Friday, December 30, 2005

Sudoku:200 & still loving it

It has been exactly 200 days, since i began solving Sudoku puzzles. It all began when Times Of India, Bangalore Edition started publishing it daily. The puzzle is logic-based placement of numbers beginging from 1 to 9 in a 3x3 grid, which belongs to a super-grid of 9x9. All the Sudoku puzzles have only one soultion. The feature & also the distinction between Crosswords & Sudoku is tha fact that in Crosswords you need to get your English Vocabulary right; even if you are well versed with it sometimes its tough to crack the word. But, with Sudoku its just plain numbers from 1 to 9, where you use your logic than memory to place the numbers.

These days I am very much addictive to Sudoku & need to get my daily dose of Sudoku;)

Wednesday, December 28, 2005

Terror Strikes Bangalore

The Terrorist(s) have struck Silicony Valley of East a.k.a Bangalore. Around 18:45 local time they struck @ Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore which is one of the Premier Science & Technological Institues.

According to the accounts given by the security guards posted @ IISc, "Some unidentified people drove a white Ambassador car into the premises of the JN Tata auditorium in the IISc campus and started firing with AK-47 rifles". As of now the attack has claimed one life, that of Prof Puri who is from IIT-Delhi and other four of them seriously injuired, who are currently being treated. I feel sorry for the death of Prof Puri & other delegates who are injuired in this attack. All these harmless people were attending an international conference at the auditorium, what crime have they done?

What makes me really furious is despite the alert from Delhi Police two days back, how could there be such a serious lapse in the security. Everyone in the country knew about the threat posed to the IT companies located in Bangalore & Hyderabad.

In the recent past, the Indian Economy has been one of the Vibrant Economies in the World and our Neighbhour (I guess you know whom i am refering to, incase u never figured it out, let me give u a clue:they exists towards the North-West of India; If u still couldn't figure it out then use a GoogleMap) can't stand that. I feel behind this incident & the Delhi Blasts their main motive is to create panic among the investors who are bringing in the FDI [Forgien Direct Investment]. It's a known fact that Bangalore gets a major stake of those investments; Not to forget the fact that many Heads of the State visit Bangalore first before visiting Delhi. Now you know why Banaglore is on the Radars of the Terrorits, because it gets a lot attention & investments. This is a very well planned motive by all the Terrorist Organizations and those who are directly or indirectly supporting them, to disrupt the Indian Economy & prevent us from growing.

If I can connect so many dots, what on Earth are our Politicans doing about it, despite the good job done by our Intelligence & Police Agencies? I am so pissed with our Politicans these days, I have few KIND words for them.

I have completely lost hope with the politicians [from all the parties, ruling, oppostion & including some 1 man parties] ruling this State & the Country, instead of focussing on their respective duties like providing good governance, safe guarding businesses, creating good infrastructre, protecting the citizens,etc; All their concerns revolve around their political future & bickerings. It shameful to say this being an Indian, we have the most eduated & qualified persons occuping the position of the President & the Prime Minister, unfortunately they never have the free-hand in taking any hard actions against our Neighbhour who are supporting such Terror Attacks against India.

I guess untill we loose some of the politicians themselves in any of the Terror attacks, these bunch of MoFos will never care about the lives of common man. Its only during the elections these F*****g B@$t@rD$ come out and beg for votes. Once they are elected, they don't care about governance nor do they give a ear to the problems nor do they listen to what people like Narayan Murthy have to say, all they do is criticise him so badly that he resigns. Atleast now I hope these Morons [politicians] have learn't their lessons the hard way & try to act better the next time.

For all those who are testing our Patience through such cowardly acts, i have few words for u too. We are a peace loving nation & we have given peace a lot many chances, but sometimes our peace & silence is taken for granted. We don't wage proxy wars against anyone, in case we wage a WAR we shall teach such a lesson that you would never remain on this planet.

P.S:I am Xtremely sorry for the language used in this post, these thoughts have been inside me for a long time, i had to get them out of my system.

Incredible Bangalore

Both these images where snapped few months ago.


This road sign near Gandhi Bazaar, Bangalore from our own BTP (Bangalore Traffic Police). Looks like they have been inspired from the movie 'The Matrix'.



A coconut tree in the middle of the road? Yes, you could see this near R.T.Nagar.

Monday, December 19, 2005

Review: StrawBerry Fields, Bangalore


The finals @ StrawBerry Fields, Bangalore:
  • Inviktus, Bangalore
  • Demonic Resurrection, Mumbai
  • Panatella, Chennai
  • Junkyard Groove, Chennai
  • Morrison Avenue, Chennai
These were the 5 bands who made their way into the finals of StrawBerry Fields yesterday. The evening started off with some good music & original compositions from Junkyard Groove & Panatella. The Bassist from Panatella was really rocking. After them, Demonic Resurrection, Morrison Avenue & Inviktus played only Thrash music [for those who wish to classify them under genre Heavy Metal could do so]. Even though Demonic Resurrection & Inviktus had some Guitar Riffs, they didn't stand upto the performace of the Lead Guitarist of Pantella who played some good covers of Jimmy Hendrix & The Beatles.

After the finals, the Mumbai Heavy Metal band Pin Drop Violence played some more Heavy stuff. I first heard about them on Channel [V] LaunchPad, which happened to be the first ever reality TV rock band competition in India. They also happen to win that competition. Even though I was listening to their compositions for the very first time & they sound very much like Sepulutra.

Finally, the results for were announced, Junkyard Groove won the NLS Strawberry Fields competition while Demonic Resurrection took the second place.

Friday, December 16, 2005

Strawberry Fields, Bangalore

Don't search for Strawberry Fields around Bangalore, you will never find one;)

Strawberry Fields, the Rock Show of the National Law School of India University, Bangalore. If u like Rock mu$ic and ready to listen to some of the upcoming Indian Bands from various parts of country, then u better be @ Palace Grounds on Dec 16, 17 & 18. 16th & 17th of Dec are the prelims & 18th would be the finals.

For more info visit: Official site | Gigpad [Participating Bands] | Photos


Thursday, December 08, 2005

Workaholiks: Are they really 'Creative' & 'Professional'?

