Reclining on my chair,
With my hands in my hair;
Was walking down the memory lane,
Of little joy and a little pain.
Memories of my childhood,
Memories of my youth,
Memories of my falsehood,
Memories of my truth.
Were all before me,
Taking me to my past.
Reminding those bygone days to me,
Creating in me an impression to last.
Moments that had made me happy,
Moments that had made me sad,
Moments that had made me chirpy,
Moments that had made me glad.
All those moments have just become one,
Thinking about them only gives me fun.
For they are now my most cherished treasures,
That only give me countless pleasures.
(30 Jan, 2004)
Thursday, December 29, 2005
Thats all!!
So those were some of the reviews and commentaries that i had written in the past..
Now on back to future..... a paradoxical statement??
Will post one of the poems that I had penned down..
Makes quite sense to post it during the year end..
Now on back to future..... a paradoxical statement??
Will post one of the poems that I had penned down..
Makes quite sense to post it during the year end..
Movie Review on Khakee
Khakee - The colour of protection
Jan 29, 2004
"What would be more exciting than watching a multistar cast spine chiller movie like Khakee on a chilly night in a plush theatre", remarked my friend of the movie. And i waited for the chilly night more eagerly than the movie itself. And finally it 'dawned' yesternight. Soon i found myself with three other friends of mine and a whole lot junta at the same plush theatre waiting for our respective spines to get chilled..........
The story line of the movie is very simple. One does not have to break other's head to understand what it is all about unlike some typical bollywood movies. One man branded as a deadly terrorist with across the border links has been captured by the maharshtra state police and remanded in a jail in some place called chandangarh. This man has to be ported to Mumbai for trial. Job seems very simple. But bollywood has a repository of ideas that can turn any point. Earlier attempts to port the guy have only ported eight police officials to the next world. Hence the minister and the additional commissioner of police decide to handover this job to 'experienced' officials like Big B (who has handled several such issues in movies like Zanjeer), warm blooded Akshay Kumar (vast experience in countless films) and a novice Tushar Kapoor (iam sorry iam not updated about his latest spelling) who has joined the (bollywood) police department recently with some very high morale. The three along with 2 constables resolve to bring back the suspect safe, sound and in one piece. And slightly over 3 hours are dedicated just for this.
The director has taken sufficient care to convince people like me who have got this nasty habit of trying to relate bollywood masala to reality; and has succeded to a certain extent. As the saying goes every culprit will leave behind a clue, so does every director who leaves behind a flaw for the critics. The movie begins on a happy note. Big B's daughter abt to get married in fortnights (12 days to be precise) time. Preparations going on in full swing. In the meantime, Big B who is an ACP, is assigned this task of getting back the 'terrorist'. He is the mission incharge. The movie progresses very comfortably with excellent plots and foils. Every minute detail has been taken into account as preparation for the mission. A tinge of humour adds to the entertainment. A movie well begun is not always half done. Most things are fine in the first half. Things have been goofed up in the second half of the movie. The most enlightening fact in the movie is that cops also carry a pair of denim trousers and T-shirts on deadly missions like this. Also it is surprising to see that a 58+ year old ACP who is on the verge of retirement is chasing the bad guys with a 35mm revolver and a nebulizer as against their AK47 s. It is also surprising to see tht only 5 offcials have been deputed for the mission where 8 have already failed. And then the transposition from GPO to a stadium towards the end of the movie is just the height of bollywood transpositions. The movie also highlights the importance of cellular communication. Coming to the soundtrack, it is worth an applause. Though ther are just 3 songs which have been very uncomfortably snugged in the movie, they are just wonderful. The choreography, the locations and the music are simply great.
The starcast is just a perfect combination for a great entertainment. BigB has continued to dominate the movie with his extraordinary instincts and great dialogue delivery. Pen might be mightier than the sword but BigB's dialogues are even mightier than the bullets. He has used them in the movie to workout things in his favor where the bullets failed. Then there is our own akki, Akshay Kumar, with his killer looks and styles and drooling nature. He is the sole source of humor in the movie. Ajay Devgan has delivered his role of the bad guy exceptionally well. Kudos to him. This is no doubt that this is one of his finest performances. Tushar Kapoor is just there to add to the star list. And then the blue eyed Ash has continued to mesmerise the audience as well as akki. But doesnt have much of a role in this movie. Except for the one and half minute "contactless" smooching scene, 2 dance sequences and few escapes, there is nothing much worth mentioning about her. However the audience is bound to be surprised (not anymore after reading this review) at the end when they discover that she is infact doing the negative role.
