Alok 's Blog

Fall Schedule

2011-10-10T03:09:00.000+05:30

Monday

Two Broke Girls
Two and a Half Men
Gossip Girl
How I Met Your Mother
House M.D.

Tuesday

90210
Ringer
New Girl

Wednesday

Modern Family
South Park
Up All Night
Suburgatory
Revenge
Harry's Law

Thursday

Grey's Anatomy
Its Always Sunny in Philadelphia
Private Practice
The Big Bang Theory
The Mentalist
Person of Interest
The League

Friday

Chuck

Saturday

Rules of Engagement

Sunday

Desperate Housewives
The Good Wife
Pan Am

HTML Refresher

2011-03-20T01:15:00.001+05:30

It has been long time since my last blog post. I visited blogger yesterday and I must say I am impressed by nice changes done to the application . I also saw preview video of next set of changes to come and they do look promising.

With all the HTML5 buzz and hype , I decided perhaps it is time to invest sometime understanding HTML . More like a refresher , since I do understand little bit of HTML and CSS.

Even though I started visiting sites and checking mails(yahoo mail) on internet in 2001. It was not until my first year of IIT , when seniors held a HTML basics talk, I explored HTML a bit. I used notepad and Dreamweaver ,mostly Dreamweaver to create basic pages and styles. As with everybody new with HTML , I ended up creating a geocities page. which I never touched again. That was the only time I guess , I tried to understand HTML in a focused manner .

Afterwards , It has been mostly here and there on need basis like when creating web frontend for database project using JSP. Recently I used HTML while understanding ASP.NET web forms and MVC.

So I decided to read Head First HTML as refresher course. I am through with first couple of chapters in breeze as there is nothing new to me till now.

That’s all for now.

Conned – Fake USB

2009-09-13T03:21:00.001+05:30

I got outsmarted and conned by a fraudster and situation recently. I was late for office so I was in hurry . I was approached by a person in scooter, I stopped as I thought he was going to ask for directions. He showed me four 32 GB Kingston flash drives in Kingston package and told me some tale about how he acquired them which I do not remember as I was hardly paying any attention and was not interested.

Then he feigned innocence as if he is unaware of what it is worth. He offered me to test them and if I felt that they are good I can buy them.The offer seemed tempting so I decided to test it . So I took all four of them upstairs and broke open one and plugged them.

It showed 32 GB free I formatted it to Fat32 and then I went to Kingston site and verified the seal the seal looked authentic. I tried entering the no. but the china site was not working. So I decided to test it by copying few media files and then disconnecting and reconnecting and see if they were working fine. It worked fine but slow and I was in hurry so I did not further testing.

So I went downstairs where he was waiting and gave him 3 USB sticks back and kept the one just that I have opened. He asked me how much I will pay I said 600 and he bargained for 800 and to buy more but I gave him 600.

Next two days I was happy thinking that it was either good obtained through illegitimate means or it was some Chinese product which is not guaranteed to last long.I told some of my friends and colleagues about this how it is too good to be true.But it was short-lived as two days later when I tried to copy some 2 GB of data to my friends comp it showed nothing on my friend’s comp.

After some research on internet I found out that I have been conned as it was 512 MB drive which has been flashed to show 32 GB.

So bottom-line is if something is too good to be true then it is not true.

Things that saved me from buying extra in hindsight were

He told me he is from Ghaziabad and I knew Ghaziabad is the biggest fake goods city in the India.
I did not have lot of money in my pockets I only had 400 so I had to borrow some from building guard.
The performance of drive was slow.

Things that did not work in my favor

I was in hurry.
I underestimated con people thinking they cannot make packaging almost like original with original looking seal.
The guy’s innocent and suspicious behavior acting was very good.
I only copied files which were less than 512 MB had I copied a bigger file like movie file I would have found out the truth.
Most important point is he gave me full control like testing and fixing price so which made it seem like I was in control .

Here are few items to verify fakeness of USB drive :

1.Try using h2testw . It will write the complete size and verify it. This is sufficient condition but it will take long time as it will try to write full size.

http://sosfakeflash.wordpress.com/2008/09/02/h2testw-14-gold-standard-in-detecting-usb-counterfeit-drives/

2. One faster way would be trying to format it to NTFS if it fails it must be fake .(This is necessary but not sufficient )

3. If something looks dirt cheap think again.

There are lots of other links on internet to detect fake USB drives and lot of people have been conned by EBay sellers.

So after discovering that I have been outsmarted , I was amused at my bêtise, I broke open the drive and to see the insides and saw handiwork of it being tampered .

In case you are wondering how it looks like here is pic of the package

Here is link which shows one :-

http://www.gadget.co.za/pebble.asp?relid=1349

Also check-out the

http://sosfakeflash.wordpress.com/

Lies

2009-05-24T07:40:00.002+05:30

You keep me in the dark

Until the difference from the truth

Becomes evident and stark

You play me around

Like a dog fetching the Frisbee

On the whistle’s sound

You give me false hope

Only to be disappointed like a person

Rappelling left with a cut rope

Why can’t you come clean?

Stop giving lame excuses and

For once just spill the bean

Because I am tired of being pushed around

Listening to same lines and

Being treated like a hound

IPL semis

2009-05-15T01:00:00.001+05:30

Lets start with the team which has already made to semis :

Delhi is already in to semis with 16 points and four matches left because even if they lose all matches they will still make to semis

Chennai with 13 points and 3 matches left including one against KKR are favorites to go through

Rajasthan with 13 points have two matches including one against KKR so they are also looking good

Lets have a look at teams which have matches against Delhi and Chennai, two strong but not invincible side as shown by Bangalore today.

Mumbai to go through has to win its remaining two matches against DD and CSK and still rely on other teams on not winning to go through.

Punjab needs to win against Deccan to have any real chance of going through.But it is only necessary condition but not sufficient because they have to still hope that Deccan does not win its remaining matches. With its matches against DD and CSK it is a tall task.

Bangalore need to win against Deccan because a loss there would concede them points and poor Run Rate of Bangalore will force them out.

In order to go to the semis Deccan has one thing clear

Three straight wins guarantee semi final spot

Two wins from 3 games is sufficient to see them through in most case if they win against

1) Bangalore and Punjab both as both team will be left with 14 points at max then while Deccan will have 16 and MI will have 15 max

2)or Kolkata and Bangalore/Punjab on the basis of run rate (unless there is any dramatic change in run rates)

If it loses all three it is certainly out of semis as Bangalore,Delhi ,Chennai and Rajasthan will have more points.

Only scenario which can lead to multiple outcome for Deccan is single win,then it has to rely on Delhi and Chennai to beat its competitors.

