okay this one is a slightly serious one....
I watched 'Rang De Basanti' recently. It got me thinking about the dismal situation of India. Quite frankly I think India is not gonna improve much and very soon.You may not like what I said.... I don't like it ...but that is how I feel and how things look to me.
I feel that way because of all the daily things that happen to me, to others. Now I am not saying that other countries are perfect and that everything works...but I feel they do try harder.
As for the movie. I hate it when movies make a good point like this movie did ...but never show, how you, an average everyday person, on a daily basis, can do something to make a difference. I don't mean go and make donations to NGO's and help little kids out...although that is a start.
I mean fight the low level everyday things.
FIGHT a government official (anyone at any level) who wants to take a bribe. FORCE him to do his job the right way.
FIGHT a government official (anyone at any level) who is too lazy to do his job. FORCE him to do it.
PISS them off till something is done.
FIGHT the urge to pay bribes even if it means the difficult way out for YOU.
FIGHT the urge to be lazy and not do your work.
FIGHT mediocrity and never settle for substandard work.
FIGHT the urge to not give your best and do substandard work.
FIGHT corrupt Politicians. Shake their world if they misuse YOUR VOTE.
TEACH little kids from the ground up about values, and doing the right thing.
TEACH little kids about following the rules and obeying the rules.
TEACH people to be brave.
TEACH people to be less apathetic.
SLAP people into following the law and rules.
A few things to note here.
1. YOU have to do it ... and the benefits come back to YOU.
2. YOU have to FIGHT. It's way past the time to talk.
When a generation is stirred ... then only will something change for the better.
Now the tough questions. where do I start ? why should I? What difference will I make....
Am i just dreaming...and ranting.....
I want your views on this issue ...
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Monday, March 20, 2006
Wednesday, March 08, 2006
Giving Sound Advice..
Are you a guy? Do you have a younger brother? Or maybe even a nephew ? Is there any guy you know who is younger to you and just about to make a career decision. And I don't mean high end stuff....just a little guy out there who wants to be a Fireman, Doctor, Lawyer, Super Hero... and keeps changing it every month. Or even just an adolescent/teenager trying to choose between Science/Commerce, Doctor/Lawyer/Engineering?
More importantly, does he Love and Respect You?
Do you want him to Love and Respect You for the Rest of your and his Life?
Well if the answer is yes then you need to know one thing. He will usually come to for advice and it is imperative that you give him good, sound advice. Especially if you want him to Love and Respect you forever.
Great advice, which helps people through hard times, or helps people make important decisions, is crucial.
It may not be the "regular" advice or the "Correct" advice...but it needs to be told, and can affect the guy in may ways.
So next time that little GUY comes to you for Career advice, look into his eyes, remember what you are doing,
what you wanted, what you have, and what you know from your experiences in life ...and refrain from saying the regulars like "Doctor/Lawyer/Engineer etc." ...and tell him what you realised you wanted to be half way through you Professional Degree Course and say to him "bikini model photographer" Or "Victoria's Secret Photographer" or anything to that effect.
Because you know you are really pissed off with engineering/sciences/etc and you really wished you were one of the afore mentioned. And trust me when that guy is grown up and happy from your sound advice, there is going to be no one else in the world he is going to Love and respect more than you.
Heck I wished somebody would have told me this.
I wish my brother/Cousin Brother or any older guy I knew, told me this rather than "Engineering".
I mean look at the perks...LOOK at the perks.
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More importantly, does he Love and Respect You?
Do you want him to Love and Respect You for the Rest of your and his Life?
Well if the answer is yes then you need to know one thing. He will usually come to for advice and it is imperative that you give him good, sound advice. Especially if you want him to Love and Respect you forever.
Great advice, which helps people through hard times, or helps people make important decisions, is crucial.
It may not be the "regular" advice or the "Correct" advice...but it needs to be told, and can affect the guy in may ways.
So next time that little GUY comes to you for Career advice, look into his eyes, remember what you are doing,
what you wanted, what you have, and what you know from your experiences in life ...and refrain from saying the regulars like "Doctor/Lawyer/Engineer etc." ...and tell him what you realised you wanted to be half way through you Professional Degree Course and say to him "bikini model photographer" Or "Victoria's Secret Photographer" or anything to that effect.
Because you know you are really pissed off with engineering/sciences/etc and you really wished you were one of the afore mentioned. And trust me when that guy is grown up and happy from your sound advice, there is going to be no one else in the world he is going to Love and respect more than you.
Heck I wished somebody would have told me this.
I wish my brother/Cousin Brother or any older guy I knew, told me this rather than "Engineering".
I mean look at the perks...LOOK at the perks.
