writer

2007-09-17T13:35:00.000-07:00

The interesting thing about Jaideep is that at no point does he say,"I always wanted to write Bollywood films." But he did take different bends in the road which eventually led him there.

Firstly, he quit the engineering-IT way of life pretty early to do 'something creative' - in advertising. I am sure when he made that leap of faith he would have suffered a temporary loss of income (trainee copywriters are never paid as much as IT types!).

When he stumbled upon scriptwriting, he pursued it. And became a student without a 'teacher'. The vast resources of the internet are available to all of us, but how many use them in the way he did?
Then, at some point Jaideep quit advertising to work independently

Rashmi Bansal has a great post on Jaideep Sahni the script writer of Chak de India, Khosla ka Ghosla & Company.

Here are Jaideep's interviews in the Sunday Express and India FM

Via - Chuck de, India

Do you have Absolute Pitch?

2007-09-14T14:01:00.001-07:00

Those who are into music will relate to this.

Just as people recognize colors (which of course is pretty normal), some lucky ones have the ability to recognize a musical note upon hearing it.
e.g. If a note on a piano was 'E' they can instantly recognize it.
Of course good musicians are able to do this naturally, therefore they are able to play a song 'by ear' as they say or even tune a guitar without a tuner.

NPR has this story.

Also Wikipedia has a whole lot of info on Absolute Pitch

Myspace layouts create a millionaire

2007-09-12T20:09:00.000-07:00

Ok I know thats a very dramatic title but it's true.
A teenager gives away myspace layouts free and by the power of google ads makes so much money that she can afford to drop out of school, buy a house etc. Read the entire story it's inspiring.

Via Girl Power - Whateverlife.com

Slow Down Culture

2007-09-07T08:50:00.000-07:00

My brother forwarded this to me and I thought it was worth sharing:

"An interesting reflection. : Slow Down Culture

It's been 18 years since I joined Volvo, a Swedish company. Working for them has proven to be an interesting experience. Any project here takes 2 years to be finalized, even if the idea is simple and brilliant. It's a rule.

Globalization processes have caused in us (all over the world) a general sense of searching for immediate results. Therefore, we have come to posses a need to see immediate results. This contrasts greatly with the slow movements of the Swedish. They, on the other hand, debate, debate, debate, hold x quantity of meetings and work with a slowdown scheme. At the end, this always yields better results.

Said in another words:
1. Sweden is about the size of San Pablo, a state in Brazil.
2. Sweden has 2 million inhabitants.
3. Stockholm, has 500,000 people.
4. Volvo, Escania, Ericsson, Electrolux, Nokia are some of its renowned
companies. Volvo supplies the NASA.

The first time I was in Sweden, one of my colleagues picked me up at the hotel every morning. It was September, bit cold and snowy. We would arrive early at the company and he would park far away from the entrance (2000 employees drive their car to work). The first day, I didn't say anything, either the second or third. One morning I asked, "Do you have a fixed parking space? I've noticed we park far from the entrance even when there are no other cars in the lot." To which he replied, "Since we're here early we'll have time to walk, and whoever gets in late will be late and need a place closer to the door. Don't you think? Imagine my face.

Nowadays, there's a movement in Europe name Slow Food. This movement establishes that people should eat and drink slowly, with enough time to taste their food, spend time with the family, friends, without rushing. Slow Food is against its counterpart: the spirit of Fast Food and what it stands for as a lifestyle. Slow Food is the basis for a bigger movement called Slow Europe, as mentioned by Business Week.

Basically, the movement questions the sense of "hurry" and "craziness" generated by globalization, fueled by the desire of "having in quantity" (life status) versus "having with quality", "life quality" or the "quality of being". French people, even though they work 35 hours per week, are more productive than Americans or British. Germans have established 28.8 hour workweeks and have seen their productivity been driven up by 20%. This slow attitude has brought forth the US's attention, pupils of the fast and the "do it now!".

This no-rush attitude doesn't represent doing less or having a lower productivity. It means working and doing things with greater quality, productivity, perfection, with attention to detail and less stress. It means reestablishing family values, friends, free and leisure time. Taking the "now", present and concrete, versus the "global", undefined and anonymous. It means
taking humans' essential values, the simplicity of living.

It stands for a less coercive work environment, more happy, lighter and more productive where humans enjoy doing what they know best how to do. It's time to stop and think on how companies need to develop serious quality with no-rush that will increase productivity and the quality of products and services, without losing the essence of spirit.

In the movie, Scent of a Woman, there's a scene where Al Pacino asks a girl to dance and she replies, "I can't, my boyfriend will be here any minute now". To which Al responds, "A life is lived in an instant". Then they dance to a tango.

Many of us live our lives running behind time, but we only reach it when we die of a heart attack or in a car accident rushing to be on time. Others are so anxious of living the future that they forget to live the present, which is the only time that truly exists. We all have equal time throughout the world. No one has more or less. The difference lies in how each one of us does with our time. We need to live each moment. As John Lennon said, "Life is what happens to you
while you're busy making other plans".

Congratulations for reading till the end of this message. There are many who will have stopped in the middle so as not to waste time in this globalized world. "

Wikipedia has and some more insight on this.

Google Docs Secrets

2007-09-06T09:48:00.000-07:00

For those who have still not woken up to Google Docs, it's like a web-based free Google version of MS Office. It's online so you can access it from any computer and it is catching up with features to the real Office

If you have a google account, you can get to it by clicking "more" on the Google Home Page or simply go to http://docs.google.com/

Amit Agarwal has some cool tricks on using Google Docs.

Email documents to an email address : Since Google Docs provides you with a secret email address - any document or email that you send to this address would be save a new document in Google Docs which can edited or shared later.
Convert Html Webpages or Word Docs to PDF which is as simple as "Save As PDF"

For more on this check out How are you using Google Docs ?

Labor Day Edition

2007-09-03T05:26:00.000-07:00

Made some changes to my blog this weekend.
The header banner has been changed. I have also added this cool feature at Aide RSS which analyzes your blog and actually rates your top posts based on how well they were received. You can see my top posts on the right hand side.
Then I have also added my Del.icio.us link roll it is at the bottom on the right.

And lastly I have changed by RSS feed to a full feed from FeedBurner. In case you are wondering what is an RSS Feed? Read my post on what is an RSS Feed.

There has always been a debate where a lot of folks leaned in favor of the partial feed but the tide is changing towards full feeds and I thought I should do the same.

And as always look forward to any comments or suggestions that you as a reader might have toward making this a better blog.

Friends at work you should not ignore

2007-08-27T13:03:00.000-07:00

In terms of friends, you might think the most important people are your team members and sucking up to the boss, but there are a few key people who are often ignored and could make your job easier.
These mission critical people are the ones you should be sucking up to...the receptionist, IT support, the mail guy, and the maintenance guy. When you have these people on your side, suddenly life is good.
And if they don't happen to like you...well, life can suck.

Wired's How To Wiki has some advice on who are the people at work you can't afford not to be friendly with.

Via - Make Friends at the Office Who Really Count

How to deal with a boss you don't get along with

2007-08-24T08:09:00.000-07:00

"No matter how skilled you are, if you don't have a good relationship with your boss, your job is not secure," warns Shapiro. After all, your boss is the person who determines whether or not you'll get the raise, the promotion and that corner office you've had your eye on. And guess what: if your boss doesn't think you're on the team, you probably won't get any of it.

So how can you overcome your natural aversion to being told what to do? The trick is to treat your boss like a client, says Shapiro. Pretend like you're in business for yourself and that your boss is your most important (and quite possibly your most difficult) client.

Marshall Leob has some excellent advice on creating the right relationship with your boss.

Via Don't treat your boss like the enemy

Vijay versus Big B

2007-08-17T06:50:00.000-07:00

I walked in for my interview with Amitabh Bachchan with a thumping heart. Would my hero live up to my expectations? Through my growing up years, I had lived in his shadow. I had cried with Vijay, I had sung with Anthony, I had ridden down dusty streets on a rickety bicycle convinced that I too was the angry young man facing a heartless world.
There he was, this handsome rebel, without family, without godfathers, without privileges. Always on the side of the poor, always the coolie, the lovable gangster, the brooding cop or the lonely alcoholic and yet it was he who won in the end, it was he who triumphed over those with money and wealth. Amitabh was more than even a hero, he was a moral statement, in his suffering eyes I saw the storms of my own heart. Amitabh? Amitabh was it.

Bhupendra like many Amitabh fans, tries to come to terms with an Amitabh of the 70's, a celluoid hero versus Big B the brand today who is still very affable in person

Via - Jai, my hero, is dead, Amitabh is alive

Gmail or Yahoo Mail security tips

2007-08-15T12:34:00.000-07:00

If you are using web-based email such as Gmail, Yahoo or Hotmail a word of caution they can be hacked into using the IP Address and user name (login) without requiring any password.

So whats the solution - always use a secure login.

For Gmail make sure you use https://mail.google.com/ instead of http://mail.google.com/

For Yahoo! Mail - Check the Secure Mode link that's available just beneath the "Sign In" button.

