Wednesday, April 25, 2007

One Day at IIT Madras

On 24th of April '07, I went to the hottest and the most sizzling city (read literally) on Earth - Chennai (formerly Madras). It was an official visit and was planned for just one day.

There are a few friends of mine from college who stay in Chennai. Most of them work there, while a few are doing their post-graduation. Since it was a weekday, I thought it'd be wise to meet Gautam since he is studying M Tech at IIT there. I called him up the previous night and confirmed his availability.

I landed at about 8AM and reached the campus somehow by 9. The driver of my cab couldn't converse in English nor Hindi. I was surprised when he refused to acknowledge a college like IIT but knew Anna University instead. However, with the help of my travel coordinator I managed to reach the campus.

The IIT Madras campus is lush green, unlike any other part of Chennai. It is built on the forest land and you can see a lot of animals roaming around, esp deers. Students inside the campus use their cycles to commute. It reminded me of my college days, although, IIT can never be compared to a college like MVIT. There was only one thing in common - Chicks (if you can dare call them that). I didn't see one good looking chick there, except for a foreigner who was probably there on an exchange program.

I chatted with Gautam in his dorm most of the time. We had breakfast and lunch together in the mess. After that I went off to finish the work what I had come for. In the evening, Gautam had promised me to show some "real" chicks of his college. So we chatted over some coffee in the Cafe Coffee Day there. Later in the evening I hanged out in the hostel terrace and met another friend of mine - Prashant.

To wrap up, it was a pleasant break from the routine work in office. Reminded me of my college days. I hope I get a chance to be in such a place as a student once again sometime.

Pictures speak more than words. Here is a slide-show of my Day at IIT Madras. Make sure you select 'Show Captions' while watching it.





Picasa Web Albums


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Sunday, April 22, 2007

Chabs XLRI Treat @ Lemon Grass

Chabs, one of my good friends from MVIT, got through XLRI, Jamshedpur. To celebrate this occasion, he threw a treat on 21st April 2007 @ Lemon Grass. Here's a video of that.

I would like to wish Chabs, on behalf of every MVITian, a very successful MBA career. :-)



Wednesday, April 18, 2007

Picasso - My Canon PowerShot S3 IS

Today, I got the camera that I bought; my Canon PowerShot S3 IS. Its a real beauty, not just cos how it looks, but also the pictures that it takes. I christened it as Picasso cos of the great artistic abilities it possesses. :-)

I played around with a little bit today and I am already impressed about what I can do with it. Here are some of the point-and-shoot pictures that I took. Have a look!

Click on the pic for details.


Most of these pics were clicked in 16:9 wide aspect ratio, which is a very cool feature of this camera. You can even shoot movies this way!

Thursday, April 12, 2007

Friday the 13th

April 13th, 2005
Yes. Friday the 13th. The day of the devil.

Let me take you for a ride down the memory lane. I am talking about my college days, specifically, the days as Freshers. The days when being ragged by the seniors had become a daily routine. And then suddenly, one fine day, the Big Bang happened!

April 13th, 2002
I clearly remember the mixed feeling, everyone in my batch, had that morning. Considering what had happened the previous day (A bunch of us dared to fold our shirt-sleeves at college; which was a sin according to many of our seniors) many of us were skeptical what will happen at the morning breakfast. Everyone was waiting for each other to gang up together, so that, we are not caught aloof and made a bakra by the seniors. Yeah, the way we walked up to the hostel mess can easily be compared to a herd of sheep or goats. All were glued together, heads down, to form a highly concentrated irregular shape. Everyone trying their best to be at the center. Not because we felt guilty of what we did the previous day in college but because we didn't want to exaggerate the matter any further, hoping our seniors would call for truce and will throw the Fresher's Party soon.

We occupied the tables at the extreme corner, trying to avoid eye-contacts of any sort with the seniors. Some were brave and even dared to go close to the coffee containers next to the senior's table. There it started! One of the 3rd-year guy along with a bunch of 2nd-years asked him to sit with them. Nothing very flashy happened, but the grim face of my friend as well as the seniors indicated of the sour time that was coming. After one and half semester, we had an understandably close relation with the senior guys. After looking at their faces it felt we have gone back to day one.

The seniors had sent a message along with that friend of mine, asking all of us to assemble in the cricket field at 9AM sharp. We have had numerous such call-outs in the past (especially in the first semester) which ended up being ragging-sessions. I hoped that this one would be for truce as everyone of us was asked to be there. I also secretly hoped that they'd understand this act of ours and would apologize to us for not releasing the grip until now.

