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Posts Tagged common sense
The imminent death of Palm?
Back in January of 2009, Palm announced that they will be launching the next ‘iPhone Killer’ pretty soon. This saw a sweet surge in the stock prices of Palm by about $4. CES (Consumer Electronics Show) was held in the later half of January 2009 at Vegas and Palm’s booth was overflowing with what they were about to launch.
What was launched:
At CES 2009, Palm launched their new smart phone platform called the WebOS keeping the developers in mind. Developers could create their applications by using CSS, HTML and Javascript to start with. No new languages to learn. This was in direct competition to Apple, who launched their iPhone SDK with Objective-C. Palm was on a verge of bringing the money on the table with their idea.
The Palm Pre
Apart from WebOS, Palm also launched their new phone called ‘Palm Pre’ that was set to launch in Q2 of 2009 featuring a 3.1″ screen with multitouch(!!), slide-out QWERTY keyboard, 8 gigs of storage, GPS, accelerometer and proximity sensors to start with.
Highlights:
Palm’s new platform could have been a serious iPhone killer – Not just with the hardware, but with the software as well, like how Android is doing at the moment in close partnership with HTC. The WebOS was based on ‘cards’ (very similar to Windows Phone 7’s ‘Tiles’), a dock and gestures (that Android perfected in v2.1). The game-changer has definitely been the ability to truly multi-task (Apple does not yet support multitasking yet). The WebOS runs on Linux and is absolutely full of eye-candy.
The downers:
1. App Catalog:
We all expected that you would have a lot of sensible apps on the Palm’s app catalog (keeping aside the never ending fart-apps and other useless jingle-jangles that cover 140,000 apps on the Apple App Store). Going by app count, by the end of 2009, Palm just had a mere 1000 apps on their app catalog (versus 10000+ for Android and 100,000+ for Apple)
2. Hardware:
The Pre got off to a seriously awesome hype in Summer of 2009, but somehow, for some reason, Palm decided not to improvise on their hardware, no surge in apps and basically they lost Apple, HTC and the other manufacturers came up with bigger and better phones (hardware-wise) and Palm decided not to mess with their Pre for over a year.
The second very important factor is that Apple launched the iPhone 3GS and stole Palm’s thunder. Perfect strategy to kill the demand of an upcoming technology by improvising on an already-set-and-highly-successful platform. Typical Apple.
Palm was in some unknown hurry of launching the Pre, resulting into very limited (hardware and software) testing, which then translated into a lot of unsatisfied users. Almost every other person has returned their Palm Pre atleast once to get them fixed and getting a replacement. With such a high competition from Apple, these small mistakes from Palm were getting on the nerves of the users.
3. Design:
Palm’s Pre had a highly glossy almost mirror-like finish on it’s screen. Now that did go very well with the fairer sex (the Pre was termed as a woman’s phone). Only developers, Palm nerds and geeks would know what the WebOS was really capable of doing.
Palm’s designers complained that the iPhone is too huge to put in a pocket and hence decided to shrink it somehow – resulting in the Pre’s thickness like a bar of soap. Not good again. Palm’s designers somehow forgot that the users do not want to seem like they are carrying a bar of soap or a bundle of cash in their pocket. I was never a fan of the Palm’s keyboards. The Centro somehow pulled it off well, but the ‘chin’ of the Pre was too big a pain to let the user type on the hardware keyboard with ease. Maybe a landscape QWERTY (like the spaced-out keys of the Droid) would’ve helped?
Mistakes, more Mistakes:
Palm thought it would be a good idea to let the users sync their phones using iTunes. Not sure what the developers were smoking when they came up with that idea, knowing that Apple is ruthless with their competition (Apple filing a lawsuit against HTC for implementing Multitouch recently, remember?)
Palm Pre syncing with iTunes
Palm did not focus on improvements on their platform (hardware and software) resulting into newer an d better phones overtaking them (iPhone users complained about copy-paste, MMS, better camera, multitasking – Apple made them wait) – I agree that the situation that Palm is in at the moment, making the users wait was not a very good idea either. Double edged sword, to say the least.
Conclusion:
Looks like all the success stories of the Motorolas and the HTCs and the Apples have learnt from the unforgivable mistakes that Palm has made. Or it may also be the case that Palm was trying to cover an old technology in new overalls.
I guess Palm’s days are finally over. You can blame it on ruthless competition, lack of faith of their customers, stupid design calls, hardware and software, just to name a few.
The imminent death of the Palm Pre?
If you have been following all the tech news updates regularly, Motorola was in a similar state a year back when they were about to shut shop on their mobile phone department, and then they decided to give Android a shot. Look where they are now in terms of sales for the Droid, the i1, the BackFlip and the DEXT.
