Absolutely Scintillating ....

SCINTILLATION from Xavier Chassaing on Vimeo.

From Vimeo.com -This is an experimental film made up of over 35,000 photographs. It combines an innovative mix of stop motion and live projection mapping techniques.

Directed by - chassaing.xavier@gmail.com
Music by - myspace.com/fedaden

Joker Has His Last Laugh

Heath Ledger won the Oscar for Best Supporting Actor for his psychotic performance as the Joker in 'The Dark Knight'

Heath Andrew Ledger

R.I.P

4 April 1979 – 22 January 2008

JAI HO @ OSCARS

Its Jai Ho time with the OSCARS finally coming to India

"All my life I've had a choice of hate and love. I chose love, and I'm here. God bless." - AR RAHAMAN won two Oscars, one each for the Best Original Score and the Best Original Song categories while Indian sound engineer

Resul Pokutty won the Oscar along with Ian Tapp and Richard Pryke for best Sound Mixing. "I dedicate this award to my country. This is not just a sound award but a piece of history that has been handed over to me," a beaming and emotional Pookutty said while dedicating the trophy to a billion Indian

Slumdog Millionaire totally won 8 Oscars including Best Picture,Best Director & Best Adapted Screenplay

"Just to say to Mumbai, all of you who helped us make the film and all of those of you who didn't, thank you very much. You dwarf even this guy," Boyle said, holding up his directing Oscar.

This shows that Indian Technicians are among the best in the world and are Oscar-worthy but its upto the filmmakers to bring out the best in them

Arise MS, Awake Apple,Android has Arrived

Google has always been a pain in (u know where) for Microsoft .Google and Microsoft have been rivals in various fronts.Search , browser,social networking, cloud computing, office suite (although G Docs is online only). But the pain took  shape as Android and was competing directly with MS Windows Mobile. But now the face off has become even more bloodier.

Asus has announced that it is working on android based net books.Android has just stepped into Microsoft's own turf - Computer OS, that means sooner or later its going to be a huge OS WAR .

If Google decides to commercialise and brings in android based laptops, imagine the implications!!!.Android based laptops loaded with all Google software (Google desktop, Chrome, Picasa..etc ) & full array of web applications (btw Gmail is coming offline) , will shook up the entire market place.

Even Apple is facing heat from Google same as Microsoft but Apple has always maintained a small, but strong loyalty base .So MS will be the one to receive a lot of damage particularly in consumer markets. Corporate clients will be the saviours of MS. Although Linux is an existing open source OS, they haven't had any devastating effect on MS windows. But Google has the power to do that.

May be one fine day the World will wake up and see GOOGLE is the new MS.

Recession 4 everyone... lol

Blame Them For Recession

Time.com has identified a list of 25 people  "blameworthy" for this financial crisis.Interestingly even American consumers are in the list.Readers can vote whether they  are innocent or guilty

Who are the ones you think are guilty or innocent?  Give your verdict here.

Welcome to Villa Aqua....

Vibs had recently blogged about sky villas which are "by invitation only".Interestingly, looks like its not just the sky, but also the sea where villas will come up in the near future making sci-fi become sci-tru :).

Trilobis 65 is one such submerged dwelling environment or simply a floating home.

Italian naval architect Giancarlo Zema  who designed the part yacht and part submarine says " "The main aim of the project is to allow anyone to live in a unique environment through a self-sufficient, nonpolluting dwelling that exists in unison with their ocean surrounding"

Read more about  the Trilobis 65 here.

Don't Quit

A nice inspirational video poem titled Don't quit from http://www.thedontquitpoem.com/ 

© 2006 Fernando Enterprises Pty Ltd

Thanks Niyati  :)  :)

A Request to Our Desi Movie Critics

This is in reference to movie review of Seven Pounds by Mr. Masand (CNN-IBN), Parvathi Nayar (Hindu) & MINI ANTHIKAD-CHHIBBER (Hindu - Bangalore). Warning Contains Spoilers!!!Please first watch the movie or read its entire description here

As a movie buff, my sincere request to our beloved desi movie critics, If you don't know how to review a movie then Just Shut Up....

First, all of them got it wrong that Will Smith is an IRS official...Guess what? He is not. He is impersonating his brother who is an IRS official.

