Hathway cable service in the Erandawane region has been most unsatisfactory to say the least in recent times. Firstly, only 40 channels can be decently viewed. The other 30 that are available the signal is extremely weak. What's more is that important channels such as ESPN, BBC, DD Sports (at times STAR SPORTS) figure in the later group of channels. While pretty ordinary channels like the recent sensationalistic news channels, hungama etc. that hardly anyone would care a damn about are shown in the first category. Another issue is that Zee Sports which telecasted the Challenger series last week is not shown at all - it was shown in the adjoining Rajendranagar area - while several other Z channels ranging from Z Gujrati to Z Punjabi are shown.
It must be noted that whenever there is a cricket match on, one of the sports channels is swapped from the later group so it clearly proves that there is no technical reason as to why they should not be able to show all good channels at all times. Even assuming there is, it is understood that we are paying to see all available channels PROPERLY. This is really disturbing and someone needs to voice their concerns over this.
Sunday, October 23, 2005
Wednesday, October 19, 2005
The Bacon Number
Monday, October 17, 2005
When Killers Become Healers
This post on Rediff describes how the jehadi organisations in POK are helping out the quake victims - common people, police and army-men alike.
They have reached the remotest areas where the Government has failed.
Goodness of heart or plain opportunism ?
The article goes on to imply that jehadi movement has been strengthened by the quake and that grateful 16-year old kids are keen on joining the Mujahiddeen.
They have reached the remotest areas where the Government has failed.
Goodness of heart or plain opportunism ?
The article goes on to imply that jehadi movement has been strengthened by the quake and that grateful 16-year old kids are keen on joining the Mujahiddeen.
The Unimplementable Laws
Last month was the nth occasion when the Maharashtra government was supposed to start the strict enforcement of the draconian helmet rule in Pune. And for the nth time it flopped. Why the Government expected that it would be successful on this occasion given n-1 previous failures and all other things remaining constant is a mystery. The Government's vain efforts on this front are now a source of great hilarity for Puneites and although it might have escaped them, an embarassment for the authorities.
And then some time last month, they announced a much more reasonable law comprehensively banning use of plastic bags in the state. This was, it was reasoned, as a response to the July 26th floods in Mumbai. Apparently, it was the clogging caused by plastic bags that caused the drainage systems to fail. The language of the legislation was terse and strict - no exceptions made. There were protests by the usual suspects happened of course - how will one get milk ? what about cooking-oil ? what alternatives are we supposed to use ? does the Government realise the amounts of price-hike this will cause ? etc etc - of course we needn't have bothered. After making a few noises for a couple of days everyone has forgotten about it. The starting date for the proposed ban is long gone and yet we see plastic bags existing happily in our daily lives, carrying items of day-to-day use, littering roads and (maybe) blocking drainage.
And then some time last month, they announced a much more reasonable law comprehensively banning use of plastic bags in the state. This was, it was reasoned, as a response to the July 26th floods in Mumbai. Apparently, it was the clogging caused by plastic bags that caused the drainage systems to fail. The language of the legislation was terse and strict - no exceptions made. There were protests by the usual suspects happened of course - how will one get milk ? what about cooking-oil ? what alternatives are we supposed to use ? does the Government realise the amounts of price-hike this will cause ? etc etc - of course we needn't have bothered. After making a few noises for a couple of days everyone has forgotten about it. The starting date for the proposed ban is long gone and yet we see plastic bags existing happily in our daily lives, carrying items of day-to-day use, littering roads and (maybe) blocking drainage.
Sunday, October 16, 2005
Writing
I am worried that I might lose my writing skills forever. By writing, more precisely I mean handwriting. In this era of the WWW who has the time or will to take a pen and paper and write ? Well, even if one decides to take the effort he is going to be the loser as he will be spending extra time and effort reproducing that in print again. Unless some one is willing to employ specialist typists for every little piece he writes ...
I do believe this is a great tragedy of the modern era. Surely, we agree on the importance of getting children acquainted with computers at an early age via courses in school but I don't think the day is too far when kids will not know what "hand-writing" refers to.