Next three matches are important as they are decider for the semis berth :-

DD vs. Punjab : Must win for Punjab otherwise they have to rely too much on their luck to go through

Mumbai vs. CSK : Must win for Mumbai else they are certainly out

DC vs. KKR : DC must defeat KKR to make it easy for themselves

Watch out for rain and KKR , they can certainly make somebody else’s life miserable if they prevail.

So lets see how things play out.

Deccan see through the see-saw battle

2009-04-25T20:52:00.001+05:30

A good see-saw match was what I witnessed today.

Mumbai Indians are looking formidable side with Sachin, Jayasuriya, Duminy and Bravo . There young Indian players Nayar and Dhawan are good too. There bowling led by Maling, Zaheer , Harbhajan and Bravo looks good too.

Deccan Charger on the other hand have really great top but they have a really long tail which has again hampered the finish of the Deccan Chargers yet again. The addition of Dwayne Smith has further bolstered their explosive top compromising of Gilly,Gibbs and Sharma. The weak spot for them is the lax form of Laxman and no support from Ravi Teja and Rao in middle order. So Deccan relies very heavily on its top to perform which they have till now. But recent games against Banglore and Mumbai has shown once the top 4 goes away they are not able to score runs and give a decent finish to the game. Thankfully their bowling has been going well till now with pace duo RP and Edwards proving good support to each other. Pragyan Ojha has been good in the middle overs.

Going into the game I wanted Gilly’s team to win but on the back of my mind I knew Mumbai were more favorites to win as they have more evenly balanced squad.

Thanks to good batting at the top by Gilchrist,Gibbs and Smith it looked 200 within the reach. But once Smith , Sharma and Laxman departed due to good bowling from bravo it was quite a slide from there one. What really put me off was how Rao got a set batsman of greater caliber run out. He should have crossed and let Gibbs survive. The long tail of Deccan and good bowling from Malinga made target of Mumbai shorter by 20 runs atleast.

Mumbai were curtailed well by tight bowling by Edwards and RP. But over from Harmeet let Sachin and Mumbai back on track. I think Harmeet would be dropped in next match has he was sloppy in the field and did not perform well with the bowl.Sachin and Duminy did well to propel Mumbai to half way mark at half time. At that time it looked like Mumbai were going to have a comfortable win. But as we have witnessed timeout has changed the momentum of the game . After timout Ojha took the crucial wicket of the Tendulkar and then bowled couple of tight overs in tandem with Rao to gain the momentum back for Deccan. It was same scenario as Punjab to get 60 out of 30 but unfortunately for they did not have any set batsmen like Bopara once Duminy got out.

What surprised me was letting Rao bowl the 18th over instead of Dwayne Smith the more experienced person . It worked out well with going for only one six in the over. What I think Mumbai did wrong was after wicket of Tendulkar they slowed their momentum alot and let run rate climb high. The late charge by Harbhajan was great but it was just too much for him.

In the end Deccan won the game due to some fine bowling but they really need to finish the batting well by either ensuring the top stays till end or making change in team to include someone better than Teja and Rao.

With matches against Delhi and Chennai ,Deccan is going to have tough test and will rely on top order and good bowling to do wonder as it has done till now.

At this stage Mumbai,Delhi,Chennai and Deccan look strong to go to semifinal unless Rajasthan does their last year’s magic.

Sri Lankan Tamils to India : Why so silent?

2009-03-30T05:51:00.001+05:30

Indian Politicians and media were so enraged when Jade Goody said a racial slur to Shilpa Shetty that they made it of national importance and hijacked the UK minister’s main agenda and forced it on him.

But now when one of the most heinous racist crime similar to genocide is being committed in Sri Lanka, why is Indian media and politicians ignoring it and showing the drama of Varun Gandhi. Are only racist words against celebrity by a white person of national importance and not the life of a normal civilian subjected to bombarding under the veil of counterattack on terrorism ?

Have both BJP (The Hindutva party) and Congress (The champion of common man) have been so blinded by Polls that they are giving this a miss. Both these party project themselves as self-righteous and moral , what is stopping them from raising this issue at global level.

Where is morality of Indian media which makes sure to push everyone else to gallows on issues of morality and righteousness.

Crashes,Connection and Changes

2009-03-11T20:58:00.001+05:30

It has been sometime since I wrote my last blog, a few stuffs have happened since then.I have endured two hard disk crash, change in broadband connection, and change of manager.

Hard disk crashes as random but they seemed in perfect agreement in my case.First my external 500 GB Seagate free agent goes berserk sometime in January ,So I submitted it for replacement but the person recording serial no. made mistake and wrote o instead of a 0(zero) which resulted in some phone calls and further delay of a week. Seeing this as right opportunity my internal 500 GB Seagate hard disk decided to betray me. Note that these are both new hard disk not older than 6 months. My older hard disk have not given me any problem like this ,touchwood. So I was reduced from 1 TB to 2 GB pen drive of read only Xubuntu Linux live CD for about a week, till I got my external hard disk.

I decided to install windows 7 on my external USB hard disk but to my dismay I found it cannot be achieved. So I installed Ubuntu on external drive and worked on it for a week, the experience with Compiz effects was good once I was able to install my display driver.Then I got my internal hard drive which I struggled to fit in the slot (I just pushed in slot and was not able to screw it to case) and I was finally able to install Windows 7 . Well Windows 7 has been a delight at least.

After getting through this hard disk fiasco, my ISP decided to give me hard time. I was witnessing slow connection for a few days after which I decided to complain. The Airtel call center guys were unaware of problem. It was only when technical guy came to my home I was informed of ‘Fair Usage Policy’ which dictates that unlimited connection of 384 kbps seize to be 384 and will become 256 once you have crossed upload + download limit of 25 GB. The sites were not updated still and Airtel help guys were not clear of details. It took a week to get clear details of this policy and sites were updated. So I decided to change my ISP, I contacted beam cable which never called me back . So I called Reliance Broadband which resulted in Wimax guy and broadband guy coming to my home. I refused Wimax guy as I didn't hear good reviews about it . After some documents ,emails and 500 rupees I was able to apply for reliance. I am not sure about exact days but after few days I got my reliance 1mbps connection(I decided to upgrade to see how this affects my net life). I had asked Airtel guys for disconnection immediately but they have still not taken their equipments. Well with this sorted out things are fine finally.Although I have to solve reliance disconnection issue after some idle hours of connection which results in re-entering of password.

After changes at home were over, I got the news about change at work . So My manager has changed and my team has moved under new manager after some re-org. This change doesn’t requires much effort from my part at least.

I witnessed weather pattern change also with summer coming early at Hyderabad. It was not even Feb. and mercury had already risen. I thought Pune would be nice change from this hot weather but to my surprise Pune was no different than Hyderabad on my short trip.

Well things have settled for now. Lets see how long that lasts in these turbulent times.

