What to do in life?

Do what you are and not what you love.

So, I have something new to love every year. Not a good recipe for those who follow the advice of making careers out of what they love.

In the same vein: Do what you are

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Some interesting links

All through India Uncut

1) Traffic time in Russia

2) Biblical Events through Google Earth

3) J.K. Rowling contemplating eight potter book

4) Donate food while testing your vocabulary

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Strawberries with Natural Ice Cream of Juhu Scheme

The strawberry season is upon us and Natural (Ice Cream of Juhu Scheme) is celebrating it with Strawberry Sundae's. Recommended is Strawberries with Malai Ice Cream, however you can pair the strawberries with any ice cream of your choice. I tried them with the new seasonal flavour of Guava and just couldn't stop smacking my lips. The sour and chilled strawberries with sweet ice cream provide minutes of limitless indulgence for the taste buds.

Damages - Rs.65/-



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Swift Sedan

A picture doing rounds of the web. Yuck!



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Robot can now play violin

How long before it can fire a gun? Wait a minute...

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Eight Rules For Writing Fiction—Kurt Vonnegut

From India Uncut


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Microsoft - Everybody's favourite whipping boy

Microsoft has more than its share of detractors and sometimes they find very creative outlets to direct their criticism at the behemoth.

One example is this design scenario if Microsoft had designed Gmail. Though I don't agree with some points and while a few others have been exaggerated, nevertheless the post is funny and definitely worth a look.

What if Gmail had been designed by Microsoft?


Another excellent example is the design scenario if Microsoft had designed the Ipod packaging. This one is a sure fire blast and make sure you don't miss this one.

MS Ipod Parody


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Chak De - Impressions on Shah Rukh Khan

As I was watching Chak De in a Volvo Bus while on my way back from Mumbai to Pune, I suddenly realized how well Shah Rukh Khan acted in the movie. For the second time (after Swades) he did not let the SRK persona overcome the protagonist he was playing. It led me to believe that this man is so smart he knows that his mass market appeal lies in being SRK in all his movies however once in a while he essays a character role to silence his detractors who think he cannot act. One can't help but be in awe of him.

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Beowulf - Literally sexy animation

So the word sexy has been done to death, used for the mundanest of things and when something really S-E-X-Y comes up you find that the word sexy is just not enough to describe it. It is Fucking Sexy. Is that taken? It schmoozes and oozes. Violence, debauchery and gore all galore!


How would you describe Angelina Jolie emerging naked out of a pool. Completely naked. Head to toe naked. You got it right?. Angelina Jolie Naked.


As with me this CGI adaptation of Homer's classic is going to draw the numbers on the sheer strength of that scene alone. However the movie also has a lot else going for it. For one, it is called the "The Lord of the Rings" of the animated world. (I know, too many the's). For a major part of the movie I forgot I was seeing something animated. The scale of the movie is huge and Beowulf's fight with Grendal and in the fag end with his dragon son is breathtaking. The animation is as life like as they can make it and after Final Fantasy VII Advent Children, this is truly the next evolution of hyper-detailed CGI. Not much to say on the acting front as I would take a real Anthony Hopkins over an animated one anyday.


Director Robert Zemeckis spins a yarn and from what I have heard it is one with a twist. A deviation from the original story but a story well told nevertheless. Beowulf must survive the fight with the monster Grendal but even if he does so can he escape the wrath of Grendal's devil mother and can he unearth the murky past of Grendal's origin? Can he prevent incuring a curse that he just help lift? You will find all these answers in the movie but if Zemeckis really had to take liberties with the storyline he could atleast have blessed us with a fight scene between a naked Angelina Jolie and anyone. Anyone. Will someone fight the damn woman please? Will you?





http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0442933/



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Yaana Raaskala...Miind it!

The new buzzword you Naari Pussi!

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Meet Joe Black - Impressions

I had an opportunity to catch this flick on the tube recently. I ran into it 20 minutes into the movie, in the scene where Brad Pitt is getting his first taste of Peanut Butter. His expressions and mannerisms told me that it is going to be one hell of a watch.

The story in very simple words is about Death who comes to take away a big media mogul Anthony Hopkins whose time is up. However impressed by Hopkins's view on life, Death makes him an offer that he will let him live as long as he can keep Death interested in living life on this plane. Death takes over the body of Brad Pitt, a name of Joe Black and proceeds to live along with Hopkins and his family while experiencing what life is about.

