Saturday, September 11, 2004

Interesting Grid Positions... the importance will be revealed tomorrow.

: "2004 F1 World Championship
Round 15 - Italy
QUALIFYING POSITIONS
1Rubens Barrichello
(Ferrari)1m 20.089s
2Juan Pablo Montoya
(Williams-BMW)1m 20.620s
3Michael Schumacher
(Ferrari)1m 20.637s
4Fernando Alonso
(Renault)1m 20.645s
5Takuma Sato
(BAR-Honda)1m 20.715s
6Jenson Button
(BAR-Honda)1m 20.786s
7Kimi Raikkonen
(McLaren-Mercedes)1m 20.877s
8Antonio Pizzonia
(Williams-BMW)1m 20.888s
9Jarno Trulli
(Renault)1m 21.027s
10David Coulthard
(McLaren-Mercedes)1m 21.049s
11Ricardo Zonta
(Toyota)1m 21.520s
12Mark Webber
(Jaguar-Cosworth)1m 21.602s
13Olivier Panis
(Toyota)1m 21.841s
14Christian Klien
(Jaguar-Cosworth)1m 21.989s
15Giancarlo Fisichella
(Sauber-Petronas)1m 22.239s
16Felipe Massa
(Sauber-Petronas)1m 22.287s
17Nick Heidfeld
(Jordan-Ford)1m 22.301s
18Giorgio Pantano
(Jordan-Ford)1m 23.239s
19Zsolt Baumgartner
(Minardi-Cosworth)1m 24.808s
20Gianmaria Bruni
(Minardi-Cosworth)1m 24.940s"

Sunday, July 25, 2004

25/07/2004 - 2004 German Grand Prix

The race is on and Michael Schumacher is leading the pack by 14 seconds!

Starting on pole Michael has made the most of his position and is a light year ahead of Alonso.

Third is Coulthard after Kimi's retirement followed by surprise, surprise! Jenson Button, starting at 12 and jumping this high certainly puts him up for a podium position.

As I was writing this Schumi is 15 seconds ahead - and well on his way to a third win at the Hockenheim circuit.

Monday, July 12, 2004

Formula One: What The Papers Had To Say…

One of the best articles on the web about the race yesterday; link'ed below and text copied under it.

Formula One news, fun, results and features from Planet-F1.com

What The Papers Had To Say…
Monday July 12 2004
Prior to the British GP it looked like local boy Jenson Button or Kimi Raikkonen could be in with a chance of grabbing victory at Silverstone, but on race day, it once again turned into the Schumi and Ferrari show. Here's what the papers had to say…


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'From pole position Raikkonen took off as if he was running on fuel vapour only, building a three-and-a-half-second lead by the end of the opening lap...Schumacher watched all this from fourth place initially, content to bide his time and doubtless chuckling into his helmet. He knew that he was on a two-stop strategy and that he could stay close enough when it mattered, and after his rivals headed for the pits for their first of three stops, he took the lead and stayed out on track until lap 15.

'Even at this early stage it was clear that the race, as such, was over. As Button began a slow fade out of contention, Raikkonen kept up the pressure, with Barrichello hounding him. And as the revised McLaren's new fuel load was depleted the Finn drew closer again to Schumacher. It was clear, however, that the Ferrari would be able to go longer before refuelling.

'Four stops in France; two in Britain. Frankly, Ferrari could have sent him into Towcester for a Big Mac and fries for the crew, and he'd still have won.' - The Independent.

'The fans who had flocked to Silverstone wanted a Jenson Button victory.

'But they came away satisfied having witnessed Michael Schumacher, the greatest racer on earth, at his ultimate best.

'The Ferrari superstar has been accused of making the sport boring. But the excitement comes from seeing him win under any situation.

'One British journalist is hoping Schumacher remains invincible because he wrote earlier in the season he would run round Silverstone naked if McLaren won a race this year. Dennis said: “I expect him to keep his word.”

'The naked truth is that Schumacher’s current form may just spare the hack’s blushes.' - The Sun.

'Formula one is a world of disguise and deception. For these people concealing the truth is a way of life. Most of them are so steeped in the habit that you cannot even get a straight answer to a question about what they had for breakfast, never mind their race strategy. And even by the general standards of the sport, Schumacher has always been a master of the
straight face and the deflecting response. He was at his best at Silverstone yesterday, in more than one sense.

'France a week earlier he had stupefied the opposition by stopping four times and winning. Yesterday it looked as though he and Ross Brawn, Ferrari's technical director, had achieved such strategic mastery that they could play games with their opponents' expectations.' - The Guardian.

'But amid the shambles of political infighting and incompetent rule-making that Formula One is becoming, the crushing dominance of the world champion has become another symbol of the malaise that grips the sport.

'When it gets to the point where Schumacher is spinning his Ferrari on purpose to slow himself down - as he did in pre-qualifying on Saturday - grand prix racing knows it is in big, big trouble.

'He and his team are so far ahead of the rest that Formula One is becoming a parody of a competitive sport. Schumacher's the best and getting better.' - The Daily Mirror.

'Kimi Raikkonen was really there, a McLaren driver on a grand prix podium for the first time since last year's Japanese Grand Prix. This was tremendous news for the squad in silver, tremendous news too for neutral fans of the sport. Schumacher's domination so far this season has been attributable partly to the skill of the German and his engineers, but also to the comparative weakness of the other teams.

