Personal: Faraz Ahmad

HTC Factory reset.

2011-07-07T04:30:00.000-07:00

Enforcing a factory reset using phone buttons:
Take the battery out and put it back in place. With the phone turned off, press and hold the VOLUME DOWN button, and then briefly press the POWER button.
Wait for the screen with the three Android images to appear, and then release the VOLUME DOWN button.
Press VOLUME DOWN to select CLEAR STORAGE, and then press POWER.
Press VOLUME UP to start the factory reset.

It might take a few minutes before the reset is complete

سلطان فتح علی خان ٹیپو

2011-05-23T13:42:00.000-07:00

Tipu Sultan "one day life of tiger is better than 100 years life of jackal" And we are decided to live 100 years in 2001 :(

Google and George Clooney Aim Satellites at Sudan, Become "Anti-Genocide Paparazzi"

2011-03-13T13:40:00.000-07:00

Ahead of an early January referendum, the two partners, along with Harvard and the United Nations, want Sudanese rebels to know that they are being watched.

George Clooney is joining Google, the Harvard Humanitarian Initiative, and the United Nations in an effort called the Satellite Sentinel Project to monitor violence and human rights violations in Sudan as the country prepares to vote on January 9 on whether or not to split into two nations—North and South Sudan.

The explicit goal of the partnership is deterrence—Clooney and his partners want to make sure that Sudan does not erupt in another civil war. Some small pockets of violence have already been reported and the employment of satellites is meant to give war-mongers on the ground the message that the world is watching and genocide will not be tolerated.

Clooney's interest in Sudan is not new—back in 2007 he was featured in the documentary film, Darfur Now, co-produced by actor Don Cheadle. And he has maintained his interest in the embattled country since then, paying a recent visit amidst preparations for the upcoming referendum.

The partnership pulls on the diverse strengths of the participating organizations—Clooney and his organization, Not On Our Watch, add star power—not to mention awareness power—and the United Nations Institute for Training and Research Operational Satellite Applications Programme (UNOSAT) will collect and analyze the satellite images. The Harvard Humanitarian Initiative, meanwhile, will provide field research and Google is setting up a web platform to provide public access to information with the goal of pressuring public officials. (We profiled an independent, Ushahidi-backed voting monitoring project just a couple of weeks ago—carried out by a Sudan-born Texan.)

UNOSAT has done this before—in fact it is their mission to snap satellite images in cases of such disaster, but in the case of Sudan they've more or less been on standby to see what happens and will start snapping satellite images as soon as they receive requests from their field staff and partner organizations to do so. "It's a good thing that we haven't yet had to take many images in Sudan," Lars Bromley of UNOSAT tells Fast Company.

So the idea is not entirely Clooney's alone (despite what a Time magazine article suggests). I had spoken to UNOSAT several weeks ago, prior to the announcement of Clooney's project, and, for them, this is essentially routine work.

But there is one difference this time around. It's Clooney who has hired the satellites. That means there is more freedom to snap away in whatever geographical areas and on whatever basis the group wants, as opposed to the U.N., which has certain rules and guidelines to work within. Specifically, Clooney will monitor the movement of troops, whereas UNOSAT's primary—and most flexible—prerogative is the monitoring of natural disasters, not man-made ones.

"We are the anti-genocide paparazzi," Clooney told Time. "We want them to enjoy the level of celebrity attention that I usually get. If you know your actions are going to be covered, you tend to behave much differently than when you operate in a vacuum."

The project as a whole is a multi-layered approach and the programming and monitoring capabilities of multiple crisis mapping tools, websites, and organizations are being pulled together. The work of the Sudan Vote Monitor—who we profiled earlier this month—will soon be incorporated and the Google mapping component was actually built off the work of two Pakistani-British entrepreneurs who built LOCAL, a monitoring site for the Pakistan floods.

"What is new and transforming is the concept of leveraging Google Map Maker into a public human rights and human security early warning system to stop a war before it starts," Jonathan Hutson of the Enough Project, another partner, tells Fast Company.

"We'd like to engage the worldwide, volunteer community of Google power mappers," adds Hutson, "and combine their efforts with on-the-ground field reports from the Enough Project and crowd-sourced, crisis response information from groups like Ushahidi, analyze it, add context and concise clear calls to action, and publish it all on a public platform to detect and deter war crimes, including potential genocide."