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0119643/

Brad Pitt has really acted well, especially in the first half as he is learning about human senses , while his polite response to every mundane query is hilarious without coming across as sarcastic. Hopkins as usual is fantastic and is ably supported by Claire Forlani playing his daughter and Joe Black's love interest Susan. The frames might seem to drag at times as the camera lingers on every twitch of the muscle of every character. However, it is this laid back pace while slowly engulfs you in the turmoils that Pitt's character undergoes as he discovers the wonders of life and love.

The movie also helped me rediscover the haunting music of "What a wonderful world" by "Louis Armstrong". I first heard it in the movie "Good Morning Vietnam" when Robbie Williams plays it on the station radio. A beautiful beautiful song with a melody that can soften the hardest of souls. It makes my tear ducts go into overdrive. A song sung by a brave man during the times when black people were beaten up on the streets for no rhyme or reason. A must watch and listen for every human being.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vnRqYMTpXHc (Check out his expressions)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VQk2LtK680w (Good Morning Vietnam OST)


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Electroluminescent T-shirt

How to be a hit at your local party circuit:

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Pune Central @ University Road

University Road has a new shopping destination in the form of "Central" which opened its second Pune store last week. It's the second honest shopping mall this side of the town after the first Shopper's Stop at Wakdewadi and snarling traffic jams at the Model Colony signal are already an indication of the time to come. What I am impressed with is that besides the usual domestic suspects Central also offers a very decent apparel collection from FCUK (French Connection), CK (Calvin Klein), Tommy Hilfiger, Bossini and a few other international brands.

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PC Buildoff

I finally have it. After months of research, driving cheap deals, inter-city purchases, I finally own a good enough machine to brag about. First of all, a big thanks to Abhishek Saigal, Abhijit Gupte, Hari Piparaiya and Sumant Gupta for sharing their very valuable comments and opinions with me. They helped me get back in sync with the murky world of PC Hardware. Here goes...

The pride of the configuration and the last item to be purchased is the above 19" wide screen black beauty. Viewsonic is slowly developing a repuation for making the most excellent of screens and this one is no different. Though you can get Viewsonic 19 inch widescreeners for less than 10k in the market, I spent a little bit extra to get one with a video response of 2ms and the option of both Digital (DVI-D) and Analog inputs.

Viewsonic VX1932wm - Rs. 10750/-
http://ap.viewsonic.com/in/products/productspecs.php?id=317

I picked up this wireless desktop beauty for scrap prices in Singapore. They must have had some problem with price labeling for sure. Despite a lot of negative feedback about battery problems with wireless systems, it's been two months now without any glitches.

Microsoft Wireless Desktop 4000 - 65s$ = Rs.1800

http://www.microsoft.com/hardware/mouseandkeyboard/ProductDetails.aspx?pid=057

This Zebronics ATX cabinet is the perfect combination of beauty and price. I suspected that the inbuilt 400W might not be enough juice, but its still holding.

ATX Cabinet Zebronics Diana - Rs. 1750/-
http://www.zebronics.net/gamingcabin.asp





AMD Athlon Dual Core 64 X2 running at 2.2 Ghz and 512KB L2 Cache each. This entry level dual core processor suffices the needs of a power user like me and as far as comparisons with Intel are concerned, the only thing going for Intel was longevity and with most systems being recycled in 3-4 years or so, the much cheaper AMD made more sense.

AMD 4200+ (For Pricing see next item)

http://www.amd.com/us-en/Processors/ProductInformation/0,,30_118,00.html

Again an entry level motherboard. It comes with an onboard 100Mbps Ethernet card, Integrated Realtek Soundcard and Nvidia chipset for onboard graphics and other riff raff. Very small and very cheap.

ASUS M2N-MX SE - Rs. 7150/- (Processor and Motherboard combo)
http://www.asus.com/products.aspx?l1=3&l2=101&=345&l4=0&model=1647&modelmenu=1




Since the motherboard comes with only two memory slots, I went in for a single stick of 2gb ram to avoid future upgrade pains. It did turn out costlier than going in for two 1gb sticks.

Transcend 2GB RAM DDR2-667 (333Mhz) - Rs. 4950/-

The standard choice for most. I was tempted by the offerings of Western Digital but low stock availability at my vendor turned the tide in favor of Seagate.