Masand says "he barges into the home of an Asian woman" Asian??? plzzz. The character's name is Connie Tepos and speaks Spanish in the movie .Isn't it obvious she is a South American? One of the main reasons he cites "you keep expecting that his big secret will indeed be a big one. Sadly, it's not" Buddy, there is no big secret because its closer to reality. Seriously what were you expecting?? A FBI plot, A Magical Cult, Weird Mind Disorder???

The film essentially says how trivial things can change your entire life. That’s why Will says "God created the world in seven days, I destroyed mine in seven seconds" in the first few minutes.

Parvathy mentions "Why Ben has downsized from successful aeronautics executive to downbeat tax enforcer is one of the movie’s “mysteries”". It’s because he was not downsized.

Mini says "Will Smith is such a charismatic star and can easily carry a movie on his shoulders. But here he is gloomy and doomy and no fun at all as Ben" No fun?? It’s a emotional drama about a man who has lost his fairy tale life, how can you expect him to be a fun character??

I can go on and on, but please understand the point I am trying to make. If you are giving a movie review, you should have set of parameters and rate accordingly, you cannot just give opinions unless you yourself are critically acclaimed. If not, just stick to the mediocre movies releasing every week with the same story line and sexy item numbers or better keep quiet. For heaven's sake, they don't even get the story correctly, how can they review it??

My opinion?? It’s an emotionally charged movie.It’s good but not great. If you are looking for a thriller, adrenaline rush or a few laughs, stay away from it.

Bye Bye Cellphones... Hello MID

Technology is moving at a greater speed than we think,atleast it is faster than I thought.

Earlier I had  pointed out the narrowing difference (Toshiba Ikiller) between mobile phones & computing devices  and the possible strategic inflection point (Call rates RIP) the telecom industry might come across.

So what? take a look at the news from CNET.com

Intel announced here Monday at the GSMA Mobile World Congress that LG Electronics will use its latest generation technology to build a new class of device called mobile Internet devices, or MIDs.Now the companies are working on a new class of product that are mini-computers that can also be used to make phone calls using a wireless Internet connection. Intel sees the category of product as something that is somewhere between a smartphone, like the Apple iPhone, and a Netbook, a scaled-down version of a notebook computer.

IF you see the image below you will get the idea of that "something somewhere" product Intel is talking about. ARM is one of the early firms to have a vision about MID's or Mobile Internet Devices

The article further states the implication of MID's in the telecom industry which will eventually make Call rates R.I.P

I thought it will take another decade for this to happen, but looks like  we will bid farewell to cellphones & embrace MIDs,very soon.

World's Tweeting... Are you?

Institutional Venture Partners and Benchmark Capital have pumped $35 million into Twitter - the microblogging site .

Todd Chaffee, the partner at IVP gives four reasons about why it was a good idea to invest in Twitter in these recessionary period.

• Open. That makes it easy for others to build on top of Twitter and it also makes it searchable.
• Real time. It is a huge database of what is happening right now.
• Ubiquitous. You can get to it from just about any device.
• Scalable. (Don't laugh)
• Persistent. It allows for an archive of what is happening and what has happened, which is searchable (see No. 1). 

Even I am using Twitter ,but not many of peers are.But amazingly I am able to interact with people whom I don't know at a intellectual level. If  a see a interesting tweet , I just retweet  and usually get a positive response.

The  most fascinating thing for me is that Twitter has become the fastest growing phenomenon with just  29  employees!!!.

Chaffee says" Twitter is bigger than a lot of people realize and growing faster than a lot of people realize, but it has not hit the mainstream yet. It is just starting."

May be that's why they were bold enough to turn down a $ 500 million acquisition deal from Facebook.

Happy Valentines Day

May Cupid be with you to bring all your wishes come true.....

A Song for Me

Come on hold my hand,
I wanna contact the living.
Not sure I understand,
This role Ive been given.
I sit and talk to god
And he just laughs at my plans,
My head speaks a language, I dont understand.

I just wanna feel real love,
Feel the home that I live in.
cause I got too much life,
Running through my veins, going to waste.
I dont wanna die,
But I aint keen on living either.
Before I fall in love,
Im preparing to leave her.
I scare myself to death,
Thats why I keep on running.
Before Ive arrived, I can see myself coming.

I just wanna feel real love,
Feel the home that I live in.
cause I got too much life,
Running through my veins, going to waste.
And I need to feel, real love
And a life ever after.
I cannot get enough.

I just wanna feel real love,
Feel the home that I live in,
I got too much love,
Running through my veins, going to waste.
I just wanna feel real love,
In a life ever after
Theres a hole in my soul,
You can see it in my face, its a real big place.