Tears of disbelief and despair

2009-02-01T23:03:00.001+05:30

Tears rolling down the cheeks of two great players was a sight which we all saw after end of the Australian Open final. But the emotions conveyed by these tears where world apart. A tear of disbelief, a dream come true, joy was followed by a tear of despair, helplessness, grief.

It was a match of great player of all time against great player at the moment. The best player of the moment survived in the end. "You need to win the point against him three or four times more than against all the other players" is what Verdasco said about his compatriot after losing in semis to him and rightly so. It was almost impossible to get through him as he was able to cover the whole world America to Asia without raising a eyebrow.

Although I had believed Federer is really strong and can defeat Rafa but somehow he just was not able to keep the momentum going in the last set as he handed the service break to Rafa by committing a string of unforced error. The serving of both of them was not A-class. Overall it just didn't seem the A-game of both the player.

Way Rafa has been improving over the year he seems very close to repeating the feat of calendar grand slam. I hope that Federer wins his 14th quickly but with each conceded win to Rafa , 14th slam is becoming further away from Federer.

Tipping Point to Six Degrees of Separation

2009-01-26T08:38:00.001+05:30

I got fascinated by the word tipping point which I had used in my previous post. So I have started reading the book The Tipping Point: How Little Things Can Make a Big Difference by Malcolm Gladwell .

I have finished reading the second chapter (which talks about connector,mavens and salesman ) and it seems a good read till now .

I used the tipping point word sometime back in the post and then I researched the word as I liked the word and I found the book. My curiosity went up for the book and I decided I am going to read the book. Incidentally my friend had this book but it took me a few weeks to get hold of it . In the book they mention six degrees of separation which I think most of us might have heard states that everyone is connected to everyone else within six links.After reading about six degrees of separation , I got interested about it and I found another book Six Degrees: The Science of a Connected Age. In effort to get more about this I searched it and I found the movie Six Degrees of Separation which I plan to watch now.

Tipping Point -> The Tipping Point ->Six Degrees of Separation->Six Degrees: The Science of a Connected Age ->Six Degrees of Separation (Movie)

This too got covered within six links !

The note

2009-01-03T08:37:00.001+05:30

A dream untold resting in sleep
a bright picture lying in dark to weep
Warm blood splattered on cold wall
a big room filled with people looks small

so much noise in silent residence
natural expressions replaced by pretense
providing with answers abound
but right question yet to be found

what forces one to end something so dear
something hard to understand ,never clear
it has got to be love , they say
work they say is the reason in play

so many reasons to die they will give
but only reason to live is to live
says simply the note
that the dead had wrote

Tipping Point

2008-12-31T07:49:00.002+05:30

Earlier I had posted how I was eager to play Prince of Persia. So I bought a new computer system which would be worth around 60 k. I got a AMD quad core 2.5 GHZ,4 GB Ram,500 GB hard disk rig. But most important thing is my graphics card 512 MB ATI Radeon 4870 which was costing whopping 19 k when I bought and my benq 22 inch LCD monitor. I built this solid gaming rig because I wanted to play games and PoP in particular.

I have completed Prince of Persia in last two nights.After completing it I realized that decision tipping thing for me to buy a new computer (spending 60k) lasted for two nights only . I find it strange that although I wanted to play games , I did not seriously consider buying a new one until PoP came out . I have heard of tipping point in consumer's buying decision , but never consciously thought about it until today.

I think I had read somewhere how buying stuff although seems like a logical and rational decision,but in reality is irrational and emotional one.

Desktop Tools for windows

2008-10-26T09:10:00.002+05:30

Yod'm 3D is Yet another desktop manager (DeskSpace of Otaku Software) provides a way to have four desktops on your windows. The four desktops are like walls of a cube when switching . This may enhance productivity of people but I use it for aesthetic purpose mostly.

Virtual Desktop Manager is an offering in Power tools section of XP which has other interesting also like ALT + TAB replacement. This one also has four desktops which are like 2 X 2 grid.

Madotate allows a interesting way to arrange item on your desktop

Topdesk from Otaku software offers ways to switch between your open applications on windows

Flip like Vista

Expose like Mac

As I had mentioned earlier power tools for XP provides ALT + TAB replacement

While talking about desktop managers one cannot forget to mention Compiz for linux.

If you have not seen Compiz in action here are few videos

Download never dies

2008-10-17T08:24:00.002+05:30

Here are few things that one need to do ensure that one utilizes as much bandwidth of our broadband (these step are applicable only if your place has power cut and your bandwidth is not so high that you can get stuff for whole day in an hour):-

Step 1 : Set your BIOS to boot up after power outage this can be done. In BIOS go to Power and set your After AC failure to Auto(to return to previous state before power failure)

Step 2 : Step set your computer to auto login on start. you don't need to have your password as blank to do that. Use the second method which does not involve registry editing.

Step 3 : Add your torrent client say utorrent in startup by simply putting the utorrent's shortcut in startup folder.

Step 4: Also configure utorrent's web UI so that you can monitor it remotely.Get an OpenDNS account so that you can get your IP when you are away(applicable only if you have dynamic IP). You may have to do port forwarding on the router to make this work.

Alternatively you can use logmein 's free remote client service to login and do things remotely.

So, Now you are all set to download non-stop and you will be able to monitor and add torrents remotely.

Making life (read "browsing") simple

2008-10-11T08:40:00.002+05:30

I wanted to share some new aids that one can use to simplify things and continue enjoying browsing.

First I would like to narrate a scenario to you. I often go to a site and the site ask for registration , I decide to register and it asks for email address and email verification. Most of the time if I am really interested I continue but if site is not very interesting on first impression I would cancel registration due to fear of spam or just laziness of signing in and verifying the link given. The solution to this has been provided by Mailinator "let them eat spam". This site provides an open inbox in which you do not need to register or intimate the site that you are using an email id for registration like idofyourchoice@mailinator.com and then just go to the site enter the idofyourchoice in textbox ,no password etc, just read the mail and verify by clicking on the link given. The mails will be auto deleted in few hours. This site is a really helpful addition to web.

My next scenario is say you are on a computer which does not has Adobe PDF installed or you do not want to download the PDF to the computer, what would you do to view it(it's easier if it is attachment in Gmail. you would just say open in web page). Nodobe addon for Firefox will do exactly same thing it will add a context menu on right click to open with Nodobe in a new tab. To use this feature you need to have a free account at least with Vuzit (pronounced "View it") . You can use Mailinator to register if you want . Support for other filetypes is coming soon has been claimed by the website.

My next item is not so much about simplicity but more about making web a fun place. 3D world provided by Google , Lively is really cool virtual place to hang out . It seems to be inspired by second life but nonetheless the offering by Google is welcome. It allows one to use one's avatar and style it with clothing. The avatars can chat ,whisper to other avatar, and perform various moves like dancing,clapping etc .It also allows to create one's room and add various things to it from the catalog. So if you have good broadband speed you can explore other people's rooms , create your own room ,chat with strangers or friends.

