Ne-Yawn's Take on Technology, and Life...

Of Tahrir Square and Liberty Plaza

2011-10-16T19:26:00.004+05:30

We live in the times of iPads. And also in the times of over 1 billion hungry people. We live in the times of the Arab Spring against tyrant dictators. And in the times of anti-consumerist movement against greedy corporates.

So when on September 17, 2011, a few hundred people marched down the Wall street, no one ever thought an Arab Spring would sweep the West. After all, the West is the champion of democracy and human rights. And freedom. What inspired these protestors? Unemployment, public bailout of greedy banks, or that "goddam Ayn Rand book" ?

Michael Moore says - The Wall street has taken our democracy and turned it into kleptocracy. But didn't Plato say almost two thousand years ago that democracy ultimately becomes rule by the few?

Or is it capitalism, that, as a model has failed us? It sure has generated wealth, and power. And greed. There has been unprecedented rise in inequality in the past two decades, and I am not talking of a certain nation.

Leave alone the social evils that have been born out of it. I am talking what got Bill G and the investment Czar Warren Buffet to sign up for the Giving Pledge, pledging to give away almost 99% of their wealth, to be spent within 100 years of their death. Does the capital not bring them true happiness. Why donate it after having earned it all? Karl Marx, in particular, would be smiling.

The Republicans don't want universal healthcare and propose lower taxes for the rich. The Democrats who speak of social welfare, taxing the rich and catering to the bottom quartile of the population dont seem to hold much sway in the Congress. The Republicans have the backing of the Wall Street.

No wonder, the protesters are accumulating where injustice has been done the most. It will be very interesting to watch how the whole movement unfolds and if it changes the way the world works. Meanwhile, a few interesting placards at the protest site:-

MuBarack Obama - Obama wins the Nobel, and why the Norwegian Committe could have done better

2009-10-30T14:46:00.003+05:30

That came from nowhere. Barack Obama wins the Nobel Peace Prize 2009 for his extraordinary efforts to strengthen international diplomacy and cooperation between people. The choice of the Norwegian Nobel committee was indeed stunning, especially since it was just two weeks since Obama assumed office as the President of Unites States, before February 1, the deadline for nominations.

Now Obama is the people's man, and very true all his efforts at primarily three fronts - Global Warming, Economic Stimulus and Reaching out to the Islamic world - are landmark initiatives, since thats exactly opposite what the President of United States does whilst in office. ( barring the Economic Stimulus, which is situational). Or to rephrase, that's what the Presidents of United States do when they are no more the President- be it Bill Clinton reaching out to North Korea, or President Jimmy Carter "holding back tears" while visiting sites of destruction in Gaza. Obama's moves are clearly pacifist and very unPresident like, and praiseworthy. As The Hindu has rightly put -

The world is so accustomed to American presidents waging war that the first incumbent to promise diplomacy gets to win the Nobel peace prize regardless of what he does.

Awarding the world's highest civilian honor to a man who is yet to prove himself worthy of it, in the hope that he"ll do something about it is too wishful - its like calling a bull a cow, and expecting to milk it.

I started this article on October 9, minutes after the news of Obama bagging the Nobel hit the internet - and had originally titled it - MuBarack Obama - Obama wins the Nobel, and why it is bad for America in the view that it was too early to judge him and that the burden of peace would make him a weak President which would not be in the best interests of America and so on. .

I am glad he isn't working overtime on peace issues, which is not what you should do when your country is the largest arms supplier in the world .

And I am saddened by his failure.

Take Afghanistan for instance. Things are no better than how they had been when he assumed office in January. There has been a spurt in the suicide bombings of late and even the President has admitted the United States' failure to bind together a viable Afghanistan bereft of violence. Now there are talks of having a UN monitored Muslim Peace Keeping force to bring peace in the worn torn country so as to change the common Afghan's perception of a non-believer and infidel force occupying their country. Things are so bad, even this wont be possible with some conspiracy theorist coming up with America's designs to fight one Muslim against another and bring an end to the Islam religion.

During the initial euphoria of bringing peace to the middle east, he called upon Israel to freeze settlements in Palestinian dominated Jerusalem. However, he gave up on it after a meeting with Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu, and merely discussed "the possibility of a pause in settlement activity".

In the light of such failures, Iran has also rejected the American bid to abandon its nuclear projects while the Obama administration has decided to hold fire for a while.

Will Barack Obama bring the world to peace just as George Bush brought perpetrators or crimes against humanity to a never ending justice?

I recall having read somewhere a black man not being happy with Obama as President. On being asked why, he said - Barack Obama is bound to fail. He is human. And humans fail. And when he fails, it will be a black man failing.

2009-04-09T16:50:00.000+05:30

~The music is all around you. All you gotta do is listen~

Wow. Quite a thought! :)

Flex : Submitting a form by pressing Enter

2009-03-16T17:32:00.001+05:30

Web developers beginning to (use) Flex find it very annoying when you have to navigate to the submit button by using tab keys or take your hands off the keyboard and move your mouse to the submit button to submit a form.

In fact it should be a built in support in Flex that when the user presses enter after filling a form, the Flash Player should automatically process it as a submit action. I have over months taken up several strategies to implement this in my applications. When I started out, I simply ignored taking extra effort to make a provision for submitting a form by pressing enter. However its really irritating if you press enter after filling up a form and nothing happens. Then you have to move your mouse all the way to the Submit button, cursing the developer all throughout. Here is what I did for implementing the same:

Method 1

The crudest method of doing it in Flex is add a KeyboardEvent event listener on the form and listen for the Enter Key having the code 13.

View the code here.

Method 2

This involves setting up the defaultButton property for your container ( I have used the root container <mx:Application> since I only have a single form in my entire page, but you must set this property of the immediate parent of the form) to the ID of the submit button. Click here to view the source code

Method 3

Its noteworthy how the most easiest methods of doing things are often the ones we discover after we have learnt all the hard tricks. In the form, the TextField has a property called “enter” which can be set to the “submit” function, which then validates the form.

Click here to view the source.

I hope this is useful.

Installing Java Development Tools on Flex Builder 3.0 - Network connection problems encountered during search.

2009-03-09T13:41:00.001+05:30

I have been working on a project that requires me to use Flex, LCDS, and Java. I was required to download Java Development tools for Flex Builder 3.0.