Advertising is a very challenging field, sky is the limit for harnessing the creativity of any artist [photographer, creative director, copywriter or anyone] who works in the Ad world. But, looks like *Workaholiks* ran out of creativity & hit Google Images for some photographs while doing a portfolio for their client. Maybe *Workaholiks* forgot that reproducing any images/pictures/article/any entity for any commercial gain is Unethical & leads to Infringement or Copyright Infringement.

Here is what happened with Suyog a hobby photographer & blogger. I guess technology helps in Convergence & eXchange of ideas, thoughts and also as Kousik says 'It really feels good when a wide audience appreciates your hard work, skill and patience’. It’s also true to the fact that any resource/data on the World Wide Web is never really secure, by saying that I don’t mean to agree with what *Workaholiks* have done. It all boils down to the individual or the company how they use the technology and the resources available, by giving the due 'credits' to the owners & also being professional.

Tuesday, December 06, 2005

Parikrama: SuperHero

Indian Rock Band Parikrama will be performing this weekend in Bangalore @ two different places. First they will be jamming with YELL-O @ Opus on 8th Dec & on 9th they would be presenting their track called "SuperHero" for all the programmers & the Chairman and Chief Architect of Microsoft Bill Gates, yes u read it correctly MICROSOFT.

This is the first time an Indian Rock Band has the composed song for one of the world's biggest software vendor, something that would make me say "Hello world...India's Rocking !!!".

The song is called "SuperHero" which revolves around the day-2-day life of an Indian IT Developer. You can download the song here & lyrics can be got here. You can also visit the officical website of Parikrama to know more about the band & listen to their songs here.

Thursday, December 01, 2005

World AIDS Day


" Disease can waste the body but it cannot wither the spirit,
it can corrode cells but it cannot kill courage .
They say 'Fortune favours the brave' ,
but it is fortitude that makes one brave. "


P.S: Support people who are suffering from AIDS and try to create awarness among others.

Picture Courtesy: QUAC

Wednesday, November 30, 2005

Lesson learnt

How many of us have heard this Idiom "Early bird catches the worm", i guess most of us have heard it @ some point of time. My dad has told this a thousand times, but never took it too seriously, yesterday i realized the true meaning of the Idiom.

What did i realize?

"If you start something early, you stand a better chance of success" this can be applied to any situation of your life. So, you better make the right calls @ the right times, because finally its you who has to face the situations presented by life.

Friday, November 25, 2005

Bangalore Buzz

BangaloreBuzz is a blog which tracks the city's sights, sounds & growth pangs. Its quite unique because it aggregates news content related to Bangalore from several sources. So, anyone who wants to know the latest about Bangalore can just click here.

Thursday, November 24, 2005

Wednesday, November 23, 2005

Update: Akshardham













Click here to see the previous set of photographs.

Photograph Courtsey: BAPS.

Tuesday, November 22, 2005

Quote of the Week

"The more efficient a force is, the more silent and the more subtle it is."
-- Mahatma Gandhi

Tuesday, November 15, 2005

Bangalore Pot Holes

Bangalore is known for its gardens, lakes, pubs and ofcourse not to forget the IT companies, but we also are known for the Pot Holes. So, now there is a website for the same called BangalorePotHole which provides info on the origins of pot hole, their cause, dangers of pot holes, how to locate a pothole and whom to report. The website also has the latest pot hole pictures from Bangalore, on how to report a pot hole & also pot holes across the world.

Source & Logo: BangalorePotHole.

Thursday, November 10, 2005

Delhi: Monument of Akshardham







The Akshardham monument, built without steel, is entirely composed of sandstone and marble. It consists of 234 ornately carved pillars, 9 ornate domes, 20 quadrangled shikhars, a spectacular Gajendra Pith (plinth of stone elephants) and 20,000 murtis and statues of India’s great sadhus, devotees, acharyas and divine personalities.

The monument is a fusion of several architectural styles of pink stone and pure white marble. Pink stone symbolizes bhakti (devotion) in eternal bloom and white marble of absolute purity and eternal peace. The monument was built after over 300 million man hours of services rendered by 11,000 volunteers, sadhus and artisans.

It is the one of the wonders of the modern world, and the wonders of modern India.


Photograph Courtsey: BAPS | A monument to India | Monumental Hindu temple


The National Portal of India

The Government of India has finally come with a Portal for the entire Nation and offers lot of services. I see this as a step in right direction for enabling IT(Information Technology) in most the sectors and provide services to all the citizens.

The Vision for E-Governence looks impressive and there are several Online services like Income Tax | Passport/VISA | Company Affairs | Central Excise | Pensions | Land Records | Road Transport |Property Registration | Agriculture | Municipalities | Gram Panchayats (Rural) | Police | Employment Exchange |E-Courts which are already available.

India is definitely Shining.

Did You Know

Bangalore: According to the Lake Development Authority, there were 262 lakes in 1961 in Bangalore's green belt. Unfortunately, only 81 lakes are alive.

Dubai: No personal income tax is deducted from wages and salaries paid to employees or on other income earned in Dubai, which also apply to the resident employees of offshore entities. Don't believe me? then check this.

Current Playlist

Want any of them, you know wat to do;)

Wednesday, November 09, 2005

Google & Gmail are down

Looks like both Google & GMail are down, is anyone else facing the same problem too?

Technorati: | |

Monday, October 31, 2005

Festival of Lights


"May this Deepavali birghten up our world & a safer place to live. Wishing everyone a safe & prosperous Deepavali."


Technorati:

You can never hide from Google

In the future you can no longer keep your virtual avatar private. Well after reading this post, it made me think twice on what i should be posting on my blogs. Even though i take all the responsibility for what i write, there are so many people in the virtual world who use *Search Engines* for various different reasons. You never know what kind of information would be returned when someone runs a search on a you & how they interpret that information.



Technorati: |

Thursday, October 27, 2005

Quote of the Week

"Honest disagreement is often a good sign of progress."
--Mahatma Gandhi

Wednesday, October 26, 2005

Power of Blogging

How are blogs becoming powerful? How are they effecting the day to day activites in our lives? This is the typical example of that, what was just a post by Gaurav on IIPM, took a different direction altogther & became a bigger subject. There after lot of events took place between Gaurav, IIPM, & IBM.

