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Awesome Technology From Microsoft - Photosynth
Friday, June 15, 2007


This is what keeping the people busy at live labs



Here is a small writeup in the live page about photosynth.
"The Photosynth Technology Preview is a taste of the newest - and, we hope, most exciting - way to view photos on a computer. Our software takes a large collection of photos of a place or an object, analyzes them for similarities, and then displays the photos in a reconstructed three-dimensional space, showing you how each one relates to the next.


In our collections, you can access gigabytes of photos in seconds, view a scene from nearly any angle, find similar photos with a single click, and zoom in to make the smallest detail as big as your monitor."


Follow these Steps to experience Photosynth

1. Go to collections

2. Choose a one of your choice - this will ask you to install a small plugin in firefox. Go ahead and do it and I assure, you won't repent for a microsoft plugin for a firefox browser.

3.Experience the minutest details of the monuments.


There's nothing more to write about it. It's all about experiencing it. After all, seeing is believing.

posted by Unknown @ 11:55 AM, ,




Synercus caffer fight and more stories...
Wednesday, June 06, 2007



This is a wonderful movie shot by a tourist, while driving in a safari vehicle in South Africa's Kruger National Park. The view count had crossed 7 digits and soon will surpass the “metos-coke”, one of the most viewed movies in youtube.

This is an awesome video about how a herd of buffalos fight with five lions. They probably are Cape buffalos, the South African habitats having upward-curving horns.
For all those, who live in a fast world and can't spare 8+ minutes to watch this snippet, (I seriously suggest you to watch the movie), I will run through the movie line. The lions attack the buffalo and get hold of a minnow out of the three. The rest of the buffaloes rushes out and escapes from the lion. After sometime, they come back as a big herd and attacks back the lion and save their youngling. It's awesome, in a way, its shot unexpectedly with an unprofessional digital camera.
When I glimpsed through the video, I am bit more nostalgic with a story which I had read in my pre school time. It's all about the same story line that I have narrated above. It’s to teach the kids about the "power of n" Vs. "power of 1". I still remember, it’s written in red and yellowish colored book, with few lines written below each graphic, mimicking a mini comic.





I imagine, in the future the kids will be learning the same story with the realistic movie like the one above, instead of the book I read. The OLPC tries to provide a laptop for all kids in a price range of sub 150$ (converting to 6000 rupees with a over heated Indian currency conversion rate, against US dollar, of 41). And the kid in India can watch the video, which was shot at the other side of the globe at South Africa by a US photographer and uploaded into Youtube like video web 2.0's created by nerds across the globe.
And all the study materials of the future will no more be printed in the same red and yellowish colored papers, rather uploaded in sites like youtube , open courseware, and knowledge base created by people across the globe. And presumably, the wikis will rule. The notebooks are dead. Long live the notebooks!!

posted by Unknown @ 8:23 PM, ,




Reservations....
Saturday, May 19, 2007

Guess whats is the much debated and the controversial topic on recent times.No gifts for right guess.and it is OBC quota reservations.

According to Mr.P.Radhakrishnan(told in an interview with rediff.com's shobha warrier), the seeds of reservation policies were sown by the british.They wanted to improve the lives of oppressed Muslims of their time and they called it as "Representation" and not as "Reservation".Then came Babasahedb Ambedkar, who bought in the idea of "Reservation" and moulded it and worked on including it in constitution. And regarding the criterion for the backwardness,Radhakrishnan says,"There was a lot of debate on the issue as some leaders wanted to have an economic criterion for reservation. But 90 per cent of the Indians were poor at that time. So, the argument was that reservation for all is reservation for none. It will not become an exception. So, they decided to club social backwardness and economic backwardness."




It all happened nearly 60 years back.The population has grown and the gap between social backwardness and economic backwardness has widened.People in the backward community has come out of the coccon and spread their wings in various public sector fields.and there are many brahmins who went down...And the situation is not totally upside down,though.Still "Dalit" communities are oppressed and not given equal opportunity and the political parties which raises their voices of concern during the times of election are really interested in the vote bank and not in the realistic improvement in the Dalit people's life.There are thousands of political parties that came into existence,shouting for "Dalits" and printing Ambedkar's photo in their party's vinyl hoardings.Mandal Commission came and Goswami was gone.And the situation is "Are Brahmins the new Dalits of India?"

And now parties are more concerned about OBC's.Because of the open secret, 'they form the lion's share in the "real voter" population".After 60 years they want 69 percent reservation for the OBC quota and according to Radhakirshnan, "In Tamil Nadu, 87 to 88 per cent of the population come under the reservation bracket. Groups are included in the list arbitrarily by the politicians in power. In each group, there is a creamy layer and they grab the opportunities." And the condition is no different in other states in South India and most other states in North too.Aren't we in square one again.According to him, even Ambedkar wanted the so called, "Reservation policies" to be in force for only 10 years after implementation.Due to the weakened and corrupted political system we had after 10 years of independence, and which continues till now, there are many hidden agendas behind the reservation implementation.