So I did this:

1. Goto Help-> Software Updates –>Find and Install

2. Choose Search for new features to Install

3. Check Europa Discovery Site and The Eclipse Project Updates

4. Click finish.

The expected result was to get a list of plugins available, select Java Development Tools and download and install it. However I got this error continuously :

“ Network connection problems encountered during search.”

I had downloaded Java Development Tools in the past and I never had faced this issue before.

I realized the difference between before and now was that now I accessing the web through a proxy server,and not directly connecting to the internet. That means that this wasn’t a Flex Builder bug, nor an eclipse bug. In fact this isn’t a bug at all.

All I had to do was set proxy setting for Flex Builder to access the internet, just the way my browser connects to the internet. This is how I did it:

1. Goto Windows-> Preferences –> General-> Network Connections.

2. Manually set the proxy settings . ( you can use the proxy settings used by your browser)

And restart Flex Builder!

You can search for and install all the useful plug-in you need.

Let me know if you find this useful.

Want to make a screencast? Or capture your screen?

2009-03-06T12:41:00.001+05:30

One of the biggest problems developers face while collaborating with other developers is explaining their problems to others. An easy way is to capture your screen and share it . And for those who think ( I am sure most of you would )Cntrl+Print Screen sucks, here is a way out.

Try Jing from Techsmith. The Jing Project from Techsmith helps you not only:

Capture your screen and take a screenshot
Make a small video of what you are doing.

But also:

Lets you add arrow marks, and put lables and text on the image.
Makes it easy for you to post the video on Youtube, or on a blog.
Automatically generates a URL which you can paste and share online.

Now isn’t that awesome? While the free version is what most people would need, the Pro-version is also available for the Pro’s. Try Jing now.

Let me know if it was useful.

Cheers!

Technorati Tags: Making a Screencast,Screenshot,Jing

http://HelpGaurav.com

2009-02-19T16:47:00.006+05:30

I found this while going through the twitter feeds of a fellow coder. I am reproducing the contents here, so that it gets a wider publicity . And a better help. Please visit http://helpGaurav.com for detailed information.

Gaurav Tandon is a 34 year old professional working with Datacraft Asia (a private IT firm) in Mumbai, India. His small family comprises wife, a 6 year old son. He has two elder sisters both are happily married and a brother who is serving as Captain in the Indian Army.

Gaurav was detected with AML (a type of Blood Cancer) in November 2008. He has responded well to chemotherapy, but must get a Bone Marrow Transplant as the only possibility for a cure. Unfortunately the HLA typing test of his siblings is negative. Doctors have therefore strongly recommemded a Non-Related Allogenic transplant. Since such transplantations are rarely performed in India, there is a high chance that we have to take him to places like Singapore, UK or the USA.

The estimated cost of the treatment in Singapore and UK is around 1.5 Crore Indian Rupees (around US$ 333,000), whereas in the US is around of 2 Crore Indian Rupees (around US$ 444,000).

In order to meet the steep cost of the said operation, Gaurav and his family have decided to sell their solitary flat at Thakur Village Complex, Kandivili, Mumbai. However, this is not going to be enough, since the amount required for the treatment is huge and time is less.

Let us all come togeather to help Gaurav. Togeather we can reach out to our communities and remind them that we - members of Gaurav's family, community and country have a responsibility to help. Let us all remember that Gaurav is also a son, a brother, a father and a husband. We should all see ourselves in Gaurav and realize that he deserves the same support we would wish for member of our own family or even ourselves.

I for myself, am making a small contribution. You can make a contribution too by sending a mail to reply_gt@yahoo.com . You can click here for furthur details.

Bloggers can make a contribution by donating, linking to this page or the original page.

Foreign Nationals can also make a contribution on the home page, or by leaving a comment here. Your desire to donate will be communicated to the concerned family.

Australian Bushfire & The Bush after-effects

2009-02-10T16:05:00.001+05:30

Technorati Tags: Australian Bushfire,George W Bush,America,US President Bush,World

The Australian Bushfire has killed up to 128 people so far as a result of almost 400 forest fires in Australia raging entire towns to ruins. Almost 750 houses have been destroyed, and the loss to human life and property is expected to rise.

In the 5th week of the new year 2009, and the world has already faced a calamity of this magnitude. A world , already rendered jobless and homeless and war torn by another Bush’s whims.

While the bushfire swept across an entire nation killing multitudes and rendering thousands homeless, a certain Bush has done much worse to the world.

Sometimes I wonder – Will the recession ever get over? Or will it change our lives and destiny forever? This is the worst economic crisis since the WW !! and there is no hope in sight. Will it change America forever?

Change, truly is the only constant. In the 1800s no one thought the British Empire could ever crumble. It was the empire where the sun never set. It was Russia next, the biggest super power of all times, having a land area stretching Europe and Asia. And the followed the US. And endless wars in the middle east to Vietnam to Afghanistan to Iraq. Is this the end of American Imperialism?

But we are humans. Life conquers death. And hope conquers adversities. And we believe that one day the world will truly be a better place to live in. That perhaps is, The Audacity of Hope.

Technorati Tags: Audacity of Hope

Go Watch Dev D!

2009-02-09T12:15:00.003+05:30

That was the first review I had of Dev D, the Abhay Deol starrer movie that hit theatres this Friday. Now, you don't go out an watch an Abhay Deol movie . It's usually - Who is Abhay Deol?
I am one of those, who took time to figure out who he was nothwithstanding the Deol surname.

And this is his second film, after Oye Lucky, Lucky Oye, which was released when the terror attacks happened in Mumbai, which was when most people stood glued to the TVs than watch a movie. And still the movie performed decent.

Dev D isn't exactly about Devdas. Its about a million things. Its the story of the DPS MMS girl. Its alos the story of lost love. Its the Indian Requiem for a dream.

I watched it in Rex, which is dlooded with student crowd, and has lot of cheering, and whistling - which all the more made the movie more fun to watch :)

P.S. The best part was - I was watching it sitting next to a chick who shared her name with the female protagonist of the movie (wink )

Five things about Bangalore Every Man Must Know Before taking up a Job

2009-02-06T13:01:00.004+05:30

(or Bangalore for Dummies)

And this special edition article is intended for people who are coming from outside Karnataka especially Delhi, Mumbai or Patna. You must be be wondering why I have even mentioned Patna, since its neither a place where many people come from, and neither in the league of Delhi and Mumbai. Read through, and you shall know.

