Hickson's Blog

Server Headaches?

2010-02-22T21:22:00.004+05:30

I have been with hostgator for years.Now that my bandwidth is running high and Iam looking for a decent dedicated server for my Web Hosting Company demands that i shift soon.I am having problems finding a suitable dedicated server.Looks like finding a shared hosting is easy.
Hopefully I will get things sorted out soon.

P.S:This Happens to be my 100th Post Too. :-)

Paypal Suspends Indian Payments

2010-02-08T19:38:00.005+05:30

Paypal has put us(Indian Webmasters) in a spot.It has effectively banned its operations in India for the past one week.Paypal Users are not able to withdraw money to their respective bank accounts.All the payments are getting reversed.
To Top it all Paypal has come up with just one piece of info in a blog post.
We would like to know what the real issue is.
I am sure paypal will not like to lose an online market worth 150-180 Billion Dollars(Source:ZdNet).With Lot of Speculations going around they will have to come up with an official explanation.
I honestly wish paypal monopoly is brought down after this ugly showdown.

Good 'Ol days

2010-01-25T21:03:00.003+05:30

Happen to Remember those days in the 90's Watching Mtv.Truly Miss them.These Days Mtv is more of a Reality channel with crap shows except Roadies.Found Some Classic Mtv Videos.
Check them out Guys.

Wishes and Apologies

2010-01-21T15:28:00.002+05:30

Wishing Everyone a Very Happy New Year.
Apologies for not updating the blog due to my professional commitments.
Hopefully I will update it regularly and the blog has turned 2 years old.
Take Care Folks.

Merry Christmas

2009-12-25T10:10:00.001+05:30

Wishing Everyone a Merry Christmas!!

Blissful Prayers

2009-11-15T08:14:00.003+05:30

"WHEN you pray purify your intelligence and it becomes your wisdom. Purify yourself completely and you become one with whole. And to be on with the whole is the ultimate benediction, the blissfulness, the experience for which thousands of people have been searching down the ages on wrong paths. This world has to be loved, this world has to be respected, this world has to be your temple, your mosque your church. This world has to be your gratefulness, your gratitude. Enlightenment is not something of another world. Enlightenment happens now and here."-Osho

500 Days of Summer

2009-10-24T19:55:00.003+05:30

This is Easily one of the Best Movies I watched in Years.
Here is the Official Trailer.

P.S:In Fond Memory of Platonic Relationships.

Language Woes

2009-09-24T21:17:00.002+05:30

It was an evening during my undergraduate education.It was a hostel strike.Few of us were summoned to meet a staff at the office.He was a professor in his late forties with a receding hairline.Rather unusually one of my friend questioned him "Sir,What is the Problem?"He shouted "Hey!!Your Problem,Our Problem,All Problem".We all replied "No problem" and left.People tell me he was skilled in French but forgot his english lessons.Anyways I moved on from there and thought I would never encounter such person ever.

It was the first day of my Postgraduate class.I was very optimistic of being a very good marine biologist.It came to an abrupt end.Yes He entered,He introduced himself.His name was in classical Tamil.I have never heard such a name before even in tamil poems.He explained Marine Biology as "See All catch fish catch but you also catch a big catch".That day i recall was the beginning of the end of my dream of being an marine biologist.

P.S :-Happen to see a clip which took me back down my memory lanes and made this post possible.(I am not from this university)Anyways Here is the clip

Zen Stories

2009-09-15T20:25:00.002+05:30

A Few Zen Stories which I like

A Cup of Tea

Nan-in, a Japanese master, received a university professor who came to inquire about Zen.

Nan-in served tea. He poured his visitor's cup full, and then kept on pouring.

The professor watched the overflow until he no longer could restrain himself. "It is overfull. No more will go in!"

"Like this cup," Nan-in said, "you are full of your own opinions and speculations. How can I show you Zen unless you first empty your cup?"

The Burden

Two monks were returning to the monastery in the evening. It had rained and there were puddles of water on the road sides. At one place a beautiful young woman was standing unable to walk accross because of a puddle of water. The elder of the two monks went up to a her lifted her and left her on the other side of the road, and continued his way to the monastery.

In the evening the younger monk came to the elder monk and said, "Sir, as monks, we cannot touch a woman ?"

The elder monk answered "yes, brother".

Then the younger monk asks again, "but then Sir, how is that you lifted that woman on the roadside ?"

The elder monk smiled at him and told him " I left her on the other side of the road, but you are still carrying her."