Via Digital Inspiration

Cool ways to use Google better

2007-08-04T21:05:00.000-07:00

I found this great post on how to use Google better.

Here are some gems :

To search a face in google images add &imgtype=face to the end of the URL address.
Adding the label site fetches you great stuff from social networking sites. e.g. site: digg.com free "images"
If you want to check out a site by its images add the label site: e.g. site:wired to the images.google URL

Check out the rest of the rest of the tricks here.

'How-To' Do Everything Videos

2007-07-21T18:31:00.000-07:00

With the online of advent videos anyone can upload a video of say the reaction Coke has when you pop mentos into it to recording any daily activity no matter how mundane it be.

ABC News even has a list of Top You Tube Videos for 2006

But now there are two websites :

VideoJug.com and ExpertVillage.com

that aim to teach you everything as this article on Msnbc reports.

Al Gore's Million Dollar Makeover

2007-07-04T16:45:00.000-07:00

Not long ago, he was the butt of jokes--lockbox, earth tones, a postelection beard. Then he dusted off an old slide show and jumped with both feet into the private sector. The untold story of how an epic loser engineered what may be the greatest brand makeover of our time.

What no one is talking about is that he has also become a stunningly
successful businessman--and that has fueled his comeback. Since his nonelection,
Gore has become a millionaire many times over, bringing him, in financial terms,
shoulder to shoulder with the C-suite denizens he used to hit up for campaign
cash. In addition to the steady flow of six-figure speaking gigs, he has become
an insider at two of the hottest companies on the planet: at Google
(NASDAQ:GOOG), where he signed on as an adviser in 2001, pre-IPO (and received
stock options now reportedly worth north of $30 million), and at Apple
(NASDAQ:AAPL), where he joined the board in 2003 (and got stock options now
valued at about $6 million). He enjoyed a big payday as vice chairman of an
investment firm in L.A., and, more recently, started a cable-television company
and an asset-management firm, both of which are becoming quiet forces in their
fields.

Truly amazing story of a turnaround in contemporary times.

Link : Fastcompany

Gmail on Steroids

2007-06-28T20:51:00.000-07:00

It's been a while since my last post due to lack of time but I hope to increase the frequency of my posts.

This post was simply too compelling not to write. Everyone has heard about numerous Firefox extensions for Gmail. But many of us (including me) are too busy to actually hunt down all the greasemonkey scripts and install them.

Well Life Hacker has solved this problem for us. They have created a neat extension that ecompasses some of the best adds on available for Gmail.

From colored labels, message previews to Mac skins this is a feast for Gmail fans.

Here is the link: Life Hacker

Dubai's spinning skyscraper

2007-04-20T15:23:00.000-07:00

This is what it might look like if Dynamic Architecture's plans to build a "tower in motion" in the United Arab Emirates state of Dubai are successful. Link

The Indian Cricket Team has become the butt of all jokes

2007-04-11T19:30:00.000-07:00

Sehwag ko Mayur pehnao; Sachin ko Pepsi pilao; Ganguly ko chyawanprash khilao; Dhoni ko Brylcreem lagao; Dravid me Castrol bharao... Lekin unko** cricket MAT khelao..." reads an SMS, mocking the star batsmen over their ads appearances.

(Link)

Did the media raise expectations of a team that was only good on paper ? Is this the wakeup call for deadwood to be eliminated from the team ? Was this an unexposed round of match fixing ? All the questions are up in the air, but for now nothing is stopping the fans ire. But public memory is short and if the team beats Bangladesh who knows they may make them Gods again ...

Bugatti Veyron Top Speed at 407.4km/hr

2007-04-04T19:47:00.000-07:00

See it to believe it:

Imagini - A pic is worth a thousand words

2007-03-21T18:28:00.000-07:00

That's the concept behind this social network. Yes I know it's been a while since I have posted anything owing to the lack of time but I shall make amends to that.

Coming back to Imagini, it was my cousin who first fowarded this as an email to me. It's a novel concept. The site calculates your 'Visual DNA' and uses it to find other people that match. They do this by grouping together a group of images based on what you feel and your likes.

It's almost like a personality test but with pictures. At the end it tells you what are your personality traits e.g Dreamer, High Roller etc based on four categories such as Mood, Habits Fun & Love. Check it out. [link]

Tags : social network, imagini, pictures

Steve Jobs to graduates: 'Stay hungry, stay foolish'

2007-03-10T20:38:00.000-08:00

Wearing jeans and sandals under his black robe, Jobs delivered a keynote address that spanned his adoption at birth to his insights into mortality after being diagnosed with pancreatic cancer about a year ago. In plainspoken terms, his address struck a balance between the obstacles he has encountered during his notably public life and the lessons he has gleaned—for example, from his high-profile ousting in 1985 from the computer company he helped start.

"I didn't see it then, but it turned out that getting fired from Apple was the best thing that could have ever happened to me," said Jobs, 50. "It freed me to enter one of the most creative periods in my life."

In his Commencement address, Apple and Pixar CEO Steve Jobs urged Stanford graduates to follow their hearts. A pancreatic cancer survivor, he told the Class of '05, "Your time is limited, so don't waste it living someone else's life. Don't be trapped by dogma, which is living with the results of other people's thinking."

It's truly inspirational and gives an insight into the mind of the man who has broken barriers and created new horizons on how the world handles information technology (the Mac), music(ipod) and now communication(iphone) : LINK

Also here is the video of the address.

Tags : Steve Jobs, inspiration, commencement address

Nike India's cricket ad

2007-03-01T20:59:00.000-08:00

A friend of mine forwarded this to me. The ad itself is pretty neat - featuring the game of cricket. We are all used to the "Just do it" kindda Nike ads, so this is ina way the same message packaged differently. But, it also features a Konkani jingle.

For those who are not aware the Konkani language is spoken widely in Mangalore, Goa, south coastal Maharashtra and Kerala.

Tags : Ads, Nike, India, Konkani

Super Bowl Ads

2007-02-08T18:24:00.000-08:00

The Super Bowl is not only an event for sports but also can change the fortunes of television networks because broadcasting it is a commercially viable proposition.

This year the each spot went for $2.6 million link

But enough of that, for those who missed the ads or want to see them again

Here is a link and another. Enjoy!!!

Tags : advertising, television, super bowl

Winmerge : A boon for windows developers

2007-02-03T20:28:00.000-08:00

If you need to compare documents/files on unix its easy is it not but try windows and you are left searching for answers.

But I found the answer to this problem, the best utility software that I have used is WinMerge.

This is really amazing what it can do. It displays the different lines in different colors so its very easy to check what is different.

And it can also compare two different directories and sort the files based on identical, different etc. This really makes life easier for a programmer.

Tags : winmerge, web development, file comparison

Somebody clicked off during the making itself

2007-02-01T19:43:00.000-08:00

Imagine being able to control everything in your life from a dog's bark to your wife's argument. Novel concept and fun is it not?
The Click started out really nice and at one point you begin to wonder why this movie was a flop but wait a little longer and you will know why.
Every now and then you a great story but they don’t know where to take it and how it should end. I guess creating the perfect climax is in itself the art of movie making

Adam Sandler did good in the first half and then the script was too much to carry through the rest of the second half , it just fowarded 10 yrs, 20 yrs into the future. It looks like the filmmakers just gave up on the script. May be they had finance troubles or who knows what but they ended up fast fowarding the story to the ending pretty quickly.

And in the end it turns out it was all a dream, somebody clicked off!!! It was a real let down.

Bottled water is tap water in a bottle

2007-01-22T19:18:00.000-08:00

Be that as it may, most Americans are probably unaware that Dasani, like many bottled waters sold in the United States, doesn't originate from pristine mountain springs; it starts in the same pipes that run into people's kitchens.
Dasani undergoes a filtering process and, according to Coke, is "enhanced with minerals for a pure, fresh taste." But, in the end, it's still tap water.

For all the talk about bottled water being safer than tap water. Check out the reality : link

Tags : bottled water, health

The Indian connection in Freakonomics

2007-01-13T19:11:00.000-08:00

If you have read Freakonomics you must have wondered whether the guy mentioned in the Chapter "Why do Drug dealers live with their Mom?" was real.

If he did all this then where is he today? Was this just one assignment for him? Why is he not writing a book or why is the media not talking about him?

For once rediff in it's specials when talking about an NRI is not talking how he went from rags to zillions. For once they have managed to convey a little bit of the essence of this guy.
Yes his name is Sudhir Alladi Venkatesh and he should be applauded for what he is doing.
Way to go Sudhir!! In a world filled with people only interested in bank balances, he is thinking about the people as human beings, the marginalised, the social outcasts and the immigrants for whom life is a struggle everyday.

Tags : freakonomics, sociology

Is the media reporting only what sells?

2007-01-13T12:25:00.000-08:00

Hobbit Hobb asks is the Indian media biased towards popular news:

The debate and discussions on media-bias have been carried out innumerable
times already. There have been debates on hundreds of crime victims elsewhere in
the country whose cases the media chose to ignore. Does a opening of a store by
a Bollywood star makes more TRP sense for the media than what happens beyond the metros?