1. Bangalore is a place where you have lot of Sagars. And they are food joints where you are most likely to have your breakfast, lunch or even dinner, if you don't have a life. The nearest food joints near my office are :
a. Shanti Sagar
b. Shiv Sagar
c. Krishna Sagar
d. Sandhya Sagar

(And other one is shortly coming up. Its probably called Ratna Sagar).
Sometimes I wonder when my senior collegues say - Hey lets go for a change. Instead of Shiv Sagar, lets eat in Shanti Sagar today. I dont just wonder. I am pissed off too. For all these Sagars have the same menu, same interiors ( The word is an overstatement, but let me stick to it until I have a better one), and same prices. So much so that, I personally cant map the restraunt with the name. I just know its some "Sagar".

2. Don't order North Indian Food in a South Indian Restraunt. At least not in any of these Sagars. For you might just get Tandoori Rori, but the accompanying vegetable will be in typical South Indian small bowl. They'll give you even Channe ke Sabjee in the small bowl, you wouldn't find in North India.

3. Chicks. They're horrible. Period. No offence, but unless you run into some Manglorean Deepika Padokone or Aishwarya Rai, chances of which are minimum, since I have been near Mangalore for the last 4 years of my life, and have always been on the prawl, I did not find any , - you're in a for a dreadful disspointment. Specially if you are coming from Delhi, prepare for the worst. Not a single beautiful female in an entire office of 2000 employees.

4. The traffic. Not as bad as the chicks, but again - Horrible. If you're stuck in it, prepare to travel at a bullock cart speed. And the autowallahs. Prepare to pay them double if there is a traffic. Prepare to pay them 10 bucks more than the fare, when there is no traffic.

5. This one is for the Patnaites. The Biharis. While in Bihar, you had N no. of book and stationery shops, in bangalore, prepare to buy books online. ( I recommend http://flipkart.com ). You won't find a single bookstore/stationery shop within walking distance of your residense. Or office. According to a survey, done by ME, there are as many no. of Liquor shops in Bangalore, as there are book shops in Patna, and a quarter as many book shops in bangalore as there are Liquor shops in Patna.

Now thats handy. Ain't it?

Cheers!

Oh, Sumit

2009-02-05T10:25:00.000+05:30

Its the second day in office when I have reached the office before Sumit. He always had this thing with reaching office on time. At least earlier than me. And I totally enjoyed the look on his face when yesterday, which was the first day when I reached office earlier than him, he said - Arey, aaj tuh office pehle kaise pahaunch gaya!

Oh Sumit!

And finally yesterday, after 5 days of waiting I finally got my Airtel connection activated. I got the connection from Residency Road, Bangalore which had delayed it for like 5 days. I had read horrible stories about how Airtel Residency Road doesn't activate your SIM for like 10 days even after making all payments, and personally rushed to the office instead of phoning them. After two hours, they finally did it.

A blog is the worst way to tell your friends your number has changed, but since this new connection has limited free SMSs, here is my no: 90088 30077. Sorry I cant be messaging you all :(

What now?

2009-02-03T12:20:00.000+05:30

A few months back, when I said in my About Me column - I am at the crossroads of my life, and in fact I have been living here for quite sometime,

I didn't mean to live there this long.

I am an intern in one of the world's top 5 Software Vendor companies, and also hope to join a bigger brand in the coming few months. I am in the R & D team, and the work is good. Satisfying.

And I am contemplating a career change. For sometimes I wonder when at the age of 40, having been a developer all my life, am I gonna regret - O My Gawd! I have been writing computer programs all my life and that hasn't made the world a better place in any way, and done nothing worthwhile.

And it scares the hell out of me.

While taking a photostat at my office last week, I came across the poster of M. K. Gandhi on the clipboard. Now a poster of M. K. Gandhi is something very commonly found in India in most places. But what was striking about this one was that it had M.K. Gandhi in his 20s when he was a lawyer sitting on a chair with his friends. He didn't look like the Gandhiji we have always known and seen. And below the photo were the lines :-

Sometimes all it takes is a career change

I couldn't help smiling.

And ever since, I have been contemplating making a career change. From a software developer to public life. Perhaps the IAS.

I am still at the crossroads of my life.

Slumdog Millionaire : No, It doesn't suck Mr. Arindam Chowdhary

2009-01-30T15:35:00.000+05:30

Arindam Chaudhuri wrote a sensation article on why We Indians shouldn't watch Slumdog Millionaire.

( No, I don't read his blog. I had never heard of it. I happened to read it in the Times Of India this week. )

Now, Mr Arindam, do you mean to say we the people, who are passionate about India, shouldn't watch the movie, because its made by a firangi or because its made really well by a firangi?

I fail to see why the movie doesn't deserve the success and the glory it has generated, for it is wonderfully made, and beautifully told. And most importantly when you say if it was made by a Bollywood director we would have rejected it and it wouldn't have generated the popularity it has now...

First things first. If it was a bollywood flick, you would know the story. If it was a Hindi movie ( forgive me those who get offended by calling the Hindi film industry as Bollywood), it would be cliched. You could guess the next thing that would follow. This movie was about a slumdog's life. And life, like destiny, is unpredictable.

I happened to watch a few Hindi flicks in the past few weeks, and the last one I watched was Raaz..the mystery continues. I am not gonna tell you the movie was crap, and bullshit and there was nothing scary about it. That they took concepts from American Sitcoms and Hollywood Movies. Or that the protaganist painted images of the future like the pinater in Heroes or the movie was a bhelpuri of Ring, Exorcism of .. , Mirrors. That thirty minutes into the movie and I knew the next thing that would happen. That the movie was so predictable. That when you know Jackie Shroff is the ghost, he would be a good ghost, not kill innocent people and would kill the not-so-bad villain only to save his own son. ( Similarly, if the ghost was Ashutosh Rana, naturally it would be a bad ghost, kill people mercilessly, and take innocent lives. )

Instead I am gonna tell you that I so liked the movie, and I enjoyed it. Kangana Ranaut was such a doll in the movie. And she was hotter than ever before, and jaw-dropping beautiful.

But then the difference is- its a Bollywood flick. I chose the storyline when I chose to watch it. Thats the beauty of a Bollywood flick. If you wanna feel good, watch Shahrukh Khan, Wanna feel real- watch Aamir Khan. Wnna feel horribly bad - Watch a Madhur Bhandarkar flick.