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Thursday, March 02, 2006
The Incompetence that is Airtel
I really hate it when any company or government institution does NOT do their jobs properly, or implement their processes properly and then they irritate the crap out of you. More so when they charge you a fine when it's your mistake, and when it's their mistake it's just a "mistake". They don't have to compensate you or even apologise, in the case of government institutions. In fact they might conveniently blame it on "the Computers".
Anyway recently on two occasions Airtel (Bharti Cellular India) peeved me off.
1. On December 31st 2005 my dad went to the Airtel office in Ahmedabad and gave back the sim for my brothers cell phone in Ahmedabad. We even paid off the final bill, and of course before all that, we filled and submitted the form for cancellation of number and service.
What arrives in the mail near the end of January? A bill for the rent and charges in January. How is this possible when we GAVE BACK the sim and even gave the Cancellation Form? Maybe the guys there were in the New Years Eve mood and slipped up.
And then it happened again.
2. Around 8th of February 2006 (give or take 3 days) I submitted, in the Airtel Pune Kalyani nagar Branch, the Cancellation form for my sister's Airtel Number. There I was told that the final bill will come in 2 days time which I will have to pay. This time I kept the sim since he said "Keep it around but don't use it." I didn't follow up on it after that day because I was way too busy with my project work. On the 26th of Feb. Airtel sends a DCA (debt clearing agency) guy home to collect a cheque from me and ask me why we didn't pay.
I told him that we had cancelled the sim and were waiting for the final bill which they NEGLECTED to send, so we didn't know how much to pay, and I was too busy to follow up. So he calls his boss up to tell him that this was the case.
His Boss then has the gall to ask me "Why did I cancel the sim?". I told him why, but really, that pissed me off. I can cancel any service when I want, which I signed up for (except the army of course), without having to answer to them, or even specifying a reason.
The bill came by courier the next day.
I really wonder what goes on in Airtel's offices and Computer Systems. Do they work? Maybe I should design and sell them a working software system (Somehow the Billing system never ever fails....)
I really hate it when Corporates never provide the kind of service that people get from companies in other countries. I must say how ever that multinationals that come to India do almost as good (I was surprised twice with prompt response from Pizza Hut Pune and Luxor Writing Instruments in Delhi. What was more surprising that they replied to an internet feedback form. In Contrast Godrej Sara Lee's website doesn't even work half the time)
Government institutions are decades behind that kind of response....don't believe me...just go to your local BSNL office or passport office and just try to ask them even one Question. Any Question. See how they respond......
Anyway recently on two occasions Airtel (Bharti Cellular India) peeved me off.
1. On December 31st 2005 my dad went to the Airtel office in Ahmedabad and gave back the sim for my brothers cell phone in Ahmedabad. We even paid off the final bill, and of course before all that, we filled and submitted the form for cancellation of number and service.
What arrives in the mail near the end of January? A bill for the rent and charges in January. How is this possible when we GAVE BACK the sim and even gave the Cancellation Form? Maybe the guys there were in the New Years Eve mood and slipped up.
And then it happened again.
2. Around 8th of February 2006 (give or take 3 days) I submitted, in the Airtel Pune Kalyani nagar Branch, the Cancellation form for my sister's Airtel Number. There I was told that the final bill will come in 2 days time which I will have to pay. This time I kept the sim since he said "Keep it around but don't use it." I didn't follow up on it after that day because I was way too busy with my project work. On the 26th of Feb. Airtel sends a DCA (debt clearing agency) guy home to collect a cheque from me and ask me why we didn't pay.
I told him that we had cancelled the sim and were waiting for the final bill which they NEGLECTED to send, so we didn't know how much to pay, and I was too busy to follow up. So he calls his boss up to tell him that this was the case.
His Boss then has the gall to ask me "Why did I cancel the sim?". I told him why, but really, that pissed me off. I can cancel any service when I want, which I signed up for (except the army of course), without having to answer to them, or even specifying a reason.
The bill came by courier the next day.
I really wonder what goes on in Airtel's offices and Computer Systems. Do they work? Maybe I should design and sell them a working software system (Somehow the Billing system never ever fails....)
I really hate it when Corporates never provide the kind of service that people get from companies in other countries. I must say how ever that multinationals that come to India do almost as good (I was surprised twice with prompt response from Pizza Hut Pune and Luxor Writing Instruments in Delhi. What was more surprising that they replied to an internet feedback form. In Contrast Godrej Sara Lee's website doesn't even work half the time)
Government institutions are decades behind that kind of response....don't believe me...just go to your local BSNL office or passport office and just try to ask them even one Question. Any Question. See how they respond......
Sunday, February 19, 2006
Do You have an IDEA?
Following is a typical conversation from my home, in my room, on my IDEA cellular phone.
ring..ring ........ring..ring.
Friend: Hello.
Me: Hey Wassup?
Friend: Hi? How are you?
Me: I am great what you upto?