Overall an excellent movie. Over 3 hours of great entertainment. I dont know whether to say its a tribute to the maharashtra/mumbai police. The movie tries to portray some of the horrible truths prevelant in our politics and police department, but in a rather unconvincing way. The audience may not feel very comfortable throughout the movie. However they will definitely be entertained.
Jan 29, 2004
"What would be more exciting than watching a multistar cast spine chiller movie like Khakee on a chilly night in a plush theatre", remarked my friend of the movie. And i waited for the chilly night more eagerly than the movie itself. And finally it 'dawned' yesternight. Soon i found myself with three other friends of mine and a whole lot junta at the same plush theatre waiting for our respective spines to get chilled..........
The story line of the movie is very simple. One does not have to break other's head to understand what it is all about unlike some typical bollywood movies. One man branded as a deadly terrorist with across the border links has been captured by the maharshtra state police and remanded in a jail in some place called chandangarh. This man has to be ported to Mumbai for trial. Job seems very simple. But bollywood has a repository of ideas that can turn any point. Earlier attempts to port the guy have only ported eight police officials to the next world. Hence the minister and the additional commissioner of police decide to handover this job to 'experienced' officials like Big B (who has handled several such issues in movies like Zanjeer), warm blooded Akshay Kumar (vast experience in countless films) and a novice Tushar Kapoor (iam sorry iam not updated about his latest spelling) who has joined the (bollywood) police department recently with some very high morale. The three along with 2 constables resolve to bring back the suspect safe, sound and in one piece. And slightly over 3 hours are dedicated just for this.
The director has taken sufficient care to convince people like me who have got this nasty habit of trying to relate bollywood masala to reality; and has succeded to a certain extent. As the saying goes every culprit will leave behind a clue, so does every director who leaves behind a flaw for the critics. The movie begins on a happy note. Big B's daughter abt to get married in fortnights (12 days to be precise) time. Preparations going on in full swing. In the meantime, Big B who is an ACP, is assigned this task of getting back the 'terrorist'. He is the mission incharge. The movie progresses very comfortably with excellent plots and foils. Every minute detail has been taken into account as preparation for the mission. A tinge of humour adds to the entertainment. A movie well begun is not always half done. Most things are fine in the first half. Things have been goofed up in the second half of the movie. The most enlightening fact in the movie is that cops also carry a pair of denim trousers and T-shirts on deadly missions like this. Also it is surprising to see that a 58+ year old ACP who is on the verge of retirement is chasing the bad guys with a 35mm revolver and a nebulizer as against their AK47 s. It is also surprising to see tht only 5 offcials have been deputed for the mission where 8 have already failed. And then the transposition from GPO to a stadium towards the end of the movie is just the height of bollywood transpositions. The movie also highlights the importance of cellular communication. Coming to the soundtrack, it is worth an applause. Though ther are just 3 songs which have been very uncomfortably snugged in the movie, they are just wonderful. The choreography, the locations and the music are simply great.
The starcast is just a perfect combination for a great entertainment. BigB has continued to dominate the movie with his extraordinary instincts and great dialogue delivery. Pen might be mightier than the sword but BigB's dialogues are even mightier than the bullets. He has used them in the movie to workout things in his favor where the bullets failed. Then there is our own akki, Akshay Kumar, with his killer looks and styles and drooling nature. He is the sole source of humor in the movie. Ajay Devgan has delivered his role of the bad guy exceptionally well. Kudos to him. This is no doubt that this is one of his finest performances. Tushar Kapoor is just there to add to the star list. And then the blue eyed Ash has continued to mesmerise the audience as well as akki. But doesnt have much of a role in this movie. Except for the one and half minute "contactless" smooching scene, 2 dance sequences and few escapes, there is nothing much worth mentioning about her. However the audience is bound to be surprised (not anymore after reading this review) at the end when they discover that she is infact doing the negative role.