Slumdog Millionaire is a great movie, and its not a great movie because some foren guy made it. Its good because it good. It tells a beautiful tale. And hey, its close to reality too.

So I would say - Go watch Slumdog Millionaire. Get some change.

P.S. I have included a Poll in my blog ( at the bottom of this page), voting for the best Actor. Let me know your opinion. You can choose more than one option.

Cheers!

The Plot to kill Google

2009-01-21T16:09:00.000+05:30

Google may not be evil, but it sure does have enemies. Interesting. :)

Another blogger inspired

2009-01-20T10:52:00.000+05:30

Hey, did you guys check out Ankit's blog? Well he is just another blogger inspired by me :) Whats more, he is beginning to get hits too. I am talking about the blog hits. ;)

I don't easily accept reality, but yes, he is one blogger promoting his blog more than I am doing mine.

Oh, and by the way, L.K. Advani has a blog too. Did anyone check it out before me? Check it out here. I hope we can get some real stuff from his mind onto the blog unlike other celebrity blogs written by hired professionals.

Cheers!

_No Title_

2009-01-19T17:33:00.000+05:30

Its the second week of my work at my company, and I am beginning to feel more comfortable in here. I have rented a house in Shanti Nagar, just opposite to my office at Langford Road. The landlord has a loving family, and they've been unusually good to me. Not that I am complaining, just that that after one and a half years in Manipal, I am used to bad landlords. Back then Udit was the one handling landlords, and so it was easy.

Just last week, I made a small flex application and sent it to one of my bosses ( I recently realised, he was a super senior guy ), making a video of it. My boss, a lil impressed, mailed me back asking me to showcase it to a team in his office. Now, the app is so simple, I cant possibly demo it because its , UGH, too simple to be deom-able. But I am glad, my boss took time off to mail me back, and that was quite an encouragement. :). Thank you, Deepak.

And Oh yes. I almost forgot to tell you guys, I am working on a flex project. However, I hope at the end of four months of my internship, I can write on my resume among the languages known - Kannad ( or Kann-nadda, as my newly acquired and acquainted tutor just taught me. She is in the cubicle just next to mine, and is super cool. ) So I hope at the end 4 months I shall have a new language in my resume that wont be Java, Flex, ASP... [;)]

For those who are wondering why this post doesn't have a title, let me tell you- 69% of bloggers dont write a new post on their blogs simply because they cant imagine a suitable title for it, and Let me tell you - I wont let this stop me from blogging.

P.S. 72% of all statistics are made on the spot. :D

...Life 2.0

2009-01-12T20:13:00.000+05:30

I am at a junction that marks the end of something very beautiful. Its over now, and I am out in the real real world. Life, until now was eventful. New things kept happening, some good, some bad and some bitter. From from now on, Life 2.0 is going to stay the same. Or at leat thats how it looks like from what I see now. Maybe I am near-sighted. Maybe myopic. Who knows.

Dont get me wrong. Sounds mushy ( and I have written mushy things befo0re), but this isnt one. Its the end of college life. Student Life. A carefree life. A life of easy choices. Go to college. Not go to college. Get late. Get 10 minutes late. Get 45 minutes late if its Shobha's class. Argue with the teacher. Screw up the subject. Do the assingnement. Not do the assignment. And claim you submitted it but the teacher lost it. Miss all deadlines. Have no deadlines at all. Make yoour own deadlines. Smoke at Sheila. Booze. Binge. Go on a long drive with Rupin, and spend the most miserable time with him. Binge more out of a desperate need.

Thats all over now. Welcome to Life 2.0. I joined work today and I am loving this office where I am supposed to stay for the next 4-6 months. For the internship. And then for thereafter for the job. Now this is what I shall be doing in Life 2.0 :-

1. Working in a beautiful office.
2. Working on Java and Flex.
( Though I badly wanted to do .NET, for the sake of Imagine Cup ). 3.Write
blogs.
4. ~~Do what I really like to do.~~ Do what my manager likes me to do.

Sounds cool, eh?

Now I am gonna tell you why Life 2.0 is gonna be eventless. And might suck in the long run. Even though I will be doing 1,2,3 & 4 - things that I enjoy doing.

Because I will be doing things1, 2, 3 & 4 for the rest of my life. ( Until of course if I change my mind and dont think of being an engineer anymore and go for MBA or something like that. Oh and by the way, one of my major reasons why I would ever consider doing an MBA would be so that I can wear a suit. Suits suit MBAa. Not developers. Suits are cool. Exhibit A ;) )

Sometimes I wonder- What do I really want in life? What will really make me happy? A new realtionship? A great job. Or a career in the IAS? Truth be told- I don't know. And I don't know if I will know the answer even after sometime. To quote the Joker -

I'm a dog chasing cars. I wouldn't know what to do with one if I caught it!
You know... I just do things

Its quarter to nine now, and almost all cubicles are empty. People have gone home, while I am sitting in my cubicle no 304, on the first day of my office, writing this blog, and wondering - Why so serious?

Is Pakistan really to be blamed?

2008-12-01T02:08:00.000+05:30

A few minutes ago, I happened to browse through a blog that mattered. Not many blogs matter these days, but this one did. And it made a difference.

The blogger, who calls herself Desi Diva posted an interesting article on the terrorist attack in India and also wrote about Pakistan's side of the story. She put the entire scenrio in a very humane perspective, and unbiased too. To a huge extend. And I am not saying this because there wasnt too much of India bashing, which you would expect in a Pakistani blog.

It reminded me of an article I read in Outlook which was about when Bill Clinton came to India as the US President, and it was about CTBT and getting India to sign the nuclear ban treaty.

It began with something like a not-so-rich kid getting a candy, when only the rich kids had candies. So the rich kids said - Only we, the rich kids can have candies and you cant have any more candies - firstly, because if you keep candies, you'll consider youself as good as us.

Secondly, if you have candies, all the other kids will want to have candies too. And someday, there might be a candy war.

One of the kids, who hated this neighbour- the not-so-rich candy boy was envious and decided he"ll have candies too. And to get the candy, he sold everything that he had. He had no clothes to wear, nothing left to eat- All he had was a candy, which he could show his neighbour. A candy which he could not eat.

That story went on with the two not-so-rich candy kids becoming friends, and deciding that they'll share their candies. That candies do no good to anyone and that they cause cavities (remember Heroshima?) . From now on, there will not be any Indian or Pakistani candies- they will be world candies. And they also asked the rich kids to share their candies and keep them in one place where they would be called world candies, and not Indian, American or Chinese candies. And the world became a better place to live in.

