random ramblings

Today morning saw an HR email about new year resolution. Here goes.. Use my computer for something other than Microsoft technologies (Outlook, Word, Excel, Powerpoint). It could help avoid embarrassment when some relative tells his daughter in 8th standard that “this uncle” who is working in IT can help with her homework in C++ Try to use more than 0.005% of my brain Try not to assume every fad theories coming from everywhere has some meaning Try not to feel guilty in saying no to something that is not worth it Try to find/do more satisfying “original” work, than “adding value” to something Take longer vacations and without “calls” in between Try to do more exercise than climbing stairs once every day Try to build honest, lasting relationships- Because “the only thing that really matters in life are your relationships to other people.” I know these may not work since today morning’s newspaper was saying only SMART resolutions survive beyond January.  Anyway on...

For the first time in 6-7 years, I bought a phone last weekend – Samsung Galaxy 3. All this time I was using Nokia phones because of it is ultimate reliability. I initially was looking for a dual SIM phone, but wanted that to be Android – there were not many options like that. Finally narrowed down the criteria to Android alone – to tinker with it if possible. I have been admiring iPhone ever since it came out, but did not want to go that expensive. Just saw the article ”2011 will be the year Android explodes” . People are making the arguments for and against in Google Vs Apple, some predicting the demise of Apple yet again in another defining war – but remains to be seen if Apple still continues to surprise. For one thing, I can see mobiles taking over PCs/laptops in terms of internet usage. Just take case of our own parents:- it is a struggle for them to get connected just to see some photos or email or chat – but not having to boot up a computer, the modem etc, if they could a...

Finished all of Malcolm Gladwell’s books with “What the dog saw and other adventures”. This one is collection of articles on various topics that came out in New Yorker magazine. Like most articles in the magazine, each story goes into painstaking details which can be a drag at times, but the details are sometimes fascinating. I still have the suspicion though – whether all of this is authentic science, what is truth and what is fiction. But he definitely knows how to write non-fiction in the most engaging way. I have terrible memory when it comes to books I read – so started keeping some notes on things I found interesting. the trick to finding ideas is to convince yourself that everyone and everything has a story to tell. the other trick to finding ideas is figuring out the difference between power and knowledge. you don’t start at the top if you want to find the story. you start in the middle, because it’s the people in the middle who do the actual work in the world. people at t...