Overall an excellent movie. Over 3 hours of great entertainment. I dont know whether to say its a tribute to the maharashtra/mumbai police. The movie tries to portray some of the horrible truths prevelant in our politics and police department, but in a rather unconvincing way. The audience may not feel very comfortable throughout the movie. However they will definitely be entertained.
Movie Review on I - Proud to be Indian
I too, proud to be Indian
Feb 16, 2004
Those fascinated by H.G.Wells' Time machine may spare some time for this movie titled "I proud to be Indian". Though the title may sound grammatically incorrect, it gets justified after u have watched the movie. Albeit it is a well known fact that one should keep ones brain at an arms length while watching a bollywood movie, in the case of this movie, one has to keep it at, may be, a limbs length.......
The theme of the story seems to date back to some time which is no where close to the period tht most of us wud even remember. It's our Hero's solitary fight against racism practised by a group of musclemen in England, called skinheads.Skinheads are a group of psychologically superior, nefarious, white people without a single hair on their cranium. They have got a subtle dislike towards the black people sometimes, at times the people of the SAARC nations and most of the times just the Indians. (Even the director/script writer is confused abt this). Our hero (Sohail Khan, I dont remember his on screen name) always referred to as "Hindustani ladka"-Indian boy, arrives in London with his father and put up at his brother's place. Right from the time of his arrival he is shown to carry fire in his eyes and no sooner does he land at the place he is confronted with the ongoing racism and decides to end it all with 21 punches.
The rest of the movie just contains attrocities carried out by the skinheads towards some Indians and every member of the hero's family everytime making his blood boil at higher temperatures than the previous. And everytime such an incident happens our hero just walks up to some of the skin heads, delivers a few punches and have them run for their life. This annoys their leader who resolves to have him killed after inciting in him a sense of fear towards them. However the skinheads seem to have forgotten that our hero is not a hollywood hero but a true bollywood one. And this hero of ours doesnt have the usual bollywood weakness with him namely a widow mother and a young spinster sister. Hence he is invincible!
After many such encounters with the topbrass of the skinheads, the hero finally manages to gain victory over the group as well their policy in a typical bollywood style best suiting Sunny Deol.
However that is not all tht this movie contains. There is more to it. It tries to spread a sense of fraternity with our neighbours across the border, a patriotic fervour among the youth (most of the people in the theatre were found to be hooting and whistling throughout the length of the movie for reasons unidentified). There is a bit of humor too. And last but not the least there is also an unidentified heroine in the movie whose sole purpose is to do lip-syncing with the female playback singer, instill a romantic fervour as against our hero's patriotic fervour and be responsible for the above mentioned fraternity.
Feb 16, 2004
Those fascinated by H.G.Wells' Time machine may spare some time for this movie titled "I proud to be Indian". Though the title may sound grammatically incorrect, it gets justified after u have watched the movie. Albeit it is a well known fact that one should keep ones brain at an arms length while watching a bollywood movie, in the case of this movie, one has to keep it at, may be, a limbs length.......
The theme of the story seems to date back to some time which is no where close to the period tht most of us wud even remember. It's our Hero's solitary fight against racism practised by a group of musclemen in England, called skinheads.Skinheads are a group of psychologically superior, nefarious, white people without a single hair on their cranium. They have got a subtle dislike towards the black people sometimes, at times the people of the SAARC nations and most of the times just the Indians. (Even the director/script writer is confused abt this). Our hero (Sohail Khan, I dont remember his on screen name) always referred to as "Hindustani ladka"-Indian boy, arrives in London with his father and put up at his brother's place. Right from the time of his arrival he is shown to carry fire in his eyes and no sooner does he land at the place he is confronted with the ongoing racism and decides to end it all with 21 punches.