The Other Side

One day a young Buddhist on his journey home came to the banks of a wide river. Staring hopelessly at the great obstacle in front of him, he pondered for hours on just how to cross such a wide barrier. Just as he was about to give up his pursuit to continue his journey he saw a great teacher on the other side of the river. The young Buddhist yells over to the teacher, "Oh wise one, can you tell me how to get to the other side of this river"?

The teacher ponders for a moment looks up and down the river and yells back, "My son, you are on the other side".

Cliffhanger

One day while walking through the wilderness a man stumbled upon a vicious tiger. He ran but soon came to the edge of a high cliff. Desperate to save himself, he climbed down a vine and dangled over the fatal precipice.

As he hung there, two mice appeared from a hole in the cliff and began gnawing on the vine.

Suddenly, he noticed on the vine a plump wild strawberry. He plucked it and popped it in his mouth. It was incredibly delicious!

Follow Me

2009-08-24T21:10:00.002+05:30

Follow Me said a Saint,
A few followed.
Others Questioned,
but Followed,
Only one Said,
I ll lead the way,but
You dont have to follow,
The Saint Accompanied him.

Through inputs of various spirtual people, the conditional mind dies and one becomes aware.He no longer tries to become, he is already in the state of being.But yes he is a normal man to the outside world but on the inside he is burning and contemplating at the same time.He doesnt try to change or influence people, rather says "I ll lead the way, you dont have to follow"

P.S:Dont try to read in between the lines.
The Title could be Misleading too :-)
This is just a random musing of mine.

Blogspot vs Wordpress

2009-08-17T18:07:00.004+05:30

Preliminary bloggers are always confused which blogging platform to select. All my blogs are in blogspot except one(travelkanyakumari.com) which is on wordpress.I have never used Joomla till date.Blogspot is more user friendly for starters but it lacks various options.Be it the Look,Gadgets or SEO options Wordpress is far Superior.

But wordpress requires more attention and maintainence than Blogger(blogspot).Wordpress blogs are more susceptible to vulnerabilities as it is based on php and MYSQL.So you are forced to make sure your wordpress version is up to date but wordpress is far superior with its wide variety of plugins and themes.
Regarding Domain Options Blogger is Superior(you dont have to even host it, you can just redirect) but Wordpress blogs need to be hosted if you want it in your own domain name.If you dont own a server already you need one for sure.

My verdict: Wordpress for Professional Blogs
Blogger for all other Blog Categories

One of the Greatest Movie Scenes of all time

2009-08-01T21:55:00.004+05:30

This is surely one of the greatest movie scenes of all time from the movie pulp fiction.
Pulp Fiction is a massive, epic story of the LA underworld.

Prior to this scene, Mia Wallace (Uma Thurman) has accidently mistaken Vincent Vega's heroin for cocaine and snorts the heroin, which causes her to have an overdose.

The next scene (which you are gonna watch ) Vincent hurries to his local drug dealer, Lance (Eric Stoltz) to get an adrenaline shot so they could save Mia's life.

The scene handles realy dark tones with this very uncomfortable sequence of events.Check out how Quentin Tarrantino (director) plays with some of these. Just look at how uncomfortably close he gets to the faces of Travolta, Stolts, the needle. It adds to the heightened sense of suspense. You have a hard time watching it, but you're absolutely fixated on what's going to happen.

WARNING:If you are a little squeemish of needles you might not want to click play.Not for kids either

Its all about Money,Honey!!

2009-07-25T22:28:00.004+05:30

It had been a while ever since i had been last seen on a google talk window.Yup i was on the missing persons list.Finally stepped in;rather logged in and i was swarmed by buzzing questions.Few Sarcastic ones whether i was indeed alive.I replied i was trying to figure out.Some doubtful ones why i am busy always.They were trying to guess which business i was really into.(You cant get the answer here smarties)
The Search for money and more money had made life a lot boring.(Money must have been invented some sick a** hole in a mental asylum)I feel emotionally drained most times.I could hardly find any time.Being occupied or pre-occupied has its own detrimental effects.
Then I came across this pic in a forum.

I Pledged to live life in the way i have always lived before.
P.S:I hope the pic is inspirational to few of you.

Videocon dth Launched

2009-07-20T17:51:00.003+05:30

There have been several dates announced but looks like Videocon has finally launched its dth services called d2h in North India.Hopefully it will rollout soon to rest of india.DTH in india is growing and its good to have many competitors.

But the picture quality of dth is only slightly better than cable.Its no where near to DVD quality which most operators advertise.It will surely take time before DTH evolves in India.