Official Google Blog: Trip report: Google and YouTube in Pakistan 2010

2010-12-22T03:36:00.000-08:00

Official Google Blog: Trip report: Google and YouTube in Pakistan 2010

Africa Conference 2010

2010-11-27T13:31:00.000-08:00

Your protection without Bodyguard

2010-11-04T02:45:00.001-07:00

Surah Faatiha protects one from the anger of Allah

Surah Yaseen protects one from the thirst of the Day of Judgment

Suratul Waaqi’ah protects one from poverty and starvation

Surah Mulk protects one from the punishment of the grave

Surah Kauthar protects one from the enmity of the enemy

Surah Kaafiroon protects one from kufr at the time of death

Surah Ikhlaas protects one from hypocrisy

Surah Falaq protects one from calamities

Surah Naas protects one from evil thoughts

Science, Religion and Logic

2010-08-30T20:19:00.000-07:00

Some days ago I was watching a documentary about Human Genome project and it touched many different articles how it will impact the human race. They talked about possibility of Human cloning and even possibility of teleportationing Humans. And they showed some examples to how this is possible. Cloning is already a open thing. Animals are cloned all over world now yes its true they look striking similar or scientific will say identical. They have same physical and mental behaviour. Most amazing thing was the cloned cows in the program they were of different medical age but they were standing in line and even watching a same thing. never thought before how same they are produced. Then the Teleportation ability to transfer matter from a point to another. And in the program they showed how scientist telepotation photon. These scientists have there own implementation for these technologies and there own ideas where they want to push these advances in future. But there still another obstacle teleportation a human or clone a human and that is how to transfer its memory because these technologies only deal with physical aspects of life not the mental or emotional side of life, how a teleportationed or cloned man will retain its Knowledge, its experiences in life and most importation memories of its loved ones our basic ability that make us different from other mammals.

This ask for a third project and that is how to store human memory or a clone of its mind with all information in it. for me its not possible to store or all human memory or experience at a time because the human mind the basic unit that perform this operation have tendency to forget things or loose track of history so we can transfer one state state of mind to store it. then what should we do as human we can't give up its in our DNA.

for me solution is in religion and religion solved these problems 1000's year back every body know how Quran discussed cloning issue and Teletortation issue.. when it tell us they stories of human birth and day of judgement it tell me the story of human cloning how it create human life from very minute cell and it will recreate a human body again even it have been destroyed. and then the story of Muhammad (PBUH) going into havens in a short span of time it tell me about teleportation transferring human body form one point to another.

Now comes the memory part of human life how to transfer it from one physical human to another. For me humans are biofueled electronic device. so how can we transfer complete human memory from on electronic device like brain to another like HardDisk (both can have bad sectors and breakdown ;-) ) or any other electronic signal than can be transmitted form one place to another. and i said its not possible to do it completely because of human mind nature.. Allah the creator of Human already know that so he did not tried to preserve human mind or try to transfer his memory at any time. what Allah have done that He created a backup system a backup system that log every human action every thought and every emotion, Allah used two Angels for this... amazing.. so what we human can do we can create a third Angel for this who can log this information for human use day night 24x7 all year along.. then we can have information that can be stored or transmitted from a point in space or time to another. and it can be copied to cloned or teleportationed human at human mind. I know its a big privacy issue and its impossible to trust other human with this very very critical information.. but its my solution to this problem. human made Angel just like a hidden spying keylogger on PC.

Quran and Islam

2010-08-23T20:03:00.000-07:00

What great Book Internet is, I have access to Dars-e-Quran by Ghulam Ahmed Pervez [here]Tafseer Quran by Abul Ala Maududi [here] and By Dr. Israr Ahmed [here Urdu] [Here English] its the best knowledge of Quran I can get because I can't understand Arabic language of Quran. one huge step toward understanding of Ummul Kitab. Allah give us wisdom to understand truth and spread it and also give us wisdom to understand wrong and power to stop it.

Google Earth Imagery Update

2010-05-22T20:41:00.000-07:00

Today as I was drawing maps I noticed strange difference between mapmaker satellite imagery and wikimapia imagery. then check latlong blog to find out about updates.