Next I would like to mention nice desktop utility named Keepass which one can use to manage the username and passwords which keep growing at exponential rate these days for anyone who is actively browses web. I know most of us use browser's ability to save password but it is not disaster proof. Also if you have multiple browsers like me it becomes even more hassle. This tool will help centralize your usernames and passwords so it is not stored in browser. It comes with a hotkey which when pressed fills username and password fields and prompts user to select username if multiple username is detected for a site. One can also use backup plugin for it to keep backing up the store at various location. One can use features like Dropbox or Live Mesh to synchronize the Keepass database across multiple computer .

The Gamer Within

2008-10-11T07:28:00.003+05:30

Of late the gamer within me has arisen from the slumber of what I think almost is around a year. The cause for this stir is news of Prince of Persia releasing this holiday season. I am a big fan of Prince of Persia series . I have played Prince of Persia: Warrior Within and Prince of Persia : Two Thrones .

The combat moves involving combination of various key resulting in complex move from wall run to jumping through poles and various other acrobatic moves are mainstay of the game. The gameplay involves finding way through maze , solving puzzle ,killing minions and other dark creatures. But the most fun part are the boss battles. Being chased by Dahaka "the death" ,racing towards a closing gate in a chariot or finding a way through plethora of roller blades to get that elusive life upgrade raises the pulse. The speed kill in the Two thrones were another great addition to incredible gameplay. Other most unique thing about the game is feature of rewinding in time using sand and checkpoint based saving.The setting of time island in warrior within with rock music was also really awesome. The Babylon with Arabic music in two thrones was pretty cool too. Check out the wiki entry on Prince of Persia for more details.

Now the Prince of Persia team at Ubisoft have come up with latest addition to this series. The Prince of Persia 4 is set in past i.e. before Sands of Time the first one in the series. If you have not already checked out the Prince of Persia's official site. I urge you to check out the videos of the new POP which is scheduled to release on December 2nd. The prince has been provided with a companion Elika who is able to able to heal corruption with her magical healing powers. Also several new addition has been made with the duo tagging up against the villains. Also there has been addition of several moves like slide , roof run,extremely long jump with the help of Elika,extremely long rebound using pads.

Overall it looks like a great addition to Prince of Persia series. I am really looking forward to play this game to the extent I am considering assembling a gaming PC or buying Xbox to just play this game.

Here is trailer video of the latest Prince of Persia.

You can watch more video at official website. Watch out the commented walk through video which displays gameplay.

Hue Test

2008-10-10T05:05:00.004+05:30

I took a hue test. It is a test to distinguish between different hues if you have free time and you are willing to take troubles, you can click on the link given below and try your eyes yourselves.

http://www.xrite.com/custom_page.aspx?PageID=77

Here are the results of my test it seems I had trouble discerning hues in green area. I got 8.

The Big Bang Theory

2008-10-08T02:21:00.001+05:30

The Big Bang Theory is a really hilarious sitcom created by Chuck Lorre ( of Two and Half Men) and Bill Prady . This sitcom is a must watch for anyone who appreciates how comic it is when people of opposite nature read geek scientist guys and sexy actress wannabe meet. The timing of joke and the whole characterization of Sheldon and Leonard is really creative may be bit over the top nonetheless fun to watch . They are aided by their flirting creepy friend Howard and shy Koothrapalli . There little star wars loving , online game playing , weird science experimenting world is shaken when Penny comes to live in apartment next door. This show is a must watch ,so friends go to Youtube ,CBS or search for torrent and just look for this show's pilot.

I hope you will enjoy watching this show.

TV Actresses I adore

2008-10-05T03:45:00.001+05:30

Here is a list of actresses of current soaps, I love .

Kate Walsh (Dr. Addison Montgomery of Grey's Anatomy and Private Practice)

Katherine Heigl (Dr. Isobel 'Izzie' Stevens of Grey's Anatomy)

Blake Lively (Serena van der Woodsen of Gossip Girl)

Cobie Smulders (Robin Scherbatsky of How I Met Your Mother)

Rachel Bilson (Lou of Chuck , Summer of O.C.)

Kristen Bell (Veronica Mars of Veronica Mars, Elle Bishop of Heroes)

Eva Longoria Parker(Gabrielle Solis of Desperate Housewives)

Yvonne Strahovski (Sarah Walker of Chuck)

Erica Durance ( Lois Lane of Smallville)

Evangeline Lilly (Kate of Lost)

I like Allison Mack(Chloe Sullivan of Smallville ), Sarah Shahi (Dani Reese of Life) , Julie Bowen (Denise Bauer of Boston Legal) , Mary-Louise Parker (Nancy Botwin of Weeds) .

Fountainhead

2008-10-04T05:37:00.002+05:30

It has been more than a month since I read Fountainhead. Some of my friends think that it is a novel so good that it makes reader think about it for a long time and in affects them deeply. But I guess then I am exception to the rule. It's not that I did not like the novel, I really liked the novel but just not so moved by it.

The story and character development of the novel is really good. Ayn Rand , the writer has taken great effort to make character as detailed as possible . She has taken time in letting the plot development be gradual and detailed. The writer's philosophy of objectivism is really enlightening . Although I have not gone into details of it but the overall idea that I got from the novel is really interesting. The novel shows a different light to independence and dependency, art and artist ,love and success.

(Spoilers Ahead)

Peter Keating is the most familiar character in the novel. He is a person driven by glory of success so much that he forgets his self, ego , love all for the sake of glory. His character seemed quite normal at the start of the novel but by the end of it had turned into a complete disaster.

Elsworth Toohey is a really interesting character in the novel. At start of the novel he seems like an epitome of good . Its only later that his ulterior motives are revealed.

Gail Wynand is almost a hero but just could not make the cut finally. He is a really determined person but just could not get through the final hurdle.

Howard Roark the protagonist is really one of a kind guy. His view of life is unique, his philosophy of life is intriguing and the way he finally pulls it off in the end is also terrific.

Dominique Francon is the female lead in the novel . Her character goes a lot of change of colors in the course of the novel.

The story overall seems to be well paced but it drags a bit towards the middle but it accelerates to a good climax finally . The climax is dramatic , over the top you may say, unrealistic yet entertaining.

So I would recommend this novel to anyone who has got little time to spare and is patient enough to hold through some character development phase in the novel where story tends to become a bit slack. If you get chance to read it , just read it . It will influence you I don't know to what extent but it will amuse you at least .

It's too late to apologize

2008-09-17T01:54:00.001+05:30

I'm holding on your rope,
Got me ten feet off the ground
I'm hearing what you say but I just can't make a sound
You tell me that you need me
Then you go and cut me down, but wait
You tell me that you're sorry
Didn't think I'd turn around, and say...that
It's too late to apologize, it's too late
I said it's too late to apologize, it's too late

I'd take another chance, take a fall
Take a shot for you
I need you like a heart needs a beat
But it's nothing new...
I loved you with a fire red-
Now it's turning blue, and you say...
"Sorry" like the angel heaven let me think was you
But I'm afraid...