Seagate Barracuda 250GB SATA (3gb/s, 8mb cache buffer) - Rs. 2800/-

http://www.seagate.com/ww/v/index.jsp?vgnextoid=aace27fc60322110VgnVCM100000f5ee0a0aRCRD&locale=en-US

The king of its kingdom. 20x DVD +R and -R, 8x DVD +R DL and -R DL Nuff said.

Liteon DVD RW LH20A1P - Rs. 1550/-
http://us.liteonit.com/us/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=203&Itemid=67

The second item I picked up from Singapore. The difference in picking the same from India is that it would be a thousand bucks costlier and a different brand. In hindsight I should have gotten it from India as I am missing out on the warranty in case something goes wrong. Since the 8600GTS is just an overclocked version with better cooling and I am not very big on FPS, this one made more sense. It comes with Dual DVI and TV out. Also, I no longer have to share video memory with my system.

Asus Nvidia EN8600GT (256MB DDR3) - 191S$ = Rs. 5304/- http://www.asus.com/products.aspx?l1=2&=6&l3=514&l4=0&model=1812&modelmenu=1







Luminous UPS 750VA - Loan from uncle! - You Rock!

Total Damages = Rs. 36054/-

P.S. All prices are from august end and would surely have dropped further since then. If you avoid certain extravagances like the 19" WS, wireless desktop, graphics card, single 2gb ram stick, etc. a much cheaper and yet a contemporary system can be easily made.

The old mould:

Monitor: Samsung Samtron 55V 15" Colour CRT
Keyboard: TVS Gold PS/2 Mechanical Keyboard
Mouse: Logitech PS/2 Mechanical Scroll Mouse
Cabinet: Mercury ATX with 300W SMPS
Motherboard: Intel Desktop Board D845HV
Processor: Intel Pentium 4 1.5Ghz
RAM: 512MB SD RAM @ 133 Mhz
Display: Big 128MB Nvidia GeForce FX 5200 (1024 x 768 x 60 Hz)
N/W Adapter: Realtek RTL8139 PCI
Optical Drive 1: TSSTCorp CD/DVDTS-H552U
Optical Drive 2: Samsung CD-R/RW SW-252B
Hard Disk: Samsung SV4002H 40GB
UPS: Powersafe 600VA

Chicken or the egg

Is darkness the absence of light or light the absence of darkness? I think, since the universe is natively dark, light would be the absence of darkness , think.

In the same vein, an excerpt from "Certainty of Uncertainty" an essay from "Mind Matters" by Jug Suraiya:

"Reality is what we take to be true. What we take to be true is what we believe. What we believe is based on our percepts. What we perceive determines what we believe. What we believe determines what we take to be true. What we take to be true is our reality" What came first?

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Left Right Left

Look at the image and try to determine if the girl is rotating Clockwise or Anti-Clockwise.

If you see it change directions mid way and suspect that its an animated gif or some computer wizardry then gather a sample of three or four people around you and ask them to determine the direction of rotation. Don't be surprised if you find them arguing and exclaiming about each other's inherent blindness. I have done the same and at a given moment different people see the girl rotate in different directions, occasionally someone sees her change directions while another person thinks she is still going about in the same direction she was earlier.

The trick they say is in which part of the brain you use. If the image is processed by the left part of your brain you would see her go Anti Clockwise and if the image is processed by the right part of your brain you would see her go Clockwise. If you see the image change directions then its just the image flitting from one part of the brain to another.

Source: News.com.au

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No Regrets...Ever!

I don't believe in having regrets. Ever! By regrets I mean wishing that you had taken a past decision differently. When you do so, you insult your own intelligence. You took a decision in the past using all the information, intuition and intelligence at your disposal, if you wish now that you could have chosen differently, how do you know that you are taking your current decisions correctly and will not regret them in the future?

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V.S.Naipaul has something to say

Like always its vitriolic. However, this time it can be of some use to us. His advice to writers:

VS Naipaul’s Rules for Beginners

1. Do not write long sentences. A sentence should not have more than ten or twelve words.

2. Each sentence should make a clear statement. It should add to the statement that went before. A good paragraph is a series of clear, linked statements.

3. Do not use big words. If your computer tells you that your average word is more than five letters long, there is something wrong. The use of small words compels you to think about what you are writing. Even difficult ideas can be broken down into small words.