Visit Videocon D2H official Website

My Sassy Girl

2009-07-07T15:30:00.004+05:30

My Sassy Girl is a nice Movie;Actually its a remake of the Korean Movie whose english title is the same too.I couldn't have a sneek into the original korean version till now even though I have it in my hard disk.Went for the English version mainly for Elisha Cuthbert,who is an awesome actress.You could watch The Girl Next Door any number of times coz of Elisha Cuthbert.Elisha plays Jordan Roark,the role only she could play.

She is wild and fun; she's rich and outrageous- being outlandish, which is appealing to the straitlaced Charlie. Sometimes she puts Charlie in physical danger. She comes across as clinically insane and she seems to enjoy hurting Charlie, and even though all these things keep happening, he fell in love with her for some reason. And then it goes on from there.Its not a typical RomCom(Romantic Comedy), Thats one of the reasons you may want to watch this Movie.

Happy Viewing :-)

Flipkart Experience

2009-06-30T16:39:00.005+05:30

I have never been a big fan of online shopping mainly due to the risks attached with it.But i found Flipkart.com - India's Online Book Store good.

Ordered for a book online and got in time.They offer discounts and free shipping if you buy books over Rs 100.Rather than shopping in landmark or similar book shops I feel this is more comfortable.Flipkart has a very good collection of books too.

So all you people who love shopping books this is a very good place to do it Online.

Da Ali G Show

2009-06-23T10:12:00.005+05:30

Da Ali G Show is a true reflection of the genius Sacha Baron Cohen.The Ali G show was aired on HBO in the 2003-2004 Season(earlier on Channel4 in the U.K).DVD's of the show are readily available n you might wanna grab one.Ali G (Alistair Leslie Graham) is a satirical fictional character invented and played by British comedian Sacha Baron Cohen.
The character of Ali G plays on the stereotype of a non-black suburban male who revels in black and Jamaican culture, particularly through hip hop, reggae, and jungle music.Ali G is a boorish, uneducated, streetwise youth with a deeply stereotypical view of the world, who either embarrasses his interviewee by displaying a mixture of uninformed political incorrectness, or gets the interview 'victim' to agree to some breathtaking inaccuracy or insult.

Sacha Baron Cohen is also famous for his other characters,Borat-a Kazakh protagonist and Bruno-an Austrian gay fashion show presenter.Cohen won the 2007 Golden Globe Award for Best Actor: Musical or Comedy, as Borat for his film Borat: Cultural Learnings of America for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan.His upcoming Movie Brüno is already in the news and will be released on July 10th 2009.

Lets wait n watch how many more unique characters Sacha Baron Cohen can offer.

Lost in Thoughts,Time n Eternity

2009-06-17T21:08:00.004+05:30

A loss of a friend hurts
The loss of a best friend hurts more,
But it is never a true loss;
Everyday you will see something that reminds you of them
This will bring a memory;

A memory of the times you spent together
Followed by another;
A memory of how you went your seperate ways
They will always be in your mind;
They never really leave you.

Poem by Nerissa Morton

P.S:In fond memory of all those dear ones who have made life a more cherishable one.

Education - Money Spinner Numero Uno

2009-06-06T13:04:00.003+05:30

Any Ideas on what is the biggest Money Making Business Model.Its Education.You got these fancy courses like Biotechnology,Nanotechnology just to attract Young Students.A carefully strategised Marketing Team goes ahead by Publishing articles in Popular Magazines n Reports in TV Channels.
They are appealing n they dont look like advertisements.The Result is Innocent Students joining Trash Courses like Biotechnology,Nanotechnology etc.Even Universities are no different.They Randomly join scientific terms n Hurray!! we got a New P.G Course.Now they have their own Entrance for this masala courses.

I have seen so many Talented Students getting lost n Struggling for a Career after they finish their courses in some of these universities.Many of them End up in B.P.O's(B.P.O' s ending up in recessing is a different story altogether).Others escape from these concentration camps(read universities) and enter a different Career.As always there are exceptions in every cases n a minimal percentage of students do manage to come out with only a few scars.

Education is Australia's Second Highest Source of Revenue.So it is in many european countries.Unless we have a Responsible Media Situations may not change in the near future.

Disclaimer:The views expressed do not relate to any particular organisation.

Mobile Number Portability-Coming Soon

2009-05-21T09:15:00.004+05:30

DoT (Department of Telecommunication) has finally given the nod for Mobile Number portability (MNP). MNP will be implemented phase wise and will be first achieved in 4 metros (i.e. Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata and Chennai, which account for 18% of subscriber base) by Q4 ‘08. MNP will be extended to more parts of the country in the next phase.