I am not going to repeat myself on the whole IIPM stuff, I feel the Ponytail & his institute have got enough publicity from many of them. Many of us were not even aware of the article on IIPM which appeared in June 2005 of JAMMag. If not for the blogs of Rashmi, Gaurav, Varna, Amit Verma, Desi Pundit, Neha Viswanathan & many others from the Indian Blogosphere I nor the rest of the world would have known the lesser facts about IIPM.


Well I spent a lot of time trying to figure out what this all about, so let me give u a list of posts that makes good read & have covered a lot of stuff from the beginning.

From the Bloggers

Rashmi's Blog | Gaurav's Blog | Update from Gaurav | Desi Pundit – Lies Damned Lies |

After reading all this, what i don't understand is why hasn't majority of India media reported it. One thing is for sure "Truth may lie silent, but it never dies". It also reminds me of what Gaurav has written at the end of this post,"Remember, truth never hurts those who are right."

Thanks to blogging, things aren't that way any more.



Technorati: |

Why are westerners fascinated with elephants?

There are few incidents which I have heard in the recent past, which has made me think "Why are westerners fascinated with elephants?"

Many firangs keep visiting ThoughtWorks, Bangalore for various reasons all round the year. Few of my pals also happen to work there; here is what they have observed. Most of them are really fascinated to see an Elephant when they see an elephant. Guess what is most sought after thing they carry with them while they are returning home? Wooden Elephants!

In the recent past, my company has introduced LesConcierges services. Few days ago we had this PR guy from LesConcierges to tell us about his comapny & the services they are offer. He says his company provides any service which is legal under the law. To boast about his company’s service, he gave a recent scenario, where the client (an IT company) had made a request for Elephant. Now, why did the IT Company make a request for an Elephant? The visiting CEO can be taken for an elephant ride around their campus.

On a lighter note, Small Squirrel was expecting an elephant as her Christmas gift during her childhood.;)

So, I am still figuring out why are westerners fascinated with elephants?

Wednesday, October 19, 2005

Five reasons why nice guys finish last at work

This is a must read. The article is based on the recent study published in the Journal of Occupational and Organizational Psychology says yes. Dr. Nikos Bozionelos of the University of Sheffield in England researched personality and career success and found that white-collar workers who were the most agreeable, conscientious and sensitive to the needs of others were less likely to be promoted.


Source: Netscape.

Tuesday, October 11, 2005

Countdown to Xtinction

Countdown to eXtinction from Megadeth is the only song how i can relate to at this moment, great song.

" Endangered species, caged in fright,
Shot in cold blood, no chance to fight.
The stage is set, now pay the price.
An ego boost, don’t think twice.
Technology, the battle’s unfair,
You pull the hammer without a care.
Squeeze the trigger that makes you man,
Pseudo-safari, the hunt is canned...
The hunt is canned.

/chorus/
All are gone, all but one.
No contest, nowhere to run.
No more left, only one.
This is it, this is the countdown to extinction.

Tell the truth, you wouldn’t dare.
The skin and trophy, oh so rare.
Silence speaks louder than words.
Ignore the guilt, and take your turn.
Liars anagram is ’lairs,’
Man you were never even there.
Killed a few feet from the cages,
Point blank, you’re so courageous...
So courageous.

/chorus/

One hour from now,
Another species of life form
Will disappear off the face of the planet
Forever...and the rate is accelerating. "



Thursday, October 06, 2005

Advertisements

Today i came across 2 advertisements, one is very creative and the other is very political. Few weeks ago, i was watching a programme on NDTV, where they were debating over a controversial pepper spray commerical. Basically, the Ad was a print campaign & featured in a national daily, which said: "Tomorrow if your daughter is raped, who is to be blamed? The rapist or you?". To know what happened to that advertisement, click here.

Do u feel advertisements should be regulated?

|

Quote of the Week

"The weak can never forgive. Forgiveness is the attribute of the strong"
-Mahatma Gandhi

Friday, September 30, 2005

Fernando Alonso - 2005 F1 Champ



Alonso has finally won 2005 Formula 1 Championship @ the Brazilian GP. Even though i am great fan of Michael Schumacher & the Ferrari team, but this season Alonso & the Renault Team have done a great job together, they surely deserve 2005 championship.

The article from Planet-F1 says that Alonso isn't the best driver. The article also states "...Fernando is a good driver and he has a bright future, but he was gifted the title. Not by Kimi, but by Ron Dennis and his seemingly less than competent grease monkeys." I feel Ron Dennis did the right job, by having healthy competition among the team-mates Montoya & Kimi. I don't care what this article says, Alonso is one of the best drivers in F1 currently.


Monday, September 26, 2005

Blogging: Right | Wrong ?

Off late i have come across articles on how 'Blogs can help boost a career or sink it'and also heard incidemts on 'How blogging has played a role @ their workplace' from few fellow bloggers. My opinion on Blogging - It's all about letting the world know about your thoughts/opinions on any *subject*. Since it is available freely & published on open medium, I feel the blogger should take responsibility for all the content posted on their blogs. What i am unable to understand is why many individuals/companies are making an issue out of Blogging.

Here are few of the articles which i am talking about Blogs can help boost a career or sink it | Blogs Get People Excited | Blogging guidelines issued to dissidents.


Only today did i come to know that there exists an Organization called "Civiblog" which is an international initiative aimed at broadening the discourse of global issues. Civiblog is a world leader in giving a voice to all those involved and interested in global civil society issues. Civiblog also has a Committe named 'Committee to Protect Bloggers'. Another Organization called "Reporters sans frontières" translated to English it means "Reporters Without Borders" who are devoted to press freedom.

Source: Yahoo | Sys-CON Media | PCPro | Civiblog | Reporters sans frontières

|

Friday, September 16, 2005

Yahoo! is Amazing

Who ever has been using Yahoo mail for a long time, will notice the changes at the Login page of YahooMail. The Login page apart from the usual fields for catpuring the userID and pwd also displays random images. Today when i hit the YahooMail this is what i got to see, check out the image guys you would like it:).