In today's world, the news that we read or watch is what is brought to the forefront simply because of TRP ratings. After all when a newschannel or a newspaper has to be commercially viable, it ultimately ends up crossing over the line and reporting only what would ensure its survival.

Therefore at time we have the ridiculous scenario where a donkey drowning in a pond somewhere is breaking news whereas other important details could be easily ignored.
Even the US media is guilty of this, every week there is one topic of interest that is picked up and reported upon repeatedly across all networks for days on until the next issue presents itself. First there was Madonna's adoption followed by Britney Spear' breakup and meltdown and so on. Celebrity news sells more hence you have the British tabloids hounding Prince Williams Girlfriend.
Also the reporting bias is definitely obvious where certain news items reported on the BBC never make it to the US media.
And then there is news that is tailored depending upon which part of the world you live in. So definitely news is what would be popular.

Tags : news, media,ratings

Akshay in Florida

2007-01-07T05:17:00.000-08:00

It's been a while since I posted because I have been on vacation which was long overdue. We went to Orlando, Florida to Universal Studios, Disney World and Sea World.

Some tips on visiting Orlando:
1) Go in the off season if you can because Christmas week & Summer are a big no no .
2) Keep atleast 2 days to see Universal Studios, it will be worth it
3) Get the fast pass wherever possible because believe me waiting in line for 90 mins to see a 10 mins show kills the anticipation

Hey have to mention this. We bumped into Akshay Kumar (well almost bumped). He was with his family and was obviously trying to keep a low profile, in jeans and a sweatshirt with a base ball cap pulled over as he was looking down trying to stay unnoticed. We thus decided to give him his privacy as there were so many desis in the crowd it could have become a mobbing.

I am writing up my list of best rides at Orlando so look out for it in a future post.

Top 10 worst domain names

2007-01-02T18:59:00.000-08:00

Sabahan.com has this great post on how people choose domain names without even realizing what some of them sound like.

1. A site called ‘Who Represents‘ where you can find the name of the agent that represents a celebrity. Their domain name… wait for it… is www.whorepresents.com

2. Experts Exchange, a knowledge base where programmers can exchange advice and views at www.expertsexchange.com

3. Looking for a pen? Look no further than Pen Island at www.penisland.net

4. Need a therapist? Try Therapist Finder at www.therapistfinder.com

5. Then of course, there’s the Italian Power Generator company… www.powergenitalia.com

6. And now, we have the Mole Station Native Nursery, based in New South Wales: www.molestationnursery.com

7. If you’re looking for computer software, there’s always www.ipanywhere.com

8. Welcome to the First Cumming Methodist Church. Their website is www.cummingfirst.com

9. Then, of course, there’s these brainless art designers, and their whacky website: www.speedofart.com

10. Want to holiday in Lake Tahoe? Try their brochure website at www.gotahoe.com

Tags : domain names, comic

Charity in America

2006-12-20T19:56:00.000-08:00

Marketplace draws attention to charitable giving in America.

One point that is put forth so well is that most of the giving by the wealthy is done toward culture: libraries, museums, universities etc which is really an investment for their children in the future what's known as affirmative action for "legacies."

So the question is should the tax deduction be the same as say a donation to the Red Cross? Should the tax laws be amended to that effect?

It turns out, in fact, that only an estimated 10 percent of all charitable deductions(approx 200 Billion) this year will be directed at the poor. Now that tells you something.

Tags : charity, tax deduction

Made for Adsense sites

2006-12-09T12:47:00.000-08:00

Made for Adsense websites or MFA are a by product of the popular Google's Adsense program which pays publishers everytime a visitor to a website clicks on an ad displayed on the website.

This has spawned a huge generation of scrapper sites - sites which have no original content and the purpose of which is to only drive traffic to the site so that the visitors will inadvertenly click on the ads in turn generating revenue for the website owners.

The problem however is that these sites are diluting the search results by providing users with inaccurate results while surfing. In a sense they are the equivalent of spam but of a different kind.

Well the guys at AdsBlackList.com have compiled a list of such MFA websites. Check it out.

Tags : adsense, google, blacklist

The Best Products of 2006

2006-12-08T21:45:00.000-08:00

Business Week has this neat slideshow of the best products in 2006 .
Among the products mentioned are the Tesla Roadster and the Mazda CX-7.
The pic above is of a Honda bike that has an in built air bag. Check out the slideshow

Tags : businessweek, best products

The Secret History of the Credit Card

2006-11-29T20:27:00.000-08:00

I was fortunate enough to catch this great program on PBS Frontline (link)

Some of the interesting facts brought out are why your credit card payments go to South Dakota or Delware of all places. What's in that small booklet called the "Terms" of your card. Why the credit card companies are free to charge whatever interest rate they like?
Here are some gems:

Ed Yingling, incoming president of the American Bankers Association, tells FRONTLINE that revolvers are "the sweet spot" of the banking industry. This "sweet spot" continues to grow as the average credit card debt among American households has more than doubled over the past decade. Today, the average family owes roughly $8,000 on their credit cards. This debt has helped generate record profits for the credit card industry -- last year, more than $30 billion before taxes.
Some experts say the profitability of credit cards really began
twenty-five years ago, when the banking industry successfully eliminated a critical restriction: the limit on the interest rate a lender can charge a borrower. Deregulation, coupled with a revolution in technology that enables the almost real-time tracking of personal financial information and the emergence of nationwide banking, has facilitated the widening availability of credit cards across the economic spectrum. But for some, the cost of credit is often far greater than it appears.
According to Harvard Law Professor Elizabeth Warren, the credit card companies are misleading consumers and making up their own rules. "These guys have figured out the best way to compete is to put a smiley face in your commercials, a low introductory rate, and hire a team of MBAs to lay traps in the fine print," Warren tells FRONTLINE.
Warren and other critics say that a growing share of the industry's revenues come from what they call deceptive tactics, such as "default" terms spelled out in the fine print of cardholder agreements -- the terms and conditions of which can be
changed at any time for any reason with 15 days' notice.
Penalty fees and rates are sometimes triggered by just a single lapse -- a payment that arrives a couple of days or even hours late, a charge that exceeds the credit line by a few dollars, or a loan from another creditor which renders the cardholder "overextended" as defined by the nation's three all-powerful credit bureaus. This flurry of unexpected fees and rate hikes come just when consumers can least afford them.
"[Banks are] raising interest rates, adding new fees, making the due date for your payment a holiday or a Sunday on the hopes that maybe you'll trip up and get a payment in late," says Robert McKinley, founder and chairman of Cardweb.com and Ram Research, a payment card research firm. "It's become a very anti-consumer marketplace."

Tags : credit cards, history, PBS, Frontline, plastic

Top ten open source apps for Windows

2006-11-26T15:45:00.000-08:00

Lifehacker has a list of the top 10 open source windows apps
They are :

Mozilla Firefox (Web browser)

Open source web browser.

Mozilla Thunderbird (Email client)
Mozilla's free email client.

Open Office (Office suite)

Open Office is a free alternative to M$ Office for students, freelancers and poor people just wanting to save their spreadsheet as an .xls.

Gaim (Instant messenger)

Chat on any service you'd like - AIM, Yahoo! Messenger, MSN, Jabber, ICQ - with this multi-platform, tabbed IM client.

ClamWin (Antivirus)

ClamWin is free anti-virus software with automatic updates and scheduled scans, no credit card required.

VLC Media Player (Audio/video player)

VLC the alternative to Windows Media Player or Quicktime.

KeePass (Password manager)

Keeps track of all of your passwords.

Cygwin (Unix command line emulator)

That DOS command line just doesn't cut it. Wanna turn into a CLI ninja on your PC? You need Cygwin.

Eraser (Data deletion utility)

Helps your erase the data on your hard drive before you trash/sell/donate it.

TrueCrypt (File encryption utility)

open source

windows

downloads

Alternative professions for the cricket team

2006-11-24T21:19:00.000-08:00

With the dismal performance of the Indian cricket team in South Africa, is it time for the guys to look for alternative professions?
It's funny as long as you are winning (no matter even if it was plain luck things are hunky dory) but when you lose all hell breaks loose. Let's see.. they are baying for Pawar's blood now, of course Chappell and Dravid is a given, so who is next?

Well Sakshi Juneja from Desicritics has these suggestions :

Sachin Tendulkar - Can give medical seminars on Tennis Elbow and how to emerge from such a dreaded physical disability. Plus he could also start a consulting firm dealing with matters regarding importing of expensive cars and how to avoid paying taxes on them.

Rahul Dravid - The Indian captain is most suited for the Finance and Banking field thanks to his dependable personality. Since he is already a brand ambassador for Baroda Bank, maybe they will offer him a full-time job.

Mahindra Singh Dhoni - No guessing here, this fella is most likely to succeed in the Hairstyle modeling industry. Maybe a profession as a permanent barber would work well for him. He could probably join Harbhajan Singh's hair salon in Punjab.