If Palm decides to give away it’s baby (the WebOS) and adopt another (Android), they might be successful (you never know)
Alternate bailout is that Google buys out Palm and continues it’s development
But, to say the least, Palm is dead. Struggle and sacrifice, else R.I.P.
How NOT to use Powerpoint [VID]
Posted by CeeTee in Random Thoughts, Tips and Tricks on March 5, 2010
I have seen a LOT of bad presentations. Trust me.
I do not understand why people want to pack stuff with a crap load of paragraphs of a thesis, use obnoxious animations like fly-in, sound effects (How can you NOT have sound effects, right!? WRONG!), and the list goes on
This is something that I can absolutely relate to. And I am sure most of you would too!
Will India crumble and fall like the USSR ?
Posted by CeeTee in Random Thoughts on December 24, 2009
This post is absolutely not biased whatsoever. It is basically what I know about the history of the ex-superpower USSR and what we people see happening in India.
I have quoted my points from the following post:
USSR – Millions of individuals lived and suffered under the seventy-year reign of the USSR, crushed under the dead weight of a stagnant empire.
India – Millions of individuals are living and suffering under a reign of anti-social elements, militants and separatists in a stagnant empire (e.g. Kashmir, Arunachal Pradesh, etc)
USSR – Gorbachev responded to the Soviet Union’s problems by introducing perestroika, or economic restructuring, and glasnost, an element of political freedom.
India – Indian government responded to Telangana’s problems by supporting the idea of a separate state, risking the downfall even further by another 4 regions requesting for a separate state for themselves
USSR – Corruption and bureaucracy was far too entrenched in the economy for legislation to make a dent in the economic crisis.
India – Corruption and bureaucracy has existed in India for decades and will continue to exist, risking a major bust in the economy in the near future
USSR – reformist politicians swept into power in regional positions across the nation
India – Reformist and Separatists politicians and groups are being encouraged across the nation, risking the division of India even further
USSR – Gorbachev’s decision to not use military force to put down revolutions in Eastern Europe further eroded the power of the Soviet Union during 1989 and 1990.
India – Indian Government’s decision to not use military forces to put down separatist groups and militants who create havoc in this country will most definitely cripple the power of the government and could end up giving the nation in the hands of separatist dogs, and the government would be just redundant
USSR – Non-Russian minority groups throughout the Soviet Union agitated for independence during this period. The Baltic Republics led the way in demanding freedom from Soviet occupation.
India – Minority groups in this country have been asking for freedom and a separate state/nation since the independence of this great nation we call India.
USSR – The tensions in the Soviet Union came to a head in August 1991 when a group of right wing military and KGB leaders staged a coup in Moscow while Gorbachev was on vacation in the Crimea.
India – Tensions in southern and north-eastern parts of India have been highlighted by the media to all the nations
USSR – Boris Yeltsin gained international acclaim when he occupied the Russian White House and faced down the threats of the leaders of the coup.
India – India supported the threats of non-violent, hunger strikes by various politicians, hence making them even more popular and gain more followers to support him/her, instead of facing down the threats of separation
USSR – Although Gorbachev was the nominal chief of state, Boris Yeltsin now had immense popular support and wielded more substantial power.
India – Although Manmohan Singh is the Prime Minister of India, Congress president Sonia Gandhi assured that separate state can be provided to Telangana.
USSR – Eventually, after 70 years of struggle, on 25th December 1991, USSR broke down into 15 individual states, ending the reign and power of the USSR
India – Any time now ?
Scary as it might seem, but the trend looks like it could happen anytime. India has prospered in almost every aspect and is turning into a superpower.
Like the English boxing legend Bob Fitzsimmons once said ‘The bigger they are, the harder they fall’. This was very true in the case of the great USSR back in the World War times. With the huge population in this country, I just hope and pray nothing like this happens to India and we continue to proper and live in harmony.
QTP Clean Uninstaller v2.10 [Direct Download]
Today, HP’s Quick Test Pro v10 started acting up with me throwing random error messages and just would not continue my automation tests. I thought that doing the regular uninstall and reinstall would probably help
A lot of forums say that QTP leaves out quite a lot of registry entries and they need to be cleaned up with a tool called ‘QTP Clean Uninstaller v2‘. Googled it and reached the author’s website
Turns out that Mr. Tarun Lalwani (the author of the website) needs you to register to his site and download the 30KB tool. Not just a plain registration, the typical wordpress registration.
I ended up giving my (work) email ID to get myself registered and wishing there was a way to delete my account.
Anyways. This very useful tool is just 30KB – Yes, THIRTY KILOBYTES. And it takes over 7 minutes to register to the site (and verify your account) and download it.