And I become Sharukh khan now and have two questions for everyone,
"Why shouldn't we consider the "economic backwardness" alone as a criterion for the reservations?

Whether that can be restricted to a certain oppressed groups or just to consider their family's economy level is another question of debate though.But, this will really help the poor to come up in the society, and the real need of reservation be served properly.It will also help in bridging the divide between rich and poor.

Why the politicians who are talking on bringing up reservation in education,can't work on improving the primary and secondary education system in the villages and build more government aided schools and colleges?Without

Without improving the basic education system, how come we can expect the improvement in the education levels of oppressed and poor by just giving the reservations.

Who's gonna answer, can't win dho crore rupiah... At least can open the eyes of mob,religiously fighting for the reservation implementation.

And no body is concerned about the really oppressed and minority groups, "Muslims", for which the British really started this special quotas.The case is in the hands of Supreme Court and the results are much awaited like a India - Pakistan cricket one dayer.Students are awake and with the print and TV media stalking the issue very closely, the decision will be good for the nation and for the needy.

posted by Unknown @ 9:24 PM, ,




The UP Polls
Tuesday, May 08, 2007

 

Yesterday NDTV was running coverage on the last phase elections on UP polls. Ayodhya was the main city that’s going in on this round. The Hindutva stronghold. It is here, where the religious fanatics once demolished a heritage symbol and the people from the same set went on to become the political party leaders and rulers. To my consolation, the exit poll conducted over a vast set of people, showed that the “temple factor” is no more a factor for people to choose the parties in polling booths. When coming to the party candidates for the constituency have varied credentials to show off. One party’s candidate is in jail and the other party’s candidate has 20+ cases against him and the third party’s candidate beat the others in the numbers with 30+ cases. The cases include murder and rape even. Let the “Lord Rama” save the city.

Not only at the ram janmabhoome, but also across the entire of the state, had seen many such ridiculous things happening, in the past two months of election campaigning and the D-day(s). The election was held in 7 phases in the politically important state and one of the worst in terms of the lawlessness in the country.

Only sweet thing about all these jokily election, is the far less crime incidents on the poll day and the election commission, the independent body which conducts and oversees the election process across the country.

posted by Unknown @ 8:33 PM, ,




The Kiss warrant...


And it’s almost a month I wrote my last blog. World hasn’t changed much with few exceptions like new discovery of earth like planet in a nearby galaxy, shooting by a treacherous student at Virginia tech, 45 day prison for Paris Hilton, end of UP polls, Dravid’s accident at the training camp, much hyped OBC reservation order and the follow-up of IIM results and many more … One thing that strike me like a sting is the arrest warrant against Richard Gere for “publicly” kissing the famed Big brother girl, Shilpa Shetty. Thought of just sharing my thoughts on this…

Kissing in public doesn’t cause cancer, whereas smoking does. Kissing in public doesn’t cause environmental issues, urinating and spitting does. Are the politicians and the mob worried about the public? I don’t think so… The scene was repeated in local news channels and online blogs is innumerous times and the effect, which the “Hindu-hardliners” wanted to suppress, has backfired. ? Whom to blame, the unscrupulous politicos who support these petty things to gain some more votes or the Hindu conservatives who try to “preserve” the otherwise deteriorating culture or the news channels themselves who blew the issue as a big one to increase their TRP ratings. I would say all.

Many things have happened aftermath. Gere himself apologized for the public intimacy he had shown over a lady in a country where it is considered taboo and the judge who issued a arrest warrant to Gere is transferred. Lest, the people involved didn't appear in court too.

Wish the HIV/AIDS awareness campaign they were touring for , got equal attention...

posted by Unknown @ 7:34 PM, ,




India : The Great Democrazic Nation
Sunday, April 15, 2007


Last month, businessweek ran a good article on How the India is building its economy on shaky grounds!This is a must read for every one who tend to be Indians and stay in India.As a person, I love to stay back in India, even the inflation goes beyond 10 or India loses the 2011 cricket world cup. I thought of sharing my thoughts over the same. India is one of the biggest democrazy.yes its driving the country into a bottomless pit.The self minded politicians with no interest on nation's growth,the awful Indian youth with no care for the nation and the left behind farmers (once who were the backbone of the Indian economy).Quoting the chief mentor of Infosys,the article points out India's exports total less than 1% of global trade,
compared with 7% for China.