Virendra Sehwag - I say, he should offer his balding head to companies experimenting with 'hair extensions', 'hair weaving' and the like. Maybe not too much money but a tleast there are chances of him getting some hair back.

Harbhajan Singh - Well Bhaji baby already has his future set with his up-coming chain of hair-salons. But he could also try his hand at Punjabi movies, since he has the expertise of ad modeling.

SK Raina - This guy needs to go back to school and complete his education.

Mohammad Kaif - He should consider a profession as a masseur. With his pair of firm and safe hands, this is an ideal field for him.

Zaheer Khan - He would do well by joining a firm which caters to people with Long Term Disability. With his history of cricket-related injuries, he could become their highest-selling agent.

Ajit Agarkar - Now this dude can earn millions with his cricket formula. He could teach up-coming players how to stay within the national team even when not deserving a place.

Anymore ideas?

Tags : cricket, sports,India,professions

The British Hangover in 2006

2006-11-22T20:27:00.000-08:00

"Indians were denied entry to Sports Bar in Colaba, Mumbai, India on Thursday night "

Wait stop, this is not pre 1947 but a headline in Mumbai Mirror in the year 2006.

That's right the 'Raj' hangover still exists in whatever form it be. When India is supposed to be one of the "hottest economies" to invest it still has its shares of Mir Jaffers.

Check this out " the bar was closed because of dry day rules that allowed the bar to only serve liquor to foreigners. But oddly, while there is no rule restricting entry to Indians who were not planning to buy liquor, bouncers outside the bar stopped all people who looked like natives".

First of all, if Indians can't be served liquor, how is that foreigners can?

The Infosys and TCS chieftains speak of world domination in the new global economy but the subservient mentality never seems to go away.

Imagine this :
An Indian is standing in a line for something, it could be anything under the sun, and after/before him is what the 'natives' call a "Gora" and the the person at the counter is an Indian.
Guess who gets preferrential treatment? Sorry even if its the 25th century for all I care, the state of affairs remains the same.

Like one Indian who was denied entry to the bar commented " They might as well put up a notice saying "No entry for Indians and dogs"

We need some patriots to shut down places like these, any volunteers? or has everyone sold their souls to the mighty dollar?

Tags : India, discrimination, colonial

The new Don

2006-11-20T19:25:00.000-08:00

Farhan Akhtar's DON is not really what you expected of a remake,definitely not a tribute he said it was. First of all you want everyone to stay away from remaking something which was good in the first place. Yea sure they always re-make something which is a hit, like remaking a south indian film in hindi (boney kapoor style) or remaking Munna Bhai in all the south indian languages or lately Casino Royale (Come on does he look like a Bond- but let's leave that for a new post)

But Amitabh is something which cannot be copied easily infact almost "namumkin hai" said one ardent fan. And SRK (although I did like Swades and do respect the fact that he is the only megastar to rise from TV) and Farhan(Dil Chatha hai fame) should have stayed away from this one.

You can't replace the Bachchan baritone when he sits in a sauna but looks like a 'Don' with arguably not a base voice SRK.

Slick it is but you walk into the movie knowing the whole story and if he made D'souza instead of Malik the mole you can tell he is taking the director's license.

And as has already been said a million times Priya 'beauty queen' Chopra is no Zeenat Aman much less a clothes horse Arjun Rampal is Pran. Come one gimee a break if you are going to change the story why make poor Rampal lug the kid on his back on a steel tower (what's the rationale Akhtar?)

Hey but in all its faults there is this review which is totally positive- link

We already know the fate of the much touted 'Sholay' by RGV which is not really a Sholay becoz the Sippy's sued his pants off.

Stop the lousy remakes please let us live with our memories and the VCR.

Tags : remakes, don, bollywood, srk, amitabh

Value the coffee, not the cup

2006-11-16T20:19:00.000-08:00

My brother sent this to me and it is definitely some food for thought:

A group of alumni, highly established in their careers, got together to visit their old university professor.Conversation soon turned into complaints about stress in work and life.

Offering his guests coffee, the professor went to the kitchen andreturned with a large pot of coffee and an assortment of cups -porcelain, plastic, glass, crystal, some plain looking, some expensive,some exquisite - telling them to help themselves to hot coffee.

When all the students had a cup of coffee in hand, the professor said: "If you noticed, all the nice looking expensive cups were taken up,leaving behind the plain and cheap ones. While it is normal for you to want only the best for yourselves, that is the source of your problems and stress. What all of you really wanted was coffee, not the cup, but you consciously went for the best cups and were eyeing each other's cups.

Now if life is coffee, then the jobs, money and position in society arethe cups. They are just tools to hold and contain Life, but the qualityof Life doesn't change. Sometimes, by concentrating only on the cup, wefail to enjoy the coffee in it."

So, don't let the cups drive you..... enjoy the coffee instead.

Tags : life's lessons, health

Microsoft's Myspace for IT guys

2006-11-10T21:17:00.000-08:00

Microsoft on Friday launched what it bills as a social networking site for IT professionals, called Aggreg8. The company aims for the site to become a MySpace-like forum for developers to share scripts, tools, or best practices, or even to just connect with others within the profession.

"Aggreg8 is a site for IT Pros to mix-n-mingle," Kevin Remde, an IT Pro evangelist for Microsoft, wrote in a blog post announcing the service. "You can setup a profile, join groups, enter posts, add favorites, share content, mix, mingle, and learn."(via)

Is this the end of yahoo groups and google groups for techies?

Tags : Microsoft, myspace,IT

What your Mom told you: Hit or Myth?

2006-11-04T23:00:00.000-08:00

We have all heard the advice given to us by our Moms ranging from "Do not sit too close to the TV, it will spoil your eyes" to "Starve a cold and feed a fever"

The Health Magazine Your Health Now separates facts from fiction in this article.

Tags : myths, health

How to recover a lost Windows password

2006-10-29T15:40:00.000-08:00

If you are faced with a situation where in you inadvertently forgot your XP password or as in my case the toddler playing games on the pc manages to change it then this website is the answer to your prayers.
They recover the passwords for you for free if you are ready to wait for 48 hrs. If you want it earlier then you are charged a fee to reveal them immediately. I was skeptical but I thought might as well give it a shot before trying other options and must say they did come through.

Login Recovery is a service to reveal user names and recover passwords for Windows NT, 2000, XP, 2003 and Longhorn. As long as you have physical access to the computer, your passwords can be recovered

By following three simple steps, over 98.5% of passwords can be recovered within less than ten minutes. This service does not overwrite passwords, it does not write anything to the hard drive, it does not alter the computer in any way. It simply reads the encrypted passwords for processing through our servers.

Tags : password recovery, windows

Dial a Bar code, get the Best possible Price

2006-10-27T21:37:00.000-07:00

Comparison shopping has come a long way from scouting bargains through friends, newspapers then came the internet and now this. If you're one of the millions of consumers dreading long hours in overcrowded malls while wondering if you could've found a better deal browsing the internet from the comfort of your own home, you're not alone. As this holiday season quickly approaches, consumers can count on Frucall, (1-888-DO-FRUCALL 1-888-363-7822, http://www.frucall.com/) a free phone-based service that automatically finds the current, best online price for any product and instantly lets you hear it from any phone, anytime, anywhere.

Frucall offers helpful features like:
-- BuyNow - Frucall's new feature enables registered users to purchase items directly from merchants that they select
-- Bookmarks - Save and revisit previously looked up items for additional information whenever you want
-- Search History - Create a record of all previously searched items
-- Voice Notes - Easily leave voice reminders about a wish list, an upcoming sale or the location of a favorite item
-- Reminder Messages - Send short texts - at any date or time - as a reminder of shopping ideas, appointments, birthdays, anniversaries or meetings
-- Alerts - Be reminded when a product you have been shopping for reaches a certain price
-- Personal Greetings - For fun, record a personalized greeting that will be heard every time Frucall is visited for on the spot shopping assistance (via)

Tags : shopping, tricks, bargains, comparison

Using Xp to create a secure password

2006-10-23T22:35:00.000-07:00

After my post on passwords came across a post from Digital Inpiration which points to some
Tips from Microsoft Windows XP Inside Out

One of which is to create a random secure password:

If you want to create a randomly generated secure password, open a Command Prompt window and type this command:

net user administrator /random

Windows displays the new password it creates. Be sure to write it down and store it in a safe place.

Have fun!

Tags : password, security, xp

Khosla ka Ghosla : Thumbs up

2006-10-22T22:52:00.000-07:00

I have been posting fewer posts recenty and that's because I could not simply find time to write. So coming out of this slump is a movie review.
Khosla ka Ghosla turned out to be more than expected. While the promos suggested it would be not be a typical run of the mill Hindi movie, it far surpassed expectations. The characters were very well developed and the Delhi background was done just right. Anupam Kher is always good playing the harassed middle class gentleman right from his Saraansh days. And the rest of the cast have ably supported him.
But the guy who has made it a habit of getting under the skin of characters is once again Lucky Singh oops Khurana sorry Boman Irani.