The true story however went differently. The two not-so-rich candy neighbours still hate each other. They dont fight because they fear if they fight, the rich kids will take away all their candies.

And so because of this nuclear deterrance, India and pakistan will never goto war perhaps. Here comes in the role of stealth operations- supporting terrorism in another country.

And that's what Pakistan has been doing. After reading Desi Diva's blog, I was convinced there still are nice & sensible people in Pakistan. But tell me you nice and simple people- Is not the ISI responsible for all the terrorist attacks in India? Is it not supported by your government and by half your population? Correct me if I am wrong. I *badly* want to be corrected. And so do a million third generation Indians like me. You could give a monosyllabic answer to all these questions. I"ll believe you even if you are lying.

Well, if its not the ISI, and if its not your government, then who is it? Terrorists do call up their bosses in Karanchi and Islamabad before they attack. Who is behind this? And if its not the Pakistani regime and ISI, why don't they hand over the bosses to india?

You talk about the Gujarat riots in 2002. Nothing more unfortunate could have happened to India than this in this decade. But that is an internal matter of ours, and its not that Muslims in India are not safe or they are regularly meted out such treatment. It wasn't a one sided story either. Attacks happened on and from both the religion's followers. And trust me, we know a thing or two about keeping our house in order. We had a Muslim President, a Sikh Prime Minister, a Christian leader of ruling party and a Hindu Leader of Opposition. Perhaps you should learn to keep your house in order too. And you can't sent 10 dirty cricket balls to your neighbour because they accidently did something to their own people whom you like to call your own just because you worship the same Allah.

I would really like to see your response to this. And come on, you owe it to us and to the rest of the world to paint the real picture. I would love to admit someday- Thank you. I was confused like a billion Indians like me. Lets all give the dork a break.

But first, convince me.

..And a weaker Home Minister says..

2008-11-27T23:55:00.001+05:30

After the highly disappointing Address to Nation by the Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, a more disappointing Home Minister Shivraj Patil had a talk with the media, and this is what he has to say -

"Their design (the terrorists) is to frighten us, to scare us. We will not let that happen. The country will not be intimidated by such acts of terrorism"

Who will not be intimidated, Mr. Home Minister? You, or the common man? And moreover, who has to bear all this? You, or the common man? You move in a high security system where you have no idea what we have been facing. This isn't just an act of terrorism. Its a war on the Union of India, and there is absolutely nothing that you have been doing about it. You, the political leadership leading India behaves as if we are still an under-developed nation. We have seen a social revolution and an economic revolution in the country in the past decades, brought in minimally by the government policies but hugely by the will of the people, by the corporate world. We might have moved ahead in terms of social reforms and economic progress, but we have a country headed by leaders who still believe India is the same that it was decades ago- and we have not done anything to meet the new challenges.

Democracy, it seems, has failed us.

Terrorist Attacks in Mumbai, India

2008-11-27T17:44:00.000+05:30

While the other half of the world celebrates Thanksgiving, India rocked with a never-seen-before terrorist attack that rocked the entire nation.

It wasn't just a a terror attack, but more like a war on the nation with terrorists opening fire in public places. Sadly, a weak Prime Minister Manmohan Singh 'mourned' the death of those who died. Apart from several civilians and policemen, those who dies fighting the most are - ATS chief Hemant Karkare, Vijay Salaskar encounter specialsit who had recently killed 79 criminals and terrorists, and Ashok Kamte, ACP Mumbai Police.

Manmohan Singh may be the best economist, and probably honest and a better person than anyone else who could be PM right now, but he for sure is the weakest. In his regime we have seen terror attacks multiply highly.

I was expecting something of this sort to happen, though not so soon. Just a few days back when the Pakistani President Asif Zardari had yet another round of peace rounds of PM Manmohan Singh, I was wondering what was coming next. And then it happened.

Sometimes I wonder - Is this how we hope to be super power in this century?

Who EVER uses template messages?

2008-11-22T16:37:00.000+05:30

Just yesterday, while SMSing someone I hadn't met until today morning, I saw these template messages:

I am late. I will be there at..

I'm in a meeting. Call me later at..

I am busy right now. I'll call you later..

I will be arriving at..

See you at..

Please call..

I love you too (Yeah, this one too!)

And that reminded me of one of closest, '88 born bubbly,vibrant energetic buddies. He is the guy they made templete messages for.

Well, until not long back that was what most of his replies looked like. Maybe not to me, but definitely to a few select people. Now, in my universe, there isnt anyone who really uses template messages (at least none that I know, or perhaps those who do, mask it brilliantly)

Oh by the way, I just cheked out the latest post on his blog. If you read it, , and if you have ever read more than ten blogs in your lifetime, and if you know what I mean, you"ll know that it sucks!

(P.S. Hey check out the labels of this post :D (grin) )

O My Gawd

2008-11-20T21:25:00.000+05:30

This comes out of the blue, I know,(which is why this blog is called extremeblues :D ) but I am just so happy today! Harpreet just got placed in Cerner Healthcare, India. Whats more he also has gotten an internship plus an awesome job. Everything went smoothly, as if it was God's own plan.

And minutes later, I had half a grilled chicken with some Mutton Rogan Josh at Hotspot, which tasted yummier than all other days. Well I paid up for the food. And now, I am sitting at the computer, writing this blog, sipping Cranberry Breezer, and feeling a little not-so-sober. And its not the drink.

I'm feeling lucky! :D

MuBARACK Obama

2008-11-18T09:23:00.000+05:30

First, I stole that one from a not-so-friendly-friend on my Gtalk friendlist. I had kinda liked the congratulatory status message ever since Obama won the American Presidential Elections by a landslide margin.

Well its nice to have Barack Obama as the President of the US of A, and there is a feeling that the world is going to be a better place with the new President. Things have really been messy all over the world. While we are still struggling to fight with the vintage, *classical* issues of terrorism, poverty and AIDS, we are faced with yet newer challenges of Economy Collapse, and Food Crisis. And being the most powerful man of earth and the supreme leader of the world's most progressed and one of the wealthiest countries, Obama owes it to the citizens of the world to show us the light.

The other day, I read in the newspaper, arms sales in the US have skyrocketed ever since Obama has been declared the next Prez, and thats a scary fact. We had satirical columns in the most responsible dailies in India (which might have been stolen from elsewhere), titled - With a Black President, Will It still be called the White House? It cant get sicker than this.