It's too late to apologize, it's too late
I said it's too late to apologize, it's too late

It's too late to apologize, it's too late
I said it's too late to apologize, it's too late
I said It's too late to apologize, it's too late
I said it's too late to apologize, it's too late
I'm holding on your rope, got me ten feet off the ground...

Apologize

by OneRepublic (Dreaming Out Loud)

Windows Applications that make my world easy

2008-09-14T03:18:00.000+05:30

Today I wanted to talk about some programs which can make a lot of difference in your everyday experience with your PC.

Launchy is the first one that comes to my mind.Ever struggled finding a program's shortcut ,you try to look at desktop and your Quick launch and then you go through the whole list of them at start menu which is again painful if you have lot of programs like me.With Launchy you just need to type the name of program and it comes just like program search in vista. But I like Launchy better because it is very clean.

If you have used torrents than you would have come across utorrent , if not you must try it . It really is makes the downloading of torrents really manageable and easy.

If one want to access your PC from office or anywhere else you need to try LogMeIn or Live Mesh . Both these product are good in their way Live Mesh is a Microsoft offering to connect your Desktops ,Mobiles and other devices (in future) .It gives a desktop on the web which you can use to synchronize files and folders. I have been using LogMeIn for a month now and I find its remote control feature which is another name of remote desktop really fast and useful in order to monitor things . There are other stuffs in offering in Pro subscription but I use it for RDP only so I am quite content.

I have lot of browsers viz IE, Firefox,Opera ,Flock,Safari, Chrome installed on my PC. Although my main browser has been Firefox as would be evident from my previous post. I use IE mainly for sites which open in IE in best manner.(I know I can use IE tab add-on in firefox.)

I have lot of media players on my computer too . I use VLC or Crystal mainly for all the video content. I use Real Player, itunes ,Mediamonkey for songs,audio etc. I like the tool minilyrics which I have installed recently to show the lyrics of the song in different manners.

If one is really picky about the items order in taskbar or saving space on taskbar by sending items to system tray , xNeatLite is a good tool for that .

I have installed Windows Live package which consists of Writer to publish blog to a lot blog provider which is handy . It has Windows Live Photo Gallery which is useful for viewing ,uploading , editing pictures. Although I have Picasa to take care of it as I use Picasa Web Albums . The panorama creation utility in Photo Gallery is useful. It also has Windows Live Mail which one can use for one stop to access a lot of email accounts from gmail,hotmail,yahoomail,aol, etc .

I also use Windows Desktop Search although I have tried Google Desktop Search and Coopernic search too. All of them work good for me.

I like the calender and clock widget of Yahoo! widgets . One can also use Google gadget for the same too.

As a download manager FlashGet has served purpose for me since long time. I earlier had Star downloader and IDM but I have liked FlashGet most .

Feel free to comment what apps you use to make your life easy.

(Mac vs PC ) vs Linux

2008-09-14T03:09:00.002+05:30

Novell Linux making fun of Mac vs. PC ads

One More

In case you have missed the Mac Vs PC ads here is a compilation

My Firefox Add-ons

2008-09-03T01:25:00.004+05:30

I have been thinking about writing a blog about the FireFox add-on that I like and I am currently using.

I have been using Download Statusbar for some time now and I really like the way it comes as toolbar in browser itself and not as some other dialog.

Other add-on that I really like is Fast Dial it is same as opera's speed dial but with more customizability.I like setting grid size according to me instead of custom 9 and it does not load the page as in speed dial but just the icon.

One really cool visualization add-on is Piclens.It makes browsing picture really cool on site on which it is enabled like Google and Yahoo image search ,deviant art etc. Other add-on from same group is Cooliris Previews which gives a small preview of the link. I do not use it as I did not find it useful.

WebMynd is next good visualization tool if you have a lot of hard disk to spare as it takes a snapshot of every page you visit and stores it so one can browse through once history in pictorial manner. Its a good add-on to try but it consumed too much hard disk so I had to disable it.

Adblock Plus is a good extension to get rid of some annoying ads.

Firebug and Tamper Data are great development tools for Firefox . Firebug lets one inspect the elements on web page and lot more. Tamper Data allows to capture get and post requests sent and modify them.

User Agent Switcher is another good tool to have although I have not used it a lot.I use it mainly to fool Megaupload that I have Alexa toolbar installed.

Recently I looked for the popular add-ons which I did not I have and I found following add-on which I am currently using and are really good.

I like Foxytunes to control my playlist from Firefox itself without switching windows.
The All-in-one sidebar is good tool to access bookmarks,downloads,add-ons etc.

Feedly is a really intuitive way to read one's RSS.It makes going through all the feeds really easy and fun.The recommendation feature from friends you follow is good too. It has been integrated with Google reader in a seamless manner.
Digg extension adds digg features into browser as evident from name. I do not use it a lot though.

Another tool Stealther seemed like replacement for IE8's inprivate mode but I have not been able to figure out how to use it.
McAfee SiteAdvisor is another tool which I have installed at office and thinking about installing at home too.

So that sums up all the add-ons that I use on my Firefox 3 currently to make browsing more productive and easy.

Write up for the yearbook which did not get published

2008-08-16T00:01:00.000+05:30

I recently found my write up for the yearbook which did not get published.

Here it is :-

IITG will always hold a place close to my heart. These four years have been really great and filled with moments which I treasure. I am fortunate to have so many wonderful friends - Foolhardy Tushar, Persevering Shashi, Fearfully audacious Jain & Ramjane, Unruffled Jbo, Lazy bum Kumar, Foul mouthed Tau, Laidback Chahar and many more, with whom days passed by in a steady joyful manner.

Most of my time was spent watching soaps, movies or playing comp games, other times involved playing on the terrace, playing cards or sitting around chatting idly. Avoiding course work used to be top on the priority list.

Last few weeks have involved Cricket world cup which have agitated some friends of mine as India is out. But I am rooting for South Africa so my world cup is still on. I am hoping Aussies do not win.

I wish good luck to everyone. Good bye IITG.

Lonavala Trip

2008-07-30T02:55:00.001+05:30

View Album

A Forgiveness Never Asked

2008-07-13T02:25:00.000+05:30

He was hearing whispers where no one was talking.He was trying really hard to listen and followed the sounds of whisper but he could not find anyone around talking.Everybody's eyes seemed to be asking questions even there was no one noticing him.He could not understand what was wrong with him.He could not help himself just imagining stuffs on his own.