'The new vehicle showed promise at the French Grand Prix at Magny-Cours, where Raikkonen and Coulthard were still feeling their way with it. But at Silverstone the car has been a revelation, instantly propelling Raikkonen back to the front of the grid where he belongs.

'But do not break out the bunting and bubbly just yet. Were it not for Jarno Trulli's accident and the subsequent safety car interlude, Schumacher would have finished yesterday's race half a minute ahead of Raikkonen instead of a handful of seconds. But the Finn would still have finished second, a placing earned entirely on merit.

'Raikkonen said: "It's a nice feeling to be back racing for first place."

'That's a nice feeling for the spectators, as well. The doom-mongers would have it that Schumacher's dominance is murdering the sport, that the television audience is switching off in droves. But consultation with paying spectators yesterday produced only positives: people are quite happy to watch a great driver beating the others, as long as the others are getting close.' - The Daily Telegraph.

'Britain's summer run of magnificent failure extended to Silverstone yesterday as the nation’s new motor racing hero managed only fourth place in the British Grand Prix. Alongside the names of Henman and Beckham, Dallaglio and Vaughan, write that of Jenson Button as the next plucky Brit to suffer crushing defeat at the hands of an imperious foreigner.

'...Barrichello is no threat to the six-times champion as he showed yesterday, coming home meekly in third place after Ferrari put him on a strategy designed to back up Schumacher. With Barrichello’s assault effectively suppressed, the German could wrap up the championship at Ferrari’s home grand prix in Monza — three races from Silverstone — and still have four races left in which to parade his considerable talent. That will leave the rest to scrap for second place, a position that might be beyond Button and a fading BAR-Honda that simply did not have the speed to combat either Ferrari or the McLaren-Mercedes of Kimi Räikkönen.

'Unlike Henman or Beckham, at least time is on Button’s side. And Schumacher has to retire some time. Formula One can only hope it is sooner rather than later.' - The Times


Monday, July 05, 2004

04/07/2004 - Magny-Cours: Michael's seventh French win

The race was a delight! Michael trailed Alonso for almost half the race; starting off at number 2 he had to contend with the position until lap 32. Alonso finally conceeded the lead after his second pit stop and Michael never gave it back.

It was a very tactical race that saw Michael winning pretty effortlessly in the game, but with a 4 stop strategy, the race was on until the last few laps. It was his sheer speed combined with Ferrari 'light-car' strategy at the right time that saw them on the No. 1 position in the end.

This was the cake, but Barrichello made sure that he gave Ferrari the icing too. With only the final chicane to go Trulli wondering what he would say in the press conference fell asleep. An error he would regret for a long long time because when it is a Ferrari behind you, you dont sleep. Trulli made a tiny mistake and leaving just enough room on the inside for a Ferrari, he slid wide and Barrichello took what was the last chance that he got during the race and the final place on the podium. He started at 10 and finished at 3; a fantastic result for him and a very very fine day for Ferrari.

Current Standings:

2004 Drivers Championship

1 Michael Schumacher 90
2 Rubens Barrichello 68
3 Jenson Button British 48
4 Jarno Trulli 46
5 Fernando Alonso 33


2004 Constructors Championship

1 Ferrari 158
2 Renault 79
3 BAR-Honda 62
4 Williams-BMW 37
5 McLaren-Mercedes 22

Rise of a new order: Greece Wins Euro 2004

Cannu believe it?

Greece, A team that had never won anything as big as this, a team that were 100-1 pre-tournament outsiders have won the Euro 2004.

Their one and only goal of the match ended with a 1-0 victory over the much-fancied hosts at the Luz stadium. Haristeas's firm 57th minute header from Greece's first corner of the match gave them a lead which they never let the Portugese take away from them. Tried as hard as they could, they wasted all the chances they got, the portugese had posession of the ball for more than 55 percent of the time and had numerous corners, but failed in each and every attempt to score. And did Greece give them a fight, they were all upon them and what they got in the end was a very deseved victory, not a chance win, not a fluke!

Sunday, July 04, 2004

4/7/2004 - Magny Cours, France

Alonso takes the first pole of his career, driving better than Michael and rest of the lot. However, it remains to be seen if he can beat the World Champion, M Schumacher has won 6 races here, and he starts just beside him; Alonso does have the start capabilities and may be even Button or Coulthard can overtake Schumi when the race starts, after that, though, is a very different game, and playing it against the best will be tough to say the least. No team, is going to benefit with a two stop strategy as the tyre wear will surely negate the time saved by skimping a pit-stop and certainly the more the fuel, the slower the laps would be.

It would be an interesting race though; this week and the recent period hasn't brought any joy to the English sport fans, while this race might put both the F1 racing Brits on the podium.

Which spot would Schumacher be standing on?

Pole or no pole, I would put my money on the Number 1 spot for him.

Saturday, July 03, 2004

Friday, July 02, 2004

BW Online | June 28, 2004 | The Digital Village

BW Online | June 28, 2004 | The Digital Village
India's high-tech dynamos are turning more attention to the needs of the nation's countless poor

Friday, June 25, 2004

Euro 2004: Grief descends; England crashes out.

After work I rushed to watch the match with hundreds of football fanatics at one of my favourite pubs here in Lincoln, but sadly, it was a night that we will not remember in happy context.

England, lost to hosts Portugal in the first quarter final of Euro 2004. - They're out.