Friend: Nothing much just watching t.v. What's Happening
Me: Well I wanted to know....[At this point I am talking away and that person is getting a very badly distorted, breaking signal of my voice ] ....if you wanna go watch...
Friend: ....hello ...dude, you are breaking up very badly...hello..hello..
[now I shift my head and torso around where I am sitting, in a very epileptic seizure type motion, trying to get a better signal]...
Me: Now can you hear ....
Friend: ...hello ...you still breaking up very badly......
Me: LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA
LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA
LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA
LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA
LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA
LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA
LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA
LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA
LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA
LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA
LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA
LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA
LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA
[by now my signal has marginally improved]
Friend: Okay stop I can hear you now...[so I stop going LALALALA] ....what were you saying?
Me: Do you wanna go watch "Rang De Basanti"?
Friend: What time is the show?
Me: Can you make the 5 'o clock.
Friend: Well I might be a bit late....
[Now whats happened is that I can hear him totally clear, but he can't hear a word of what i am saying...it's just blank...no distortion.]
Me: Why?
Friend: Hello?.....you there?...
Me: Yes.
Friend: Hello?
Me: Yeah I am listening.
Friend: Hello? Hello.....Heelllloooo.....Heeeeeellllllllooooooooo.....
Heeeeeeeeeeeeeeeelllloooooooooooooo... Hello Hello Hello Hello
Heeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeelloooooooooooooooooo... Hello Hello Hello
Heeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeellooooooooooooooooo...Hello Hello
Heeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeellooooooooooooooooo. Hello Hello
[Once again miraculously with my Mohammed Ali like movements the signal marginally improves.]
Me: Can you hear me now?
Friends: Yeah now I can hear you.
Me: So why you gonna be a bit late?
Friend: Because I have to......
Me: Okay so what I will do is that...[now he can hear me, but I have a total blank in my ear...]...book the tickets
[I now realise that I can't hear]...Hello? you there?....[and finally the phone gets cut and I hear two beeps].
That is the end of my conversation of exactly 1:34 minutes.
This happens every day REGULARLY, anywhere in my house.
I have had a few friends come over and go through the same thing...but they don't go LALALALALALA ...they just go Hello? hello ? heeeellllloooooooo.
I really wish they would do something for my area. I have a tower overlap problem. I get upto 6 different, all distant tower signals....Maybe they should just put a tower over my roof....
An IDEA can change your life....or speech impair you....
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ring..ring ........ring..ring.
Friend: Hello.
Me: Hey Wassup?
Friend: Hi? How are you?
Me: I am great what you upto?
Friend: Nothing much just watching t.v. What's Happening
Me: Well I wanted to know....[At this point I am talking away and that person is getting a very badly distorted, breaking signal of my voice ] ....if you wanna go watch...
Friend: ....hello ...dude, you are breaking up very badly...hello..hello..
[now I shift my head and torso around where I am sitting, in a very epileptic seizure type motion, trying to get a better signal]...
Me: Now can you hear ....
Friend: ...hello ...you still breaking up very badly......
Me: LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA
LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA
LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA
LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA
LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA
LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA
LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA
LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA
LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA
LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA
LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA
LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA
LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA
[by now my signal has marginally improved]
Friend: Okay stop I can hear you now...[so I stop going LALALALA] ....what were you saying?
Me: Do you wanna go watch "Rang De Basanti"?
Friend: What time is the show?
Me: Can you make the 5 'o clock.
Friend: Well I might be a bit late....
[Now whats happened is that I can hear him totally clear, but he can't hear a word of what i am saying...it's just blank...no distortion.]
Me: Why?
Friend: Hello?.....you there?...
Me: Yes.
Friend: Hello?
Me: Yeah I am listening.
Friend: Hello? Hello.....Heelllloooo.....Heeeeeellllllllooooooooo.....
Heeeeeeeeeeeeeeeelllloooooooooooooo... Hello Hello Hello Hello
Heeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeelloooooooooooooooooo... Hello Hello Hello
Heeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeellooooooooooooooooo...Hello Hello
Heeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeellooooooooooooooooo. Hello Hello
[Once again miraculously with my Mohammed Ali like movements the signal marginally improves.]
Me: Can you hear me now?
Friends: Yeah now I can hear you.
Me: So why you gonna be a bit late?
Friend: Because I have to......
Me: Okay so what I will do is that...[now he can hear me, but I have a total blank in my ear...]...book the tickets
[I now realise that I can't hear]...Hello? you there?....[and finally the phone gets cut and I hear two beeps].
That is the end of my conversation of exactly 1:34 minutes.
This happens every day REGULARLY, anywhere in my house.
I have had a few friends come over and go through the same thing...but they don't go LALALALALALA ...they just go Hello? hello ? heeeellllloooooooo.
