Its a month since the serial commuter train blasts in Mumbai struck terror in the heart of its residents and took more than 200 lives. On the eve of this first monthly anniversary of this ghastly terrorist act it is imperative that Indians at large reflect on how New Yok, London and Madrid fared in the first 30 days following the serial terrorist strikes on those cities and contrast it with how we are faring on Mumbai. The stark reality of the facts says it all.
click here to find the truth...
Thursday, August 10, 2006
The Sun Never Set on the British Empire ...
The sun never set on the British Empire because the sun sets in the West and the British Empire was in the East.
Far-called, our navies melt away; On dune and headland sinks the fire: Lo, all our pomp of yesterday. Is one with Nineveh and Tyre! Judge of the Nations, spare us yet,
Lest we forget -- lest we forget! Rudyard Kipling, "Recessional," 1897
Below is a 81.9K animated GIF file. In older computers, it may take a while to load, though individual frames should display during loading; and then, as the file runs, it may slow down the response of your computer for scrolling and other functions, even when the browser is minimized and other programs are used. Note that Los Angeles, the home of The Proceedings of the Friesian School, is in the same time zone as Vancouver (GMT -8).
Not all British possessions are listed in the image, only representative ones for each of the 24 time zones of the Earth. (All British possessions are listed below.) The time zones themselves may be said to be artifacts of the British Empire, since they are based on the Meridian of Greenwich (at the original Royal Observatory, 1675-1953, in London), which since 1884 is the internationally accepted prime meridian for the calculation of longitude. The animation may also be used to inspect the operation of the International Dateline, which divides the -12h/+12h time zone. It is interesting to note that although several places in the Pacific might fall into the -12h time zone, the Dateline itself and the boundaries of the -11h zone are today drawn in such a way that no jurisdiction uses the -12h zone (Tonga, formerly British, uses +12h; Midway Island & the Aleutians use -11h). Some time zone boundaries have been changed since 1937. Gambia no longer seems to be in the -1h time zone. Also, there have been several time zones that are at a half hour rather than a whole hour interval from Greenwich, including today India (+5h30m), Burma (+6h30m), and central Australia (+9h30m). My source for the 1937 zones (in the Atlas of the British Empire, edited by Christopher Bayly, Facts on File, 1989, p.246) does not clearly indicate these variations, so no attempt is made to represent them.
Wednesday, August 09, 2006
Strange ... blogspot.com Error...
This is what I got when I tried to preview my uploads in my blogger site @ 6:40pm AUG 9th 2006... For those who doesnt know why a Google error appeared...can find the reason ----> here...
Is this celebrity "alcohol" season??????
Robin Williams is seeking treatment for alcoholism, publicist Mara Buxbaum said Wednesday. The 55-year-old comedian had been sober for 20 years. Williams found himself drinking again and has decided to take proactive measures to deal with this for his own well-being and the well-being of his family. He looks forward to returning to work this fall to support his upcoming film releases. Williams stars in "Man of the Year," due in October, and voices an animated penguin in "Happy Feet," slated for release in November. He won an Oscar for his supporting role in 1997's "Good Will Hunting.". click here for Mel Gibson "alcoholism"!!!
Small town boy reboots Microsoft VISTA ...
He'd wanted to be the next Dhanraj Pillai, but the vista that destiny opened up for A Mahesh led to greener pastures in the world of technology.
The 24-year-old from small town Tamil Nadu has created a software that will add considerable muscle to Vista, Microsoft's brand new operating system due for launch next year.
In all probability, Vista will incorporate Mahesh's creation, which is an image browser, image editor, web browser, system tools and disk manager rolled into one.
Microsoft Strategy
In fact, Microsoft has already validated and awarded the product BETA2 iBRO.NET a patent protection certificate.
This means anyone may make use of Mahesh's product using the validation key but would need to pay Microsoft a royalty a part of which would reach this shy lad from Palayamkottai in southern Tamil Nadu.