A sad and undeserved result. After Michael Owen’s third-minute strike, it seemed nothing could go wrong, until the first shot-in-the-arm that came in the 27th minute when Rooney had to leave the playing field. The shoulders did sag. It wasn't a good omen and in the end, it certainly was very clear that having Rooney would probably have meant that we could have seen England play on the 30th too.

Getting Postiga in paid-off in the 83rd minute with Portugal getting their much needed equalizer. Sol Campbell had a last-minute header harshly ruled out by Swiss referee Urs Meier for an apparent foul on Portuguese goalkeeper Ricardo by John Terry.

At the End of normal time scores were: Portugal 1 England 1.

Portugal's second goal came in the second half of Extra-time when Rui Costa's kick cruised passed into James' net.

Lampard's another amazing kick saw England come up with an equalizer but failed to bring up anything after that with Full-time scores at: Portugal 2 England 2

Penalties started pathetically for England with the captain kicking the ball up in the sky and but for Portugal Deco scored and they were level even when Rui Costa missed at 2-2 and it was Vassell who missed and Ricardo finishing it all with 6-5.


Sad, but true, what I do not know is who has a higher degree of emotion today, the Portugese who won or the English who will, now, not be playing on Wednesday.

Wednesday, June 23, 2004

baazee.com to become a part of ebay

baazee.com to become a part of ebay says:

Press Release
eBay to Acquire India's Baazee.com

San Jose, Calif. and Mumbai, India, June 23rd , 2004 - eBay, The World's Online Marketplace (Nasdaq: EBAY; www.ebay.com), today announced that it has agreed to acquire Baazee.com, Inc. and its subsidiary Baazee.com India Pvt. Ltd., the largest online marketplace in India. The acquisition is expected to close in the third calendar quarter of 2004.

The agreement will allow eBay to expand its global footprint into the nascent but growing Indian market. In turn, Baazee.com will use its new relationship with eBay to further develop its business and strengthen its position in India's e-commerce market. The combination of Baazee.com and eBay will allow buyers and sellers in India and around the world to gain access to a broader range of choice and convenience.

Based in Mumbai, Baazee.com offers a diverse online marketplace for a range of buyers and sellers throughout India. Baazee.com currently has more than one million confirmed registered users who trade in a wide range of categories from consumer electronics and computers, to home decor and jewelry.

"Our relationship with Baazee.com is another important step in the growth of eBay's global marketplace," said Meg Whitman, President and CEO of eBay. "Although it's early days for e-commerce in India, we believe there is great opportunity over the long term. Baazee.com's strong management team and solid focus on its community make it a natural fit with eBay."

"Our partnership with eBay validates Baazee.com's business model and position in the industry," said Avnish Bajaj, Chairman and Co-CEO of Baazee.com. "Our local expertise combined with eBay's global perspective will allow us to take e-commerce in India to the next level."

"We built Baazee.com to change the way people buy and sell goods in India," said Suvir Sujan, Co-CEO of Baazee.com. "Becoming part of eBay will allow us to provide even greater economic opportunity for our community of users."

A young market in terms of e-commerce adoption, India's Internet penetration is growing steadily. There are currently 17 million Internet users in India, and that number is expected to grow to more than 30 million in 2006, according to IDC's Internet Commerce Market Model, January 2004.

eBay will acquire all outstanding shares of Baazee.com, Inc. for approximately US$50 million, plus acquisition costs and post-signing adjustments. eBay does not expect the acquisition to have a material impact on 2004 net revenue and earnings per share, and does not expect it to affect eBay's financial guidance as issued in connection with its first quarter earnings release on April 21, 2004.

About Baazee.com
Baazee.com India Pvt. Ltd is a subsidiary of Delaware based Baazee.com, Inc., and started its operations in India in January 2000. Headquartered in Mumbai, Baazee is India's biggest marketplace where anyone can sell or buy almost anything. Baazee has a strong and growing community of 1 million confirmed registered users who trade in a wide range of thousands of item categories including Electronics, Cameras, Phones, Computers, Movies, Mobiles, Fashion, Music, Home, Toys and Travel. Through a world class technology infrastructure Baazee enables & simplifies e-commerce for India's burgeoning online community.

About eBay
eBay is The World's Online Marketplace®. Founded in 1995, eBay created a powerful platform for the sale of goods and services by a passionate community of individuals and businesses. On any given day, there are millions of items across thousands of categories for sale on eBay. eBay enables trade on a local, national and international basis with customized sites in markets around the world. Through an array of services, such as its payment solution provider PayPal, eBay is enabling global e-commerce for an ever growing online community.

Forward-Looking Statements
This announcement contains forward-looking statements that involve risks and uncertainties. Actual results could differ materially from those discussed. Factors that could cause or contribute to such differences include, but are not limited to, the reaction of the users and suppliers of Baazee.com to the transaction, the future growth of Baazee.com's services, the reaction of competitors and regulatory authorities to the transaction, foreign currency exchange rate fluctuations, and political, economic, and security developments in, or affecting, India. The closing of the transaction is subject to certain closing conditions. More information about potential factors which could affect eBay's business and financial results is included in the company's Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2003, and the company's Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q. All forward looking statements are based on information available to eBay on the date hereof, and the company assumes no obligation to update such statements.