Now-a-days,China and India had become synonymous in economic debates and market comparisons,due to the similarities in the population level, land stretch, continental market opportunities and and uhm, I cant find one more reason.Probably I don't know much, but I strongly disagree with comparing India and China.Now India is like how China was 10 years back.And ten years from now,there are lot of chances we will stay back at the same level,if not deteriorate to ground zero.

Without building a proper infrastructure and the logistic facilities,there is no upward journey for India after few years.China takes credit at this point and the article clearly points out "Beijing launched a massive upgrade initiative, building more than 25,000 miles of expressways that now crisscross the country and are as good as the best roads in the U.S. or Europe. India, by contrast, has just 3,700 miles of such highways. It's no wonder that when foreign companies weigh putting new plants in China vs. India to produce global exports, China more often wins out". Hey cmon,we are a democrazy and china is a communist republic.huh,who needs democracy.Freedom, they say, dont come for free.and many of us had forget this.And the uphill task needs lots of funds. And the article continues as " China's lead in infrastructure is likely to grow, too. Beijing plows about 9% of its GDP into public works, compared with New Delhi's 4%. And because of its authoritarian government, China gets faster results". Do you realize now, why I said that as "democrazy".

And they haven't pointed literacy, and I believe its the major building block for any Nation.Literate citizens are boon for every country.Literacy is an indispensable means for effective social and economic participation,contributing to human development and poverty reduction, says UNESCO.India has a youth literacy level of 70+%,a great achievement though, not when compared to china having a literacy rate of 98+%.Who needs schools, when we have hotels,match factories,cracker manufacturing hubs and quaries to where we send our youth to.

Now-a-days,all the news television channels and dailies blaring on a same slogan - "India has arrived". Where? and for Whom? It might be a good attraction for the retail giants trying to cope up with their loss in other markets, to make use of India's middle class,who are ready to spend upto 55 US$ for things which they don't necessarily need to have."India has arrived" for the Outsourcing giants, who are all making record profits and unstoppable growth(to all the day dreamers,Vietnam and China is coming to the software front and they will arrive soon).But not for the Indians whole together who still sweat everyday to earn 3 US$ and who take their wife and kids to work with them for additional income of 3$."India has arrived" for all the mobile operatiors who try to have a bite in the pie into the again cursed Indians who were paying twice as much for even the basic right of all,speech.ok,we make a call speak to person in a nearby town, but United States makes this call free for its citizens.And all those people who are blaring at India's coming should also think about the insurmountable disadvantages of the nation, atleast with the democrazy system we follow relegiously.

They clearly point out "The infrastructure deficit is so critical that it could prevent India from achieving the prosperity that finally seems to be within its grasp. Without reliable power and water and a modern transportation network, the chasm between India's moneyed elite and its 800 million poor will continue to widen, potentially destabilizing the country." According to the Press release by Indian Foreign trade, the trade deficit for April- February, 2007 was estimated at US $ 55858.54 million which was higher than the deficit of US $ 37575.61(P)
million during April- February, 2006. Hey wait I will search for China's trade deficit.(after a very lonnnnggg search),I can't find any defecit data for China and I found myself a dumbo.How come a country which is now the world's No. 3 trading nation, exporting and importing about $1.5 trillion worth of goods and services a year, can have trade defecit.Instead its global trade surplus hit $177 billion in 2006 and is on track to finish this year at more than $220 billion, says business week article on "China: One Hungry Industrial Dragon".I think its good to say, the dragon started roaring.

Ok. I want to complete this blog.Final words from the same article " And so it goes in India. Unless the nation shakes off its legacy of bureaucracy, politics, and corruption, its ability to build adequate infrastructure will remain in doubt. So will its economic destiny." And I doubt we will overcome this paralysis.

Image courtesy: Businessweek.

posted by Unknown @ 10:16 AM, ,




Inniya Tamil Puthandu Nalvazhthukkal
Saturday, April 14, 2007

Kal Thondree man thondraa kaalathae mun thondriyaa mootha kudee nam Tamil் kude endru nam munnorgal iyambiyirupathu nisamaa endru naan ariyeen. Irupinum enakku antha nambikai endrum undu. Tamil puthaandu indru. Intha "Sarvasitthu" varudam ellorkum nal varudamaaka vendum.

sirithu kaalamaha enakkoru mana varutham undu,engae Tamil puthandu enbathu sirchila tholaikatchee alaivarisagalil varum thiraipadam parka oru edhuvaaga mattumae aagivittadhooo endru.uhm.ethu eppadiyooo, tamil kude ennum palgee peruga vendum enbathu en avaa.