Mahesh's Achivements...
The first member of his family to reach the post-graduate level, Mahesh developed the BETA2 iBRO.NET as the fifth-year project for his integrated M Sc course in computer science. He chose Vista's developer platform, where individuals are invited to contribute features for Vista.
"For sheer conceptualisation and acumen, his creation shows enormous scope and maturity. It's a full fledged tool that would not only remove deficiencies in Vista but add never-seen features in the OS," explained Dr Krishnan, professor of computer science at Manonmaniam Sundaranar University, who helped fine tune Mahesh's creation.
For example, why a computer hangs remains a mystery to most. But Mahesh's product can display the reasons. It can also optimise the download speed of a broadband connection when needed.
Unlike other OS, it can also display properties of all the drives in the computer simultaneously. "Before Vista is launched, I plan to add more features to make my product more comprehensive," said Mahesh, whose father is a retired peon.
"Such a product would take a team of at least 10 people in a top IT company months to develop. But for a student from a rural background to do all this in just 5 months on his own is amazing," observed N Chokkan, a columnist on computer.
Mahesh, who will soon join IBM at Bangalore, is unfazed by the recognition and remains grateful to his parents and R Panneerselvam, chairman of his school who waived his fees for the five-year course.
The 24-year-old from small town Tamil Nadu has created a software that will add considerable muscle to Vista, Microsoft's brand new operating system due for launch next year.
In all probability, Vista will incorporate Mahesh's creation, which is an image browser, image editor, web browser, system tools and disk manager rolled into one.
Microsoft Strategy
In fact, Microsoft has already validated and awarded the product BETA2 iBRO.NET a patent protection certificate.
This means anyone may make use of Mahesh's product using the validation key but would need to pay Microsoft a royalty a part of which would reach this shy lad from Palayamkottai in southern Tamil Nadu.
Mahesh's Achivements...
The first member of his family to reach the post-graduate level, Mahesh developed the BETA2 iBRO.NET as the fifth-year project for his integrated M Sc course in computer science. He chose Vista's developer platform, where individuals are invited to contribute features for Vista.
"For sheer conceptualisation and acumen, his creation shows enormous scope and maturity. It's a full fledged tool that would not only remove deficiencies in Vista but add never-seen features in the OS," explained Dr Krishnan, professor of computer science at Manonmaniam Sundaranar University, who helped fine tune Mahesh's creation.
For example, why a computer hangs remains a mystery to most. But Mahesh's product can display the reasons. It can also optimise the download speed of a broadband connection when needed.
Unlike other OS, it can also display properties of all the drives in the computer simultaneously. "Before Vista is launched, I plan to add more features to make my product more comprehensive," said Mahesh, whose father is a retired peon.
"Such a product would take a team of at least 10 people in a top IT company months to develop. But for a student from a rural background to do all this in just 5 months on his own is amazing," observed N Chokkan, a columnist on computer.
Mahesh, who will soon join IBM at Bangalore, is unfazed by the recognition and remains grateful to his parents and R Panneerselvam, chairman of his school who waived his fees for the five-year course.
Microsoft CEO seeks to reassure analysts
Microsoft Corp. Chief Executive Steve Ballmer conceded that there are questions about the software maker's future, but he sought to reassure financial analysts that the company can compete against Web-focused competitors.
Above is the logo for Microsoft at their office in Herndon, Virginia. Microsoft confirmed rumors it planned to launch an "iPod killer," saying its challenge to Apple Computer's dominant MP3 player would hit the market this year.
Still, in a sign of how nervous Wall Street is about the company's prospects, Microsoft shares dipped 2 percent after another executive said a new version of its Windows operating system is on track to be completed as planned, but cautioned that could change if quality concerns arise.
Balmer said ..."The opportunity and prospects for innovation and growth has never been better.". His comments came as Microsoft is facing intense competition, particularly from Google Inc., Yahoo Inc. (Nasdaq:YHOO - news) and other companies that are increasingly offering software and related services over the Internet to both consumers and businesses.