There I find that google pushed its monthly imagery update and they updated my home town Daska and almost all Sialkot Distt. imagery.

http://google-latlong.blogspot.com/2010/05/you-may-now-see-new-imagery.html

Mapping Party at FAST-NU, Lahore

2009-12-17T13:45:00.000-08:00

Event: Mapping Party at FAST-NU, Lahore
What: Informational Meeting
Start Time: Saturday, January 2 at 8:00am
End Time: Saturday, January 2 at 6:00pm
Where: Model Town, Lahore
To see more details and RSVP, follow the link below:
http://www.facebook.com/n/?event.php&eid=367580935227&mid=194a2efG29de983eG38b22efG7
Or
www.local.com.pk/mappingparty
Thanks,
The Facebook Team

Congratulations to rjhintz & Faraz who were featured in today's New York Times article on mapping your world!

2009-11-23T08:04:00.000-08:00

Complete Article here
“Some of the most remarkable efforts of amateur map makers are in countries where few, if any, digital maps existed. Google first tested a tool called Map Maker in India, where people immediately began tracing and labeling roads and buildings on top of satellite images provided by Google.
When Google released the tool more broadly last year, Faraz Ahmad, a 26-year-old programmer from Pakistan who lives in Glasgow, took one look at the map of India and decided he did not want to see his homeland out-mapped by its traditional rival. So he began mapping Pakistan in his free time, using information from friends, family and existing maps. Mr. Ahmad is now the top contributor to Map Maker, logging more than 41,000 changes.
Maps are political, of course, and community-edited maps can set off conflicts. When Mr. Ahmad tried to work on the part of Kashmir that is administered by Pakistan, he found that Map Maker wouldn’t allow it. He said his contributions were finally accepted by the Map Maker team, which is led by engineers based in India, but only after a long e-mail exchange.
At his request, Google is now preventing further changes to the region, after people in India tried to make it part of their country, Mr. Ahmad said. “Whenever you have a Pakistani and an Indian doing something together, there is a political discussion or dispute.”
A Google spokeswoman, Elaine Filadelfo, said Google sometimes blocked changes to contentious areas “with an eye to avoiding back-and-forth editing.”

Featured Map Makers: Faraz & Jabran

2009-10-05T13:23:00.000-07:00

Me along with jabran featured on google LatLong blog.

Featured Map Makers: Faraz & Jabran
Monday, October 5, 2009 at 11:00 AM
Name: Faraz Ahmad (farazilu)
Day job: Web programmer
Region mapped: Pakistan

Name: Jabran Rafique (جabran)
Day job: IT administrator
Region mapped: Pakistan

Faraz and Jabran are both Pakistani-born, high tech workers living in the United Kingdom. They both learned about Map Maker on the Internet, and they have formed a virtual team with a mission to map Pakistan. Although they live 400 miles apart and have never met in person, they collaborate on mapping Pakistan and providing others mappers with advice and tips on mapping the region.

Time lapse video of Gujranwala, Pakistan:

Faraz started using Map Maker shortly after it launched in 2008, and he is now the top mapper with more edits than any other user. Jabran found Map Maker a few months after Faraz. Both mappers started with their home towns and have subsequently mapped many cities in Pakistan. "It's like mapping your own world -- describing your world to other people. In the UK, we use Google Maps to find directions if we want to go somewhere. But we couldn't do that in Pakistan. This is a big opportunity to help other people find things," says Faraz.

Time lapse video of Karachi, Pakistan:

"I spend so much time on the Internet looking at new technologies. It's like a hobby for me to develop maps -- time spent positively because I know it will help others. In Pakistan, using Map Maker to find an efficient way to get somewhere can save a life in an emergency situation," says Faraz.

Experienced and accomplished mappers with more than 70,000 map edits between them, Faraz and Jabran collaborate with many others to map the region as well. Jabran explains, "I post on the group when I finish mapping a city. A fellow who just joined recently is making some edits near Lahore, adding names to streets and local businesses. So we help each other. If one can map it and another can name it, that's great. Someday I will open Google Maps and see all of Pakistan mapped!"

In areas of Pakistan that the virtual team knows less well, they use the satellite imagery on Map Maker to draw the roads. When they meet people from Pakistan, Faraz & Jabran ask them where they are from and what areas they know. "Then I drag them to Map Maker and ask them the names of roads, shops, hospitals, whatever. We're trying to make the maps more and more elaborate. Together we can make a difference."