I really wish they would do something for my area. I have a tower overlap problem. I get upto 6 different, all distant tower signals....Maybe they should just put a tower over my roof....
An IDEA can change your life....or speech impair you....
Fancy Some Shopping?
Saturday, February 11, 2006
Why did this happen?
I was watching Star Gold the other day (and by the other day I mean in my engineering exams, preparatory leave, around a few years ago). I was watching the Neha Dhupia Movie 'Julie', because I had missed it in the cinema and it looked like the kind of movie I would not want to pay for and watch. So I thought what the hell I might as well watch it.
I was watching it and it reached the scene where Kiran Kumar's (I think that is his real name) character makes his indecent proposal to Julie. And just before he was about to make the proposal...the audio for the movie goes away and then there is techno music. I was laughing that Star tv could actually make such a mistake.
I was actually wondering later if they made a mistake or was some of the dialog being blocked by some moral policing policy...I still wonder.
Why show the movie if they are gonna cut the important dialogs....that too the plot turning point dialogs. Also don't they know that proper grown adults are watching!!!
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I was watching it and it reached the scene where Kiran Kumar's (I think that is his real name) character makes his indecent proposal to Julie. And just before he was about to make the proposal...the audio for the movie goes away and then there is techno music. I was laughing that Star tv could actually make such a mistake.
I was actually wondering later if they made a mistake or was some of the dialog being blocked by some moral policing policy...I still wonder.
Why show the movie if they are gonna cut the important dialogs....that too the plot turning point dialogs. Also don't they know that proper grown adults are watching!!!
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Wednesday, February 01, 2006
Monday, January 30, 2006
A Different Perspective.
I am taking part in a Competition in my college for software making. You have to make a software that adheres to the theme "Software that makes a student's life Easier". My partner and I got a nice idea and we started about making the software.
He handles the algorithm at the back end and I am in charge of the GUI. It is specifically like that because of complications...
Well anyway, the task seemed quite straight forward. I started out on my part and kept getting stuck, a lot.
There were so many ideas I wanted to implement but didn't know how to. Some things I looked up on the net and found ...sometimes after 6 hours of searching. Then using that requires understanding, then fitting it to your purpose...which is especially difficult with other people's codes...with limited explanation (very little in some cases). Knowing the stuff and then doing it on your own, requires learning a lot of knowing the language before hand...and even then no book is complete.
Well of course as you would expect I did run into a lot of trouble but slowly and steadily I did figure things out and get things working.
During that time I realised how easy some things can be ...and how difficult others. This is of course after someone else has already made the basic functions and libraries inside the language, for you to use.
It made me realise the kind of work that goes into making software. It made me realise how important design is in Software Engineering.
I can actually now appreciate why big corporations are so hell bent on anti-piracy. To work so hard...so long...make all the sacrifices of time, money, sleep...and then not get your dues....really frustrating.
Am I anti-piracy? Well not completely. But I will think twice the next time I have a chance to get pirated software...then one more time after that ....and get back to normal after that ....
I guess I will try to buy it whenever possible.
I would be totally anti-piracy if that meant prices would drop a great deal so every one can buy software and no one has to pirate....That will be the day.
He handles the algorithm at the back end and I am in charge of the GUI. It is specifically like that because of complications...
Well anyway, the task seemed quite straight forward. I started out on my part and kept getting stuck, a lot.
There were so many ideas I wanted to implement but didn't know how to. Some things I looked up on the net and found ...sometimes after 6 hours of searching. Then using that requires understanding, then fitting it to your purpose...which is especially difficult with other people's codes...with limited explanation (very little in some cases). Knowing the stuff and then doing it on your own, requires learning a lot of knowing the language before hand...and even then no book is complete.
Well of course as you would expect I did run into a lot of trouble but slowly and steadily I did figure things out and get things working.
During that time I realised how easy some things can be ...and how difficult others. This is of course after someone else has already made the basic functions and libraries inside the language, for you to use.
It made me realise the kind of work that goes into making software. It made me realise how important design is in Software Engineering.
I can actually now appreciate why big corporations are so hell bent on anti-piracy. To work so hard...so long...make all the sacrifices of time, money, sleep...and then not get your dues....really frustrating.
Am I anti-piracy? Well not completely. But I will think twice the next time I have a chance to get pirated software...then one more time after that ....and get back to normal after that ....
I guess I will try to buy it whenever possible.
I would be totally anti-piracy if that meant prices would drop a great deal so every one can buy software and no one has to pirate....That will be the day.
Sunday, January 29, 2006
You have to read this
This has got to be silliest, funniest ...and yet the most detailed and technically sound...website i have seen.
I was laughing like crazy ...read http://members.tripod.com/~menakas/moskilling.html
[Update: Link is dead now]
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I was laughing like crazy ...
[Update: Link is dead now]
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