There are also fears of a possible assasination attempt on the new Prez life, and that thing also, personally, scares the hell out of me for some unobvious reason.

There has been wide speculation of a change coming to America, and that reminds me of the lines- Be the change You want to see. I hope thats not what the President ahs to say in his swearing-in ceremony.

Saturday Nights are fun too!

2008-11-17T18:52:00.001+05:30

Has anyone watched, ( or heard of ) the Legend of the Seeker? Well that's yet another sitcom I am fervently beginning to watch. Its a fictional/ mythical story based on the novel Sword Of Truth by Terry Goodkind. Its being produced by ABC Studios.

I have been following How I Met Your Mother by CBS and have also watched all seasons of The Big Bang Theory, again by CBS, and had been wondering if CBS has all the great sitcoms in its kitty. Well, then I began with Heroes, and as I said, I have never loved anything more than Heroes all my life. Until heroes, I had been wondering HIMYM isn't the top ranked show in America.

The Legend Of the Seeker, is one hell of a TV Series I am looking forward to. As of now, the story is great, but it has one hell of a lousy script. So when the Wizard says- The seeker has returned, I don't get goosebumps. Nor do I have any threads of excitement. Its no match to - The king has returned of the White Wizard in Lord Of The Rings. But yes, the confessor in LOTS is like awesome, and the babe-factor is like one thing going for it.

I am looking forward to a better script and more excitement in the coming weeks. Most sitcoms are kinda lousy in the first few weeks, until some real excitement builds up.

And oh yes, its aired on Saturdays, which is when I download it. Saturday Nights are fun too [;)]

Heroes season 3

2008-11-10T18:47:00.000+05:30

I have never loved anything more than Heroes all my life.

I started out by borrowing the first season from Rupin, and watched the first two episodes rather unwillingly. But by the end of the two episodes, I was in love with it. And the way they portrayed Sylar, the was the guy i feared in my nightmares much later, even before I had seen who he was.

Over the next few episodes, when they introduced Sylar, I was wondering if he really was Sylar. For he was a simple watch-maker, a dork who just wished he made it big. He didnt seem to show any strength- physical, or otherwise.

And then, when he transforms into the character he was to be, there was nothing feared more.
Heroes is one helluva sitcom, that makes your worst fears come true. Season One was all about Save the cheerleader, Save the world. And I was so glad, when the cheerleader was rescued.

Not for long though. Sylar brutally rips the head off the cheerleader, and takes away her powers. And that was the worst, I had thought.

But then something remarkable happened. Sylar began to change. He became more human. More Humane. The personality that he evolved into, suddenly became the most adorable. And now, I am waiting for Heroes to come, so that I can see what happens next, to Sylar.

I have never loved anything more than Heroes all my life. No. Not even you, P. (wink)

EndOfSeason

2008-11-10T10:34:00.001+05:30

~This is your life, and its ending one moment at a time~

Its one of the last days of my college, and this reminds me of those lines above. Very true, for my college life. College life is one helluva place to learn, grow, and evolve as a person. I have changed too, and I am not sure, if I like the person I have become.

We had our photoshoot the other day, and we shot quite a few pics. You can see the slideshow here.
And you can also see Piyush, the guy in the very first pic with me, after having lost 10 Kgs in the past 2 months. Quite an inspiration . :D

College life, like most good things in life, is finally coming to an end. :(

Apple iPhone in India starting

2008-08-20T15:50:00.001+05:30

The much hyped Apple iPhone is finally launched in India. I just received an email from my service provider that the 8 GB iPhone is going to cost me 31000 INR and 16GB version is going to cost me 36000 INR.

Just a few months ago, when the 3G iPhone was made available, Steve Jobs promised to make it available at 200USD, and it will be soon available in India.

I wasn't expecting them to sell iPhone in India at 8000 INR, but surely 31000 INR was a rude surprise. I can't claim its overpriced - it might just be worth the price, but surely its not worth buying it when one can get it in the US for 199 USD.

:( Just the beginning of a bad day .

Give me a domain name, pls

2008-08-15T20:30:00.001+05:30

For almost 6 months now, Buzzy and me have been wrecking our heads over getting a domain name for ourselves. We do write an awesome blog on Flex, but we always wanted a personal space where we could also showcase our projects. (Of late, I also want to include some flex apps I made myself in our webpage. )

It all started with Imagine Cup '08, when we managed to make into the semi finals of several events, and needed our own hosting space to showcase our application. I personally wanted a name like flycolors.com ( after I read the story of naming Sony's walking man as walkman by a young employee. And flycolors, does sound grammatically wrong too.). Most good domains, like good chicks, are already taken.

Then came Buzzy's suggestion of something on the lines of del.icio.us or scriptaculo.us. We settled on ourtakeon.NET. Already taken!

Its over six months now, and we are desperately on the lookout of a good domain name. Anyone who suggests a great domain name, will receive acknowledgements in our new Website. The requirements are:-

1. It should be available freely. we can't afford to buy it using an agent at a high price.

2. We want a .com domain name. .in or .co.in isn't global enough.

3. The best name would be something like delicious and scriptaculous. However geeky names like midnightcoders.com is also awesome since I code mostly at wee hours. However as I said, good domain names, like good chicks, are already taken. :(

Et Tu, Intel

2008-08-12T22:39:00.001+05:30

I haven't had a bad experience with Vista. I mean it has been much better than XP, in terms of security. Those security prompts do bug at times, but they make computing really safe.

I also don't complain because I am running a free Windows Vista Business Edition with Aero Effects, which I won as a part of Microsoft Imagine Cup,08. :D

However, there has been huge dissatisfaction among consumers and very low acceptability for Vista. What's more even Intel, a long time partner of Microsoft in the personal computer market, isn't running Vista .

Back to College

2008-08-08T23:13:00.001+05:30

After spending two months at home (my longest vacation at home), I am back to college. I have also moved from my old apartment to a new apartment wherein I am sharing the flat with 2 of my friends.

I have an offer from SunGard, Bangalore, and hopefully I will be joining them from January, 2009 for internship and July 2009 for a job.

Meanwhile my dream company, Yahoo! was in for placements. That was one company I truly admire, for they have been an unbeatable Internet legend (Others maybe Giants, but Y! definitely is a legend). Sadly, I was pissed off after the pre-placement talk itself when they gladly told us they were looking for Quality Engineers, i.e., testing jobs.