Jabran recalls that, one weekend, a couple of guys with local knowledge of an area sat with him as he edited the maps -- here's one small example of an addition to the map he made based on their knowledge. "Great thanks to all those many people who agree to help in such a way," says Jabran.

Living in the UK, Faraz and Jabran use Google Maps extensively, particularly on their mobile phones, to find their way around and explore new places. Through their contributions to mapping Pakistan with Google Map maker, their goal is to help all Google Maps users in Pakistan to find their way, too. We wish both of these Map Maker "power users" all the best in their efforts to map their worlds, and look forward to seeing their goal of completing the Pakistan map fully realized!

Posted by Jennifer Mazzon, Maps Community Organizer

Updated Internet to 10Mbps

2009-06-15T14:25:00.000-07:00

2009 Summer

2009-05-01T18:15:00.000-07:00

Grown up hair and thick lens and grown up beard it’s a strange summer in my life. Constant pressure to contact her and keeping her happy is taking its toll and I start loosing my patient, but at the end life goes on and I can't do nothing.

12 arrested after alleged 'Easter bomb plot' released without charge

2009-04-22T12:52:00.000-07:00

the true terrorist has bin exposed. the true terrorist who uses torture and violence for political motives. its not my definition its there own fit against them. two faces of terror on both sides of Atlantic

be part of internet radio

2009-03-13T22:37:00.000-07:00

nokia internet radio service. world radio on the go download it form
http://europe.nokia.com/A41496024 and radio broadcasters can register with this service via https://irbcast.nokia.com/

Attack On Srilankan team in Lahore

2009-03-03T03:06:00.001-08:00

today a sad day, Srilankan cricket team attacked in Lahore, the style of attack and the target clearly shouts that india did it to take revenge of Mumbai attacks.

Pakistan inks truce deal with militants in NW area

2009-02-16T14:48:00.000-08:00

what a good news army defeated by public. and the will of people prevail. now i hope this will continue to happen in other parts of pakistan and crual in just system in other portions of pakistan can be changed. Its also time to people of pakistan to stand up against there land is used to kill them and there brothers in the area. and make a human chain to cripple the supply lines of ISAF and make pakistan a peace loving state.

Stop The war

2009-01-10T15:40:00.000-08:00

today 10/1/2009 i receive this txt from 9-10 times
Please text the word 'ceasefire' to 81819. Guardian are running a poll on Gaza. forward to all, its free to msg.
i also did send one but i laugh on it. ppl think this will change situation. war end with war not txt msg.

Google Mapmaker # 1

2008-08-23T12:28:00.000-07:00

Farazilu # 1 mapmaker for Pakistan

warning for Software Guys

2008-05-30T19:48:00.000-07:00

Boy: I got u Flowers
Girl: really?
Boy: yes! i downloaded this screensaver of roses 4u.
Girl: you DODO, a flowerr on your stupid moniter is not romantic, a girl needs something she can touch and feel
Boy:......
Boy: What? you want a Print our or something?

Meaning of Bismillah

2008-05-22T17:42:00.000-07:00

Bismillah al rahman al rahim

The Arabic phrase shown above is pronounced as Bismillah ir-Rahman ir-Rahim, and is a beautifully poetic phrase which offers both deep insight and brilliant inspiration. It has often been said that the phrase Bismillah ir-Rahman ir-Rahim contains the true essence of the entire Qur'an, as well as the true essence of all religions.

Muslims often say this phrase when embarking on any significant endeavor, and the phrase is considered by some to be a major pillar of Islam. This expression is so magnificent and so concise that all but one chapter of the Qur'an begins with the words Bismillah ir-Rahman ir-Rahim.

The common translation:

"In the name of God, most Gracious, most Compassionate".

fails to capture either the true depth of meaning or the inspirational message of this beautiful phrase. So, let's look deeper into the meaning of these wonderful words.