Come and hold my hand,
I wanna contact the living,
Not sure I understand,
This role Ive been given
Not sure I understand.
Not sure I understand.
Not sure I understand.
Not sure I understand.

MS going the Apple Way..as always

They have done it in the past, they will do it in the future , they are doing it as we speak.

Microsoft Corp,world leader in operating systems, has once again got something from Apple. Microsoft is looking to set up its own network of retail stores and they are pretty serious this time. David Porter who has spent 25 years at Wal-Mart !!!, the world's No 1 retailer has been hired as corporate vice president of retail stores for Microsoft.courtesy:GIZMODO.com

Mr. Porter, in a statement, said there are "tremendous opportunities" for Microsoft to create a "world-class shopping experience" for the company's customers.

"The purpose of opening these stores is to create deeper engagement with consumers and continue to learn firsthand about what they want and how they buy," Microsoft said in a statement.

I am not sure if MS stores will flourish as Apple stores did.It will have to face many issues like Channel conflicts,whether to add third party hardware (laptops etc to boost Windows OS sale), pricing etc .I think it will probably boost up the sales of Xbox product line and Gaming software rather than the MS Windows or Office product line.

I think timing is a key aspect,if MS sets up its first store by holiday season and release its Windows 7 which has got positive reviews, it may enjoy a smooth take off.

There are reports that MS stores will feature "PC Gurus" a direct copy of Apple's Genius concept.Personally I don't care if MS copies Apple all the time. As long it provides better value to its consumers,they wont care who did it first ,but rather who did it best? Why do you think Macintosh did not flourish as MS Windows even though it came first?

Darwin Day & Google's Evolution

Did you notice the the recent logo of Google? If you haven't ,don't search it , just look below.

If you go "WOW" then you probably know what it is about..If you go "what in the world is that?" then let me tell you what it is.

Remember Charles Darwin and his theory that Man evolved from monkey? (BTW Mentos had nothing to do with it). Well the great scientist's 200th birthday is today (Feb 12th)  and 150th anniversary (Nov 24 ) of the launch of his paper "Origin of Species" So you see Google, like always is sporting this special logo towards this special occasion.

Google's evolution is remarkable ,starting as humble search engine, it then launched an array of  web applications and now has a strong presence in software arena (Google earth,Picasa , Chrome, Android,latest is Power Meter ).I won't be surprised if it launches a new hardware device in the future.

Started along with many other search engines, Google definitely has carved a position for itself by constantly evolving with continuous innovation.Most importantly it has done that in a very profitable manner.

Talk about Survival of Fittest......

Aero India 2009

  The 7th Aero India show organised by the Ministry of Defence, started today at Air Force Station Yelahanka, Bengaluru, India.

About 592 exhibitors,(303 overseas & 289 home) from 25 countries will showcase the latest in the field of avionics including Civil & Military aircrafts,subsystems,new defence  technology etc.

 

The highlights of this year's show are

• Tejas
• BrahMos
• MiG 35
• F 16
• F/A-18 Hornet

If you are in Bangalore please do visit the show in the weekend.Do take your kids along with you.Its better than seeing some mediocre movie..

MOBIZENS OF INDIA

From TECHTREE.COM : According to a recent study conducted by Nokia, India is seeing a constant rise in the use of the mobile web to access various services.The study, conducted in partnership with TNS India, revealed startling facts about the current state of the mobile advertising industry in the country. The study was based on a sample of 3500 users from 15 cities across the country.

The study revealed that mobile users are increasingly using their handsets to access the Internet. The average usage per week on the traditional web stood at 2.4 days. Access using Mobile web surprisingly stood slightly higher at 2.7 days per week. Another interesting part of the study was the revelation that 80 percent of the users felt disconnected and "lost" if they do not have access to their cellphones for an elongated time period - indicating how intrinsic the mobile phone has become a part of our daily lives.
The survey also revealed was the fact that more users are finding out about new product information via the mobile web (28 percent) than the traditional web (26 percent).

The research conducted in select metro cities of India also revealed that users are fairly familiar with ads on their mobile phones and as much as 18 percent of the users said they had noticed a mobile banner advertisement. 56 percent of the users who saw the ads went on to click the ad and reach the mobile site of the advertiser. A large number (29 percent) of those who saw the advertisements went on to discuss the same with others, indicating a viral effect.