The story of land grabbing builders occupying properties purchased by unsuspecting middle class owners and then making them run around to get it back seems very familiar. In fact up until that point you are not even sure which way the film is going and you are half worried it's going to be one of the arty movies that depict 'reality' making the audience squirm in their seats coz you did not come to see this. You get that in your backyard right?

Wrong thats where the movie redeems itself. Things are running along smooth and the soundtrack keeps up with the light mood right until Kher lands in jail. That's because his younger son Bunty(Ranvir Shorey) hired the local pehelwans to vacate the the hired goons of the builder. But before they can savor their winnings the cops come knocking on the door taking Khosla straight to jail because obviously the corrupt cops and the builder are hand in glove and Khosla cannot do anything about it.
Then you wonder oh no is this another fight the corrupt system kindda movie or pathetic India tragedy. Not for long because Khosla's disinterested elder IT son 'Cherry' -short for Chiraunjilal (what a name a point higlighted by his agent) who already had plans to fly to NY for his new job ropes in his agent who is getting his visa done.
As luck would have it his agent Asif Iqbal (played well by Vinay Pathak) has a past score to settle with Khurana and so the two along with the Cherry's theatre girlfriend Meghna (Tara Sharma ) and her Bapu(Navin Nischol) set out to scam the scammers. How they go about pulling that off is the plot. While the movie drags for a bit it is pulled back together and ends on a feel good note. Overall a Thumbs up!

Tags : movie review, bollywood

How to Use Google to search for Mp3s

2006-10-16T22:09:00.000-07:00

Well, the year was 2000 and Napster was king. And since then we all have graduated to either using Bittorrent or Kazaa or some other search tool.

So the question is have you ever thought of using Google to search for mp3s?

According to Marc and Angel you can turn Google into Napster 2000 using the following operators and keywords say if you are searching for "Savage Garden":

-inurl:(htmhtmlphp) intitle:"index of" +"last modified" +"parent directory" +description +size +(wmamp3) "Savage Garden"

Well if you do not have the patience or are not tech savvy, you could also use some other hacks that have been around such as :

http://g2p.org

http://www.ironlab.org/projects/findmusic.php

http://www.tyoogle.com

Happy searching!

(via Lifehacker)

Tags : Mp3, google,search

How to select the best seats on your flight

2006-10-13T09:45:00.000-07:00

There were days when you had to have some one who was a frequent-flier or a travel agent who could tell you what were the best seats to pick up on a flight of an airline.

Well you don't need those friends anymore because you can select the best seats yourself.

Any airline, any aircraft courtesy of Seat Guru(http://www.seatguru.com). Check out the seats below on a British Airways Boeing 747 below:

Tags : airline,aircraft, seats,seat guru

AJAX : The top ten list

2006-10-11T22:56:00.000-07:00

We all have seen the rich creative interactive web applications developed in AJAX (short for Asynchronous JavaScript and XML) especially since Google showcased it in Google Maps, Gmail and Google Suggest.

Dan Grossman has put forth a list of top 10 Ajax applications:

1. Kiko. A general purpose online calendar.

2. Backbase’s RSS Reader.

3. Backpack. To do list organizer and simple project management application which includes email and mobile reminders.

4. Writely. Online word processor.

5. Amazon Zuggest. Francis Shanahan’s version of Google Suggest–but for Amazon.

6. TimeTracker. Personal time management tool.

7. Del.icio.us Director. Rich UI for managing your del.icio.us links.

8. Backbase’s Information Portal. A highly interactive aggregation page.

9. Protopage. Another twist on an information portal.

10. Periodic Table of the Elements.

I can't say I agree totally with all of these because I am sure there are applications out there as good or may be even better that did not make the list, what do you think?

Tags : AJAX, web development

After outsourcing it's Crowdsourcing

2006-10-06T22:11:00.000-07:00

Remember outsourcing? Sending jobs to India and China is so 2003. The new pool of cheap labor: everyday people using their spare cycles to create content, solve problems, even do corporate R & D.

According to wikipedia :
"Crowdsourcing" is a term coined by Wired magazine writer Jeff Howe and editor Mark Robinson in June 2006. It describes a business model akin to outsourcing, but relying upon unpaid or low-paid amateurs who use their spare time to create content, solve problems, or even do corporate R&D. Crowds targeted for crowdsourcing include garage scientists, amateur videographers, freelancers, photo enthusiasts, data companies, writers, smart mobs and the electronic herd.

Types of crowdsourced work :

Procter & Gamble employs more than 9000 scientists and researchers in corporate R&D and still have many problems they can't solve. They now post these on a website called InnoCentive, offering large cash rewards to more than 90,000 'solvers' who make up this network of backyard scientists. P&G also works with NineSigma, YourEncore and Yet2.

Amazon Mechanical Turk co-ordinates the use of human intelligence to perform tasks which computers are unable to do.

YRUHRN used Amazon Mechanical Turk and other means of crowdsourcing to compile content for a book published just 30 days after the project was started.
iStockphoto is a website with over 22,000 amateur photographers who upload and distribute stock photographs. Because it does not have the same margins as a professional outfit like Getty Images it is able to sell photos for a low price. It was recently purchased by Getty Images.

A Swarm of Angels is a Cinema 2.0 project to utilize a swarm of subscribers (Angels) to help fund, make, contribute, and distribute, a £1 million feature film using the Internet and all digital technologies. It aims to recruit earlier development community members with the right expertise into paid project members, film crew, and production staff.

For more on this check out The Rise of Crowdsourcing

Tags : wired,crowdsourcing, labor

October's scary video

2006-10-03T20:44:00.000-07:00

This Thriller inspired video was featured on Oct 3rd by yahoo tv's 9.yahoo.com

Tags : 9.yahoo, video,thriller

Google allows Gadgets to be added to any webpage

2006-10-03T18:03:00.000-07:00

Google announced today that their specially designed gadgets can be added to any webpage. Google Gadgets were locked into Google Personalized Home and Google Desktop, but now with the breakout of the gadgets, websites are sure to get some nice dynamic and rich content additions.

This is the link to the Google Gadget API via Downloadsquad.

The universal gadgets support HTML, JavaScript, generated HTML (e.g. PHP, Perl, Java, ASP) and the desktop gadgets JavaScript, C, C++, C#, and/or VB.Net. So depending upon whether you want the gadget to work offline or just online you have a choice.

Hopefully we can find better online webages with this news.

Tags : google,gadgets, API, webpage

Top 10 self-destructive workplace habits

2006-09-30T21:23:00.000-07:00

Failing to have a life plan--All very successful people have a clear life plan, they create it, massage it, and refer to it often.

Not keeping your skill set current--The everchanging business landscape has more demand for jobs than supply. So not staying on par with colleagues and those vying for your job will be a death knell.
Failing to deliver results--Winners in business know that it’s all about accountability. Simply putting in effort is not enough, results of those efforts also matter.

Confusing efficiency with effectiveness--Those who think that communicating via e-mail replaces the need to actually talk with people around them fail to recognize the importance of personally connecting with others in today’s highly automated and technological environment. Communicating in person whenever possible is imperative for success-seekers.

Believing that you are irreplaceable--No one is indispensable. As soon as you convince yourself that you and only you can do the job "right," your star will surely start to fall.

Knowing all the answers--The old adage remains true: knowledge is power. Professing to know it all can readily stagnate a career. Winners remain unceasingly interested in learning new ideas and approaches.

Surrounding your self with "brown-nosers"--Losers like having people tell them how smart they are, whether or not it’s true, while successful managers and other professionals accept and encourage intelligence and creativity in others.

Forgetting to give credit to others--Losers inappropriately take full credit for positive events despite the help or input received by others, while Winners give credit where credit is due. Losers inevitably reap what they sow.

Failing to self promote--Bragging is one thing, but letting colleagues throughout your industry know of your success through case studies, promotion bulletins, or other such tools is quite another. Losers often fail to recognize the importance of letting others know about their successes, or go about it in entirely the wrong way.

Losing perspective--Intuitive business people recognize that, despite their best attempts to do everything right, sometimes they approach roadblocks and seek the advice and perspective of a respected friend, colleague, or even a business coach. Those who fail to recognize their shortcomings are destined for the unemployment line.

Link via TechRepublic

Tags : workplace, job security, human resources, success

Who is Seetharaman Narayanan?

2006-09-28T21:19:00.000-07:00

Would it not be great to have your name come up as a developer on a product that is universal? Every programmer's dream right?

Well if you are a web-designer you will know this, when you start up Photoshop then Narayanan's name pops up.

Read this interview with Mr. Narayanan who has been with Adobe for 15 yrs. (link)

Link via Amit Varma

Tags : programmer, adobe, photoshop,software

Top 10 Password Do's and Don'ts

2006-09-26T15:35:00.000-07:00

RSA Security has some do's and don'ts regarding passwords:

Top 5 Password Do's

Make your password at least 8 characters long.
Include different types of characters in your passwords - lowercase and capital letters, numbers, punctuation, symbols etc. The greater the variety of characters that you have in your password, the harder it is for others to figure out.
Use different passwords for every application.
Consider using a phrase rather than a word. For example - "I drop Bella off at school at 9:00." If your system does not allow spaces or has password size limitations, use the first letter or number from each word - "IdBo@s@9."
Change your passwords at least once every 3 months.

