Christmas In Goa, Disaster in Indian Ocean
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Was in Goa for a friend’s daughter’s baptism during Christmas when I heard about the Tsunami. First I didnt get any clear idea about the scale of the disaster, but as the death toll rose, I knew it was bad.
Rabbi is Sold Out!
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I chanced upon Rabbi Shergill’s Bulleh! Ki Jaana Maen Kaun on MTV the other day. In these times of senseless bangras and noises called remixes, I havent heard such a simple and original song! (More about the 18th century Sufi poet Bulleh Shah)
I tracked the song down and listened to it the second time. I understood not a single word he was singing, but the music was so haunting that I loved it. No song has touched me like this since Brothers In Arms.
I rushed to a music store to pick this album, but it was sold out. I tried another, and it was sold out there as well. The same was the case at four other big music shops. Sold out! He truly deserves it (Read the Triumph of Will story in Tehelka)
If you havent listened to it yet, go listen, NOW. No excuses. And tell me if it didnt touch you, I really would like to know how you felt.
Shaun of the Dead
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This movie was highly recommended by RT but took some patience and time to ‘begin’. 20 minutes into the movie, I was still wondering what this was about, when it kicked off. Then it was fun, in a strange way. It sure is a weird movie, but if you like Brits’ take on end of the world type movies like 28 Days Later, this one is the next best thing. Brilliant sub stories, very well acted though there is some gore (lots of that, in fact)
Two ways to make a teen movie
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(1) Teen coming off age, pushed into a new environment, surviving in different ways. Lots of M&B elements. Watch Mean Girls, if you want to know. Proto-typical movie structure, but comical and fun to watch. It is the story about a home educated girl, joining main stream school in America. Fun, and it feels like a movie
(2) The real serious take on teenlife. The ones that immly come to my mind are Basketball Diaries or Thirteen. Thirteen is a MUST WATCH. It was written and acted in by a 16 year old on her true life experiences of growing up in the harsh world. It was just unbelievable. Didn’t feel like a movie. You probably wouldnt want your child to “do the teens” in the US after watching such movies.
Dont Gross Out The World
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In Sudan they say that to show you are enjoying your food, you need to put your feet up on the dining table! In Thailand putting your feet upon the table is the worst insult! How do you cut your potato in Germany, with a knife or fork? How should you ask the chef for ketchup in France? Take this quiz and see if you will survive at the dining table in different parts of the world 
Eliminate the Blind Spot
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Found a very useful article about how to use the side mirrors to eliminate the blind spot.
This may not quite “eliminate” the blind spot(s) but it sure makes them small enough so that a car cannot fit there. But as a friend pointed out, a two wheeler _can_ fit in the little blind spot you still have. It is always recommended to have a quick glance over your shoulders while changing lanes, even when using this trick.
This is a must do. I have seen well educated well to do people drive with both or left mirror folded in. I guess, to save the 180/- of a mirror repair cost, in case a2 wheeler knocks it down? Well, education and sense doesnt always go hand in hand, right?
My mirrors are always open, (a) to see what’s behind me and (b) if someone’s gonna squeeze through the free space, then they are gonna do it with the ‘mirror’ as the reference, not the ‘door’
The Stepford Wives
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I have seen stupid movies, I have seen pointless movies, and I have seen irritating movies. But this is the first time I see one that is stupid, pointless AND irritating (and felt like breaking the DVD into pieces, so that nobody will ever rent it). Despite what people say, Veer-Zara must be better
Sold!
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VERITAS, #1 storage software company, out of the blue, is sold to Symantec, the #1 in security software. The combined company will be fourth largest software company in the world, after Microsoft, Oracle and SAP. The name will be Symantec, and VERITAS brand will have to go, as the holding ratio is 60:40. Anyways, VERITAS is a combination of ~10 companies bought over in the last 15 years, so it _is_ a case of big fish vs small fish. Anything that goes around, comes around.
According to many Veritians, there may not be much synergy in VERITAS and Symantec, but the new company looks more palatable to some folks. Now instead of trying to buy SAP, Bill the whale can try to eat this Symantec fish which has a $13.5 billion fat tummy?
Conference: Pros and Cons
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It is about the India HCI conference in Bangalore, and thank god it’s over. Well, it was the first such conference, so one can forgive the nature of the content and say, it took off at the very least. Yes, but I cannot stand the condecending Brits giving a lecture on what needs to be done, or what happened in their country (the operative word being, giving).
And I dont fully blame them, if you go by the standards of papers presented at the conference workshops! I dont blame the students either, the programmes committee should have gone through the abstracts a little bit more in detail, is that too much to ask? Some presentations were outright silly. Wasted my time.
But there were three gains/realisations: (1) Indian Design/HCI researchers when not looking at the west for 40 year old ideas, are all game to get the Indian farmers a gmail account; (2) I met with a lot of old friends and had a ball; (3) And that even if you are not a writer, if you do not keep writing, it is quite hard to get back.
In Bangalore
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Folks, I am in Bangalore for the India CHI conference. I am there from Sunday evening till Wednesday morning, I am roaming on 982-329-5927. Can we meet?