The new versions of both Office and Windows — the company's cash cows — have been delayed. And Microsoft has conceded that its plans to compete and expand into new businesses will be extremely costly.
Kevin Johnson, co-president of the Microsoft division that includes Windows, said the company appears to be on track to ship the new version of Windows to businesses in November and consumers in January. But he made clear the company would not hesitate to again delay Windows Vista, which is already years overdue, if further problems crop up. "We will ship Windows Vista when the product is ready," he said. "Product quality is job one."
Microsoft shares fell 50 cents or more than 2 percent to close at $23.87 in trading on the Nasdaq Stock Market after the words of caution made investors jittery.
Analyst Roger Kay with Endpoint Technologies Associates said he thought Microsoft was trying to tell analysts to be patient as it makes investments needed to grow.
"I think they're trying to gain the sympathies of this population so that they don't get punished too badly for going into investment mode," he said.
My dear dear dearestttttttt Microsoft....Where r u heading?????????
Above is the logo for Microsoft at their office in Herndon, Virginia. Microsoft confirmed rumors it planned to launch an "iPod killer," saying its challenge to Apple Computer's dominant MP3 player would hit the market this year.
Still, in a sign of how nervous Wall Street is about the company's prospects, Microsoft shares dipped 2 percent after another executive said a new version of its Windows operating system is on track to be completed as planned, but cautioned that could change if quality concerns arise.
Balmer said ..."The opportunity and prospects for innovation and growth has never been better.". His comments came as Microsoft is facing intense competition, particularly from Google Inc., Yahoo Inc. (Nasdaq:YHOO - news) and other companies that are increasingly offering software and related services over the Internet to both consumers and businesses.
The new versions of both Office and Windows — the company's cash cows — have been delayed. And Microsoft has conceded that its plans to compete and expand into new businesses will be extremely costly.
Kevin Johnson, co-president of the Microsoft division that includes Windows, said the company appears to be on track to ship the new version of Windows to businesses in November and consumers in January. But he made clear the company would not hesitate to again delay Windows Vista, which is already years overdue, if further problems crop up. "We will ship Windows Vista when the product is ready," he said. "Product quality is job one."
Microsoft shares fell 50 cents or more than 2 percent to close at $23.87 in trading on the Nasdaq Stock Market after the words of caution made investors jittery.
Analyst Roger Kay with Endpoint Technologies Associates said he thought Microsoft was trying to tell analysts to be patient as it makes investments needed to grow.
"I think they're trying to gain the sympathies of this population so that they don't get punished too badly for going into investment mode," he said.
My dear dear dearestttttttt Microsoft....Where r u heading?????????
Tuesday, August 08, 2006
Speech 'Wreck-ognition'
If you're in the mood for some Friday afternoon entertainment, here's CNBC's report on the Windows Vista speech recognition demo gone awry during Microsoft's Financial Analyst Meeting in Redmond yesterday. (Note: the segment is only playable in Internet Explorer, and it comes after a commercial.)
Satan worshipper
A man who said he worshipped Satan and enjoyed killing three people, stabbing and beating them and stomping on them with steel-toed boots, was executed Tuesday.
An undated photo of death-row inmate Darrell Ferguson, 28, who was executed Tuesday in Ohio.
Darrell Ferguson, 28, the youngest person put to death in Ohio since 1962, died by injection at 10:21 a.m. at the Southern Ohio Correctional Facility.
Crazy HUH???
Stocks slip after Federal Reserve pauses
Stocks slipped Tuesday (AUG 8 2006) after the Federal Reserve (FED) opted not to raise interest rates for the first time in two years. The pause in rate rises was expected but the door was also left open for further hikes in the months ahead. The fed funds rate affects rates on CREDIT CARDS, AUTO LOANS and HOME EQUITY lines of credit.