Wednesday, September 14, 2005

Quote of the week

"Even if you are in a minority of one, the truth is still the truth"
-Mahatma Gandhi

Update on SEPULTURA

For all the *Death Metal* fans out there, here is an update on Sepultura. They are coming up with their new album & are currently recording for the same in their studios. On 23 September they will be performing @ São Paulo along with Slipknot, if u r around that region then don't miss it.


Wanna feel what to expect from their upcoming album? then download this. I feel some of the riffs are similar to that of Metallica's St.Anger, let me know whats u'r opinion after watching it.

For more visit their site Sepulutra.br


Technorati tags:

England win the Ashes 2005

This was the best Ashes series i have ever followed or watched. Really memorable performances from both the teams in all the 5 test matches, and the individual performances from Andrew Flintoff, Kevin Pietersen and Shane Warne who would be remembered for quite sometime.This series has revived my interests for the game, i had basically stopped watching both forms of the game (for the uninitatied they are Tests & One dayers) involving Aussies because of their domination for quite a long time.


For more on Ashes 2005.

Technorati tags:

iPod nano

Tuesday, September 13, 2005

Coincidence

It was just another Sunday afternoon being spent at a friends home. We decided to watch 'Fahrenheit 9/11' and it was purely *coincidence* that we decided to watch it on the 4th Anniversary of 9/11. Kudos to Michael Moore for the time he has spent in collecting all the facts, figures & above all standing up against the federal government. The movie/documentary is an eye-opener on many aspects, How much of investment the Royal family from Saudi Arabia has in many of the US Corporations, Many of these Corporations have/had many members of the Bush family on their board, How so many members of the Bin Laden family were allowed to leave US on 13thSep'01 when the FAA had grounded every commercial jets, and many more.
If u haven't watched 'Fahrenheit 9/11' still, then i feel u need to watch it today. You shouldn't be missing this one either "A Letter to All Who Voted for George W. Bush from Michael Moore".

After reading this piece, this is what i have to say, "You see that there is one thing which India shares with US & that is we have same kind of politicians who really lack the basics in Governance of the State or the Country. One thing is for sure in Democracy, the politicians are getting rich & richer."


Technorati tags:

Monday, September 12, 2005

Good Read

Over the last couple of weeks i did come across these 2 books which is worth reading.

Five Point Someone by Chetan Bhagat. Its a semi-biographical novel by an Ex-IITian, who tells what not to do in IIT. The story mainly revolves around the lives of 3 guys who are destined to meet at IIT, Delhi. You never get bored at any point of time even though it is narrative.










The Monk Who Sold His Ferrai by Robin Sharma. The author walks you through a fable which shows the path for realising your goals. While u are reading this u come across many such incidents which each one of us have encountered at somepoint in LIFE!. I am not sure whether by practising what he tells at every chapter you would achieve something great. But i definitely feel by giving it a shot for 21 days/a month, you have nothing to loose in LIFE!;). I know many of you would have read it, in case u haven't then you should read it.


Technorati tags:

Monday, September 05, 2005

Results are finally out

In the last week of July, me & Rugs gave our MBA-IT exams. These exams were kind of nostalgic in a way, because our friendship goes back to the high school days. The last time we gave our exams together was almost 9 years back and the scenario was something similar if not the same. Doing night outs, combined studies, debate over answers after the exams, you feel like you are back in the yesteryear living the life of a student for at least few days. The only difference this time was that both of us had to take a week off from our jobs and give the exams. Talking about preparations, i guess i had extra time over Rugs because i had to just give for I semester alone and my pal had to give both I and II semesters, as he has chosen lateral entry.

The results are finally out and both of us have cleared our respective semesters. It’s a different experience altogether, I feel all of us should keep our learning curves growing.


Keep learning, keep growing.



Technorati tags:

Friday, September 02, 2005

Aftermath Hurricane Katrina

May be Hurricane Katrina hasn't taken much lives, but the devastation is vast. The New York Times has posted an interactive feature 'Hurricane Katrina The Storm's Impact', you could see the impact, devastation, looting, resuce/floods, which the hurricane has left.

Source: The New York Times.

Thursday, September 01, 2005

The Intent of Intent

I found this interesting blog called *Intent Blog* on Pallavi's post. Today i hit that blog myself and read the thots of 'The Intent of Intent'. Didn't read much posts on the blog though, but you will find lot of thots from a variety of people. Anupam Kher, Deepak Chopra, Nandita Das, Rahul Bose, Rahul Khanna, Shekar Kapur, etc are some of the known names who blog regularly on Intent.

Stay Hungry. Stay Foolish.

I enjoyed reading Steve Jobs address @ Standford University.Click here to read, don't miss it.


Source: Stanford.

Tuesday, August 30, 2005

The Hidden Scourge - The New York Times

This particular article "In Bangalore, India, a Cuddle With Your Baby Requires a Bribe" by Celia W Dugger of The New York Times has done a good job in creating awareness in people on what they think about the Silicon Valley of the East.They have done a good job in bringing this episode into light, at the same time i feel sad about my nation, where people across every section of the society Rich or Poor has to cough up money for things to happen.


I have personally witnessed corruption in many different scenarios & sometimes u have to pay for them, otherwise the work simply gets delayed for silly reasons. Most of the educated living in this city are well aware of the corruption & also the *Great Men* who rule our Land. I feel we as a whole, are partly to be blamed for the existence of in our system today. To change this kind of a system, the people of this city and the country has to rise against *Corruption*.

So all those who are living in this City or in this Country have any suggestions on how to fight corruption?

Why Bangalore is not CLEAN?



I found this eyesore next to an upcoming MNC in the Suburbs of Bangalore. May be we *Indians* don't care or don't know to keep our envirnoments clean, but what about companies who are setting up their shops in the city, don't they care for them either? As far as i am concerned, i avoid littering the city 99% of the time (not 100% b'coz of my values / instincts ;) ) and at times i try to educate my fellow citizens.

Keeping our surroundings clean lies within our reach and we cannot give lame reasons for this & blame others. Remember the adage "Charity always starts at home", similarly, by keeping the surrounding of our homes/offices clean, the city would remain clean by itself.

The onus is on each and every individual for keeping the city clean, so please keep (y)our city clean.