I’m offering a mirror for the tool for those who do not wish to go through that pain that most of us do.
Note: The tool is not modified in ANY WAY and is just a mirror for a direct download without the registration and headaches. If you are Tarun Lalwani and you think I need to remove the mirror, please do comment below and I’ll do the needful
The black clouds over India
Posted by CeeTee in Random Thoughts, Sarcasm on August 31, 2009
This post is going to be dead straight to the point.
The Indian Constitution states that:
All citizens shall have the right —
to freedom of speech and expression; – You publish a book, you’re banished. You express your views about something and there are 10 people waiting to pounce on you for that political upper-hand
to assemble peaceably and without arms; – Not a lot of Indians resolve to assemble peacefully – We HAVE TO raid public places and beat up helpless women and men. We HAVE to resolve to using the military’s help in one particular part of India – which ALWAYS belonged to India.
to form associations or unions; – You form associations and just look how we have divided ourselves based on caste, religion, region, etc
to move freely throughout the territory of India; – There is intense fear of moving to various parts in India – Kashmir, the North-East, the South
to reside and settle in any part of the territory of India; and – You are not welcome in any other part of India. You get beaten up for no reason if you are a North Indian and come down to Mumbai seeking a job on MERITS
to practise any profession, or to carry on any occupation, trade or business – A certain group of people want a “quota” just so they can get a job regardless of merit. If they don’t get it, they resolve to violence
I just want to start off with something REALLY absurd and illogical.
1. Common Sense - The Maharashtra government is almost on the verge of approving a Rs. 300 crore monument to commemorate Shivaji’s contribution to Maharashtra (and ofcourse to compete with the Statue of Liberty in the United States). Do we not have enough of the millions of Chhatrapati Shivaji landmarks across Mumbai alone ? Are the drought-hit parts of Maharashtra benefiting ? Are the hungry folk being taken care of when they promised the same during the elections? Farmers in the Vidharbha region are suddenly insignificant? Even if you do erect that monument, will it help the tourism industry in any way?
2. The right to free speech – one of the basic ideologies in the Indian constitution – does not work. You publish a book, you get thrown out or get beaten up. You dont get an opportunity to “gel in” if you are not from that particular part of India and of course you get beaten up to a pulp for no fault of yours. The politicians somehow have this right to free hate speech for the wrong reason, and they get let out with a mere warning and a bail of Rs. 2000. RIDICULOUS !
3. Sports is not just about Kho-Kho, Kabbadi, Cricket and Hockey. The sports ministry says that Formula 1 is not sports since all you do is watch and cheer on to a specific group of people. Isn’t that ALL you do with Cricket, Football, Hockey, The Olympics, etc ? Dont you just sit and cheer on to your favorite team hoping they win ? Sports is supposed to be a recreational activity, not only just for self-development.
4. Fear – It took them more than 15 years to sentence the Mumbai 1993 blast suspects. Ajmal Kasab is still not sentenced. The D-Gang is still on the loose. Death threats to lawyers from within India itself. Goondas roaming free (most of which have turned politicians) with a crisp salute from the highest police official if he/she passed them by. If India has the proof, why not invade the responsible country like how the United States did in Iraq and Afghanistan (though they did not have a firm reason to go to war)
5. Literacy – About 60% of India is educated up to the 4th grade or less. You say if you are bought to power, you will erect schools in villages, etc. But are you enforcing it ? The people who are unfortunate enough not to be educated are still under the impression that a girl is supposed to be married off anyways, so why educate ? Are you doing something to change their thinking ? Child marriage still exists and that shit is glamorized and shown on TV with the educated folk just sticking to the serials like super glue thinking it is entertainment. If you want to show the current situation of rural India, DO NOT glamorize it.
6. Religion is the very root of violence and the discrimination in this world. Brutal killing, senseless banishment of certain folk, etc. I have heard so many people say ‘There is a supernatural power beyond the clouds looking over you’ and you feel nice that someone is ‘looking out’ for you. BLIND FAITH and HOPE rules our sanity. To some extent it is acceptable, then it just crosses the line (you are free to interpret this line with your experiences). Certain people take unfair advantage of you just because he is of the same ‘kind’ as you are, just to be in power. Did you forget about the Mumbai riots, Godhra riots, plight of the Kashmiris, etc ? Even the local discrimination in your own neighborhood should be enough to prove to you that religion SURELY is the root of all this nonsense.
7. Racism – We say Australia is racist just because there were a handful of incidents against Indians studying or working there ? Have we ever thought how racist we are ourselves ? We pass by a tourist and we call him a ‘Gora’ or a ‘Kaaliya’. A Gujrati, Sindhi, Marathi, Bengali also have their own stereotypically racist words. Heck, we are SO racist, that even if we are of the same cast, we go beyond that, just for our satisfaction.