Stocks had rallied right after the 2:15 p.m. ET release of the decision and statement, but soon turned lower as investors digested the implications of the decision and the central bank's statement.
The Fed voted to keep a key short-term bank lending rate unchanged at 5.25 percent, reflecting the economic slowdown. The central bank had raised rates 17 straight times starting in June 2004.
However, investors probably wouldn't have reacted well even if the central bankers had stated that rate hikes were done, as it might have raised worries that they were behind the curve on inflation, said Wan-Chong Kung, senior fixed-income portfolio manager at First American Funds.
WHAT GOT AFFECTED???
Economically sensitive stocks were hit the hardest, including home builders, realtors, banks and commodities.
Brocade Communications, a computer data storage maker, said it would buy rival McData for $713 million in stock, a nearly 50 percent premium on the company's Monday closing price.
In currency trading, the dollar was modestly lower versus the euro and the yen.
U.S. light crude oil for September delivery fell 67 cents to settle at $76.31 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange, after fluctuating throughout the morning.
Oil prices surged 3 percent Monday after BP ( Click Here for more info) began shutting down the biggest oilfield in the United States due to a corroded pipeline. That sent stocks lower as investors worried about rising inflation, particularly with the Fed seen as near the end of its rate-hiking campaign.
Monday, August 07, 2006
Damaged pipeline in Alaska affects 8% of U.S. oil production
In a blow to drivers already struggling with high gasoline prices, BP (British Petroleum - world’s largest oil producer) was forced to shut about 8 percent of the nation's domestic oil production for what seems to be a period of weeks after discovering "unexpectedly severe corrosion" in its pipelines in Alaska.
U.S. light crude futures surged $2.13 to $76.89 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange, back near record highs. Gasoline futures rose 3.35 cents to $2.2650 a gallon.
BP officials didn't say how long the field would be shut in for or how much it's estimated to cost to fix the problem. But in a conference call with reporters, BP America Chairman and President Bob Malone thanked the state agencies and other companies that would be working to fix the problem "in the weeks ahead."
When oil prices were low, they were reluctant to spend on that kind of maintenance, he said. But when prices soared in recent years, the cost of shutting down a pipeline or other facilities for maintenance would have meant too much lost production.
The incident comes at a key time for Alaska's oil industry, as the state considers a massive natural gas pipeline and the legislature debates an overhaul of state oil taxes meant to generate more revenue with prices high.
Tiger does it again...
World's #1 Golf Player, Tiger Woods becomes youngest to win 50 PGA Tour titles.
Woods won his 50th PGA Tour title Sunday at Warwick Hills..."I've had a lot of wonderful things happen to me in my career so far on tour in 10 years," he said. "It's been a great ride.". He picked up his latest win after his emotional victory in the British Open and before he shoots for his 12th major in two weeks at the PGA Championship.
The ultimate goal for Tiger Woods is to surpass Jack Nicklaus' record for victories in professional majors. The 30-year-old Woods beat Nicklaus' record pace to the milestone, which Nicklaus reached in 1973 at 33.
Above Picture - July 23, 2006 - Weeks after his father's death due to cancer & days after failing to make the cut at a major for the first time in his professional career, Tiger Woods roars back to prime form, winning the British Open for the 2nd straight year and breaks down in front of the whole international audience on TV. And he dedicates his victory to his loving father and wishes he had been there one last time to see it all.
"It's going to be a lifetime, a career, to get to that point and attain something like that," Woods said. "It took me 10 years to get here, hopefully I can continue playing well over the next 10, 20 years."
Woods reached a season-low 24 under and made a career-high 28 birdies in the tournament to hold off Furyk -- who closed with a 64 -- for his fourth win of the year. Woods earned $864,000 to push his tour-leading total to $5,127,563!!!
Woods won his 50th PGA Tour title Sunday at Warwick Hills..."I've had a lot of wonderful things happen to me in my career so far on tour in 10 years," he said. "It's been a great ride.". He picked up his latest win after his emotional victory in the British Open and before he shoots for his 12th major in two weeks at the PGA Championship.