And there is more loss than one can immediately perceive. Handwriting is universally accepted as reflecting the character of a person. There is no need for me to go into details of this. Handwriting breeds of individuality - the lovely curly one, the straight clear yet not-very-beautiful one, the childish flabby one, the completely incomprehensible rubbish - all of these reflect different types of personalities. Hell, it is not for nothing that we used to have hand-writing contests and prizes for the best hand-writing in school in those good old days. What individuality does the typed word signify ? Reading this post, does it indicate in any way what kind of a person I am ? (Of course I do believe that reading emails and conversations a person does develop a certain style and it is reasonably possible for me to identify the sender/chatter based on the type of net-language used ... (for eg someone may be one to say 'yeh' one may say 'hi' etc) ... but that's not quite the same is it ?)
And most frighteningly, I do not see any really feasible solution. Any ideas ?
I do believe this is a great tragedy of the modern era. Surely, we agree on the importance of getting children acquainted with computers at an early age via courses in school but I don't think the day is too far when kids will not know what "hand-writing" refers to.
And there is more loss than one can immediately perceive. Handwriting is universally accepted as reflecting the character of a person. There is no need for me to go into details of this. Handwriting breeds of individuality - the lovely curly one, the straight clear yet not-very-beautiful one, the childish flabby one, the completely incomprehensible rubbish - all of these reflect different types of personalities. Hell, it is not for nothing that we used to have hand-writing contests and prizes for the best hand-writing in school in those good old days. What individuality does the typed word signify ? Reading this post, does it indicate in any way what kind of a person I am ? (Of course I do believe that reading emails and conversations a person does develop a certain style and it is reasonably possible for me to identify the sender/chatter based on the type of net-language used ... (for eg someone may be one to say 'yeh' one may say 'hi' etc) ... but that's not quite the same is it ?)
And most frighteningly, I do not see any really feasible solution. Any ideas ?
Saturday, October 15, 2005
Go Gaurav
This post is to support Gaurav Sabnis, a Mumbai blogger who is involved in some pretty serious legal matters on account of some of his blog posts that sought to bring to the notice of the blogosphere certain issues regarding IIPM and a certain Arindam Chaudhary.
Im sure many of you must have heard about the story but for those of you are uninitiated or are unclear this post of Amit Varma is a good point to begin.
Of course you can find details of the latest from the above post and on Gaurav's blog. I just want to support Gaurav wholeheartedly for the principled stand he has taken and his determination to stand for freedom of speech. I also wish him all the best and hope that he emerges victorious.
Yes, I do have a lot more to say on the role of the blogosphere in this context, but for lack of time, that will have to be some time later.
Im sure many of you must have heard about the story but for those of you are uninitiated or are unclear this post of Amit Varma is a good point to begin.
Of course you can find details of the latest from the above post and on Gaurav's blog. I just want to support Gaurav wholeheartedly for the principled stand he has taken and his determination to stand for freedom of speech. I also wish him all the best and hope that he emerges victorious.
Yes, I do have a lot more to say on the role of the blogosphere in this context, but for lack of time, that will have to be some time later.
Art And Science
What is Art ? What is Science ? How are they related ? Where does the boundary lie ? Is there an art in doing scientific research ? Is there a scientific way to create art ?
Questions aplenty.
Questions aplenty.
Friday, October 07, 2005
Iqbal
Quite a fabulous movie. No other way to describe it.
About the only negative point about the movie was the way it was promoted - somehow it gave people the feeling that it would be a somewhat sad movie about a deaf-and-dumb youngster. But in fact, it is quite a brilliant feel-good movie while all the time being extremely realistic and down-to-earth. Definitely one of the best films of the year.