Fool.com: eBay Bids on India [Motley Fool Take] June 23, 2004

Fool.com: eBay Bids on India [Motley Fool Take] June 23, 2004 says:

eBay Bids on India

By Alyce Lomax
June 23, 2004

eBay (Nasdaq: EBAY) is the latest of the large Internet companies to make a move into a country with a vast population and substantial growth potential. Today, the company said it's purchasing Baazee.com, an online auctioneer stationed in India.

This is, of course, a good way for eBay to ensure a foothold in an international market set for growth. Motley Fool Stock Advisor pick eBay will buy Baazee.com -- which currently has 1 million registered users and is considered the largest online marketplace in India -- for $50 million in a transaction during the third quarter that is not expected to have an impact on the former's financial results for the year.

Today's move is a bit of a departure from the recent "China trend" from Internet heavyweights. Just last week, Google said it would acquire a stake in Chinese search site Baidu, while Yahoo! (Nasdaq: YHOO) announced the launch of Chinese search portal Yisou.

That's some exciting stuff, especially since China boasted 79.5 million Internet users at the end of 2003 -- second only to the U.S. in terms of people surfing the Internet.

Of course, eBay has already done a bit of a land grab in China by acquiring a Chinese company called EachNet. However, for all the recent excitement about China and the Internet, the fact remains that operating in that country can be rather risky. Take into consideration the warnings in eBay's SEC filings concerning that country's regulations, which breed some degree of uncertainty.

In some ways, then, India may be a less risky environment. (For some background on the country and its economy, click here.) On the other hand, when it comes to being wired to begin with, India has grown slower than China. According to eBay's press announcement, IDC data suggests that 17 million Indians are Internet capable at the moment, a number that is expected to increase to 30 million by 2006.

India, of course, is a hot spot in the current outsourcing debate. Regardless of how you feel about the topic, the flow of jobs to India is creating opportunities for U.S. companies and their services. Today's move gets eBay in on the ground floor of a country with an economy that's developing and arguably well aligned with what eBay provides. This deal also seems a small price to pay to further eBay's pleasant brand of world domination.

eBay is a longtime Motley Fool Stock Advisor stock. What other stocks do the brothers Gardner bet will make big gains? Try it for six months, risk-free. Then, talk to interested Fools about eBay's chances in India on the eBay discussion board.


Alyce Lomax does not own shares of any companies mentioned.

Microsoft's Sacred Cash Cow

Microsoft's Sacred Cash Cow by Jeff Reifman. An interesting read.

PhotoBlogging

Two of the same picture on the same page! Do I look as if I am wasting space in publishing the same file twice and displaying it in different ways?!? Nope! This is when I start PhotoBlogging and the Blog below this is my first photo blog and a reason to shift to blog*spot's servers from my alternateplanet.net web-space for a few weeks (or may be more...)
and... by the way... say Hello and Meet BloggerBot.
 Posted by Hello

WICKED, innit?!!! Posted by Hello

Mika Hakkinen's Steering Wheel

Forward Jokes! - Mika Hakkinen's Steering Wheel

This one's WICKED :)

Tuesday, June 22, 2004

sheru dada

sheru dada: "sabhi bhai log ko mera namaskar aur unki beheno ko mera pyaar. bole to, apun idhar aa gayela hai to sab ko following kaam karne ka:
jyaada aawaj nai karneka aur roj saalam thokneka, bolbachchan nai marneka aur pyaar se rahene ka, ladka hai to raag deneka aur ladki hai to pyaar deneka, aur kabhi bhi hafta deneko nai bhoolneka. okay, to tension nai leneka aur chup chap so jaaneka.
abhi to jaarela hoon, lekin waapis jaroor aaoonga. chal e bye bye, bole to gud ki night"


-----
a direct lift from Shreyas Thaker's blog on the URL above using BlogThis! on the google toolbar.

Monday, June 21, 2004

SAP to launch a New SAP Service Marketplace and SAP Support Portal

SAP is coming up with a new SAP Service Marketplace release to go-live on June 27, 2004 with a new, harmonized layout and navigation structure, providing SAP customers, partners, and prospects with a central point of access to SAP's entire portfolio via the Internet.


It says, The new release/look is necessitated by the recent growth in size and complexity of the SAP Service Marketplace and the current trend towards portals catering to the needs of specific target groups has made it increasingly difficult for users to find what they are looking for quickly and easily. The SAP Service Marketplace team has therefore devised a new concept for the SAP Service Marketplace to align it more closely with the needs and requirements of its many different users.


The New Layout will have areas like:
Solution Details,
Education,
Consulting, etc

The entire content of the SAP Service Marketplace is now divided into individual portals - including
SAP Support Portal,
SAP Developer Network,
SAP Partner Portal,
SMB Portal,
SAP Help Portal,
SAP Community
- and an area containing the categories
Solutions in Detail,
Consulting,
Education,
Communities for user groups, and
SAP's Media Library.


i.e: A single-new SAP Service Marketplace index page will act as a gateway to all these portals rather than the user having to type the URL's individually.

----
All the above facts are,as reported by SAP the current SAP Service Marketplace and may be © Copyright SAP AG.

Sunday, May 30, 2004

30/5 - Nürburgring, Germany - Who else but schumi...

hey! He's done it again!
he's finished on the top rung of the podium six times out of seven races this year - unlucky to make a new record of six consecutive wins but firming up his position as the number one driver this year with his 76th win of the career.