While sitting alone, he felt like a person in courtroom every soul trying to pronounce a judgment on him. Everyone around was wearing white and weather seemed so gloomy that it seemed that shroud around body has engulfed the whole environment. He wanted to speak but watching his mother's tear made him stop.

So many years had passed yet the memory of that day seemed to be etched in his life as alive as he was. He still found questions in the eyes of his mother which she never even would have thought of. He seemed to be at peace when he was always facing turmoil from inside. He wanted to let it out but just fearing the unknown i.e. what would happen if it is revealed,if the situation becomes worse than the current one , made him stop. The fact that he had not said it in so many years made it almost impossible to say it now.He had tried to console himself by saying to himself that it was not his fault and he couldn't have known this. But these consoles only lasted even less than a moment.

One day on his way to home ,lost in his thoughts aided by a drunk driver he got hit by a car. He was rushed to hospital bleeding heavily. After an hour long operation he was saved by doctor. But due to injury to head he suffered from amnesia.After a month long recuperation he was ambulatory and he remembered most of his life except the part which he always tried to forget before injury.

Everything seemed fine and he was happy for the first time in life. Every once in a while he would notice an expression in her mother's face whenever she saw his picture when he was around. It always puzzled him but he just could not understand what was troubling him.He always felt that there is something about him which he is not remembering.

So many years had passed yet the memory he could not remember anything about that day. His mother was lying on the bed with ventilator on her side. He was watching her with grief with imminent about to happen. Accumulating all her strength she muttered the words "I forgive you. It was not your fault." He was not able to ask any questions nor could she answer any.

He remembered his mother's last word but never understood the meaning. It made him restless for sometime trying to remember all the things he did which could evoke such a response but he could not find any. Whenever he looked at his picture he just felt even more restless and fact that he could explain this baffled him a lot .

So many years had passed yet he could not forget his mother's last word nor could he remember about the day. His sons were playing around him, he was watching them as always with a smile. Suddenly a kite came and landed on the parapet. His elder son said some things to his younger brother which sent a chill to his spine. Watching these events happen took him by a shock and he understood what his mother's last words meant.

It was a clear blue sky and and lot of kites were flying in the sky. A red kite snapped in fight came flying to their roof and he watched it land on their parapet. He dared him to get the kite and while getting the kite he slipped and fell to the ground. As he was watching with shock,he saw people rushing to him. Not knowing what to do he ran quickly to his room and locked himself in. He can remember it all now. Body of his young brother covered in shroud and their mother crying.He then remembered how on the day when he was being rushed to hospital and he was asking for forgiveness that he asked his brother to get the kite.

Bill's Last Day

2008-06-29T14:35:00.000+05:30

I witnessed the last day of Bill Gates through webcast at Microsoft IDC 's hall. Although I was not physically present in the room with Bill Gates, it almost felt the same except for the time when webcast halted for some time due to buffering. It was really a great experience; "Bill Gates ,looking back, moving forward" that's what it was called.

Bill reminisced the past and evaluated the present and planned for future of Microsoft and for him. Ballmer was also helping Bill answer some questions regarding Microsoft like his proudest moment ,biggest goof up . plans for future etc . At the end , when Ballmer cried , I first thought why is he crying all of a sudden ,then suddenly even though I have no personal experience with Bill , I felt something it was not sadness or anything that I can name right now. I felt as if I am going to miss something now . Bill Gates has been one of my inspirations not just because he was richest man (that is one of the reasons :) though) ,but more because of the way he led the path for software industry to prosper . Many things are said about Microsoft and him , but Microsoft did whatever any company in its position would do. I am not justifying it but it does not steal anything away from great work done by Bill .

Today I found about my batch mate at IIT Guwahati , pursuing his dream in aviation. It was really great to know that he was going to become a pilot. It really kind of made me feel that hope and opportunity are always there and its really up to person to take a definite stride and grab them.

I also learnt of a endeavour of my IITG batch mate "BrandOnWheels.com" , its a nice undertaking and kudos to him for taking it.

This weekend I have got some really good news and witnessed a pretty important event.

Life is a journey

2008-05-31T03:19:00.000+05:30

Life is a journey and to define a destination for life is as much a sacrilege as throwing it away.This thought dawned suddenly to me before dawn in the darkest hour both literally and symbolically.I was so adamantly focused on finding purpose or showing purpose does not exist in life ,that I forgot that journey is even more important. Problem with making destination more important than journey is that you end up enjoying it less and you get too stuck on the fixed path that you do not dare to go on those not trod path through woods or beautiful cart track in the valley .Haven't you ever felt when journey is wonderful ,destinations do not matter.

When one really starts enjoying the fact of being alive ,no purpose no goal is needed to justify life's existence.And one finds that justifying one's existence with all sort of purpose seem so meaningless and trite.

I still need to shed a lot of things to truly enjoy this journey.The feeling of obligation,the feeling of justification,the feeling of competition are all hindrance.To truly exalt life we should not have to be obliged,to justify,to compete .They should occur without us even noticing it .The fact that we think about it means we are putting ourselves at strain.

When you start feeling that life is great to you and you should do something to help someone who is not having a great life.It is not really that you are not honoring life but insulting it as you think some life is not compared to you and you want to feel great about your life by showing other's life is lowly.If one could reach a stage where one would help someone without feeling about it then we salute life.

There is so much to learn about life that I do not even know now.

Here are the few lines from song which was playing when I wrote this thing from Thoda Pyar Thoda Magic

कभी सोचा है क्या,
कभी सोचा है क्या,
बारिश क्यों भाये,
क्यों गीत बेवजह ,होतों पे आए,
क्यों अच्छी लगे, तलवों में लहरें,
क्यों भटके कदम, एक पल ना ठहरें,
ये सब इशारे हैं,
संग जो हमारे हैं,
दिल ने सवारे हैं,
प्यार के लिए.

Competition

2008-04-23T03:49:00.000+05:30

all i see is blood
faces are tainted
clothes covered with mud
feelings have fainted

love is nowhere to be found
competition abound
as long as whistles sound
severed limbs do not astound

it is like a burning race
its hard to match the pace
finding a way out of maze
like a mice in daze

even if you do succeed
rewarded for good deed
you are only as good as steed
saddled to speed

losing a moment here
seems to much to bear
even though path is clear
destination is never near

a fly trapped in cobweb,
request plead or beg
till you drop dead,
to be devoured head to leg

Questions

2008-04-13T02:38:00.000+05:30

Its easier to be engaged in things :being engaged in work or with a person or something .Because if you let your mind off the hook,it starts asking all sort of questions .Questions which you do not have answers to.Questions like "what your life is about", "where is your life going","what have you done of yourselves","what you are going to do in near future or later","what is purpose of your life" . And to answer or think about these question really takes toll on one. So much that one feels its better if we stop thinking about them.