So.. Are You A Mobizen of India???

Satyam's Saviour

A S Murty, widely known as ASM ,has been appointed as the new CEO of Satyam Computer Services.

Mr. Murty said"I have no misgivings about the enormity of the task in front of us, but together with my colleagues, I am confident we can accomplish the impossible. We will chart a precise and practical 30–60–90 day plan that will encompass and address the interests of all stakeholders"

Minister of corporate affairs Prem Chand Gupta had previously mentioned "I personally recommended that a CEO should be an insider... since it will take quite some time for a CEO from outside the company to take stock of a new business. And we do not have much time". He explained that the government also wanted a person for the top post who understood the client market closely and Satyam "does have many such good people".

Though Mr.Prem Chand's logic sounds right, I had the opinion the CEO should be an outsider,simply to boost investor confidence and stakeholder morale.Also an outsider will bring in a new perspective & will be devoid of Satyam's questionable  corporate governance culture.

Nevertheless, please join me in wishing Mr.A S Murty and his team to  rejuvenate and preserve the integrity of the firm.

All the very Best Mr. ASM

Ikiller from Toshiba

When rumours about Dell's Smartphone were spreading,Toshiba a significant player in laptop category has launched a smartphone err..pocket PC..Iphone killer..(the differences are narrowing)

When Sony entered the mobile market ,mobile was seen as extension in consumer electronics.Soon LG & Samsung followed suit.

Then came Apple with its Iphone and changed the rules of the game.Since the difference between smartphones & ultra compact PC's is getting smaller day by day,many laptop firms are entering mobile space. Its not more like a product category extension but more like product line extension.Now this phenomenon has seriously affected core mobile manufactures like Nokia , Motorola etc.

Btw TGO1 is the first mobile to run on Qualcomm Snapdragon platform using a Windows Mobile 6.1 OS.It has a 1ghz mobile CPU with a 3d UI.Looks pretty impressive.See demo below...

Lets see whether it kills competition or killed by competition....

Google's Internet Bus

From LiveMint - Chennai: As part of its initiatives to spread awareness about Internet, Google India on Tuesday announced the launch of mobile internet bus to provide the experience of worldwide web to people across Tamil Nadu.

The bus project is based on four themes — information,  communication, entertainment and education, and it would have useful and informative content in English and Tamil, said Google India (Research and Development) Centre Head Prasad Ram.“We want to educate people about the benefit of Internet and this bus would make them to understand the usage of Internet in a much effective way,” he said.The bus would be covering 15 towns across the state over a period of one-and-a-half months, he said.Google India Product Manager Prem Ramaswami said this was like a pilot project for them and based on the response they get from this project, they would continue it in other states as well.

“It is like a pilot study (for us). More than 19% of Tamilians prefer Google Tamil for accessing the Internet and that is also one of the reasons to launch the bus project from Tamil Nadu,” he said.

read more here.......

How do you see yourself??

I wonder what this means?? So If all cats must act like lion then why there are cats in this world??

Be what you are..don't try to be somebody else.....

My Happy Weekend

Family and friends are the two big sources of happiness to a person.I am one of those gifted ones who is surrounded with loved ones.

We , the marketing batch of  (PGPM 2007-09) celebrated  our last  Saturday together in a simple yet fun filled manner. We clicked photos like crazy as this is our last day of our lives. If only I had a bionic eye I would have captured every moment of it.

But some people were not interested to be part of it  and some  others were worried about how they looked in the pics. I want to tell them they are missing the whole point.Its not about eating cakes or posing for pics,its about cherishing the moments of having good people around you.And photos ensure that those golden moments are preserved in print and not there looks.

After many years if they look back their lives these are the moments which come rushing to the mind and believe me, you will not feel sad about your looks or the fact you did not get cake.

My 2nd brother just left  to Chennai.He is leaving for UK later this and it will be a long time before I see him again. We three, along with his friends had a good time shopping ,eating out.Though we did not take any pics, this weekend will be etched in my mind forever.

Just then I realised that if you are surrounded by your loved ones then you are gifted.Too bad many realize it once they lose someone.One should learn to cherish every moment of their life,I know its is hard to practice when faced with "realities of life " but atleast one should cherish every moment they spend with their family & friends

I wish if every weekend was  like this.........

PS: I know my regular readers will be wondering why all of a sudden my "intellectual" blog has become sentimental.Well its Feb 1 so I thought I will try something new after all its a De Novo :)