Barrichello was amazing - as good as anyone on the track, finishing second, giving Ferrari a total of 106 points for this years Constructors Championship.

Button, I believe, was just plain lucky after doing good laps with great consistence which finally paid in the end earning him the last place on the podium.

just wondering... what if there were three ferrari cars on track? ;)


competition anyone?!?!?!

Objects in the rear view mirror...

...appear closer than they are, and I guess, it's going to be the same when I look back at my day's with mfi. I have been on the project for almost a year now and it has been a very enriching experience to work for such a respectable company.

Thanks a lot to the Infrastructure team, whose part I have been all this long, in making this an unforgettable assignment.

It is an emotive decision to move on and I sincerely wish you all the best with your efforts for this and future projects.

I am contactable on tarunbulchandani@hotmail or on 079 57 97 94 63.

- Tarun.
------------------------------------------------------------------
my last e-mail on the mfi project...

Friday, May 28, 2004

Nurburgring coming up on 30th May, 2004

Who says Michael Schumacher will come back strongly this time?
Stronger than the last race and possibly stronger than the one previous to that?

I do. and anybody would, anyone who has known his style of racing and has followed him, will say so.

Why?
just because he is driving a Ferrari in favoured conditions? yes, partly, but more due his fighting spirit and never-say-die attitude and most importantly his ability to put things in perspective and go-ahead with the ultimate in mind and achieve it, time after time.

He is so consistent that I've heard non-followers of the racing world say that it is no use following or watching the races because they know who's going to be on the top most rung of the podium.

Sunday will, I believe, again prove that Schumacher is where he is just because he is who he is and the way he races.

See you there.

Saturday, April 24, 2004

24/4 - San Marino - Jenson Button on pole in Imola

First pole of his career for Jenson with 1m 19.753s of qualifying lap time. WOW! yes it was good to watch someone pressurizing M. Schumacher for a mistake, which he did make and that was what precisely cost him the pole. Never mind, he is still in the first row, that effectively means that with a good start he can very well make it past Button during the start and still make up for it. However, for Jenson, it will be a moment that he might remember for a good part of his life, with a good start to this year and this pole; he's eclipsing any other driver in the English as well as the world press.

Before the qualifying session, Jenson was speaking about trying to meet Ferrari's dual challenge, as against aiming to better them, but during the session he made sure to point out his modesty.

No doubt, a good number of pubs here will switch from their Sunday rugby matches to show the race tomorrow at 1300 hours local time.

Sunday, April 04, 2004

04/04/04 - Bahrain, Formula 1.

WHAT do you say to this? Michael Schumacher does it again, three times of three this year - no thi isn't the race result that i'm posting about, it's the qualifying lap results, he's got the pole position again! and who else can make it in the front row but Barrichello?

Looks like it's going to be Ferrari blazing the trail tomorrow (today, actually, it's already well past 1), although it might not be easy...
1. the track is Bahrain - hot - predictably, not too easy on the Bridgestone's as Australia, yeah, i know, i said that for Malaysia too...
2. Second row is lead by Montoya, he, sure as hell, is not going to let Schumacher get to the chequered flag much ahead of himself.

it's going to be exciting, to say the least - next update - after the race...

Thursday, April 01, 2004

India vs. Pakistan. Test 1. Multan. We Win

We win. Yes! for the first time in the 50+ year Indian history, we won a test match on Pakistan soil today!

Three cheers for the new Indian team, going around their work with zeal and professionalism, rarely seen in any Indian team before. Winning by an innings and 52 runs is no mean feat, anywhere. We've done it today and all Indians, I am sure, would be very proud of it, anywhere they are in the world.

Pakistan !!!------really good

Reproduced below is the copy of an e-mail message, it's is not conventional stuff but I believe 100% of it is true. Read on...

===================================
Subject: Pakistan !!!------really good



Believe me... this thing needs to be forwarded to as many as

possible.....



An email from Sai Nagesh to Mindshare after his

visit to Pakistan for the 1st one day match.

Subject: Pakistan

Folks,

This mail has nothing to do with work. just wanted to share

certain very overwhelming experiences. Had been to karachi for the

1st one dayer on saturday.

1. Imagine 39,990 Pakistanis & 50 of us Indians cheering lustily

'for' each other, throwing chocolates at us !!. Quite a few

were carrying the flags of both countries imaginatively stitched

together. Then they all stood to give a standing ovation to the

Indian

cricket team !

2. Guy on the street selling 'bhuttas' refused to accept money saying

that

we were 'mehmaan' in their country !!

3. people rushing to shake our hands on the streets & asking us to

come to their home for dinner

4. Restaurant owners refusing to accept the bill payment after

coming to know that we were from India

5. Everybody we met & we met quite a few, had some relative staying

in India.

6. Star plus is the most favourite channel in Karachi

7. There was a TV star called Heena ?? who was sitting in the

stadium, one pakistani put up a impromptu banner saying "heena,

will u marry me ?"!!

8. Shops gave us 40 to 50% discount ...........India again

9. Taxis, autos, army guys......the list is

endless.......everywhere loads of courtesy, respect.....

more than we would get in our own country !!!!!

It is really sad that we have an impression of that country that

is

so negative. I shudder to think of the plight of pakistanis who

would

come to india when the Indo-pak matches will happen here.

Sad, that we consider ourselves 'secular' & yet will spare no

thought

before making negative statements on that country. It's sad but

true

, this

experience teaches one that......"Perception is not reality".