8. Economy – We say that the inflation is negative, yet we feel the pinch of the cost of general food items rise to no limit ? Do you know why ? A recent study in the Times of India newspaper has revealed that the inflation is still being calculated on Vanaspati Ghee, Cibaca tooth paste, Keo Karpin hair oil, Sansar detergent powder. If you are born after the year 1985, you might have this blank look on your face that you’ve never heard of such ‘BRANDS’. Right ?
9. Technology – The world has gone so far ahead in the world of Technology and Science. What are we waiting for ? All we see is the 3G auctions getting pushed for no apparent reason. And now the government says that India is looking for 4G. RIDICULOUS ! The average internet connection in India is just over dial-up speeds. We are still 25 years behind in the world of healthcare technology.
10. Corruption – Another sad issue that rules the entire country is Corruption. If a person gets pulled over and has his driving license confiscated, I DOUBT there would be hardly a fraction of a percentage of people who would go to court, pay a fine and get on with their lives. We encourage it for our own convenience, to get an unfair advantage over someone, or just to get our work done
In short, a LOT has changed over the past 20 years (half of which I dont even remember) and India surely has moved on. But the nation still ends up to the dogs. The mentality of the new-age India has changed. So should the ‘political veterans‘.
If you have seen these issues, you should be able to relate to what I am saying. Feel free to drop in comments.
Antichrist [Movie Review]
Antichrist is BY FAR the most retarded “horror” movie ever. A woman freaks out something she does not know. SHE IS THE ANTICHRIST.
CeeTee Rating – 0/5 stars
Is life as bad as I think ?
Posted by CeeTee in Random Thoughts on August 21, 2009
I was having tea outside the office premises today and was cursing my work life imbalance. Constant stress, continuously thinking about work, no time with the family and loved ones, no time for me to do what I want to do, etc. But then I thought, is my life as bad as I think it is ?
I just looked around. There was a bunch of 5-6 sparrows chirping in a corner and thought I’d take a look. I saw what looked like a broken sparrow egg (could conclude from the egg shell, and the mother sparrow’s nest right above the scene). The momma sparrow had lost, what looked like a potential healthy baby sparrow. A weird feeling creeped in supported by a light smile on my face thinking no, momma sparrow is a lot more vulnerable than mine at that moment.
About 30 feet away from the same location, I saw this couple (probably perfect for each other) were breaking up because their families did not approve of them. The girl was inconsolable and heartbroken, and the guy was trying to keep his calm so he does not make matters worse for her.
I grew up with this friend of mine for about 20 years before our family decided to move to a different house. We had this bond that was far more stronger than what 2 blood brothers can have. We shared everything – happiness and sad times alike. Last year, the day after we moved to the new house, his grandmother (who treated me like her own grandson) passed away. God bless her soul and may she rest in peace. She had the deepest eyes and the most beautiful face ever. She was 90 years old. My friend does not know that whenever I used to come down to visit her in his absense or otherwise, she would tell me stories about how her family went through extremely tough times and bought up her own family – healthy, wealthy and wise. Even though we did not share a blood relation, I owed her a lot. I had the utmost respect for her and love as my own grandmother. Till date, everytime I speak in marathi, I still picture her in my mind. My friend, his family and I were at the hospital the day she went to a better place. It was extremely difficult for me to handle the situation, but had no idea what my friend would’ve gone through when he was holding her hand and saw her become dear to God.
Honestly, since this event (and several others), something has changed in me. Something tells me to look at life in a different way, which is usually makes life better.
Such incidents that people usually overlook are the ones to look back to and rethink, is my life REALLY that bad ? Or am I just being picky with what life has to offer me?
Life really is a book and I’ve learnt not to judge it by it’s cover
Top 10 categories of people who piss me off
Here’s a brief list of people who just don’t fail in pissing me off
1. People who send you 2MB BMP attachments
2. Those who try to find a way past you by going through the 10 inch gap between you and the person you are talking to
3. People who cross the roads like goats and sheep. They think they will pass through without the driver knowing
4. People who eat my food
5. Those who keep right clicking the desktop and clicking Refresh. It just does not do anything!
6. People who have their annoying twittascope feed on twitter
7. Those who swear by Internet Explorer still being the awesomest browser EVARRR
8. People who swear by Linux being the solution to all our computer problems. Just install it once and see the hairfall count go up exponentially just to get the fucking MP3s working on a Linux Distro
9. Those who dont know about or like LOLcats
10. Those who don’t read the fucking URL properly and get phished 
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