The simple life in the village is so beautifully portrayed with no efforts to glamorise or dramatise it anywhere. It feels as if you have just walked into this village and are meeting these lovely people. Cricket of course is the theme of the film, but it is not just about cricket. It is about the life of these villagers including but not restricted to the central character, their hopes and aspirations, their despairs and disappointments. It is about the bubbly and loyal younger sister (who is in the truest sense the heroine of the film - whoever said that a hero and heroine need to be romantically linked in a movie ?). It is about the loving and supportive mother, the stern yet good-at-heart father and most importantly about the extremely adorable, alcoholic coach Mohit- portrayed by the as-usual-brilliant Nasseruddin Shah. Mohit in his time himself was a fast bowler and a victim of political selection policies.
He is initially reluctant to coach Iqbal. This is due to various factors. Firstly he prefers to drink and sleep all day. Second he does not know how he is going to communicate. This is where the sister plays a stellar role. And third, he is convinced that nothing good can come out of being a fast bowler based on his own experience. Iqbal's persistence pays off and finally Mohit is drawn completely into it. He even tries his best to convince the austere father when the situation arises.
How he goes about teaching the raw, talented but extremely naive Iqbal the art of bowling is very cleverly depicted. The idea of Iqbal naming his buffaloes Kapil, Kumble, Harbhajan, Balaji and Irfan is very appealing. As is his idea of using them as stumps in his early days to practice bowling. Using them as fielders during practise to make the batsman play the shot that the bowler wants him to (a brainwave of Mohit's) is an intelligent one.
Of course towards the end, the plot is lost somewhat but that is bound to happen. But it is not completely lost like in most movies. The predictable aspects such as fixing in matches and selection are dealt with and while the end is a little over-dramatic it can be pardoned after such a beautiful effort.
About the only negative point about the movie was the way it was promoted - somehow it gave people the feeling that it would be a somewhat sad movie about a deaf-and-dumb youngster. But in fact, it is quite a brilliant feel-good movie while all the time being extremely realistic and down-to-earth. Definitely one of the best films of the year.
The simple life in the village is so beautifully portrayed with no efforts to glamorise or dramatise it anywhere. It feels as if you have just walked into this village and are meeting these lovely people. Cricket of course is the theme of the film, but it is not just about cricket. It is about the life of these villagers including but not restricted to the central character, their hopes and aspirations, their despairs and disappointments. It is about the bubbly and loyal younger sister (who is in the truest sense the heroine of the film - whoever said that a hero and heroine need to be romantically linked in a movie ?). It is about the loving and supportive mother, the stern yet good-at-heart father and most importantly about the extremely adorable, alcoholic coach Mohit- portrayed by the as-usual-brilliant Nasseruddin Shah. Mohit in his time himself was a fast bowler and a victim of political selection policies.
He is initially reluctant to coach Iqbal. This is due to various factors. Firstly he prefers to drink and sleep all day. Second he does not know how he is going to communicate. This is where the sister plays a stellar role. And third, he is convinced that nothing good can come out of being a fast bowler based on his own experience. Iqbal's persistence pays off and finally Mohit is drawn completely into it. He even tries his best to convince the austere father when the situation arises.
How he goes about teaching the raw, talented but extremely naive Iqbal the art of bowling is very cleverly depicted. The idea of Iqbal naming his buffaloes Kapil, Kumble, Harbhajan, Balaji and Irfan is very appealing. As is his idea of using them as stumps in his early days to practice bowling. Using them as fielders during practise to make the batsman play the shot that the bowler wants him to (a brainwave of Mohit's) is an intelligent one.
Of course towards the end, the plot is lost somewhat but that is bound to happen. But it is not completely lost like in most movies. The predictable aspects such as fixing in matches and selection are dealt with and while the end is a little over-dramatic it can be pardoned after such a beautiful effort.
Thursday, October 06, 2005
My Experiments With Myself
Yesterday I planned my day to a T. Every minute was assigned a task (even relaxation and TV surfing was allocated a separate time slot).
Today I had the urge to try the exact opposite. I would plan nothing. Just take things as they come and do what I feel at that moment.
So far I am not really able to say with any conviction whether one was any better than the other. Maybe a compromise is the best solution. Ah well, the experiements will continue.
Today I had the urge to try the exact opposite. I would plan nothing. Just take things as they come and do what I feel at that moment.