Top 5 Password Don'ts

Do not use personal information like your name, account number, date of birth, anniversary or the name of your pet or child. These are some of the first passwords hackers will try.
Avoid using words that can be found in the dictionary - even in foreign languages. Words spelled backwards are still risky choices.
Do not reuse the same password from the previous nine months.
Avoid having 3 or more repeated or consecutive characters in your password.
Do not tell anyone your password.

Tags : password, security, rules,tech

Clinton Interview

2006-09-25T22:44:00.000-07:00

On Sunday, the Fox News(Republican) channel did an interview with President Bill Clinton. The interview was supposed to be about Clinton's humanitarian causes and one other question that Fox wanted. Wallace, the interviewer, took this chance to ask Clinton whether it was his fault that they did not catch Bin Laden.

Watch Clinton's response here (link).

As someone commented :

Every time I see or hear Clinton speak I’m reminded what a real President should sound like. How do we get one of those again?

The question also is when and where will the democrats find someone like him again?

Check out some of the comments on digg about this

Tags : clinton, interview

Fall Leaves: Why do they change color?

2006-09-24T21:27:00.000-07:00

It is that time of the year again, when the leaves start to change color. Have you ever wondered why leaves change color in the Fall.

Well about.com has an interesting feature on fall where they explain how and why leaves get those beautiful colors.

Leaves get their green color from chlorophyll, a pigment found in plant leaves that enables them to process sunlight. Fall's shorter days and cooler temperatures cause the chlorophyll to move from the leaves to the branches, trunk, and roots, and the yellow and orange pigments that are always present become visible.

Other chemical processes produce the brilliant reds,purples and bronzes. On warm fall days, sugar is produced in the leaves of some trees and then trapped by the chill of night. As sugar accumulates, the leaves turn brighter red.

Tags : fall, autumn, science, leaves

Flickrleech : a search tool for flickr

2006-09-22T20:51:00.000-07:00

Flickr is a great photo sharing website. You can upload your favorite pics, tag them and share them with your family, friends and the world.

But when you have to click through each page individually, it does get a little tiresome. So here is the solution.

Flickrleech is the perfect way to search pictures. There are several options to search by and if you are lazy and just want to see the interesting pics for that day, just hit Go for the date on that day.
If you are like me, you could spend hours just watching some amazing pics.

Tags : flickr, photos, interesting

Gmail shortcut to add a new contact

2006-09-22T08:40:00.000-07:00

Lifehacker has pointed to a nice Gmail Tip.

If you need to add a contact in Gmail to your address book automatically, all you do is enclose the email address in the paranthesis like this :

To: "Doe, John "<john.doe@email.com>

And once you send the email, the email address is automatically added to your Contacts. Now that's a time saver!

Tags : gmail,google, contacts, tips,short-cut

Meebo the new messaging alternative

2006-09-21T10:53:00.000-07:00

After writing about how yahoo messenger can now talk to msn messenger, let's talk a little more about inter-connectivity across all messengers. Yes there have been trillian and jabber, but this one deserves a mention.

Meebo is an Ajax instant messaging client that works with major instant messaging services. It's website allows logging onto AOL, ICQ, Yahoo! Messenger, MSN Messenger, Jabber and Google Talk, eliminating the need for an instant-messaging client on the user's computer. For more details link

There is even a wiki and a blog dedicated to meebo.

Pros :

After you enter your password, it tells you that the password is being encrypted.

Cons :

There is no way to log off on and log on using a different combination of messengers.
You have to close the browser. If someone finds it, please let me know.
Secondly it would be nice if we could reduce the browser to a pop up window so that we don't have to be on the same page all the time.

Overall it mimics Jabber, Gaim and Trillian with a Yahoo messenger kind of feel.
Meebo was listed as one of PCWorld’s Top 100 World Class Products in June 2006.
And in Aug 2006, Meebo was listed as one of the top of Time's Top 50 Coolest Websites for 2006.

Tags : instant messenger, ajax

Forts in Maharashtra

2006-09-20T09:12:00.000-07:00

Some amazing aerial pictures of the forts in Maharashtra, forwarded by my cousin:

Alibaug

Arnala

Janjira

Lohgad

Pratapgad

Purandar

Raigad

Raje

Shivasamadhi

Suvarnadurg

Tags : photography, india, maharashtra,forts

Do you want to be a Microsoft Blogstar?

2006-09-19T11:10:00.000-07:00

Then hurry up and register here

Microsoft presents the “Microsoft BlogStars” contest – hunt for the best developer bloggers in India.

Create greater impact in the vibrant developer blogger community, showcase your thoughts and experiences around Microsoft technologies and technology in general.

Register for the contest, start BLOGGING! and be the first ever Microsoft Blogstars!

Tags : microsoft, india, developer,tech,

India a Food Donor, really?

2006-09-19T10:27:00.000-07:00

Dr. Bhaskar Dasgupta makes an interesting point in his article.

He explains why India inspite of having problems such as malnutrition and starvation in it's own country has gone from a net recipient to a net donor in the United Nations World Food Programme (WFP). While we make enough to feed everyone, we do not have good systems in place to make sure it reaches everyone.

Dweep Chanana makes the argument that this is not aid for itself but by participating at world level India is trying to gain certain secondary benefits such as leverage in strategic places.

At the end of the day whatever the reasons be it is still a sad day when people die of malnutrition and starvation in a country which is going through an economic boom.

Tags : India, food programme

Failure to Launch : Review

2006-09-18T16:07:00.001-07:00

Saw the movie Failure to Launch, and as if the title of the film was a self fulfilling prophesy, it failed to launch.
I looks like the makers of the film tried to ride on the success of How to Lose a Guy in 10 days. But sadly Sarah Jessica Parker from Sex and the City, is no Kate Hudson. In fact she looks too old for Matt. And there is absolutely no chemistry between the two. Matt himself should stop trying to look shabby while he is still a marketable romantic comedy star.

The film does have much of a story. In this day & age, Matt who is not your typical loser guy still stays at home and his parents hatch a plot of get him to move out. They enlist the services of someone to 'intervene' for them. Could not figure out why the macho father (since they picked a real life football famer) could not have a man to man talk with this son.

The only things worth watching are some shots of dolphins which were really done nicely. At the end of movie all I could think of was that I would love to own a boat. May be it could serve as a commercial for the Boating industry.

Tags : movie review, hollywood

A myspace page for God

2006-09-18T09:03:00.000-07:00

Shrinking congregations in churches have prompted novel publicity trends in a bid to boost numbers.

An image of Jesus is to appear in pint glasses in commercials this Christmas as part of a campaign to encourage young people back to the Church.

Francis Goodwin, the chairman of CAN, said he hoped the “Jesus in your pint” poster campaign (link) would prompt a debate about God, alongside a series of radio adverts in which young people talk about their spiritual beliefs. It will use the social networking site Myspace to encourage discussion.
He said: “The message is subtle but simple - where is God in all the boozing at Christmas?
“For many, Christmas is just drinking and partying and God is excluded, yet many young people are interested in finding deeper meaning and exploring faith.
“We hope the link to Myspace will offer another venue for them to discuss their feelings and debate the issues.”
The CAN has previously been attacked by traditionalists for its radical approach to publicity.

Link from the Telegraph

Tags : christianity, religion, myspace

How to avoid or delay the onset of Diabetes

2006-09-15T07:16:00.000-07:00

The NYTimes has an article on how Diabetes is spreading at an alarming rate in India. (via)

India and China are already home to more diabetics than any other country. Prevalence among adults in India is estimated about 6 percent, two-thirds of that in the United States, but the illness is traveling faster, particularly in the country’s large cities.

Throughout the world, Type 2 diabetes, once predominantly a disease of the old, has been striking younger people. But because Indians have such a pronounced genetic vulnerability to the disease, they tend to contract it 10 years earlier than people in developed countries. It is because India is so youthful — half the population is under 25 — that the future of diabetes here is so chilling.

The conventional way to see India is to inspect the want — the want for food, the want for money, the want for life. The 300 million who struggle below the poverty line. The debt-crippled farmers who kill themselves. The millions of children with too little to eat.

But there is another way to see it: through its newfound excesses and expanding middle and upper classes. In a changing India, it seems to go this way: make good money and get cars, get houses, get servants, get meals out, get diabetes.

In perverse fashion, obesity and diabetes stand almost as joint totems of success.

So why is this so important. This is because uncontrolled diabetes is one of the leading causes of kidney failure, limb amputation and new-onset blindness. People with diabetes are also two to four times more likely than those without diabetes to develop heart disease.

Genetics also plays a role, your chances of getting diabetes are about 20 per cent if your mother suffers from it, 14 per cent if your father has it, 75 per cent if a brother or sister has it and 99 per cent if you have a twin with diabetes.

The Hindu has an article on how millions of high-risk people can go for diet, exercise and behaviour modification to avoid developing type 2 diabetes.