But the cricket-field was set for a completely different ball-game. There were at least forty seniors and super-seniors [Wiki: Seniors who have struggled to graduate even after umpteen number of attempts] as against seventy of us! Yeah, there have been times when even two guys alone have ragged thirteen of us in their flats. They always targeted the weak links to show their 'prowess'.

Immediately after the small introductory speech was interrupted by a question by my brave friend, and later, by a thundering slap to him, we knew, the assault is on! The seniors follow the divide-and-rule policy. They divided our group into Biharis, Bangalis, Delhiites, Rajasthanis and other Northies. Soon after that our 'dear' seniors turned into 'devils'. People were slapped, abused, thrashed for no logical reason whatsoever.

We gulped the humiliation we went through for about two hours and returned back to our hostels. Everyone was fuming with anger and hatred. (In todays context, you can imagine our situation similar to Rang De Basanti). Some of my batch-mates who were in the senior's hit-list were asked to stay-back in the ground. We all got really worried about them, constantly looking out of our windows at the path way that led us to our hostels.

As far as I know, no one went for lunch that day. Its not that there was fear inside us, but because, there were bigger concerns at that point of time. Soon fellow batch-mates started showing up. The later they came, the more swollen their faces were. As they narrated their horrifying stories, the anger started fuming even more vibrantly inside each of us.

And then it happened. The Big Bang!! One my close friend (who was made a scape-goat) was left at the hostel doorsteps, half-dead, by some seniors at the middle of the night. His face was completely swollen, with multiple cuts and injuries. His eyes were hardly to be seen. I am not exaggerating, but his head size was nearly twice of normal, because of all the injury. Everyone in the hostel felt this angst to rip off the senior's head who has done all this. We took him to his room and called the warden. After that administration took over its course.

Just to conclude, I'd say, that we took all the steps we could to fight back our rights. Some of the seniors went to jail, many were detained. Most importantly, my fellow 'scape-goat' friend recovered well. Soon, there was a truce and people began to live life normally thereafter.

The End. :-)

Wednesday, April 11, 2007

Google Bug - Result Count


A Google Bug (thats a rare phrase, I bet) on its search page! Look at the image above. It was noticed when a friend of mine was trying to search "clean guitarists" (God knows why?).

Sunday, April 8, 2007

Flash Earth

With the Map APIs being exposed by various service providers, there has been a fresh new surge of map applications in the web. One such new product is Flash Earth.

Its a typical Flash-driven Mashup which makes use of feeds from 8 sources: Google Maps, Microsoft Virtual Earth, Yahoo Maps, NASA Terra, etc. The user can select any of the above mentioned feeds. The navigation features are very similar to Google Earth; like zooming using the mouse wheel, click and drag, etc. The 'Search a Location' panel on the bottom-right of the screen is neat and quite accurate, along with latitude/longitude coordinates and the ability to save URL’s for exact locations.

Two features make this web application a winner

1. No external client is required to use all of Flash Earth’s features. All you need is a Flash-equipped web browser (I was able to run the application successfully on Firefox 1.5, Firefox 2, and Internet Explorer 6 and Internet Explorer 7)
2. Maps fill the whole browser window. No more navigating tiny and awkward frames, combined with the smooth zooming effect, Flash Earth handles like a regular desktop application.

Over all a great web product.

Thursday, April 5, 2007

Google launches My Maps

Online search giant Google today added an extra feature to Google Maps to simplify the creation of maps mash-ups so users can quickly share the results.

My Maps, based on the concept of "create and share", will democratise map making in a profound way, Carl Sjogreen, Google ANZ senior product manager, said. A mash-up is a Web site or application that combines content from a variety of sources into an integrated experience.

Users, once logged-in, can embed videos from YouTube, text, photos or anything from a Web page, as well as draw lines or shapes and mark locations with icons to personalise their map. It's the first time that Google has offered such functionality -- including customised map drawing tools and links to other Internet content -- within Google Maps.

Once a map has been created users can share the map with family and friends, or make it available to anyone trawling the World Wide Web by making it public.

Sjogreen believes My Maps is easier to use compared to existing mash up sites already using Google Maps API (application programming interface) which offer similar experiences -- customised maps with rich embedded content.

The ability to search My Maps is not yet available, however, Sjogreen said the capability will be added in two to four weeks. Google is currently developing algorithms to rank the most relevant maps in a search query.

My Maps is available in 10 countries and can be accessed at http://maps.google.com.