Market surveys have shown that up to 50% of all mobile users in India are unhappy with their operator, and are willing to switch to another service provider if allowed to retain their number.

Read in Detail:

P.S I Love You

2009-05-18T21:56:00.004+05:30

Well, sometimes there's only one thing left to say...
This is the tagline of this Movie P.S I love You..

The movie starts with a couple i.e. Gerry and Holly fighting over common marital issues of kids and larger apartment. They make up quickly and the movie starts with the casting. Next you see that Gerry is dead due to a brain tumor and this has left Holly devastated. The movie then shifts onto a novel kind of plot where Holly gets letters from dead Gerry .(these letters were written by Gerry himself when he was alive ) These letters assign 'tasks ' to Holy which actually help her to ease her journey of life after Gerry's loss and transition into a much sedate phase of life as a shoe designer.
The movie is filled with intermittent surprises and shocks. The background score is too good and locations chosen for shooting ( especially the one in Ireland) are awesome. Special attraction is the irish accent of Gerry and the innocence of Holly's love. Hillary Swank ( Boys don't cry , Million Dollar Baby) has done great work and shown her mettle in handling the role of a widow. Lisa Kudrov ( FRIENDS fame) is funny as always and makes the audience break into frequent giggles.
This is a Highly recommendable Movie.
I loved it,its fresh n evokes a wide range of emotions.

Vodafone,Aircel Launch Unlimited GPRS

2009-05-10T12:49:00.004+05:30

Vodafone and Aircel have launched Unlimited GPRS in TamilNadu.
Aircel Offers Unlimited GPRS at Rs 17/day Vodafone Offers at Rs 19/day

Note:The value may be subject to change.Contact your Operator for confirmation.

Recently Airtel Withdrew all its unlimited Plans in Tamil Nadu Circle.It created a mini riot of sorts.There were lots of hue n cry from the GPRS users.Now its good news that they are left with choices which they never had before.I would have never even Considered Airtel if it was not for its unlimited GPRS(Many of us used freely for years with a few bag of tricks which were later banned).Its been there for say around 7 years.Looks like Airtel is feeling the impact of recession,(read fair usage plan in airtel broadband)

If Airtel doesnt wake up soon,It would have lost most of its valued GPRS Customers aka Mobile Techno Geeks.

Adsense Blues - Why No EFT?

2009-04-29T09:20:00.003+05:30

Its good to hear that Google has rolled out Cheque delivery via Blue Dart for Indian Users but its really surprising why google does not have EFT for indian adsense users.I do hope the payment modes of adsense evolves here too. Even a tie up with paypal,moneybookers or alertpay would do the job. Hope google adsense looks over this payment issue.

Curious Case of Fake IPL Player

2009-04-25T20:42:00.006+05:30

Kishen Kanhaiyya, Mr. Batlivala, Big Sister, Sheikh of Tweak, Little Monster, Phoren babas, Prince Charles of Patiala, Di*do,and a few more are part of the Indian Premier League this year. Puzzled? To start with, this is not a new advertisement i am talking about.

The names that you've read above are aliases used in a mysterious blog spurting daily dirty details about the Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR). The blog is called The Fake IPL Player, and the mission - well, it looks like an entertaining satire on the 'life in IPL' through the eyes of a Kolkata Knight Rider.
The last blog post has generated over 500 comments till now, which clearly goes out to show the growing popularity among cricket-frenzied voyeurs - a majority of them begging for more. As the media has caught on with the buzz, the posts exuberate narcissism by the writer as he's sure not to get caught in his true identity.
Here's one of his recent blog posts that elucidate this:
"News is that the team management and the Phoren Babas (McCullum & Buchanan, apparently) think that Lordie is Fake IPL. Apparently, he was called into the CEO's room where Di*do, Coachie, and Skipper, politely asked him about it. But, they forget that this is THE LORD OF THE RING they are dealing with."
Some of my Fav NickNames are Appam Ch*tiya(Sreesanth),Bhookha Naan(Buchanan),Vinnie Di*do(SRK),kishen Kanhaiya(ravi Shastri).
Is this one more marketing strategy,who the f*ck Cares?Dada n Fake IPL Player Blog Rock not sure about KKR Though!!
Oops!! Here is the Link

Religious Exploitation

2009-04-24T14:56:00.004+05:30

Its a complete Shame that more n more people are exploited in the name of religion.
Here is one such example.The Video Shows how Sai baba used his optical illusion tricks in fooling people.

This is Just one such example.Sadly there many such illusionists Exploiting People everywhere.