Thursday, August 25, 2005

Google Talk

Discover something new today;)

Tuesday, August 16, 2005

India - 58 and still growing

It has been 58 glorious years since attaining Independence from the British and the country seems to be growing rapidly. Despite a lot of factors like change in guard at the central and state politics, natural calamities in the recent past (tsunami, floods), corruption, Indian economy is looking good and the bull continues to run.


What really amazes me about my country is with a population of 1 billion plus people who follow different religions, speak multitude of languages, diverse customs & cultures, varities of food, different forms of art & music, etc; With so much of diversity the integrity is still found in the hearts of many but not all. It is truly democratic, we have President who is a Muslim and PrimeMinister who is a Sikh, this speaks for itself about our Nation. Speaking more about these great men who are ruling my country, i guess you won't find any other President nor PrimeMinister who is qualified as them.

Impressive Bios:
India is the most popular country searched on Google in the month of June 2005.

Thursday, August 11, 2005

Seven Blunders of the World

  1. Wealth without work
  2. Pleasure without conscience
  3. Knowledge without character
  4. Commerce without morality
  5. Science without humanity
  6. Worship without sacrifice
  7. Politics without principle
—Mahatma Gandhi

Wednesday, August 10, 2005

Anonymous

To Anonymous ,

Till today Anonymous comments were welcome on my blog, off-late i have seen lot of people choosing to leave Anonymous comments. Since i take every responsibility for all the posts on my blog, i expect those who leave their comments should also take the responsibility. Going further i am disabling the option of Anonymous comments on this blog.

I know few of my friends who don't have blogger ID are affected by this, but all i can suggest is, to create one here, it will just take 2 minutes.

Tuesday, August 02, 2005

Whose city is it, anyway?

I keep having interesting debates about Bangalore every now and then with many friends. As most of you know i have always lived in this city since the day i was born and still continue to live in this city.With the transition of time, there has been lot of transformations at various parts of the city which has changed the image of Bangalore. The change as we know is the only thing that is constant in life, True-Bangaloreans have adopted to every major change. Bangalore City lacks in many things and most of us aware of it, in way we are all responsible for the present state of the city and also to a certain extent the 'Great Men' who rule our land.

I hit Sudus blog this morning and i found an interesting post which echos something simliar thoughts which i have towards my city.

One from my archives on Bangalore City.

Monday, August 01, 2005

Termination

This post is to express my feelings about this unique word called "Termination". I just got to know that, one of my colleague (or should i be saying ex-colleague) got terminated, yes "TERMINATED" or "LAID OFF" from my company, I still don't know/have the offical reason for his/her termination of his/her duties. I had only heard of people getting 'Terminated / Laid Off/ getting Pink slips" in US of A during the burst of the dot(.) com bubble or when the MNC's started outsoucring the jobs for cost cutting, but today for the first time i have experienced it in flesh and blood.

The person who has been terminated feels the humiliation, because he/she has been singled out of the rest. Termination of a co-worker really impacts on the style of working on all the remaining, u feel insecure and the moral among the workers takes a low. Also the mode or method adopted by the company to Terminate an individual or the set of people in a Department conveys a lot meaning to the rest about the company.

Has anyone experienced 'Termination' of self/friend/co-worker/colleague anytime in your professional life and if so how do u feel about it?

Thursday, July 14, 2005

Russell Peters

Russell Peters is our Desi Stand Up Comedian. I really enjoyed watching this show, i hope you would have a good time too. So if u wanna watch, then all u got to do is go for click download and follow the instructions on the site

Download

This file would remain there for another 6 days from today.


Enjoy!!!

Monday, July 11, 2005

Tuesday, July 05, 2005

1st brithday of my Blog :)

It has been exactly one year since i started blogging and i am happy about it. Blogging as a technology has helped me express my thoughts on various subjects at my own will and i also take every bit of responsibility for all the existing posts.


I would like use this occasion to thank my friend Rugs who brought the term 'blogging' one fine day while we were talking casually and that set the clock ticking in me. Next day i discovered what 'blogging' is all about and it set me going on and on. During this one year i happened to meet meet/interact with people (few of them personally) from diverse backgrounds who are
spread across the world.

I would also like to say thanks for Adenjunky, Aru, Nita, Jessica, Ranjith, Sridhar, Vasanth, Radhika, Anitha, Anthro, Vivek M, Lavanya, Sudarshan, Kishore, Jordon, Natalie, Mandie, Deepak, Cocaine Jesus, Eden and all those anonymous visitors who have left their comments during this period. All those comments has made a lot of difference to me directly/indirectly in making me a better individual. So keep your comments coming, you never know how it would matter to the other;).


Keep Blogging!!!

Monday, July 04, 2005

Give your name for a cause

On 2nd July 2005 history was created when people from different walks of life spread across different contients came forward to support one single cause.


If you want to know more or give your name for the same, then visit live8live.

P.S: If you wanna give your name do so before 6th July'05.

Thursday, June 30, 2005

My current Playlist

Offlate i have been listening to various artists from different genres, and here is the playlist


1) AudioSlave: Be Yourself.
2) GreenDay: Boulevard of broken dreams.
3) Creed: Wrong Way.
4) U2: City of blinding lights.
5) Phil Collins: Another day in Paradise.
6) Goo Goo Dolls: Iris.
7) Robbie Williams: Supreme.

Friday, June 24, 2005

San Antonio Spurs wins this seasons NBA Finals

San Antonio Spurs wins this seasons NBA playoffs by beating Detroit Pistons 81-74 in the Game 7 of NBA Finals. Well I just watched the last quarter and it had some spectacular performances from Tim Duncan & Manu Ginobili. San Antonio Spurs have won 3 seasons in the past 7 years.

3 Cheers to Spurs!!!

Thursday, June 23, 2005

I love this game



One of the best moves of Michael Jordon @ Chicago Bulls.

Tuesday, June 07, 2005

Male brain 4 times faster

The truth is finally out, no hard feelings gals ;). Click here to read more of it.

Friday, May 27, 2005

Are you a Firefox user?

If you are not a Firefox user then i guess u are loosing many features which are not available on IE or any other browser. So i feel it's the right time to make the transition to Firefox.

Wanna download Firefox version 1.0.4 now ? Then, click here.