The rest of the movie just contains attrocities carried out by the skinheads towards some Indians and every member of the hero's family everytime making his blood boil at higher temperatures than the previous. And everytime such an incident happens our hero just walks up to some of the skin heads, delivers a few punches and have them run for their life. This annoys their leader who resolves to have him killed after inciting in him a sense of fear towards them. However the skinheads seem to have forgotten that our hero is not a hollywood hero but a true bollywood one. And this hero of ours doesnt have the usual bollywood weakness with him namely a widow mother and a young spinster sister. Hence he is invincible!
After many such encounters with the topbrass of the skinheads, the hero finally manages to gain victory over the group as well their policy in a typical bollywood style best suiting Sunny Deol.
However that is not all tht this movie contains. There is more to it. It tries to spread a sense of fraternity with our neighbours across the border, a patriotic fervour among the youth (most of the people in the theatre were found to be hooting and whistling throughout the length of the movie for reasons unidentified). There is a bit of humor too. And last but not the least there is also an unidentified heroine in the movie whose sole purpose is to do lip-syncing with the female playback singer, instill a romantic fervour as against our hero's patriotic fervour and be responsible for the above mentioned fraternity.
Movie Review on Chameli
To chameli with love....
Jan 17, 2004
A sunny afternoon. A long queue. A 82+ years old man with his ears plugged waiting impatiently near the strand for the matinee show to get over, all multiplied my interest about the movie. The matinee show finally got over and i was rushing towards the entrance. As luck would have had it i accidently happened to overhear the comments of a guy coming out of the cineama theatre. The negative comments only had negative effects on my thought and i entered the hall with all interest only to find that the movie is not as scintillating as is advertised. The guy was right.....
But then the show must go on and so should this review.The concept is good. The idea is really very creative. A rainy night, a man and a woman who happens to be a prostitute by profession. An overnight story, not exactly a story...but a series of events not strongly coupled. So far so good. But then what makes it not so good........it is chameli.
May be Antara Mali would have done better. Kareena Kapoor is not yet groomed to doing such kind of roles which requires very strong 'character reflection'.However the soundtrack is good. The movie features only 2 songs with interruption but the audio is worth listening to. Overall the movies is a 'family' drama. And then there is this message to the viewers running all through the movie. "Aids se bacho".
Jan 17, 2004
A sunny afternoon. A long queue. A 82+ years old man with his ears plugged waiting impatiently near the strand for the matinee show to get over, all multiplied my interest about the movie. The matinee show finally got over and i was rushing towards the entrance. As luck would have had it i accidently happened to overhear the comments of a guy coming out of the cineama theatre. The negative comments only had negative effects on my thought and i entered the hall with all interest only to find that the movie is not as scintillating as is advertised. The guy was right.....
But then the show must go on and so should this review.The concept is good. The idea is really very creative. A rainy night, a man and a woman who happens to be a prostitute by profession. An overnight story, not exactly a story...but a series of events not strongly coupled. So far so good. But then what makes it not so good........it is chameli.
May be Antara Mali would have done better. Kareena Kapoor is not yet groomed to doing such kind of roles which requires very strong 'character reflection'.However the soundtrack is good. The movie features only 2 songs with interruption but the audio is worth listening to. Overall the movies is a 'family' drama. And then there is this message to the viewers running all through the movie. "Aids se bacho".
Wednesday, December 28, 2005
Product Review on Nokia 8250 Cell Phone
Executive phone
Dec-19-03 8:52 PM
If at all any phone can speak about the technological advance of the maker, it is certainly 8250 from Nokia. One of the first phone to come with an intenna (internal antenna), this phone has the reputation of being the first among the miniature phones that Nokia or any other company has brought out. It is also one of the firsts to come with an infra red port. Not only is it sleek and handy, but also features an equally user friendly UI as is the case with any Nokia model. Comes with most of the features that are a ’defacto’ standard in any high end model these days. The most useful features include page scrolling in messages, user configurable profiles, scheduler and auto word generation feature with message composer among many others. A good one to possess if one is not particular of color display. Among the demerits include very little phone memory, monophonic ringtones, cannot send ring tones, no wallpaper setting feature, no stop clock, send to many feature absent.