Some of the steps include :

- Walking 30 minutes each day, at least five times a week (150 minutes per week)

- A low fat diet with at least five servings of vegetables and fruits per day

- Substituting fruits for sweets

Any more suggestions are welcome.

Tags : health, diabetes, india

10 Brain Damaging Habits

2006-09-14T09:37:00.000-07:00

(A family member sent this to me, thought of sharing it. Can't determine the veracity of this but it's interesting)

No Breakfast :
People who do not have breakfast are going to have a lower blood sugar level.
This leads to an insufficient supply of nutrients to the brain causing brain degeneration.

Overeating :
It causes hardening of the brain arteries, leading to a decrease in mental power.

Smoking :
It causes multiple brain shrinkage and may lead to Alzheimer disease.

High Sugar consumption
Too much sugar will interrupt the absorption of proteins and nutrients causing malnutrition and may interfere with brain development.

Air Pollution
The brain is the largest oxygen consumer in our body. Inhaling polluted air decreases the supply of oxygen to the brain, bringing about a decrease in brain efficiency.

Sleep Deprivation
Sleep allows our brain to rest. Long term deprivation from sleep will accelerate the death of brain cells.

Head covered while sleeping
Sleeping with the head covered, increases the concentration of carbon dioxide and decrease concentration of oxygen that may lead to brain damaging effects.

Working your brain during illness
Working hard or studying with sickness may lead to a decrease in effectiveness of the brain as well as damage the brain.

Lacking in stimulating thoughts
Thinking is the best way to train our brain, lacking in brain stimulation thoughts may cause brain shrinkage.

Talking Rarely
Intellectual conversations will promote the efficiency of the brain

Tags : health, brain , life

Commercials doublespeak

2006-09-13T10:30:00.000-07:00

Rashmi comments on commercials becoming increasingly risque in India resorting to attention grabbing tactics.

Is that a pen in your pocket mister? Or are you .. just happy to see me ??... Lexi pens, now, in every paacket in your city

This ad for Lexi pens (listen to it here) plays day in and day out on the radio and I am not sure what to make of it. I mean it's silly enough to pass off as humour and yet.. in a country where colleges are banning jeans because :

a) it ensures discipline
b) low waist jeans and short tops represent a threat to collective morality

It shouldn't be long, before 'pens in pockets' get the axe ...

As we have seen from the World's Funniest Commercials advertisers will do anything to make their ads stand out.
The logic is if nothing the people will remember the ad and the brand associated with it.Often at times the ads are so far fetched, it is tough to determine what product they are marketing.

So will we have more of these kind of commercials (link) or will the so called "censors/moral police" step in and decide what can be heard on radio and seen on tv ?

Tags : ad relevance, advertising

The story of Sarathbabu

2006-09-12T10:01:00.000-07:00

A friend of mine sent this very inspiring story.

When 27-year old Sarathbabu graduated from the Indian Institute of Management, Ahmedabad, he created quite a stir by refusing a job that offered him a huge salary. He preferred to start his own enterprise -- Foodking Catering Service -- in Ahmedabad

Here is his inspiring rags-to-riches story from rediff.

Tags : MBA, entrepreneur, rags-to-riches

9/11 anniversary

2006-09-11T21:03:00.000-07:00

Someone said that everyone remembers vividly where they were on this particular day. I know I do and am sure you do too.

At this point, the words of Alan Jackson song "Where were you when the world stopped turning that September day" (lyrics) ring in my head.

They say a picture is worth a thousand words.

Here are some pics courtesy msnbc.com :Link

Tags : life, tragedy, terror

Top 99 Undiscovered Websites

2006-09-11T10:09:00.000-07:00

PC Mag has released its list of top 101 websites. Among it's usual rated websites it has also created a list of underdog websites that are in the reckoning but have not hit the big time yet. These are the 99 undiscovered websites. A lot of sites based on Google feature in them such as Gmail Tips, Google Maps Mania etc.

Among the list of future classic websites ofcourse figure names such as Digg, Delicious, Myspace, YouTube which is no surprise to anyone.

Here is the link

If you love these and want to hold on to them, they have created downloadable favorite installers. Happy surfing.

Tags : websites, tech, pcmag

Profound Paradigm Shift

2006-09-10T18:37:00.000-07:00

A family member of mine sent this to me. It is really interesting

************************************************************

Imagine you're in London 's Heathrow Airport . While you're waiting for Your flight, you notice a kiosk selling shortbread cookies. You buy a box, Put them in your travelling bag and then you patiently search for an Available seat so you can sit down and enjoy your cookies. Finally you find a Seat next to a gentleman. You reach down into your travelling bag and pull Out your box of shortbread cookies. As you do so, you notice that the Gentleman starts watching you intensely.

* *

He stares as you open the box and his eyes follow your hand as you pick Up the cookie and bring it to your mouth. Just then he reaches over and Takes one of your cookies from the box, and eats it! You're more than a Little surprised at this. Actually, you're at a loss for words. Not only does He take one cookie, but he alternates with you. For every one cookie you take, he takes one.

* *

Now, what's your immediate impression of this guy? Crazy? Greedy? He's Got some nerve! Can you imagine the words you might use to describe this Man To your associates back at the office? Meanwhile, you both continue eating The cookies until there's just one left. To your surprise, the man reaches Over and takes it. But then he does something unexpected. He breaks it in half, and gives half to you. After he's finished with his half he gets up, And without a word, he leaves.*

* *

You think to yourself, "Did this really happen?" You're left sitting There

dumbfounded and still hungry. So you go back to the kiosk and buy Another box of cookies. You then return to your seat and begin opening your new Box of cookies when suddenly you glance down into your travelling bag.

Sitting there in your bag is your original box of cookies.........still unopened.

* *

Only then do you realize that when you reached down earlier, you had Reached into the other man's bag, and grabbed his box of cookies by mistake. Now what do you think of the man? Generous? Tolerant? You've just Experienced a profound paradigm shift. You're seeing things from a new point of view.*

* *

Is it time to change your point of view?*

* *

Now, think of this story as it relates to your life. Seeing things from A new point of view can be very enlightening.

* *

Think outside the box.

* *

Don't settle for the status quo.

* *

Be open to suggestions.

* *

Things may not be what they seem.

* *

Unless and until, one realizes about the fact, no one will change his Or her view of thinking in spite of lot of external factors.

* *

Every Point has THREE Sides; you're Side, My Side and The Right Side

Tags : self improvement, self development, paradigm shift

Ahista Ahista is really slow slow

2006-09-09T21:14:00.000-07:00

Watched the movie for the sake of Abhay Deol who did good in his opening venture and Soha who was not bad in Rang De Basanti but I was seriously disappointed.

I think the director tried to get himself an award under the Parallel Cinema Category. If you like the hero as a loser go watch Sadma where Kamal Hasaan takes care of a Sridevi who has suffered a memory loss. When she comes to her senses, she does not remember him at all.
Moral of the story, if you want to help out a girl, make sure she is in her proper senses :)

Tags : tragedy, hindi films

And now the Googleplex video

2006-09-08T22:17:00.000-07:00

After posting the photo essay about life at the googleplex, I found a video that talks about working for google.

Did you know that google employees are allowed to spend 20% of their time working on their own projects? And the common thread amongst all those interviewed is how fast their ideas were translated into live projects. I guess that is why google is where it is today.

Check it out.

Update : Google videos has an entire page devoted to the Googleplex, check it here.

Tags : googleplex, work life, job satisfaction

A Wiki for Maps

2006-09-08T12:30:00.000-07:00

After my post on wikis, I came across this wiki for maps www.wikimapia.org

WikiMapia is an online map resource that combines Google Maps with a wiki system, allowing users to add information (in the form of a note) to any location on the globe. Created by Alexandre Koriakine and Evgeniy Saveliev, the project was launched on May 24, 2006 and is aiming towards "describing the whole planet Earth".

Below is the snap shot of Mumbai with Airport highlighted, find your local city and tag it.

Tags : wiki, maps, google maps, reference

Working at Googleplex

2006-09-07T06:50:00.000-07:00

My brother sent this to me. It's a Time Photo Essay on Google.

The Googleplex is the Google company headquarters, located in Mountain View, Santa Clara County, California, near San Jose.

Googleplex is a play on words, googolplex being the name given to 10googol (a one followed by a googol zeros). It is also a portmanteau of Google and complex — in the architectural sense.

From the photo essay it seems that the employees are well looked after. It sure does look like a cool place to work at.

Tags : googleplex, work life, job satisfaction

DESERVE BEFORE YOU DESIRE

2006-09-06T11:12:00.000-07:00

A very interesting article forwarded by my friend. This is written by
Dr. Gopalakrishnan, executive director of Tata Sons Ltd.,the holding company for many of the Tata blue chips like Tata Steel, TataMotors, Tata Power, Tata Chemicals, Voltas etc.