I am glad I did not make it through the written test. I did not want to. I am keeping my fingers crossed for Micro$oft, which will be coming in September.

Definition of a Wingman

2008-06-24T21:02:00.001+05:30

Here is how urban dictionary defines a wingman. This is hilarious, and so very true. ;)

1. Wingman

A Wingman is a guy you bring along with you on singles outings (like to bars) that helps you out with the women.
Typically in these ways :
• The Wingman will always be there to “occupy” least
attractive girl of the pair so that you may engage in the “hotty”
• Often, when an attractive girl is out with an ugly friend, she often feels restricted to not leave that ugly friend alone, thus making the hot girl, un-touchable.
• When the wingman technique is used, both girls are
approached by the men, and the Wingman automatically
engages in conversation with the ugly girl.
• Now that the hot friend sees that the ugly girl has finally found a man, she is now free to start scouting.
• This is where you come in “unexpectedly” and “accidentally”, and begin catching up on “old times” with the Wingman.
• The Wingman then offers the ugly girl to dance, (which
rarely happens to her) so she wont be able to resist.
Two situations may arise:
1.) She tells her hot friend to come along, in which you
automatically MUST be invited, since you know the
Wingman, and have already been introduced to the hotty.
2.) They go dance, leaving you and the hotty in for
some solid face time.
• At the end of the night, after you have worked your
magic, the Wingman, AND ONLY THE WINGMAN, offers
the girls to comeback to his place for a little ‘after party’.
• Once everyone arrives, the Wingman “occupies” the
ugly girl IN ANOTHER ROOM, leaving yourself and the
sweet sweet little hotty alone so that you can bang her, bang her like a drum....
Important note: Keep in mind that a wingman
should never be too inexperienced or he will hold
you back…the Wingman should always be of equal
or greater knowledge then you.
Learning and practiceing the Wingman support system
is an unbelievable asset if done right. Your wingman is
an invaluable assistant for you so don't underestimate
the value of finding a Wingman that can work with you.
"Hey Buddy, are you gonna be my Wingman tonight?"

For other hilarious definitions, search urbandictionary.com

For a greener world...

2008-05-22T21:15:00.001+05:30

You don't have to join us to join us from Greenpeace on Vimeo.

Google to donate up to $1 million to survivors of Myanmar cyclone.

2008-05-10T21:32:00.001+05:30

This was one of the best things Google did this year. To do help survivors of Myanmar cyclone, for every donation you make through the Google page, Google pays an equal amount.

You could either make donations to UNICEF or to Direct Relief International.

Make your donation here.

Through google.org, Google aspires to use the power of information and technology to address the global challenges of our age: climate change, poverty and emerging diseases. No wonder Google is going the Microsoft way. Bill does have competition. :)

Writing your first blog

2008-03-09T10:01:00.001+05:30

Of late, a couple of friends have taken to blogging. I personally prefer WordPress anyday for its awesome interface.( but what the heck, its all the same when you got Windows Live Writer. Its easy, and its fun! )

While two of my friends have gone for Blogger, exactly four have chosen WordPress since I persuaded them to. There have been marked similarities in all beginners who starts a blog:

1) An average user wastes an average of 30-45 minutes on deciding the URL for his blog.

2)Usually he wastes first 15 minutes in deciding what the Blog name must be and the next 2 minutes in repenting why its already taken.

3)Usually the first URL that's still free is not quite what they wanted, and when they get it, they go for a different one.

Though I never had any issues with getting widgets, most people do have issues with fit, and most find the interface quite complicated. A couple of Widgets I would recommend are :-

1)Who's.amung.us : A really cool Web 2.0 Widget to put on your blog. Just like I've put on mine. It shows the real-time concurrent users on your blog. In addition, it also shows the visitors you had in the recent past on a worldmap, mapping the visitor's locations.

2)If you're a Blogger on blogspot, you could go for adding Adsense Ads (those Ads By Google) to your page. You CANNOT use Adsense on your WordPress blog because WordPress DOES NOT allow JavaScript. Adsense by Google is a great way of generating revenue for your web page though.

Here are 7 tips to increase your blogs popularity and searchability:

1) Read Others' Blogs. Leave comments with your URL. That's THE best way of increasing your PageRank with Google as well as increasing no. of hits.

2)Use Relevant Post title. It helps.

3) Be more frequent in blogging. The more you blog, the better your search-engine searchability becomes.

4)Submit your blog to Google. That way Google indexes your blog earlier than the natural time process.

5)Ask friends to add your Blog's Link on the blogroll or mention it on their blogs as hyperlink. If a more important blog links to you, your rating increases proportionally.

6)Leaving comments on Yahoo Blogs, Google Blogs etc. which are highly ranked blogs, helps.

7)Do not use your URL directly in the comment, but leave your blog's URL only in the URL field of the comment. Otherwise you have chances of being marked as spam and that decreases the importance and rating of your blog.

~Happy Blogging~

A bad, bad Day

2008-03-02T19:43:00.001+05:30

Today was an awful Sunday, though I have always believed Sunday is a lovely day to spend 1/7th of your life. Firstly, the cramp in my neck rendered me immobile for half the day, and that comes at no worse time as I have my sessional exams commencing tomorrow.

What's worse- I had not a single email coming into my inbox today. (Not even those enlargement pills and adult friend finder mails that my roommates mischievously sign up using my email address !). Since I do not have much of a social life(like most geeks ;) ), and I am easily satisfied my a couple of emails and orkut scraps on a daily basis.I kinda tend to feel less important when I dont get emails or scraps, and today was IT.

But tomorrow is Monday , and hopefully a new week will bring in some excitement along with exams...concluding with a Microsoft Interview over the weekend.

(P.S. The Sunday Secrets were as good as ever.)

zzzzzzzz

C++ Compiler for Vista

2008-02-23T20:14:00.001+05:30

Just the other day, in my OOPS lab, I had issues with my C++ program not compiling on the 15 year old blue screen Turbo C++ Compiler. The machines were Windows 98, old fashioned, and stupid. I had to finally work on my laptop.