Thank u for sparing your time.

Have a lovely day.





Warm Regards

Sai Nagesh,

Director- Mktg & Corporate Affairs,

Group M Media India.

Mobile : 98200 63743

Direct : 56638999



Madison Communications Pvt Ltd., Mumbai - India.

Monday, March 29, 2004

First Indian to cross the 300 runs mark!!!

Virender Sehwag wrote history with his bat today, when he crossed the 300 run mark on the second day of the first test match between India and Pakistan in Multan.

Every other major test playing nation had crossed this milestone except India, not anymore! we're up there with the elite, with a top-notch knock by a top-notch batsman playing exceptional cricket yesterday and today.

Monday, March 22, 2004

India vs Pakistan, Lahore

A typical Indian innings, buckling under pressure but coming out on tops :)

As usual, our top order didn't perform against Pakistan, now, how many times have we seen that???

and then came the wall - Dravid, teaming up with Yuvraj first and then with with solid support from Kaif to finish off the match, lords style.

Dravid with his fantastic zeal to do what he does the best annoyed and systematically foiled every plan in pakistan's quiver.

did someone say underdogs, eh?

and who says we win the next time round?

rock on India

21 March 2004, Sepang, Malaysia - M Schumacher - Once again...

World Champion, is that what they call him? well, yes, what do you know, he really deserves to be. After the show he put up at Sepang, Malaysia, as usual, calm and composed, driving as if the forces never seem to pertrube him, he reinforced that. As he himself had said, after winning at Melbourne, that it would be a very different race in Malaysia, it was, but for the others, not for Michael, not for Ferrari. He did just what the team could have expected.

Malaysia always brings up something unexpected, something different, Well, What do you say to Mark Webber's performance, or rather, the lack of it, or was it his car? whatever, he didn't even make it till the end, the only thing that the team could do now is investigate - his and Klien's starts and the ensuing troubles that they faced, surely they can make better cars, can't they?

Kimi Raikkonen, again, fell victim to an engine failure that took him out of the contest on lap 41.

Montoya, again, looking to give Michael a run for his money didn't get nearly as close as he would have liked to, but time and again, he does seem to be making his point and showing what he is capable of, when, if ever, would that be possible, is anyone's guess.

And Button was good, really good, seemed confident to make it where he did, yes, the bad-luck run for his rivals did help, but the only reason he made it to the podium was the fight that he put up on the track.

exciting, to say the least, wasn't it???

Saturday, March 13, 2004

india-pakistan - can cricket get any better?

hmm... so i do seem to turning into a sport freak with the way i have been altering my sleep patterns just to watch the events... (not that i live a very strict schedule)

this night it was cricket - with me getting up at 4:00 am in the morning (had gone to sleep well after 2 am) to watch the india-pakistan first one-day'er being played in karachi and boy was it worth it!

contrary to what everyone might have thought it was never going to be easy to win against pakistan in their own country, if 349 did something, it was to bring us a bit closer to a higher platform where we could hope to try and gain control of the innings - however deceptive this might have been, i believe, it was always pakistan charting their own path - whatever the pace.

the win - in the end - was only due to the new found determination in the young indian team that, you could almost swear, you had never seen in the earlier guys, the new indian team has risen.

Monday, March 08, 2004

F1 - Australia - 7 - march - 2004.

yeah, yeah, yeah... i was to write about this one... but just didnt get through to - why - i had no time - was busy working (through the weekend! uh!) but did get around to watching - what if it started around 2.30 am for me and what if it was on until the wee hours of the morning... 't was good - seeing the year begin with a ferrari win, you couldnt help but thinking that they're gonna take it this year too, but i am sure this year will be a long one for schumi and his team, other tracks aren't going to be as kind as australia to ferrari - yeah - the Michelin's might have had some trouble on this track (barring alonso, that is) but the bridgestone's might not be this effective on other tracks...

my vote for the consistent driver goes to: alonso, m schumacher and barrichello in that order, as for montoya - recovering from a bad start was going to be very very hard - but he did good to fight back - though a wee bit too late.


The Official Formula 1 Website

people - vision & sound - BBC NEWS | Technology | More than just a pretty interface

an article - that traverses through human psychology - and our music

music rekindles a memory that takes you away from the street back to the time and place where that song became important

BBC NEWS | Technology | More than just a pretty interface

Saturday, March 06, 2004

A History of Apple's Operating Systems

A link to a very insightful and a thoroughly researched article by Amit Singh of kernelthread.com

A History of Apple's Operating Systems

Friday, March 05, 2004

Kuch Khayal

i read this a few minutes ago and then re-re-read it, it seems just a bit - too human!

i have blogged the link and the story below. i2 acknowledge any copyrights that the writer/publishers might hold on this.