4. Never use words whose meaning you are not sure of. If you break this rule you should look for other work.

5. The beginner should avoid using adjectives, except those of colour, size and number. Use as few adverbs as possible.

6. Avoid the abstract. Always go for the concrete.

7. Every day, for six months at least, practice writing in this way. Small words; short, clear, concrete sentences. It may be awkward, but it’s training you in the use of language. It may even be getting rid of the bad language habits you picked up at the university. You may go beyond these rules after you have thoroughly understood and mastered them.

From: India Uncut


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Oooh...Aaah...Ouch

I am down and out with a bad Clavicle (Collar) bone fracture, owing to a bike accident. The bone has broken into three parts and have been named thus; Oooh...Aaah...Ouch. Nevertheless, should be back to speed as soon as I have the use of both my hands. In the meantime chew on this. Dog!

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Shoaib Malik thinks Pakistan represents all Muslims!!

...Or thats what he proclaimed during the presentation ceremony of the ICC Twenty20 World Cup 2007 finals. In his own words:

"First of all I want to say something over here. I want to thank you back home Pakistan and where the Muslim lives all over the world."

So. obviously he wants to thank the Pathan brothers and every other Indian Muslim cricketer in the team for making them lose?! *snicker*

So do we have teams based on nationality or religion?

On a lighter note:


Knock Knock

Who's that?

Misbah

Misbah who?

Mis bah 5 runs!!

:-D




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BMW M3 Challenge - Free official game for download

BMW is making available a FREE PC game for download from their website. The game has been developed to highlight the features of its all new M3 Coupe. You will have to first register with the website before the game is made available for download.

From the home page of their website:

BMW M3 Challenge takes the thrill of driving to new heights. BMW M3 Challenge, which is the official game to BMW´s all-new M3 Coupé, features the original high detailed BMW M3 in all its available exterior colours and the original Nurburgring GP-track in a hyper realistic racing world. BMW M3 Challenge will allow you to experience the new BMW M3 Coupé right there where it was born and developed - on the race track.

Features

• Stunning simulation of the all new BMW M3 Coupé
• Choose from 4 different driving perspectives: Cockpit, Bonnet, Bumper and Chase-Cam
• Configure your own M3 Coupé by selecting the colour and the rims.
• 4 game modes, including:
• Test Drive
• Time Trial including ghost car
• Race Weekend with up to 15 AI-drivers and three difficulty levels
• Multiplayer Race with up to 15 human opponents via internet and LAN
• Original Nurburgring Grand-Prix track and "Sprint" short-bound.
• Replay-function

For screenshots and game download visit:
http://www.m3-challenge.com

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Happy Feet and Shake that ass with me

A video and song that really get me going...

The death of home desktop Linux

Here's a reply I posted to Giri's post on "The Linux Desktop".

The biggest mistake that people do is to mistake the end with the means. Our purpose of using a computer is to improve productivity. I have been trying Linux flavors since the time when red hat used to make desktop variants eight years ago and I still have my Suse 6.3 lying around somewhere, but as I try Ubuntu now the increase in end-user friendliness is minuscule. I don't want to spend an hour learning how to install a program nor do I want to spend the same time in searching for a driver for my hardy web cam. For a home user, Linux is still retrograde that only hampers productivity. 8 Years is a long time and not one company has utilized that time to come close to the user friendliness that behemoths of Microsoft and Apple offer. Hell, even the big two seem to be collaborating now for the sake of their end users. If Linux companies are happy earning their bread and butter from the server space then so be it. I think Red Hat had sense when they bailed out of the desktop space, someone must have realized that Linux is just not going to make the cut in the home user market. Mind you, it's not the product I have my doubts about, it's the companies who still seem to be stuck in the rut of pleasing the advanced techie. As far as the home desktop is concerned for linux it's either shape up or ship out!

Sakura in a Bikini

For all you Sakura fans out there. Spy pictures of Sakura looking hot while frolicking in a bikini on a white sandy beach of Crescent Moon Island. What big forehead??

P.S. These are shots from the rolling credits of Naruto The Movie 3 - The Animal Riot of Crescent Moon Island

Go Giri...