Tamilai ninaithu enathu manaseega guruvai ninayaamal irukku iyalathu. itho avar ninaivaaaga, naan thinam ninaivu koorum oru paadal.

posted by Unknown @ 9:38 PM, ,




home sweet home

one among the thousand other Bangaloreans, who bought a flat in some area around the greater Bangalore area, i wanted to
spill out my many grievances and few happy moments.attracted by the smaller interest rates and bigger tax savings,
(hey the story starts one year back huh), I booked a smaller two bedroom apartment in outer ring road which is
built by some lesser known builder group,during the November 2k5. They had a neatly printed and glossy catalogue which showed the apartment in
3 D view with multi-colors in the walls (it sucks now) ,swimming pool (hey you need some gut or you should be a
kid,to bath before the windows of 90 plus houses,at least for a shy guy like me), a plush car parking area with
ample space (i think it will be difficult to park my two wheeler either in the space they have alloted) and twenty
others in the list to attract me and 90 plus other me's.At the time , when i booked the flat, they just had dig a big
hole,not for me yaar, for my block.There were six other too.and the building started growing.ok.Now i will enter the economics of this,when they
were busy building the apartments.i went for a loan with a bank which gave me an attractive offer,of a loan with
two percent interest rate.oh sorry. it's not april one and my interest rate was 7.25 percent. pretty manageable with my salary.the bank executive asked for all the details about me with supported documents and they gave a hefty booklet to me to sign in every other page.I didnt read it fully and it will take some two weeks and 4 hours to read and understand it clearly, by then the builder would find another person for my flat, who can sign those books without reading it.I didn't left another guy to overtake me.Wish,I could have.then came the D-Day for all loan applicants.the approval day.my loan got approved for 75 percent of the amount I actually needed.Then started the bargaining process and finally i had to be happy with the 90 percent of the amount,if and only if I chose accept the floating interest rate procedure.I did and I didnt see any evil with three pronged sword laughing at me.but now i think it would have. When the total amount is in double digit lacs,10 percent counts yaar and i started counting my bank balance.finally, i settled out everything.these banks have a strange concept called pre-emi's.that is the amount that goes to the bank,out for no use to us to reduce the total principal of our loan.after six months of payment, i got entitled to start paying back the loan.hey isn't something fishy over here.yup. i lost all my Pre-EMI payment for nothing and now i have started paying the equated monthly installments in which the majoooooooor part goes to the interest component of the loan and small part gets reduced from the principal.and then bank earned happily ever after. hey its a happy ending for the loaner alone.

They say everything that goes up, comes down. budget was proposed and the budget got accepted,inflation went up and came down,but the floating interest rates for the home loans are gravity defying.rates sky rocketed and reached International space station without paying 20 million dollars to Russians, just a bad joke to console myself in this grave situation, the rates are now at 13 percent.nearly 80 percent raise in less than 6 months.how good it would be,if our salary rise in the same percent level.wildest of the dreams.The trick here is the Pre-EMI that I used to pay stays the same, even the rates have gone up like the inflation time onion price.So, obviously the duration of payment increased. Now its around 25 years and hopefully , I won't leave this debt to my son and eventually my grand son.

Ok,ok.I understand and I will stop my cribbing.Some happy moments too.The square foot value of the land also went up. Many people are adding more square feet under them and the rates had gone up by 20 percent to add to my self consolation. I got in touch with a good interior designer in Bangalore, they too are less known,minnows like Bangladesh cricket team, but did a very good job and I finally have a own house.A dream fulfilled(yet to be,but crossed most of the sea) for me at last.

posted by Unknown @ 12:42 AM, ,




impossible is nothing
Friday, April 13, 2007

The first step is very difficult and now its the last one.the inspirational words which i used to read, from a adidas hoarding,everyday while commuting to office.

Now its my last step,err atleast the one to create a blog. hey its friday the thirteenth. uhm, not a good day to start? gosh. I believe the evil lies within every one of us (even for spiderman) and thats what makes us unique among the billion other evils ,huh ok, some like to call themselves gods.Once when somebody asked Charles Darwin , whether there is any super being called God, he promptly replied "..might be. But I don't waste time in thinking about that".How good it will be if everyone thinks the same way.

I started thinking about blogging myself after reading Nussabaum on design, Seth Godin, guy kawasaki, endless innovation, monkey bites and sex drive @ wired and some more. I love these topics and they are blog heavyweights, spreading new ideas across.Uhm,its the world for fittest who can survive longer.Am I going to ? I have no idea. Even I didn't see the latest blogger rules,O'Riely's,"Blogging Code of Conduct".lol. I remember one more quote in the same adidas board.impossible is nothing.

ssssh.... Its raining outside my windows.a pleasant summer shower after a succesive 35+ degrees for the past one week in bangalore. In my place, they used to say that it rains suddenly, without any pre signs, when something unusual happens.I started blogging.... Let me go and enjoy the rain. let the rain keep pouring.

posted by Unknown @ 11:37 PM, ,