The ultimate goal for Tiger Woods is to surpass Jack Nicklaus' record for victories in professional majors. The 30-year-old Woods beat Nicklaus' record pace to the milestone, which Nicklaus reached in 1973 at 33.
Above Picture - July 23, 2006 - Weeks after his father's death due to cancer & days after failing to make the cut at a major for the first time in his professional career, Tiger Woods roars back to prime form, winning the British Open for the 2nd straight year and breaks down in front of the whole international audience on TV. And he dedicates his victory to his loving father and wishes he had been there one last time to see it all.
"It's going to be a lifetime, a career, to get to that point and attain something like that," Woods said. "It took me 10 years to get here, hopefully I can continue playing well over the next 10, 20 years."
Woods reached a season-low 24 under and made a career-high 28 birdies in the tournament to hold off Furyk -- who closed with a 64 -- for his fourth win of the year. Woods earned $864,000 to push his tour-leading total to $5,127,563!!!
Sunday, August 06, 2006
Thursday, August 03, 2006
Funny Pics...
MATH TEST???
GOOD ONE
WORK
"OUT OF THE BOX THINKING"
(flicked this one from a friend ;-))
FAT CAT
GOOD ONE
WORK
"OUT OF THE BOX THINKING"
(flicked this one from a friend ;-))
FAT CAT
Explorers...Ideas for the world to race towards FUTURE...
Even without sailing to distant lands, modern-day scientists and researchers are charting new territory. From new ways to view the stars to robotic cockroaches, this breed of 21st century explorer is making discoveries to advance daily life in the fields of medicine, computers, communication and other areas. One expanding area that fascinates scientists is robotics, especially of the petite variety.
The practical applications for large-scale work by tiny robots exist in many capacities, the MIT researcher said. Sending 2,000 tiny robots to Mars can cover a lot more ground than sending two bigger robots, he said, or the smaller robots could comb battlefields for wounded troops or enemies.
Daily Innovations...
One day, as Chinedu Echeruo was navigating the mind-boggling maze of the New York transit system, he thought there had to be a way to use technology to make it easier.
So he created Hopstop.com, a free Web site offering step-by-step instructions on how to get from point A to point B in the Big Apple via subway, bus or even your own two feet. Instructions can even be delivered to cell phones. The service has expanded to other cities.
Another New York service, Dodgeball.com, aims to keep your social circle spinning. The creators call it "mobile social software." "Let's say you're out having drinks for happy hour with friends and you use your mobile phone to send a text message of your whereabouts to Dodgeball," explained founder Dennis Crowley. "Once you tell [Dodgeball] your location, we'll look up that location. We'll look up a list of who all your friends are and then ping all of those friends with your whereabouts."
Hal McAlister, who has developed advanced astronomy technology through a network of interconnected telescopes, put it this way: "By learning more about the stars, we learn more about our own star and really what gives us here life on Earth."
The practical applications for large-scale work by tiny robots exist in many capacities, the MIT researcher said. Sending 2,000 tiny robots to Mars can cover a lot more ground than sending two bigger robots, he said, or the smaller robots could comb battlefields for wounded troops or enemies.
Daily Innovations...
One day, as Chinedu Echeruo was navigating the mind-boggling maze of the New York transit system, he thought there had to be a way to use technology to make it easier.
So he created Hopstop.com, a free Web site offering step-by-step instructions on how to get from point A to point B in the Big Apple via subway, bus or even your own two feet. Instructions can even be delivered to cell phones. The service has expanded to other cities.
Another New York service, Dodgeball.com, aims to keep your social circle spinning. The creators call it "mobile social software." "Let's say you're out having drinks for happy hour with friends and you use your mobile phone to send a text message of your whereabouts to Dodgeball," explained founder Dennis Crowley. "Once you tell [Dodgeball] your location, we'll look up that location. We'll look up a list of who all your friends are and then ping all of those friends with your whereabouts."