Everything one is doing seems so pointless.Its almost like one has no clue what is going on. Life just seems like a chasing a ghost which was never there at first place. It is much easier if you stop questioning and engage in things but to my peril I am not able to do that .So every once in a while i end up asking these hard riddles of life.

What bothers me more is not the fact that I do not have answers to these questions right now ,but is there going to be any time when I will be able to answer these questions. It seems as if I would never have answers to these questions . I know that I am considering these things because I am in position to think of such things .There a lot of people who do not have liberty of entertaining these thoughts for they are too busy to earn a slice of bread. Not that I am completely assured of my livelihood till eternity . But now that I am thinking of this how do I go about it.

Some take consolation by assuming that there is a higher being guiding. But I am not convinced with that logic. While others use some milestones to get a sense of purpose. I do not find anything wrong with it but my problem is I want to know which do these milestones belong to.What is destination of this route. Its easy to be part of wild goose chase . But to step back and think if the time and effort spent chasing this goose in reality time well spent or not.

I think my problem arises also from the fact that I am a narcissist. So the idea of perfect life with wife and kids , does not ring a bell. As it is just a way to engage in more activity to avoid introspection. For now I think all I can do is to go about my usual affairs. and hope I find answers to some of these questions,sooner the better.

Being Judged

2008-03-17T23:20:00.001+05:30

When does one find oneself to be judged. Is it when one is being judged by someone else or is it when one is judging oneself, so much that every little and minutest chuckle on something completely unrelated seem to be a loud hysterical laugh directed at oneself.

I am biggest critique of myself and no one else can evaluate more than oneself, as one has complete information and is well aware of each every move and reason behind them. But letting oneself being judged by oneself at every minute of life can be excruciating, so one tends to ignore the verdict passed by oneself without second thought.

Its only when someone else reminds of the verdict that we silently ignored it pains. So its not the person passing the judgment but the one who is accepting is at blame because he knows every reason.

So only question is the judgment completely baseless.Then person ignores it completely.

If it hits bull's eye the person concerned will be pained but will accept it as he is himself aware of it,and has passed the judgment to oneself a lot of times. Although this will not lessen the pain and denial a lot

The third case would be that the judgment may be partially correct, this one causes more doubt and strife this is the situation in which person concerned had come to settle that in given situation the move made was correct but by being judged makes him doubt the notion.

खौफ

2007-12-02T00:27:00.000+05:30

खौफ का यूं आलम है
मौत भी मना रही मातम है

जिंदगी की टूटी इस कदर आस है
की सिसकी ले रही हर साँस है

कोई किरण नही आशा की
कोई उम्मीद नही दिलासा की

सुख गए आंसू आँखों में
बंद हो गए सपने सारे सलान्खों में

Kakorrhaphiophobia

2007-11-04T03:24:00.000+05:30

There is a pond behind my house which is followed by small hillock. I have been wondering what is behind that hillock. So, I have been planning to stroll to its top to look what lies beyond it. But I am never able to find time for it.

But I think its not that I am not able to find time for it, it is that I do not want to find what lies beyond it.Part of it because I know that there is nothing there so I don't want to invest my time in something futile.Or may be because I hate to be dissapointed ,when I make an effort and I hope for something,so much that I do not even make a real effort because it leaves chance for the excuse that I didn't try hard.

I know it sounds stupid but thats how it is. I never knew when I became so phobic of failure. It stops me from really going for things because I think I will not be able to suceed at it. I don't know why I am afraid of failure its not like I am going to die if I fail. It is more like I do not want to admit I am not better at something because then I may stop trying.So I stop trying it before failing.The very fact that I am contemplating the fact that whether I should post it on net or not shows how afraid I am of getting discouraged even though there may be no one to discourage me.

I keep postponing lot of things just because I do not want to fail. I find out something more less demanding so that I do not have to pass through the litmus test.But then I sometimes realise that I cannot walk away from all the things all the time so I try things when they become crucial for me. Its also results in being commitment phobic because if you commit to things and if you make efforts to fulfill the commitment and if you are still not able to complete things the disappointment one has to go through is dreadful.

It is not like I am unaware of satisfaction of making effort then losing or winning. That is in the case of a game which is going to last for a few hours or few days at max say the game of chess I played at school level or a match of cricket. But in case where one has to make commitment which is more serious than a plain game. I cannot even promise myself even now that I will improve at it because what if i dont so why make a promise. Its like admitting failure without going for a fight. So the way I usually do things which are serious is by making them less serious by not coveting them so much and making an half hearted effort.

I think I will visit the hillock soon because it is nothing serious or long term.I wish I could say the same about long term commitments or the one that mattered.

I don't care what happens

2007-10-21T22:19:00.000+05:30

I don't care what happens
As long as I am with you
I can't withstand a day
Without you

You set my day right
With a glance
You light up my night
With romance

I get so lost
In your presence
I get so mesmerized
That i lose all sense

I don't know what
I would have done
I don't know where
I would have ran
Had I not met you
All I can think now
Is I love you

जिंदगी में कोई जूनून नही

2007-10-14T02:44:00.001+05:30

रात की गहराई में भी सुकून नहीं
जिंदगी में कोई जूनून नही

कमीं है एक नशे की
इंतज़ार है एक खूबसूरत हादसे की

रास्ते तो हैं कई
पर कोई मंजील नहीं

यूं तो गुज़र रही है जिंदगी
पर गुज़रना ही तो जिंदगी नही

विशाल सागर में
तलाश है साहील की

भगवान तो हैं कई
कमीं है यकीन की

भीड तो हैं बहुत
खोज है शानदार मह्फील की

बेसुरी होती है वो जिंदगी
जिस जिंदगी में धून नहीं

रात की गहराई में भी सुकून नहीं
जिंदगी में कोई जूनून नही

बस यूं ही

2007-10-14T02:14:00.000+05:30

अकेला हूँ तन्हा नहीं
मुसाफीर हूँ बंजारा नहीं
हक़ीकत हूँ अफसाना नही
साथी हूँ सहारा नही

Dental Drama

2007-08-22T01:05:00.001+05:30

I was waiting for today to come for last one week. The fear of “unknown things” (although I knew about surgery from the net, still it was not firsthand experience) that my teeth and gums are going to face kept me on the toes throughout the week. I was worried whether it will be successful or not. Am I going to witness side effects after the surgery?

The Day Begins

I slept earlier than usual timings so that I can wake up that at the time set in mobile alarm (7:00).I never heard the alarm though. I woke up at 7:20.without any external stimulus. The cleaning lady came next and she got the once in a while opportunity to clean my room as I never used to be up so early in the morning. Half an hour after the breakfast I eat medicine .I drank a glass of water for all three medicine prescribed by dentist. (Why am I writing this, because it will come into play later.) After I dressed up I realized that it is already 9:00. Doctor had stressed to be there by 9:45 so that the procedure could begin at 10.00. So the fact Shashi was taking some time slightly annoyed me and when he went back to take umbrella further annoyed so I went to road took an auto. In hindsight I shouldn’t have felt that way as I should have stressed earlier on about timing. I knew it will take at least 45 mins to reach punjagutta. Since we started at 9:25 I knew I was late by half an hour.