To know more features which comes with Friefox check out here.

Liverpool - Champions of European Soccer



As they say anything can happen in football till the last second of the game, that is what happened in the Champions League final @ Istanbul when Red Devils Liverpool FC from England took on Italian giants AC Milan on 26 May'05.

I was supporting Liverpool and was eagerly waiting for action to kick start @ 00:30hrs India time. AC Milan drew the first blood when captain Paolo Maldini scored the first goal in the first minute. Then the Argentine striker Crespo scores 2 goals within a span of 5 minutes just before halftime to take 3-0 lead over Liverpool. I was very disappointed and thought that Liverpool would never strike 4 goals to win 2005 Champions league. By 1:20 am i hit the bed thinking about the performance of Liverpool in the finals.

In the morning, when i saw the news on TV i was really surprised to know that the Reds had won 2005 Champions League and this was their fifth Champions League Cup. So yesterday night i watched the complete match on highlights. It was the best ever come back by any team with 3-0 down during half-time, to win the Champions League cup. A lot of credit must go to the manager Rafael Benitez who has come up with some of the best plans when playing against the top Eurpoean clubs. It was a truly team effort from the goalie, defenders, midfielders and the strikers to get the best result.

Till the next League Cup's final, Liverpool FC would remain the Champions of Eurpoean Soccer.

For more picture by picture summary click here


Friday, May 20, 2005

FA Cup Finals

All you soccer fans out there, tomorrow is the FA cup Finals. And i bet u don't wanna miss this match, it is Arsenal the runner's up of EPL league against Manchester United the 3rd place in EPL this season. I am sure there will lot of excitement and fire between the 2 teams.

It's obvious i am supporting Arsenal. Way to go guys!!!

Thursday, May 19, 2005

The Secret Art of Managing your BOSS

The other day when i was using stumble, i came across this interesting site where the author shares some of the interesting thoughts on the Secret Art of Manging your BOSS. I found it very helpful in understanding my Boss after reading the series of 4 parts.

I hope u enjoy them as well:).

The Secret Art of Managing Your Boss, part 1

The Secret Art of Managing Your Boss, part 2

The Secret Art of Managing Your Boss, part 3

The Secret Art of Managing Your Boss, part 4

Joe Satriani - The Guru of Guitar

It was one of the best concerts i have attended so far and the genre was purely rock. I have never really listened to much of Jimi Hendrix to compare Joe's performance as Jimi is considered the God of guitar. But i feel Joe is the Guru of Guitar as he has breeded some of the best guitarist.

Joe played most of his popular numbers and kept the crowd craving for more and more. What really amazed me was that during the entire concert never did Joe take a break, he played continuosly apart from the breathers between the songs. As far as the solos he performed, i feel there are no words to describe them, it was truly enchanting.

Overall a wonderful show. I hope the organisers get some more Rock groups to perform in Bangalore.

What's the M:F ratio @ u'r workplace?

A quick poll, What is the Male:Female Ratio @ your workplace? Also do u feel is it necessary to have some kind of balance?

@ my workplace the M:F ratio = 5:1. I feel it needs to be improved, atleast in that way it will bring some kind of life in the team & lift our spirits;).

Saturday, May 14, 2005

Bangalore's First International Marathon

Less than 24 hours to go for the first ever Bangalore International Marathon. I am all excited even though i won't be running this time. So all those ppl who are participating in the event good luck!

Wednesday, May 11, 2005

Breaking News -- Joe Satriani will be performing in India.

Finally 'Satch' - Joe Satriani is coming to India and he will be performing at various cities across India. He will be performing in Bangalore on May 17 2005, i am all excited about it and will catch u there.

For further details follow any of these links,
Chennai-Online | Indian Television | CyberNoon | TOI

Monday, May 09, 2005

A look @ Real Estate in Bangalore

Real Estate in Bangalore is really hot right now. Yesterday myself, cousin and another friend went along with an Agent from one of the Developers looking for a decent property were we could invest. I am still undecided on whether to invest or not, but still accompanied my cousin and a friend. The prices are at an all time high @ any part of the city whether it is around the Proposed International Airport or near ITPL/Whitefield or extended parts of JP Nagar. After visiting 3 different locations we did like one property near Yelhanka, we are still negotiating the prices with the developer. One thing is for sure that all the major developers & builders are having good time in Bangalore & Bangalore is surely growing.

Soccer Unlimited!

Over the past week, some really interesting games have taken place. This is post for all my soccer crazy friends who are not able to keep catch the glimpse of The Champions League or The English Premier League(EPL) or The Italian Seriea or The Spanish League.

Let me begin with my favorite league i.e the English Premier League. This season even though my favorite team Arsenal have scored the highest number of goals and defeated Liverpool yesterday at Highbury. They still have to be satisfied with the runners-up position; who automatically get qualified for next season's Champions League. By defeating Liverpool yesterday they have allowed Everton the 4th spot in EPL and damped the hopes of this years Champions League finalist Liverpool for the next season in Champions League.

Chelsea second favorite team in EPL won their EPL title after a gap of 50yrs this Saturday by defeating Charlton Athletic under their new Manager Jose Mourinho and new Owner Roman Abramovich.

Manchester United had to settle for a 1-1 draw with West Brom.

Spanish League:

Spanish giants Real Madrid beat Santander 5-0 on Saturday with some hopes to catch FC Barcelona which tops Spanish League presently. I guess la legue is getting interesting at the season end.

Italian Sereia:

I couldn't catch this match though, Juventus my favorite club in the Italian league beat AC Milan finalists in this years Champions League, to lead the Italian Sereia.

Champions League:

Both the Second leg semifinal matches lived upto the expectations. The match between the EPL winners Chelsea Vs Liverpool was truly a great one. Chelsea who usually plays the attacking game didn't play upto their expectations. It was Liverpool's striker Garcia who struck early by scoring their solitary goal and defended brilliantly till the end. The match was finally won by Liverpool with 1-0 score line.

The second match AC Milan Vs PSV Eindhoven was more interesting. Even though PSV Eindhoven won the second leg match against AC Milan 3-1, the Italian giants moved to the finals to face Liverpool @ Istanbul, Turkey due to an away goal rule.