Pros : easy navigation
Cons : less phone memory, no stop clock, monophonic
Sound Reception : Excellent--Can hear the whispers
Usage Convenience : It's a breeze--very easy to use
Looks & Style : Slim and Sleek.
Dec-19-03 8:52 PM
If at all any phone can speak about the technological advance of the maker, it is certainly 8250 from Nokia. One of the first phone to come with an intenna (internal antenna), this phone has the reputation of being the first among the miniature phones that Nokia or any other company has brought out. It is also one of the firsts to come with an infra red port. Not only is it sleek and handy, but also features an equally user friendly UI as is the case with any Nokia model. Comes with most of the features that are a ’defacto’ standard in any high end model these days. The most useful features include page scrolling in messages, user configurable profiles, scheduler and auto word generation feature with message composer among many others. A good one to possess if one is not particular of color display. Among the demerits include very little phone memory, monophonic ringtones, cannot send ring tones, no wallpaper setting feature, no stop clock, send to many feature absent.
Pros : easy navigation
Cons : less phone memory, no stop clock, monophonic
Sound Reception : Excellent--Can hear the whispers
Usage Convenience : It's a breeze--very easy to use
Looks & Style : Slim and Sleek.
Saturday, December 24, 2005
Book Review on Wings of Fire
Wings of Fire: An Autobiography of APJ Abdul Kalam
Feb 04, 2004
I have read quite a few autobiographies till date, of some really great men who have done wonders in their respective filelds. But 'Wings of fire' is not just yet another autobiography. It is more than that. It is not just aimed at informing people about the life and work of Dr.Kalam, but for inspiring people, especially the youth. To motivate the younger generation to think of possibilities to excel in our own motherland. To make them aware that India is no ordinary country submitting to the super powers. Infact it is a super power no less powerful than the US or UK. With the indigenous development of space, missile and nuclear technologies we have proved to the world that nothing is impossible to us.Dr. Kalam has very beautifully put across this message throughout the length of the book. There is a lot to learn from the life of Dr.Kalam. If one has the determination to do and the passion to excel, no force in this world can prevent him from reaching his desired goals. Such is the charisma of this missile man.
The book starts in the conventional way by describing about his family, their home, tradition, his childhood days, etc.Some portion is dedicated to his education also. But most part of the book describes his days and the work he carried out in India's premiere R&D organisations like DRDL, ISRO and Atomic energy commision. How he managed to enter this field, his interaction with the visionaries like Dr. Sarabhai, Dr. BrahmaPrakash, Prof. Satish Dhawan, Dr. Rajaramanna, their influence on him, how they moulded his career, his idea of management, his style of executing the most advanced and pioneering projects in the toughest of the conditions form the crux of the book.
The book also tells one how to take failures in one's own stride and be optimistic. On the whole there are many lessons that one can learn from his life. The book is very beautifully decorated with quadruplets and thought provoking sayings wherever required. About 15-20 pages are dedicated exclusively for glossy photographs (plates). The book is a treat for a person with a science or engineering background. I, being an engineer, enjoyed the technical details provided about the projects that he carried out. But this should not be a turnoff for a non-technical person in any way because care has been taken to provide all basic details required for a non-techie.
Now for some negative points of the book. The events are not described strictly in a chronological order. Too many abbreviations are used without any list towards the end of the book. The chapter names are not in harmony with the content, hence becomes difficult to revert back to a particular topic i.e., browsing is not very user friendly. An index towards the end of the book would have been better. Some may feel that too many technical details are provided.
Overall it is a nice book bound to inspire and motivate people of every age and work group.
Feb 04, 2004
I have read quite a few autobiographies till date, of some really great men who have done wonders in their respective filelds. But 'Wings of fire' is not just yet another autobiography. It is more than that. It is not just aimed at informing people about the life and work of Dr.Kalam, but for inspiring people, especially the youth. To motivate the younger generation to think of possibilities to excel in our own motherland. To make them aware that India is no ordinary country submitting to the super powers. Infact it is a super power no less powerful than the US or UK. With the indigenous development of space, missile and nuclear technologies we have proved to the world that nothing is impossible to us.Dr. Kalam has very beautifully put across this message throughout the length of the book. There is a lot to learn from the life of Dr.Kalam. If one has the determination to do and the passion to excel, no force in this world can prevent him from reaching his desired goals. Such is the charisma of this missile man.