Kuch Khayal: "A story by Ruskin Bond

A story by Ruskin Bond

I had the train compartment to myself up to Rohana, then a girl got in. The couple who saw her off were probably her parents; they seemed very anxious about her comfort, and the woman gave the girl detailed instructions as to where to keep her things,when not to lean out of the windows, and how to avoid speaking to strangers.
They called their goodbyes and the train pulled out of the station. As I was totally blind at the time, my eyes sensitive only to light and darkness, I was unable to tell what the girl looked like; but I new she wore slippers from the way they slapped against her heels.
It would take me some time to discover something about her looks, and perhaps I never would. But I liked the sound of her voice, and even the sound of her slippers.
'Are you going all the way to Dehra?' I asked.
I must have been sitting in a dark corner, because my voice startled her. She gave a little exclamation and said, 'I didn't know anyone else was here.'
Well, it often happens that people with good eyesight fail to see what is right in front of them. They have too much to take in,I suppose. Whereas people who cannot see(or see very little) have to take in only the essentials, whatever registers most tellingly on their remaining senses.
'I didn't see you either', I said. 'But I heard you come in.'
I wondered if I would be able to prevent her from discovering that I was blind. Provided I keep my seat, I thought, it shouldn't be too difficult.
The girl said, 'I'm getting off at Saharanpur. My aunt is meeting me there.'
"Then I had beter not get too familiar,' I replied. 'Aunts are usually formidable creatures.'
'Where are you going?' she asked.
"To Dehra, and then to Mussorie.'
'Oh, how lucky you are. I wish I were going to Mussorie. I love the hills.Especially in October.'
'Yes, this is the best time,' I said,calling on my memories.'The hills are covered with wild Dahlias, the sun is delicious, and at night you can sit in front of a log fire and drink a little brandy. Most of the tourists have gone, and the roads are quiet and almost deserted. Yes, October is the best time.'
She was silent. I wondered if my words had touched her, or whether she thought me a romantic fool.Then I made a mistake.
'What is it like outside?' I asked.
She seemed to find nothing strange in the question. Had she noticed alreasy that I could not see? But her next question removed my doubts.
'Why don't you look out of the window?' he asked.
I moved easily along the berth and felt for the window ledge.The window was open, and I faced it, making a pretence of studying the landscape. I heard the panting of the engine, the rumble of the wheels, and, in my mind's eye, I could see telegraph poles flashing by.
'Have you noticed,'I ventured, 'that the trees seem to be moving while we seem to be standing still?'
'That always happens,' she said. 'Do you see any animals?'
'No,' I answered quite confidently. I knew that there were hardly animals left in the forests near Dehra.
I turned from the window and faced the girl, and for a while we sat in silence.
'You have an interesting face,' I remarked. I was becoming quite daring, but it was a safe remark. Few girls can resist falttery. She laughed pleasantly - a clear, ringing laugh.
'It's nice to be told I have an interesting face.I'm tired of people telling me I have a pretty face.'
Oh, so you have a pretty face, thought I: and aloud I said, 'Well, an interesting face can also be pretty.'
'You are a very gallant young man,' she said, 'but why are you so serious?'
I thought, then, I would try to laugh for her, but the thought of laughter made me feel troubled and lonely.
'We'll soon be at you station,' I said.
'Thank goodness it's a short journey. I can't bear to sit in a train for more than two-or-three hours.'
Yet, I was prepared to sit there for almost any lenrth of time, just to listen to her talking. Her voice had the sparkle of a mountain stream. As soon as she left the train, she would forget our brief encounter, but it would stay with me for the rest of the journey, and for some time thereafter.
The engine's whislte shrieked, the carriage wheels changed their sound and rhythm, the girl got up and began to collect her things. I wondered if she wore her hair in a bun, or if it was plaited; perhaps it was hanging loose over her shoulders, or was it cut very short?
The train drew slowly into the station. Outside, there was the shouting of porters and vendors and a high-pitched fenake voice near the carriage door; that voice must have belonged to the girl's aunt.
'Goodbye,' the girl said.
She was standing very close to me, so close that the perfume from her hair was tantalizing, I wanted to raise my hand and touch her hair, but she moved away. Only the scent of her perfume still lingered where she had stood.
There was some confusion in the doorway. A man, getting ino the compartment, stammered an apology. The door banged, and the world was shut out again. I returned to my berth. The gaurd blew his whistle, and we moved off. Once again, I had a game to play and a new fellow-traveller.
The train gathered speed, and the wheels took up their song, the carriage groaned and shook. I found the window and sat in front of the window, staring into the daylight that was darkened for me.
So many things were happening outside the window: it could be a fascinating game, guessing what went on out there.
The man who had entered into the comparntment broke into my reverie.
'You must be disappointed,'he said.'I'm not nearly as attractive as a travelling companion as the one who just left.'
'She was an interesting girl,'I said. 'Can you tell me -- did she keep her long or short?'
'I don't remember,' he said, sounding puzzled. ' It was her eyes I noticed, not her hair. She had beautiful eyes --- but they were of no use to her. She was completely blind. Didn't you notice?'

N.B: The story " The eyes have it" has been 'copied' from "Delhi is not far - The best of Ruskin Bond" - Penguin Books, 1994. I am not too aware of copyright issues. So all credits, wherever due, duly given. I just liked the story, a visual delight; the ending may be predictable for some.

my SETI@Home stats

I have been running seti for almost two years now but it was only yesterday that I have been able to devote a Total CPU time of more than a year. I'm happy to reach this landmark, I have crunched 583 data units at an average of just of 15 hours per data unit and stand in the top 300 for India. :-)



India

Monday, March 01, 2004

Testing archiving

didnt realise archiving was not on for this, pretty dumb,eh? :p

P.S.: who cares abt the dumb part - dumber?

site design blues

i have not been away much - except from posting here - and the only reason is my site design, maintaining the first version was a nightmare due to way i implemented my menu's moving towards javascripts - i have hit browser compatibility issues with scripts that are supposed to run on multiple browser/OS combinations failing.

i am currently investing more and more time in coming up with a good design that incorporates cross browser compatibility, easy maintenance/updates of the site and in the end - look good.

i have had to give up a lot of personal pursuits but i hope i would be able to come up with a design that i could hold up with pride.

till then...