So all the soccer fans be ready for the Champions League Final on May 25th at Istanbul, Turkey. I would be supporting Liverpool.

Saturday, May 07, 2005

World of Blogging

Well i wanted to leave a comment on one of my friend's recent post called " what's the big hoo-haa?? ", but then i had lot more to say than just leave a line so thought of blogging it;).

I started blogging in the month of July 2004 just for the heck of it. As time passed by, i made it a medium to voice my thoughts and opinions on vast topics. I have been blogging on music, events in the city, sports, politics, meeting different people, On Bangalore City. Now i even have a separate blog for my favorite passtime Photography and another blog just on technology and gadgets.

Blogging has brought the world around me lot more closer & also happened to forge virtual-friendships. I have come across some interesting people from different continents, which wouldn't have happened without blogging.

Internet brings freedom to cross the boundaries just by sitting in our rooms, it has a lot of pros and cons which can be debated. It's the same with blogging or for that matter Technology in general, it can be used or absued. So it all depends on the nature of a person how best to make use of the technology. It can be used both for and against any cause or purpose. Ther is this blog called "I Hate My Flatmate" which i came across last month which has made headlines on some of the major Newspapers in the world, here the flat mate has made use of blogging as a medium to express his/her thoughts about the daily habits which irritated that person.

I have come across blogs written by high school kids, technology geeks, Techincal writers, Architects, Social organisations, Poets, Doctors, Engineers, Escorts, Fashion Designers, Single Mothers, for that matter people from all wlaks of life are blgging on diverse subjects. Now even IT organisations have blogs on their website and encourage their staff to blog. I feel Blogging is an open-medium for expressions one's thoughts, opinions & feelings. As i said before it can be used or abused like any other technology, its all lies with the person on how to make use of it.

Wednesday, April 27, 2005

Killing your time efficiently

I just came across an interesting post on blog through one of my friend. The post was called "Kill-Time-Efficiently" it lived upto it's name. Now i know how to kill my time efficently, if u wanna do the same just check it out.

'Info-mania' dents IQ more than marijuana

Most of the IT-Professionals around the world need to take pre-caution after reading this interesting article.

Finally helmets are made compulsary in Bangalore

Early this week the HighCourt passed a ruling asking the Government of Karnataka to implement the rule of wearing helmets compulsary for all the two-wheelers. This time the rule is more stringent & better as it asks for both the rider and pillion rider to wear the helmet. Over the past decade this rule has been changed several times, sometimes made compulsary and sometimes revoked due to political pressure. This time though i hope it can't be revoked by the government as it is a ruling from the High Court and not the Government's decision. There is lot of debate happening around the city on this rule, where pillion riders are looking for an exemption from this rule.

Personally, i feel every 2 wheeler rider and also the pillion rider should wear a helmet for his/her own safety and should value for their lives. I don't know have the exact stats on how many deaths that happen on the roads of Bangalore are related to 2 wheelers, but based on the reports i have come across on a daily basis in Times Of India the stats are high compared to other cities of India.

As i was lucky enough to be unhurt when i met with an accident in February, as i was wearing an Helemt. So i am all for this rule, as it would save many lives on the roads of Bangalore.

Thursday, April 21, 2005

Another friend through blogging

I just stumbled upon her blog through the link on Aru's blog. I just happened to meet her online today and here is an extract of our conversation where we discovered the meaning of Hulai,


vevck: whats the meaning of Hulai?
mandie: what Hulai?
mandie: it doesnt really have one
vevck: come on it shld have something
mandie: just something i heard and liked
mandie: not really
vevck: will try and find out
mandie: i dont think it has a meaning
vevck: hold on
mandie: i just kinda made it up i mean off of something my friend said
vevck: I guess i have somerthing for u.


To know the meaning about Hulai and what Mandie felt after going through the description of Hulai check out Mandie's blog.

Wednesday, April 20, 2005

Where is the Love?

Yesterday night after listening to this song on FM, i was analyzing so many incidents which we come across in the recent past. Truly a great song!

What's wrong with the world, mama
People livin' like they ain't got no mamas
I think the whole world addicted to the drama
Only attracted to things that'll bring you trauma
Overseas, yeah, we try to stop terrorism
But we still got terrorists here livin'
In the USA, the big CIA
The Bloods and The Crips and the KKK
But if you only have love for your own race
Then you only leave space to discriminate
And to discriminate only generates hate
And when you hate then you're bound to get irate, yeah
Madness is what you demonstrate
And that's exactly how anger works and operates
Man, you gotta have love just to set it straight
Take control of your mind and meditate
Let your soul gravitate to the love, y'all, y'all

People killin', people dyin'
Children hurt and you hear them cryin'
Can you practice what you preach
And would you turn the other cheek

Father, Father, Father help us
Send some guidance from above
'Cause people got me, got me questionin'
Where is the love (Love)

Where is the love (The love)
Where is the love (The love)
Where is the love
The love, the love

It just ain't the same, always unchanged
New days are strange, is the world insane
If love and peace is so strong
Why are there pieces of love that don't belong
Nations droppin' bombs
Chemical gasses fillin' lungs of little ones
With ongoin' sufferin' as the youth die young
So ask yourself is the lovin' really gone
So I could ask myself really what is goin' wrong
In this world that we livin' in people keep on givin'
in
Makin' wrong decisions, only visions of them dividends
Not respectin' each other, deny thy brother
A war is goin' on but the reason's undercover
The truth is kept secret, it's swept under the rug
If you never know truth then you never know love
Where's the love, y'all, come on (I don't know)
Where's the truth, y'all, come on (I don't know)
Where's the love, y'all

People killin', people dyin'
Children hurt and you hear them cryin'
Can you practice what you preach
And would you turn the other cheek

Father, Father, Father help us
Send some guidance from above
'Cause people got me, got me questionin'
Where is the love (Love)

Where is the love (The love)
Where is the love (The love)
Where is the love
The love, the love

I feel the weight of the world on my shoulder
As I'm gettin' older, y'all, people gets colder
Most of us only care about money makin'
Selfishness got us followin' our wrong direction
Wrong information always shown by the media
Negative images is the main criteria
Infecting the young minds faster than bacteria
Kids wanna act like what they see in the cinema
Yo', whatever happened to the values of humanity
Whatever happened to the fairness in equality
Instead in spreading love we spreading animosity
Lack of understanding, leading lives away from unity
That's the reason why sometimes I'm feelin' under
That's the reason why sometimes I'm feelin' down
There's no wonder why sometimes I'm feelin' under
Gotta keep my faith alive till love is found

Now ask yourself
Where is the love?
Where is the love?
Where is the love?
Where is the love?