The book starts in the conventional way by describing about his family, their home, tradition, his childhood days, etc.Some portion is dedicated to his education also. But most part of the book describes his days and the work he carried out in India's premiere R&D organisations like DRDL, ISRO and Atomic energy commision. How he managed to enter this field, his interaction with the visionaries like Dr. Sarabhai, Dr. BrahmaPrakash, Prof. Satish Dhawan, Dr. Rajaramanna, their influence on him, how they moulded his career, his idea of management, his style of executing the most advanced and pioneering projects in the toughest of the conditions form the crux of the book.
The book also tells one how to take failures in one's own stride and be optimistic. On the whole there are many lessons that one can learn from his life. The book is very beautifully decorated with quadruplets and thought provoking sayings wherever required. About 15-20 pages are dedicated exclusively for glossy photographs (plates). The book is a treat for a person with a science or engineering background. I, being an engineer, enjoyed the technical details provided about the projects that he carried out. But this should not be a turnoff for a non-technical person in any way because care has been taken to provide all basic details required for a non-techie.
Now for some negative points of the book. The events are not described strictly in a chronological order. Too many abbreviations are used without any list towards the end of the book. The chapter names are not in harmony with the content, hence becomes difficult to revert back to a particular topic i.e., browsing is not very user friendly. An index towards the end of the book would have been better. Some may feel that too many technical details are provided.
Overall it is a nice book bound to inspire and motivate people of every age and work group.
Thursday, December 22, 2005
Pre-Paid Card Vs Post-Paid Card
You are the boss
Dec-19-03 9:24 PM
The first few questions that one should put before oneself before deciding the type of connection are given below:
1) Do i really need a cell phone?
2) If yes why do i need it?
3) How often will i be going to use it?
4) What type of calls will i be facing most- incoming or outgoing?
5) How many (average)?
If at all you have fairly definite answers for all thees questions then u will not have any difficulty in making a selection.
The difference between the two types of connections among various service providers is broadly the same. The advantages and disadvantages of the two types are as follows:
Pre-paid
Adv - No rental (monthly charges)
Disadv - Call charges comparatively higher (local/std/isd)
Postpaid
adv- Call charges comparatively lower (local/std/isd)
disadv- rental (monthly charges)
So if u are a frequent call maker, go for a post paid conection. However u will have to pay an initilal deposit and hence switching connection will not be quick.
However if ur budget is limited and u are using it mostly for sms, incoming calls or for showing off :-) , u better go for pre paid.
Thats it!!!
Dec-19-03 9:24 PM
The first few questions that one should put before oneself before deciding the type of connection are given below:
1) Do i really need a cell phone?
2) If yes why do i need it?
3) How often will i be going to use it?
4) What type of calls will i be facing most- incoming or outgoing?
5) How many (average)?
If at all you have fairly definite answers for all thees questions then u will not have any difficulty in making a selection.
The difference between the two types of connections among various service providers is broadly the same. The advantages and disadvantages of the two types are as follows:
Pre-paid
Adv - No rental (monthly charges)
Disadv - Call charges comparatively higher (local/std/isd)
Postpaid
adv- Call charges comparatively lower (local/std/isd)
disadv- rental (monthly charges)
So if u are a frequent call maker, go for a post paid conection. However u will have to pay an initilal deposit and hence switching connection will not be quick.
However if ur budget is limited and u are using it mostly for sms, incoming calls or for showing off :-) , u better go for pre paid.
Thats it!!!
Wednesday, December 21, 2005
E-Books Vs. Paper Books
Knowledge is power
Dec-22-03 3:18 PM
Books, books and books.
Knowledge is what is important, not the source.
’’Let noble thoughts come to my mind from all sides’’ said a great man just hinting at the above. When a person is thirsty, he only tries to get some water to quench his thirst and as long as the water is potable, he is least bothered whether the water is from a well or a pond or from a river. Similarly, books are books after all. Whether E, C or something else. The prefix does not matter, albeit the content does.