"DESERVE BEFORE YOU DESIRE"

The grass isn't always greener on the other side!! Move from one job to another, but only for the right reasons. It's yet another day at office. As I logged on to the marketing and advertising sites for the latest updates,as usual, I found the headlines dominated by "who's" moving from one company to another after a short stint, and I wondered, why are so many people leaving one job for another? Is it passé now to work with just one company for a sufficiently long period? Whenever I ask this question to people who leave a company, the answers I get are: "Oh, I am getting a 200% hike in salary"; "Well I am jumping three levels in my designation"; "Well they are going to send me abroad in six months".

Then, I look around at all the people who are considered successful today and who have reached the top - be it a media agency, an advertising agency or a company. I find that most of these people are the ones who stuck to the company, ground their heels and worked their way to the top. And, as I look around for people who change their jobs constantly, I find they have stagnated at some level, in obscurity. In this absolute ruthless, dynamic and competitive environment, there are still no - short cuts to success or to making money. The only thing that continues to pay, as earlier is loyalty and hard work. Yes, it pays! Sometimes, immediately, sometimes after a lot of time. But, it does pay. Does this mean that one should stick to an
organization and wait for the golden moment? Of course not. After, a long stint, there always comes a time for moving in most organisations, but it is important to move for the right reasons, rather than the superficial ones, like money, designation or oversees trip. Remember, no company recruits for charity. More often than not, when you are offered an unseemly hike in salary or designation that is disproportionate to what the company offers it current employees, there is always an unseemly bait attached. The result? You will, in the long term have reached the same level or may be lower levels than what you would have in your current company.

A lot of people leave their organisations because they are "unhappy". What is this so called unhappiness? I have been working for donkey years and there has never been a day when I am not unhappy about something in my work environment - boss, rude colleagues, fussy clients etc. Unhappiness in a work place, to a large extent, is transient. If you look hard enough, there is always something to be unhappy about. But, more importantly, do I come to work to be "happy" in the truest sense? If I think hard, the answer is "No". Happiness is something you find with family, friends, may be a close circle of colleagues who have become friends.

What you come to work for is to earn, build a reputation, satisfy your ambitions, be appreciated for your work ethics, face challenges and get the job done. So, the next time you are tempered to move on, ask yourself why are you moving and what are you moving into?
Some questions are:

Am I ready and capable of handling the new responsibility? If yes, what could be the possible reasons my current company has not offered me the same responsibility?
Who are the people who currently handle this responsibility in the current and new company? Am I good as the best among them?
As the new job offer has a different profile, why have I not given the current company the option to offer me this profile?
Why is the new company offering the new job? Do they want me for my skills, or is that ulterior motive? An honest answer to these will eventually decide where you go in your career to the top of the pile in the long term (at the cost of short - term blips) or to become another average employee who gets lost with the time in wilderness?

- Dr. Gopalakrishnan,

Tags : self improvement, career advice, job

Lage Raho Munna Bhai - Two Thumbs Up!!

2006-09-05T09:59:00.000-07:00

Munna & Circuit are back and in full form I must say. I had my doubts whether the sequel would be as a good so had to see it for myself and guess what I was pleasantly surprised.

Circuit (Arshad Warsi) & Munna Bhai( Sanjay Dutt) have not only recreated the magic but have taken it a few notches higher. The chemistry between the two is absolutely fabulous and Circuit's one liners are simply hilarious. It's not what he says but the way he says it, his timing is impeccable. Warsi is today I guess India' best actor in a comic role (not just comedian because he is more than just that) and given the right script there is no end to his range. Sadly the actor has not got his due but I am sure this will open more doors for him. Sanju Baba has not let us down either, he has perfected the art of playing a Don and he does it to a T. Viday Balan looks fresh. Vidhu Vinod Chopra has a tradition for introducing new faces but they tend to not go anywhere, hopefully Vidya has reversed the trend. And who can forget Boman Irani who plays a sardar without overdoing the bale bale cliche you see so often and you keep reminding your self, this is not a sardar it's Boman silly.

I think Raju Hirani has successfully created a cult like fan following. And as my brother commented he could even make a trilogy and get away with it. I have never laughed so hard for a long time at jokes in a Hindi film(which tend to be contrived, double entendres- kadar khan variety or slap stick)

Three cheers for genuine comedy in Hindi cinema!!!!

Tags : comedy, hindi films, munna bhai

A pink slip in your Inbox

2006-08-31T11:36:00.000-07:00

I'm sure someone has forwarded you this funny pic sometime, but it's not funny if you actually get laid off that way.
Some unfortunate employees of Radio Shack got this in their email :

"The work force reduction notification is currently in progress," read an e-mail delivered Tuesday morning. "Unfortunately, your position is one that has been eliminated."

Steven suggests that since you do everything online from finding jobs, applying for them, working from home on the internet, so why does your Boss have to see you to fire you.

But even if that's the way things are going, how callous can a company be, do you think people will be ready to work for companies like Radio Shack once they know how they treat their employees?

Tags : email, internet, layoff, corporate culture

Indian survivor

2006-08-31T07:14:00.000-07:00

The new season of Survivor has drawn criticism because the contestants on it will be divided based on ethinicity. That means blacks, whites, Latinos and Asians in separate groups.

Shakes feels based on stereotypes it is better that there is no Indian group.
Do you agree / disagree with these reasons :

There would be no fire in the Indian camp for 4 weeks. No one on the Indian team would take the initiative and their would be massive infighting over the "Fire-Making Scheme." Finally a fire will be inadvertantly started when one ofthe trendy young males uses his Parachute brand coconut hair oil as fuel.
No one would build a shelter. Instead everyone would scurry off to their own corner of the camp.
While the other tribes would initially use local island coconuts to provide sustenance in the early days, the Indian tribe would destroy all their coconuts while doing a puja
If Deepak Chopra were on the show he would be on the White team
One of the Indian members would start a protest for an undiscernible reason and proceed to fast for 20 days. This would be his excuse for not having to do work.
One of the female desis would find a way to smuggle her cellphone on the island, only to see that it doesn't get any reception.
One of male characters, "Anand," would only wear very large white reebok shoes and a dhoti
While trying to pick a tribe leader, several members of the team would choose an Italian woman from the White team.
The Indian team would never win a challenge. Never.
The Indian team would be the only one that would ask the host if it's possible to vote off more than one of their members at a time
After the 3rd day the desi camp would be mysteriously littered with paan stains (via)

Tags : television, India, culture, survivor

Do you need an orkut invite?

2006-08-29T10:18:00.000-07:00

Recently completed one of my tasks on 43things which was to get an orkut invitation.

Orkut is an online community like Friendster and Myspace. What makes it popular is that it is backed by Google. To login you need to have a google account. And like Gmail it is an invitation only group, which means you need to be invited my another member.

That I guess is how you make a membership coveted. When Gmail first came out, it was a cool thing to have a Gmail account because you could not just sign up for it, someone had to invite you.

While there are orkut members out there who will sell an invite
I would gladly give out invites free.

All you need to do is leave some feedback about this blog along with your name(first & last) & email address.

Folks looking for gmail invites are welcome too.

Tags : orkut, internet, online community

Do you digg this?

2006-08-28T10:36:00.000-07:00

Business Week profiles Kevin Rose, the founder of Digg and others in the brat pack of valley startups who are almost as famous as rockstars if not more.

Two years earlier, Rose had gambled on his idea to change newsgathering, letting the masses "dig up" the most interesting stories on the Web and vote them onto his online "front page" on Digg.com. Rose had given every last piece of himself to the project -- all his time, all his cash, and even his girlfriend, who fought with him after he poured his savings into Digg instead of a downpayment on a house. Today, Digg, Version 3, the one that would go beyond tech news to include politics, gossip, business, and videos, was going live. At 29, Rose was on his way either to a cool $60 million or to total failure.

Tags : digg, free videos, web, internet

Change your vocation while taking a vacation

2006-08-24T20:24:00.000-07:00

Yeah that's right. Imagine if you could test drive a new career, while keeping your present job, how cool would that be?

Many of us at some point in our lives have wondered what life would be if we had a different job heck if we had a different career. Well you could do that while taking a vacation. And there is a whole list of professions you could try.

Check out www.vocationvacations.com

Tags : vacation, career, life

Worlds Funniest Ads

2006-08-23T20:19:00.000-07:00

TBS tonight featured some of the worlds funniest ads. They ranged from condom commercials, mexican food, sports clubs to beer ads and then there were ads that you did not know what was the product being sold until the very last second. Some of them were suggestively adult so viewer discretion advised.

For more on that check out veryfunnyads.com

Tags : television, advertising, funny, tbs, humor

6 steps to stay private while you search

2006-08-21T09:56:00.000-07:00

After my post on the AOL debacle, EFF has some steps to keep your search history private.

Don't put personally-identifying information in your searches, little keywords to leave an entire trail to you.
Don't use a search engine operated by your ISP, that way you do not end up as AOL searcher no xyz (example)
Don't log in to a search engine account such as GMail or Yahoo while searching
Don't accept cookies from your search engine
Use a separate browser or browser profile for search and for other activities.
Use an anonymizing proxy, or proxy network like Tor, to prevent search engines from learning your IP address

If you are an AOL user spread the word.

Tags : search, internet, AOL, privacy