So far I am not really able to say with any conviction whether one was any better than the other. Maybe a compromise is the best solution. Ah well, the experiements will continue.
Happiness
The other day I read a brilliant article in The Times and cited on slashdot about happiness and its pschycological links. Unfortunately can't find it right now.
The most important point it made however, is that often are wants and likes are different. We crave for certain things and try our best to get them expending time and effort but in the end we do not end up liking them even if we manage to achieve them on most occasions. Such a simple thought and so true - yet something we don't always realise. It would be a good idea hence to remember the moments that made us truly happy and then try to recreate the situations that caused them.
The article also talks about, among other things, how the human race might have evolved in a manner such that when there is a danger or a crisis we make efforts to fight it but when all is going well we move into cruise control and take it for granted - make no effort to enjoy it or improve it. This is attributed mainly to the fact that our prehistoric ancestors had to fight against natural calamities during the Ice Age and then with wild beasts just to survive and now while that is no longer relevant our brain which has adapted to that resists change.
Update:
Meanwhile completely tangentially The Times (not the London times our very own Tabloid) says that Pune is the happiest city in India !! Isn't this too good or what !! Link via Amit Varma.
The most important point it made however, is that often are wants and likes are different. We crave for certain things and try our best to get them expending time and effort but in the end we do not end up liking them even if we manage to achieve them on most occasions. Such a simple thought and so true - yet something we don't always realise. It would be a good idea hence to remember the moments that made us truly happy and then try to recreate the situations that caused them.
The article also talks about, among other things, how the human race might have evolved in a manner such that when there is a danger or a crisis we make efforts to fight it but when all is going well we move into cruise control and take it for granted - make no effort to enjoy it or improve it. This is attributed mainly to the fact that our prehistoric ancestors had to fight against natural calamities during the Ice Age and then with wild beasts just to survive and now while that is no longer relevant our brain which has adapted to that resists change.
Update:
Meanwhile completely tangentially The Times (not the London times our very own Tabloid) says that Pune is the happiest city in India !! Isn't this too good or what !! Link via Amit Varma.
Tuesday, October 04, 2005
Getting The Timing Right
Is extremely important of course in all walks of life, in cricket ...
It so happens it is also important in your daily Tekdi visit.
Of course, Tekdi is a hot topic in the blogosphere of Pune bloggers courtesy this post by Gaurav (see here and here) and hence thought I might as well add my two-pence to it.
Yesterday I started climbing at 6 and it was a touch too late. For while returning it gets a bit dark and lonely.
Today I started at 5.20 and it was a bit too early !! Because the crowds really don't start pouring in that early and the Tekdi is resultantly much less romantic, devoid of life. Of course a bit too sunny too.
So you see, tomorrow I think I should look to start at around 5.40 ...
It so happens it is also important in your daily Tekdi visit.
Of course, Tekdi is a hot topic in the blogosphere of Pune bloggers courtesy this post by Gaurav (see here and here) and hence thought I might as well add my two-pence to it.
Yesterday I started climbing at 6 and it was a touch too late. For while returning it gets a bit dark and lonely.
Today I started at 5.20 and it was a bit too early !! Because the crowds really don't start pouring in that early and the Tekdi is resultantly much less romantic, devoid of life. Of course a bit too sunny too.
So you see, tomorrow I think I should look to start at around 5.40 ...
Ubuntu - Humanity To Others
Check this out.
Linux for Human Beings it seems. In African other than the above mentioned title it also means "I am what I am because of who we all are".
'The Ubuntu Linux distribution brings the spirit of Ubuntu to the software world.' according to their website.
My good friend Pavgi will no doubt be already onto it.
Interesting ...
Originally found via slashdot.
Linux for Human Beings it seems. In African other than the above mentioned title it also means "I am what I am because of who we all are".
'The Ubuntu Linux distribution brings the spirit of Ubuntu to the software world.' according to their website.
My good friend Pavgi will no doubt be already onto it.
Interesting ...
Originally found via slashdot.
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