However both (E-books and paper books) have got their own merits and demerits.
E-books are available in electronic format as a softcopy. Hence they can only be read on an electronic device like a PC. Hence some device is necessary to read E-books. This makes the book non-portable. It also becomes power dependent and the user is bound to sit in one corner in one position and read. This strains the body and the eyes. Moreover, one cannot easily book mark, underline important points or add personal notes. The very thought of all these disadvantages in itself is a big turn off.
However disadvantages are not all that an e-book has. There are many advantages also.
An e-book is really useful if the book happens to be a user manual or a data sheet or a technical reference. It is very important if the book is a directory.
So what are the features of the e-book that make it useful in these cases?
The answer is the powerful automatic search facility that is available with it. Browsing of pages is fast and effective. There is a provison to zoom the pages there by increasing its clarity and one need not worry about the wear and tear of the book. If the book is lost/corrupted it can always be downloaded again or a backup copy can be kept. Comapratively cheaper than paper book.
The paper book comes with its own charms and convenience which everybody is aware of. Hence if you are reading a book for pleasure then definitely go for a paper book. It may be a little costly compared to its electronic version, but it is worth the money.
However both the e-book and paper-book are interconvertible, i.e., if you take the print out of an e-book, it becomes a paper book and if you scan a paper book, it can be used as an e-book.
Dec-22-03 3:18 PM
Books, books and books.
Knowledge is what is important, not the source.
’’Let noble thoughts come to my mind from all sides’’ said a great man just hinting at the above. When a person is thirsty, he only tries to get some water to quench his thirst and as long as the water is potable, he is least bothered whether the water is from a well or a pond or from a river. Similarly, books are books after all. Whether E, C or something else. The prefix does not matter, albeit the content does.
However both (E-books and paper books) have got their own merits and demerits.
E-books are available in electronic format as a softcopy. Hence they can only be read on an electronic device like a PC. Hence some device is necessary to read E-books. This makes the book non-portable. It also becomes power dependent and the user is bound to sit in one corner in one position and read. This strains the body and the eyes. Moreover, one cannot easily book mark, underline important points or add personal notes. The very thought of all these disadvantages in itself is a big turn off.
However disadvantages are not all that an e-book has. There are many advantages also.
An e-book is really useful if the book happens to be a user manual or a data sheet or a technical reference. It is very important if the book is a directory.
So what are the features of the e-book that make it useful in these cases?
The answer is the powerful automatic search facility that is available with it. Browsing of pages is fast and effective. There is a provison to zoom the pages there by increasing its clarity and one need not worry about the wear and tear of the book. If the book is lost/corrupted it can always be downloaded again or a backup copy can be kept. Comapratively cheaper than paper book.
The paper book comes with its own charms and convenience which everybody is aware of. Hence if you are reading a book for pleasure then definitely go for a paper book. It may be a little costly compared to its electronic version, but it is worth the money.
However both the e-book and paper-book are interconvertible, i.e., if you take the print out of an e-book, it becomes a paper book and if you scan a paper book, it can be used as an e-book.
Tuesday, December 20, 2005
Are Cell Phone Radiations Harmful?
All's well that ends well
Dec-20-03 1:44 PM
Before continuing any further with my review, i wud like to pose a simple question to u. Here it goes:
Q) Can u stop using your cell phone, if at all you are using one, if somebody asks u to do so?
If your answer is NO, my life lies in the cell phone, then without even reading a word further, please carry on the noble work that u were doing.
And all others please continue.
’Cigarette smoking/ alcohol consumption is injurious to health’ is a well known phrase. Unfortunately this phrase is visible only to non-smokers/drinkers. Thats the magic spell that addiction casts on a person. Cell phone usage is also injurious to health, say medicos and media. Much hype was given to this issue when cell phones were just launched in the market. Not many people wre using cell phones at that time; not because they wre too ’scared’ to use it, but because the tariff used to be exorbitant. The scenario is completely different now. ’Roti, kapda, makhan and mobile’ is the punch line now. If at all cell phone radiations caused all those kinds of damage, then, instead of growth, there would have been a decline in the number of users because most of them would have been promoted to the next world. However this is not true. Secondly, microwave radiations are all around, whether u are using a cell phone or not u are susceptible to its effects. As a matter of fact a cell phone generates micro waves only when u are talking, which is very small time.