The Journey

After 10 to 15 mins I felt a strong urge to take a leak. (I guess 3 glass of water was not necessary). But I controlled the urge although bumps on the road made life difficult. I once even asked the auto to stop by at the urinal but he stopped ahead so I asked him to move on.

The Mix Up

After auto stopped near topaz building and asked for the fare I asked Shashi to pay the fare I continued to cross the road and search for the building. It was after few mins I realized Shashi was not following me .I went back to road but he vanished in thin air. I was annoyed at the fact that if he lost me why I didn’t he call me and was in a rush. I also didn’t call him as I thought if he is in a hurry to post his CAT form why should I bother him. It was later in the afternoon that I came know he thought I did not intend to give my CAT form to him to post. (Why did he think so I have no idea when he is going to post office why should I go separately?) Anyways “beet gayi so baat gayi”. Coming back to the plot. I inquired and went to the dental clinic. I confirmed about the appointment with the receptionist. And asked about way to toilet. She said “go out go left go right …..” I turned I saw door with toilet written on it and rushed towards. She said “not that, go out go left go right …..” but seeing me already at the toilet’s door she just switched on the lights of toilet.

The action begins

After meeting dentist and giving lame excuse of traffic and being far off from the place, dentist didn’t seem to buy that excuse and was slightly irritated at delaying his schedule although he didn’t express it. He asked me to lower the jeans , I am not afraid of needles as such as I have got many of them poked in me time to time . But it still stings.

After that, dentist started the flap surgery .The first step of cutting the gums on my entire upper jaw was painful .I cried slightly almost inaudibly for a sec and tears rolled out of eyes. But after that procedure was painless. Even though I could not see the action going on in the mouth I could feel the rubbing of steel on my teeth and stretching of gum. I mouth was completely dry due to suction. I felt like a person having a dry mouth due to month long desert odyssey. I could feel the dentist’s frustration as he vented his annoyance on the support staff. But I was not able to make out its source, whether it was my late arrival, inexperience of the staff, the bad deal that I overheard or something else. After the surgery doctor left without any word.

The mistake

I asked the staff there if I could go to toilet and went out. As I stepped out, I found one or two people looking at me like a freak. I proceeded to bathroom and looked in the mirror and found out I actually looked like a freak with swollen mouth, bloodied teeth and bloody band aid on the gums. After I came back no one was in the room. Confused as I sat there waiting for directions I saw the tap running and a plastic cup getting filled .In my ignorance I thought I need to gargle the blood as done after cleaning of the teeth. So I gargled and band aid came out, So I realized I made a mistake by not consulting anyone .

The correction

I went to doctor’s chamber .Doctor seeing my band aid gone inquired where did it go I said I gargled and it came out so he got irritated at the support staff on not giving directions about refraining from spitting anything out. He asked to take corrective measures.

The retreat

After having got various do’s and don’ts from dentist about the eating drinking and other stuffs. I made the payment and my purse got 12k lighter. After coming out I felt a bad taste in my mouth, I still don’t know what it was :- could be the feeling betrayed by destiny to cough up 12k , being stupid to gargle , the sudden disappearance of shashi, or the just the taste of my blood was kept coming in my mouth since the surgery began. I took auto and was worried at each that I might hurt my teeth.

After coming back, I rested for a while and then removed the band aid. Shashi came along with iron he would pump to beat Arnold.

Now I am waiting for dental drama part II which is on Monday.

A Picture

2007-05-13T02:54:00.001+05:30

Just looking at the desktop wallpaper,the picture of open blue sky filled with light and greens at the corner, at this depth of night has suddenly left me with thoughts of how even a glimpse of imagination can penetrate long boundaries of reality.Now when we are leaving IITG it seems an era of freedom is over,but just as a picture of blue sky can light up a night the memories of IITG would lighten up the day.

If I just close my eyes,I see myself entering the hostel gate of dihing excited but slightly apprehensive.I can remember the view from my room's large glass window of clouded sky and green hills.Even the swampy pond cluttered with wild vegetation had its natural appeal.

Although time was flowing steadily life seemed at balance with scenario mostly peaceful with occasional turbulent periods.Days passed by just playing games , watching movie soaps etc,chit chatting idly with friends,without a speck of worry.

Now that most my friends have left the campus, I am still not able realize this as our final adieu to IITG .It is still feeling like usual end of semester and everybody would come back.

chand lamhe hi sahi jo humne guzare sath main
apne yaaroon ke sath din ya der raat main
kabhi ache kabhi bure halat main
le jayenge ye lamhe ab saugat main

Life is a void

2007-04-11T04:10:00.000+05:30

Life is a void
A pertinent question to avoid
No matter how much you run away
It follows you night and day

One can resort to addiction
But it is nothing more than affliction
Once you look through facade
Everything seems like a useless charade

A life of meaning is an elusive dream
You follow till you lose all your steam

A Disappointed South African Fan

2007-04-08T06:29:00.000+05:30

It is really disappointing to see south africa to struggle to win against the minnows.The defeat against bangladesh is unacceptable.

South Africa 's performance in last few matches is disenchanting. South African bowlers gave away lot of runs against australia .And even today too they squandered away lot of runs in last ten overs.

South African batting is also a cause of concern.Except smith and kallis other players are failing to provide support.South African middle order comprising of kemp,boucher,prince are not able to provide a solid partnership in the middle.

As a fan, I hope this their nadir and from now on they are going to play well and ensure a berth in the semis by winning the matches against west indies, england and new zealand.

**Also one of friend pointed out a interesting coincidence that in world cup 1999, zimbabwe after upsetting india went on to upset south africa. Similarly bangladesh after upsetting india went on to upset south africa.**

Indecision

2007-02-05T16:45:00.000+05:30

"Ache aur bure main to koi bhi chun sakta hai.Par do ache chizon main ek ko chunna ya do buri main ek ko chunna muskil kaam hai."

A dialogue from fanaa movie is seeming to be perfect fit for my situation.Its very high time for me with job at Microsoft,hyderabad and calls from all the IIMs.But to choose between the two would be a tough task for me.It seems obvious choice to many who suggest IIM but then i am not sure whether manegerial job is suited for me.While on the other hand I am not sure whether microsoft job is going to keep me intrested for long.Giving CAT after job is an option but then I am not so sure I will be able to get through while working.(I feel this year's CAT was very much suited for me.)

Since the results of IIM are still not final,I am postponing the decision to the date till they are final.Also the trip organised by microsoft may prove helpful in decision making.

It is bit weird letting out your thoughts in open(my first blog).