Tuesday, April 3, 2007

Shoot Pictures like a Pro

I always wondered how much a Digital SLR would cost, which National Geographic guys use. Definitely, Photoshop plays a big role, as much as the high Mega-Pixel Digi-Cams, in these razor-sharp images. But photography, which is a revived art now (thanks to the new digital wave), has brought new challenges along with these new super-cool cameras and SLRs.

I was reading a few articles on how to master this art of digital photography. Here's a compilation of what all I have read. Special thanks to DCMag

The basic concept behind photography is 'Light'. Light (dim) also poses the maximum challenge to a photographer. So how can you overcome this problem? We’re into the realm of low-light photography here. But don’t worry! Your pictures needn’t be blurred and orangey. With a few nifty tricks up your sleeve and a basic understanding of color balance, exposure and creative flash techniques, your low-light shots can be as good as anything taken on a bright and clear day in spring. So let’s take a look at some of the best ways to turn those indoor photos and party pics into images you’ll be really proud of.

Mastering indoor flash
There will be times when the light’s just not bright enough to get the shot you need. Using flash is the answer, but it can be a very harsh form of illumination and often results in bleached-out faces and red eyes. If you’re lucky enough to have a dedicated external flashgun for your camera then you can tame this wild and unforgiving light.

If you have a separate flashgun or Speedlight, then bouncing your flash off the ceiling or a wall is a great way of softening the effect of a flash. It basically uses the ceiling as an enormous diffuser to spread the light around the room evenly. If your flash is the fixed type then you could try taping a piece of white paper in front of the flash tube to diffuse the effect.

Find a window
The winter light may be weak but the watery light of a low sun through a window can make the perfect setting for a really great portrait. If you use a reflector or a large sheet to reflect back some of that light you can produce a truly evocative portrait. Use a tripod and a remote release and then talk to your subject without looking through the camera. Set the person at ease and watch the effect of the light as you move the reflector around. Some of the best portraits are shot using this simple Rembrandt lighting technique.

Keep noise down
One way you can capture lifelike pictures in low light is to boost your camera’s ISO setting. Great idea. So why not keep it racked up all the time? Well, turning up the ISO is like winding up the volume on a stereo during a quiet passage of music. You can hear things better but you also get a load of hiss and other noise. A similar thing happens when you amplify the signal from a camera’s CCD. A lot of visual noise can spoil the shot with unattractive artifacts.

Most DSLRs perform at sensitivities up to ISO 400. By the time you get to ISO 800 the noise is starting to show. If you need a higher shutter speed by all means boost the ISO, but don’t overdo it! If you find yourself dialing in too much ISO, switch to a different low-light photo technique.

Use a tripod
Slow shutter speeds are great for really impressive indoor shots but the slower the shutter speed, the greater the risk of camera shake. If you’re shooting without the benefit of fl ash then you really should use a tripod for those low-light shots. Make sure the tripod is a sturdy model and use a remote release if you have one. Some DSLR cameras enable you to lock the mirror up for these types of shots in order to cut down on vibrations.

Shoot a candlelit portrait
A shot illuminated by a candle makes for a very romantic image and is well worth trying. Don’t adjust the white balance, as you probably want a fairly orangey glow in this sort of shot. Use a tripod and an ISO of around 400. Ask your subject to be as still as possible to avoid any blur as your shutter speed is likely to be well below 1/30th second. Underexposing works better too, otherwise the candle flame may be overexposed. Shoot using Aperture Priority (Av) mode and choose your widest aperture (this will be the smallest f-number your lens goes down to, f/3.5 for example). Holding your exposure compensation button, which will be a square divided with + and - icons, twist your camera’s dial until it reads -1.0. This is equal to minus 1-stop of compensation, which should avoid any overexposure of the candle flame.

Blend light
A good way to soften the effect of the flash indoors is to set your camera to Shutter Priority (Tv) and turn the shutter speed down to around 1/30 sec. The flash will still illuminate anything in the foreground, but the slower shutter speed will capture some of the ambient light in the room to soften the effect of the flash tube. This is the way pros shoot and gives satisfying results you can be proud of.

The same effect works even with separate flashguns and bouncing techniques.

Shoot three shots
The action of pressing the shutter on your camera can introduce camera shake and hence result in a blurred photo. Switch your camera to Burst or Continuous mode and keep your finger on the shutter for three shots. You’ll find the shooting mode either in your camera’s menu or as a separate button on the body. The first and last shots may be blurred as you put your finger on the shutter and take it off again, but the one in the middle will often be perfectly sharp. That’s how the pros do it!