So what are the facts.
The side effects of these radiations cannot be ruled out. But they are not as bad as they are projected to be. Atleast not fatal. However one damage that these cell phone radiations can cause is because of interference with some other equipment especially in hospitals. They can stop the life support systems from working altogether. So please do not carry ur cell phone where u are asked not to, especially in hospitals. Unknowingly, u may be responsible for causing a fatal damage.
Dec-20-03 1:44 PM
Before continuing any further with my review, i wud like to pose a simple question to u. Here it goes:
Q) Can u stop using your cell phone, if at all you are using one, if somebody asks u to do so?
If your answer is NO, my life lies in the cell phone, then without even reading a word further, please carry on the noble work that u were doing.
And all others please continue.
’Cigarette smoking/ alcohol consumption is injurious to health’ is a well known phrase. Unfortunately this phrase is visible only to non-smokers/drinkers. Thats the magic spell that addiction casts on a person. Cell phone usage is also injurious to health, say medicos and media. Much hype was given to this issue when cell phones were just launched in the market. Not many people wre using cell phones at that time; not because they wre too ’scared’ to use it, but because the tariff used to be exorbitant. The scenario is completely different now. ’Roti, kapda, makhan and mobile’ is the punch line now. If at all cell phone radiations caused all those kinds of damage, then, instead of growth, there would have been a decline in the number of users because most of them would have been promoted to the next world. However this is not true. Secondly, microwave radiations are all around, whether u are using a cell phone or not u are susceptible to its effects. As a matter of fact a cell phone generates micro waves only when u are talking, which is very small time.
So what are the facts.
The side effects of these radiations cannot be ruled out. But they are not as bad as they are projected to be. Atleast not fatal. However one damage that these cell phone radiations can cause is because of interference with some other equipment especially in hospitals. They can stop the life support systems from working altogether. So please do not carry ur cell phone where u are asked not to, especially in hospitals. Unknowingly, u may be responsible for causing a fatal damage.
Recap..
Those were the days when I had just joined this software industry as a fresh engineering graudate. And it was during this time that I had also developed a great zeal towards writing short reviews and commentaries for a web portal mouthshut.com. The next few postings will be my earlier writings..
Tuesday, December 13, 2005
Mournings of my Soul
My birthday might be a special day for some including my parents and near and dear ones. But to me its the day when my soul got trapped in my body on this third rock from the sun. It is really an unfortunate thing for a soul which was in a state of eternal moksha to spend one more generation in this materialistic world. It would have been really lucky if it had descended on this planet eons ago, during satya yug or treta yug or even dwapar yug. But definitely not in Kali yug.
It's a bad world surrounded with utter gloominess; crime and hatred popping up everywhere. People seem to have forgotten the aesthetics of life, the principles listed in Manu smriti, which are the guidelines for leading an austere and pious life. There is a rat race going on in every field. Fight for survival, survival by crushing down others. People are craving for power and money. That seems to have become their only and ultimate motive of life.
We are all moving down an abyss. Our actions seem to have become involuntary and our heart seems to have become vestigial. Emotions have drained out of the bodies of people and they are more like zombies, their conscience dead long back.
My poor soul just does not seem to have accustomed to this world and it keeps sending these tremors from deep within..
It's a bad world surrounded with utter gloominess; crime and hatred popping up everywhere. People seem to have forgotten the aesthetics of life, the principles listed in Manu smriti, which are the guidelines for leading an austere and pious life. There is a rat race going on in every field. Fight for survival, survival by crushing down others. People are craving for power and money. That seems to have become their only and ultimate motive of life.
We are all moving down an abyss. Our actions seem to have become involuntary and our heart seems to have become vestigial. Emotions have drained out of the bodies of people and they are more like zombies, their conscience dead long back.
My poor soul just does not seem to have accustomed to this world and it keeps sending these tremors from deep within..
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