Sunday, February 22, 2004

Delhi Metro's dream run

as always... proud of india...

Delhi Metro's dream run

finally - php/rss and new site design

i have finally found a good rss parser 'CaRP' that seems to be working like a charm - i have .php'd my index page and am in the process of generating my entire site via php - expect to find loads of dynamic content.

also to be updated are sections on general/linux utilities and further information on linux distro's and comparisions.

coming up is an entire new format for my website that i hope to upload tonight or mayb in a day or two...

will also be updating a few sections on general rss info and 'feed'ing rss information and news along with how-to's

keep sending your feedback!

Wednesday, February 18, 2004

knoppix - apt-get

finally... got the thing working - though not without help from friends and forums :-)

i was trying to get the thing to update the distro but it wouldnt do it coz i had configured HTTP_PROXY and FTP_PROXY instead of http_proxy and ftp_proxy!!!huh! big deal.

anyways... i'm updating now...

Monday, February 16, 2004

Macintosh. Twenty years later

mac's are 20 years old - or young should i say with the kind of technological refinements and showcases they are and have been since the moment Steve Jobs pulled the first Macintosh from a bag in 1984.

i myself, have worked on mac's for quite a few years now and own an old (very charming) LC 630 - and they have always been a source of pleasure

nothing has ever come close to the hearts of computer users as an apple mac
it's not a community - as they say - it's a cult

further reading...

Attached > �Macintosh. Twenty years later�

i'm back!!!

whew! it did take me a long time to come back... where was i, u ask?

well, out good ol' friend fixmbr and fixboot (yes, windows xp) had me fixed - in a fix, actually!

i was trying to get my windows bootloader back from the grub that i was using for suse and mandrake earlier and yes - the commands did exactly what they were supposed to do: fix'd it! i lost my booting abilities and also all my data until i sweated days and nights to get it back - yes did recover most of the stuff and also got knoppix working on the system. apart from this - everything was hunky-dory :-)

well, now that i am back - i'm not goin' anywhere due to data losses

also, i have updated almost all the pages to better content/looks

todo:
getting this blog's syndicating links up on the page and also to get some really-geeky inputs from feeds across the web page - let me know if you've got anything worth sharing - with/without RSS/ATOM

Monday, February 09, 2004

weekend

so... where have i been over the weekend - well doing nothing else except working and watching india go down to australia in a humiliating defeat that epitomizes the indian morale and australians' playing style - they are hitting like sri lanka were in their pre-world cup days, except that these guys put a lot of thought minus the emotions into winning matches. Australia finished with the exact total they made in the World Cup final against India at Johannesburg 359. India with all it's might could only manage a measly 151 - 208 short of victory - i am sure of those betting on australia couldn't have dreamed this big a win!!!

Saturday, February 07, 2004

New Maruti Zen - Business Standard Motoring

a worth read for any indian who'z been obsessed with cars and has lived during these years

New Maruti Zen - Business Standard Motoring

New Maruti Zen - Business Standard Motoring

a worth read for any indian who'z been obsessed with cars and has lived during these years

New Maruti Zen - Business Standard Motoring

Friday, February 06, 2004

S. Venkitaramanan - Business Line - NRI : Not Required in India?

This article by S. Venkitaramanan captures a large variety of views points relating to India's economy - both good and bad. Does seem like a big circle to me, will we ever be able to break out of it???????

Business Line NRI : Not Required in India?: "S. Venkitaramanan "

Wednesday, February 04, 2004

XML Joke

A good one that i picked from: XML Introduction - What is XML: "XML Joke
Question: When should I use XML?
Answer: When you need a buzzword in your resume."

Japan National Tourist Organization Website

no this blog isn't a place where i'm organizing my favourite's :-))

putting this up coz it seems interesting...

Japan National Tourist Organization Website

Greymatter - The Opensource Weblog/Journal Software

does sound interesting - however - i am sticking to blogger for the moment.

Greymatter - The Opensource Weblog/Journal Software

Tuesday, February 03, 2004

alternateplanet

alternateplanet - the name - (unless you read this very literally) - is an alternate planet in an alternate time - no this has nothing to do with time travel - this is the time that I currently reside in - this cannot be measured in days, weeks or months but is relative to how long i live and what fragment of my life the current time is, alternate planet resides somewhere in the vast jungle of grey matter

A S H I F I C A T I O N

Backtracking for Tuesday, January 27, 2004 by Aashish Chandorkar
A S H I F I C A T I O N

Life Is Beautiful

A post by Jayram Joshi - surely does trigger those nostalgic feelings
Life Is Beautiful

Monday, February 02, 2004

pressconnects.com | 02/02/04 | Opinion Story

pressconnects.com | 02/02/04 | Opinion Story

first

this is my first blog., one of the first few bytes that I would start my impressions with, part reason for putting this is to test how my pages display this text and also to celebrate the launch of my site alternateplanet.net, long thought about and long contemplated though that doesn't necessarily mean that this might turn into a very interesting column though it will surely be endeavoured for.

so keep tuned in for updates and hopefully a lot of fun! :-)