I am currently running a copy a copy of Windows Vista Business Edition ("with Aero Effects" (wink)) after being on Linux for close to an year. Now even though I've loved and patronized and distributed Open Source software for an year, and since I had been using GNU Compiler, I had no idea what compiler to use for my Vista. I needed an updated compiler, that reflects the changes in C and C++ syntax over the years. Besides I had a major use of STLs in my project, so I desperately needed a new Vista-capable C++ Compiler. I finally found one, and just installed one on my machine, and I am so glad I didn't have to move to Linux just for the sake of a new, free compiler.

You could download the Dev C++ Compiler here.

Though I did not have any issues installing it and compiling+running a "Hello World" program, I like to believe its just a spell of good luck that has lasted for over a week now. However, If you have any issues installing and running it, you could read an awesome problem-solver article.

Leave comments if this article helped you. Good Luck!

Its Official

2008-02-06T21:37:00.001+05:30

Microsoft's unsolicited bid to Yahoo for over $40 billion is now official. Click here to view Yahoo's response to it. While the outcome of a Microsoft Yahoo merger is unpredictable, Google has called this move 'alarming'. There has been news of Google making moves to help the Internet legend Yahoo out of its financial crisis.

However, a Microsoft+Yahoo+Facebook combined would be a force to watch out for.

~If you can't beat 'em, confuse them~

Web 2.0

2008-02-04T14:43:00.001+05:30

Could not help sharing this slide with you, which I found on a fellow blogger's page. This, by far is one of the most hilarious things I found on the web. I also feel, I have a connection! (wink)..especially with the second slide-- Second life??? Do you think you even have a first life?

Yippee !!

2008-02-04T14:35:00.001+05:30

First things first. I just installed Windows Vista Business Edition with Aero Effects on my Pavilion, and also installed Windows Live Writer, which I thing is a wonderful technology coming from Microsoft. Not that this was what I had in mind when I though of when I planned to write this post, but just the interface of Windows Live Writer is just so thrilling, I had to commit it a few lines (wink).

Oh, and the reason behind the unusual Yippee !! I made it into the pre-finals of Microsoft Imagine Cup'08 IT challenge, with a rank of #84 , and that gives me a reason to begin this new year with a smile. (500 college students the world over have been selected by Microsoft, and there are just 4 Indians in the top 100!! ) Just the other day, when I signed into Orkut, it said :

Today's Fortune: Your fortune will change forever today.

Agreed that they usually predict good things, but I was just so pissed off with a complicated life, I almost scornfully scrapped my Today's fortune Line on a friend's scrapbook (who knows how fucked up I am all the time).

And guess what?? Not only I made it to the pre-finals of IT challenge, but together with rookshop as TeamOne, we also qualified the first round of Project Hoshimi :)

Cheers to TeamOne !

FaceBook VS Orkut

2008-01-26T23:52:00.000+05:30

No matter how much we love Facebook, it largely remains a major source for user surveillance and data mining for purely commercial purposes. It is most popular in US and UK where the user information is most vital. FaceBook is yet to take on the vast user base of Orkut.com, though its growth has been immense. No wonder Orkut *reinvented* itself by coming up with a complete new look, supplemented by AJAX scripts, making surfing an enjoyable experience. Comparatively, user information is much more secure on Orkut (with their new innovative security features ), although one can argue that Orkut being most popular in Brazil and India, the users' information is not that vital since they are not potential online consumers, and therefore Orkut has not much to protect!

However unlike Facebook, Orkut doesn't steal and misuse users' personal informations point blank. Facebook has been too unabashed in being out and out commercial with users' profiles being strewn with loads of text and image based advertisements which makes it ugly and unpleasant.

The user interface is cool and we have loads of features in FaceBook, but it goes without saying that Orkut.com did to social networking sites what Microsoft Windows did to computers - made them fun, simple- so much so that *anyone* could use it. With amazing widgets, FaceBook might be an instant winner, but you still need to learn basic rule of computer programming- Keep It Simple, Stupid.

While Orkut uses Microsoft ASP.NET technology, FaceBook is based on the open source PHP, which makes it a programmer's delight. Another point where Facebook might just beat orkut hands down is the sense of purpose. Orkut simply connects people, while Facebook connects people with a purpose. You could join hands for a purpose, perhaps a social cause.

Looks like social networking sites have a long way to go...

Yahoo Messenger Bots!

2007-12-06T20:36:00.000+05:30

While Yahoo has come up with its all new version of Yahoo Messenger 9.0, its yet to change things for the better. There are absolutely no upgrades and using it gives the feel of using a new skin of Yahoo.

Dear Miss Sara Bacon,
We expect a LOT more from Yahoo! And we're only flaming up, because we love Yahoo and are not being satisfied with even the basic demands that we're making, We're complianing becaue there are genuine reasons that have not yet been addressed for a long time now.

Its nice to see you blogging- that gives a pseudo feeling at least someone is listening, and someone is worried they have to face a zillion Yahoo lovers. The ceremonious captcha project not yielded much. Nor does it seem to have made things any better, for bots are back in full swing... and better armed to fight innocuos Yahoo users. In fact it has been pain in the ass for genuine yahoo users who have to enter strings every time they enter a chatroom, only to discover they are the only *real* people in there. Not that this report has quite a lot of credentials, but it for everyone to see it for themselves, and believe. I have always loved Yahoo, and it has been my homepage for some 7 years now, but sometimes I wish Google had chatrooms too! They never seem to have problems with any of their products. Whats more, *we* never seem to have problems with their products.

On the brighter side, it was lovely to see you work on Yahoo Search, and even yield results. Its better than ever, and I am thinking of reverting to Yahoo Search, after being loyal to Google for almost half a decade...

My Very First Applet..

2007-11-28T20:48:00.000+05:30

All endings are new beginnings. Its just that, at that time, we don't know. After seeing extreme blues for almost an year now, and having survived a mid-life crisis at 21, I am back to where I belong- the blogging community. :)

Every morning, I start my day saying to myself- This is going to be the first day of the rest of my life. Lester Burnham said in American Beauty-Remember those posters that said, 'Today is the first day of the rest of your life'? Well, that's true of every day but one — the day you die. Somehow this has not held for me, for I am yet to begin the rest of my life.

This is my yet another attempt to make a new beginning, and I started out by writing an applet, the animation hugely inspired by a certain Michael McGuffin. I kinda really liked his work and reproduced his work, albeit with a different code.

Blogspot doesn't met me upload a .class file, so I am putting here a snapshot of the applet :

You could still play with my applet by clicking here. Just click and drag the mouse over it.

If you would like to view the source code, and would like to compile the real applet, drop me a mail ...