People killin', people dyin'
Children hurt and you hear them cryin'
Can you practice what you preach
And would you turn the other cheek

Father, Father, Father help us
Send some guidance from above
'Cause people got me, got me questionin'
Where is the love (Love)

Where is the love (The love)
Where is the love (The love)
Where is the love (The love)


Artist: Black Eyed Peas.
Song: Where is the love?
All Copyrights : Black Eyed Peas.

Thursday, April 14, 2005

I am finally back on the virtual world

I am finally back on the virtual world i.e the world wide web. It's been exactly one month since i have blogged on anything and i have never had a chance to visit any of my fellow bloggers' blogs.

There are many reasons for i.e, Initally @ the end of last month had been for a 3 day trek to Gubbi Gundi Falls, BelliGundi Falls near Bhatkal, Mangalore. After that i was busy at work for few days. Then for almost 6 days we (i mean @ office) were cut off from the rest of the world, as our DSL line was cut by the Electricity guys [God alone knows for what reason]. After that there was this weird problem in our network where we were able to access only selected number of websites. No one had any clue why most of the common websites like yahoo, hotmail, blogger, citibank to name a few were getting blocked. Even the network admin didn't know where was the problem and how to fix it. But Yahoo and MSN IM worked absoutley fine, through IM i could still keep in touch with most of the friends, but i couldn't still blog for a very long time and keep in touch with bloggers.

From past 2 days i had some horrible problems with my desktop as well. So i put all the drives on defragmentation and left for home. Today morning when i see there was another weird exception, it's says my profile no longer exists. I had absolutely no idea how to deal with this Windows 2000 OS, i had never faced so many problems with Windows as much as i have had in 2 days. I was really frustrated and now i realise how these Microsoft products really work. Even though i created new profile and had to configure my whole development environment, but there was blessing in disguise. I was able to access blogger, yahoo and almost any URL and i hope i stay connected like this to the virtual world.

Well if some of u are thinking why coudln't i go access internet from a cafe or @ home, i really don't have that much of time on weekdays and on weekends i try to stay away from using computers.

At the end of this experience i had realised that i was too attached with blogging.

Tuesday, March 15, 2005

Was Asian Tsunami triggered? Trying to find the truth - Part II

I rather found even more interesting article this morning and it leaves me more puzzeled. It even says that our own Indian Government was aware of the entire thing. I don't know how Joe Vialls (the person who has written the article) managed to collect so much of classified information on US military in the Indian Ocean region pre and post Tsunami. But i must admit i am really impressed with the article, which throws light on so many other topics which i wasn't even aware of. But my search for the truth still goes on...

Monday, March 14, 2005

Was Asian Tsunami triggered? Trying to find the truth.

Yesterday night one of my friend said that The Asian Tsunami was an artificial one which means it was triggered. I could not believe that initally and we were still debating over it the whole night. Then my friend says there is a technology through which you can trigger such natural disasters too and it is called HAARP - High-frequency Active Aural Research Program. I guess by now you should have thought who is the master of this technology, if you didn't get it right it is US of A.


When i asked my friend for more details on this he asked me to do bit of R&D on that. So after spending sometime on the internet, i found that many of them have aired their views on this future technology and how it could be used for warfares; Some view this as another conspiracy against US of A, but i am realy confused at the end of the day. Everyday as the technology gets more sophisticated and advanced, the world is getting more complex to understand.


End of the day Technology is a "Double-Edged" sword it can be used for the good as well as bad. So it all depeneds on how one wants to use it and in whose hands it lies.


The other day while i was airing my opinions on my friends blog on Pentagon strike (during 9/11), this guy misunderstood my opinions and accuses me of spreading conspiracy theory. I am not taking sides this time either, but rather i am searching for the truth.

Here are few URLs on

1) HAARP
Official HAARP site
Some more news on HAARP

2) Conspiracy News
Mik's Blog
Blog Media
TruthSeeker

3) About Diego Garcia
Diego Garcia
Diego Garcia1

Wednesday, March 09, 2005

Joe Satriani is gonna be the next guitarist to tour India.

Hey Guy/Gals, here is the latest news of who will be coming down to India next. It will be none other than Joe Satriani. Check out his site. No much details about his Indian tour, but i am just hoping that he will perform in Bangalore.

I am already exicted about it.




Things we do for kicks

Here is a summary of what we have been doing off late. Even I have enrolled for an MBA in IT with MAHE along with Rags. Rags you forgot to mention about the trek to Chembra and Mark Knopfler concert which we went early this week.




Monday, March 07, 2005

Ready to swing with the Sultans!!!

I am all set to swing with the Sultan(s) of Swing in another hour from now, waiting to go for the concert eagerly;).

Friday, March 04, 2005

Enjoy

I really enjoyed watching this clip. Wait for a few minutes till the TV anchors stop, then's the fun !. I hope no animals were hurt in anyway during filiming this clip.

Monday, February 21, 2005

Converstaion

One of my blog-mate has a good converstaion going on one of his blogs, read it. Very diverse opinions about America,it's policies and many other things Static Compost.

Friday, February 18, 2005

Wear Helmet for your safety

Hey guys/gals,

I appeal to all those who ride a 2-wheeler to wear a Helmet while driving your bike. I guess it saved me yesterday when i happened to meet with an accident. The other guy who ramped into me wasn't so luck as he wasn't wearing a helmet and got a deep cut under his eye. Once again my sincere request to all those who use 2 wheelers in Bangalore to wear your helmet while driving even pillion riders.

One more request to all those who drive rashly on horrible Bangalore roads, please care for the others who drive on the road too and make it a safer place.

For those of you who are concerned about my condition nothing really happened to me. No external/internal injuries, i guess my bike needs some attention.

Safe Driving!