That's for my best buddy who's blogging tech and love ballads out of his guts. Check him out at:

http://girish13.spaces.live.com

P.S. You need a Windows Live account to be able to view the blog

Review of the day at Mouthshut

My review on Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows scored the "Review of the Day" at www.mouthshut.com . My two lines of html code to fame!!

Work Desktop

Well, I wanted to share what my work desktop looks like. I like everything to be in its place which might explain the minimalism. Everything I need is in Stardock's Objectdock. I am also using Yahoo Widgets for the calendar, clock and the swimming shark distraction. The taskbar along with the desktop icons are hidden. I am unable to get rid of the recycle bin due to workplace restrictions otherwise that would have met its end as well. Do share your comments and if possible your desktops as well.

Smelly Cat

Here are some perfumes that I have used over the years :

360º by Perry Ellis

360 degrees was one of my first perfumes and I really loved it.The smell of fresh fruit and citrus makes it a great summer perfume. Also, its one of the long lasting ones. I like perfumes with the least notes and this one has 6 in total. Citrus and Juniper Berry as the top note; Sage, cardamom and lavender in the middle followed by sensual woods as the base note.

Emporio Armani (He) by Giorgio Armani

A very surprising perfume as the base notes take their own time to come out but once they do you can make out the absolute difference. The scent has a moderate strength and is very woody. Its great for an evening out. Top notes are Yuzu, Sage and Cardamom; Vetiver in the middle and finally the full deal in the base with Cedarwood, Guaiacwood, Sandalwood and Musk.

L'eau Bleue D'Issey Pour Homme by Issey Miyake

Issey Miyake is the king of the strength game. His perfumes last the whole day and makes women go weak in the knees. Okay I made that one up, but L'eau Bleue D'Issey is a very magnetic scent. If L’Eau d’Issey was unusual by most standards then this one branches out furthur on its own. You have rosemary, lemongrass, ginger, anise and lemon fighting for your attention in the beginning until they give way to a bit of floral and rose bouquet in the middle. In the end its just a clean fresh soapy albeit heavy scent that follows you around all the time to the point of being oppressive at times. However, it remains my favourite by a big margin.

Bvlgari Pour Homme Soir by Bvlgari

What? Where did it go? That was my reaction half an hour into the application. Skin types notwithstanding this is the fastest disappearing perfume I have had. Infact had I not bought it from Changi Duty Free, I would have almost believed myself to be cheated with a fake imitation. Said to be the richest and most sophisticated amongst the Bvlgari pour homme collection, this one is a complete bummer.

Boss Soul by Hugo Boss

One word. Spice. A recent purchase after the disappointment of Bvlgari, I couldn't be more satisfied. It is quite complex unlike my tastes but I find myself liking it a lot. Opening with Mandarin, Bergamot, Black pepper, Anise and Cardamom which collectively give the spice rush, they give way to Nutmet blossom, Lavender, Coriander Seeds and Cinnamon in the middle. Maybe that explains my affinity for it, cause I can't resist cinnamon in any form. The perfume lasts long and it finally settles down to strains of Vetiver, Vanilla, Tonka, Amber, Musks and Tamboti Wood. In addition to everything else, it lasts long, really long, and I like that in a perfume.

Probable Future Acquisitions:

Echo by Davidoff

Body Kouros by YSL

Pictures of Note - Malaysia

Second series of some pictures of note from my recent trip to Malaysia. For the entire set jump to my Picasa WebAlbum

Cable Car, Genting Highlands, Malaysia

Petronas Towers, Kuala Lumpur (KL)

Suria Shopping Mall, Kuala Lumpur City Centre

Petronas Tower, KL

City Lights, KL

Petronas Towers Skyline, KL, Malaysia

Batu Caves, KL

Stalagmite Formation, Dark Cave, Batu Caves

The Old and the new, KL

KTM Building, KL (CST, Mumbai??)

Old Railway Station Spire, KL

China Town, KL

Maybank, Sky Tower, Petronas Towers, KL


Sky Tower, KL

City, KL

Pictures of Note - Singapore

A few pictures of note from my recent trip to Singapore. For the entire set jump to my Picasa WebAlbum

Sunset at Sentosa Beach, Singapore

Merlion at Sentosa, Singapore

Siloso Beach, Sentosa, Singapore

Underwater World, Sentosa, Singapore

Dolphin Lagoon, Sentosa, Singapore

Fountain of Wealth, Suntec, Singapore

Merlion, One Fullerton, Singapore