Hal McAlister, who has developed advanced astronomy technology through a network of interconnected telescopes, put it this way: "By learning more about the stars, we learn more about our own star and really what gives us here life on Earth."
Wednesday, August 02, 2006
Absent Mindedness
Found this one funny...
An elderly couple had dinner at another couple's house and, after eating, the wives left the table and went into the kitchen. The two elderly gentlemen were talking, and one says: "Last night we went out to a new restaurant, and it was really great. I would recommend it very highly."
The other man says: "What's the name of the restaurant?" The first man knits his brow in obvious concentration, and finally says to his companion: "Aahh, what is the name of that red flower you give to someone you love?"
His friend replies: "A carnation?" "No, no. The other one," the man says. His friend offers another suggestion: "The poppy?" "Nahhhh," growls the man.
"You know - the one that is red and has thorns." His friend says: "Do you mean a rose?" "Yes! Thank you!" the first man says. He then turns toward the kitchen and yells: "Rose, what's the name of that restaurant we went to last night?"
An elderly couple had dinner at another couple's house and, after eating, the wives left the table and went into the kitchen. The two elderly gentlemen were talking, and one says: "Last night we went out to a new restaurant, and it was really great. I would recommend it very highly."
The other man says: "What's the name of the restaurant?" The first man knits his brow in obvious concentration, and finally says to his companion: "Aahh, what is the name of that red flower you give to someone you love?"
His friend replies: "A carnation?" "No, no. The other one," the man says. His friend offers another suggestion: "The poppy?" "Nahhhh," growls the man.
"You know - the one that is red and has thorns." His friend says: "Do you mean a rose?" "Yes! Thank you!" the first man says. He then turns toward the kitchen and yells: "Rose, what's the name of that restaurant we went to last night?"
Tuesday, August 01, 2006
Campus Interview with the Vampire
Came across this blog...intimidates INFOSYSSSSSSSS
to the core...
Check out the 24rth & 40th episodes in this link...
http://www.wittyknight.blogspot.com
to the core...
Check out the 24rth & 40th episodes in this link...
http://www.wittyknight.blogspot.com
Intestinal surgery sidelines 79-year-old Cuban president
Castro cedes power
Cuban President Fidel Castro, hospitalized for intestinal surgery, has provisionally handed over power in the Communist island nation to his younger brother Raul, according to Cuban television.
Fidel Castro has temporarily handed over power to his brother Raul due to intestinal surgery, Cuban television reported, the first time the communist leader has ceded control of the island nation in 47 years.
Castro, who has led Cuba since the 1959 revolution, turns 80 on August 13.
Raul Castro, 75, is the first vice president of the country and designated successor to his brother. He also assumes control over the armed forces and leadership of the Communist Party, according to the statement
The area's Cuban-American community of about 650,000 is the largest part of Florida's fast-growing Hispanic population, with its influence felt across the state.
RISE TO POWER
Castro led an unsuccessful attempt to overthrow the dictatorship of Fulgencio Batista in 1953, after which he was sentenced to 15 years in prison alongside his brother Raul.
They were released less than two years later as part of an amnesty for political prisoners, and both went into exile in Mexico and the United States.
In Mexico, they met the Argentine revolutionary Che Guevara and organized a group of Cuban exiles into a new guerilla group.
After a near disastrous landing in Cuba, the remnants of the group -- including the Castros and Guevara -- fled to the Sierra Maestra Mountains, from which they waged a guerrilla war against the Batista government.
Castro's forces succeeded in overthrowing the regime on January 1, 1959. The next day, Manuel Urrutia was named president and Jose Miro Cardona was appointed vice president. Six weeks later, Fidel Castro took over as prime minister.
Urrutia resigned in July 1959, and Castro completed his rise to power in Cuba, which became the first communist country in the Western Hemisphere.
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