Origin and Spelling:

Every chapter of the Qur'an (except the ninth chapter) begins with the Arabic phrase:

However, there are many differing views on how this phrase should be transliterated using the English alphabet, as well as differing views on whether or not to include some of the Arabic rules of grammar. Consequently, one may encounter a variety of different transliterations of this glorious phrase, including:

bismillahi al r-rahmani al r-rahim
bismillahi al rahman al rahim
bismillah al rahman al rahim
bismi Allah al rahman al rahim
bismillahi-r rahmani-r rahim
bismillaah ir rahmaan ir raheem
bismillah ir rahman ir rahim

However, regardless of how one may choose write the English transliteration of the original Arabic, it is neither the writing of the words nor their pronunciation which is crucial, but rather we shall each be rewarded according to what is in our heart and how we act in the world.

Those who say these words with thoughts of self-aggrandizement, or selfish gains, or self-centered vain profit in any manner, will receive their just reward... suffering, pain and confusion. Likewise, those who truly dedicate every step of their life to the glory and service of the Ever-present One shall also receive their just reward... peace, love and beauty.

This phrase is truly an ideal to be expressed from the heart, an ideal to be expressed with the utmost sincerity, an ideal which leads us toward sacred purpose, the purpose for which we have been given life.

Let's look at the deeper meaning of each word of this glorious phrase:

bismillah

The common translation for bismillah is "In the name of Allah", which is actually an idiom, an expression that really doesn't make much sense on a literal word-by-word basis.

The phrase In the name of is an idiom having the connotation of with the blessings of, under the guidance of, as an instrument of, with the support of, or for the glory of. In each of these cases, the idiom In the name of means submitting to, honoring or glorifying that which is referred to.

Now, let's take a deeper look into the Arabic roots of this magnificent word bismillah.

The term bismillah, is a combination of three words:

1. The particle bi which can mean by, for, with the aid of, through or by means of and points toward that which happens next.

2. The next word in this phrase is ism, based on the root variously reported to be s-m-w or a-s-m, which indicates the means by which something is distinguished, whether by use of an identifying mark, or by being raised up high so that it may be distinguished, and would include a name, reputation, light or vibration, and points toward the very essence of something, the inherent qualities and signs of the existence of something, the underlying reality of something.

3. The ending of the term is the word Allah, which is the Arabic name of the One. The Semitic roots of the word Allah extend back several thousand years to the Canaanite Elat, Hebrew El and Elohim, and Aramaic Alaha. These roots point toward unity, oneness, the eternal power which includes all of existence and of non-existence. In modern English this would generally be translated as God (which is old English, likely based on the Sanskrit word hu, meaning that which is worshipped, honored or adored).

Using these basic roots, the term bismillah might be literally translated as:

- By means of the very essence of God

- For the glory of our Creator

- With the light of the One

- With the guidance of The Divine

- As an instrument of the One

The central idea here is that whatever we do, every step that we take, every breath that we breathe, is done for, because of, and through the essence of, the One who has created us.

It is not us that does the work, it is not us that makes opportunities appear, it is not us that produces fruits from every action. We alone are powerless. The Creator has given us life and has given us the ability to move and think and feel, yet we are totally dependent upon the Creator for the very essence of life itself.

Thus, this beautiful word bismillah is a magnificent reminder of our relationship to our Creator and our relationship to all of creation.

In one simple word bismillah expresses our wonder, awe and thankfulness while it also expresses our innermost prayer that we may have the blessing of another breath, another moment of life, and that we may walk on a path of truth and understanding.

To say bismillah is to humbly offer one's self as a vehicle for the glory and majesty of The One.

ir rahman ir rahim

These two terms rahman and rahim refer to attributes of the One. While they are often translated simply as Merciful and Compassionate, the roots of the words point to a deeper meaning.

Both rahman and rahim are derived from the Semitic root r-h-m which indicates something of the utmost tenderness which provides protection and nourishment, and that from which all of creation is brought into being. And indeed, the root rhm has meanings of womb, kinship, relationship, loving-kindness, mercy, compassion, and nourishing-tenderness.

Thus, both rahman and rahim point toward that which emerges from the source of all creation, while also conveying a sense of tenderness, loving-kindness, protection and nourishment.

The term rahman is a very emphatic statement, and then the sentiment is echoed by being immediately followed by the use of another form of the same root-word. Such repetition is a joyful celebration of this Divine attribute, much the same as saying "The One who is the Supreme Loving-Kindness, oh such Loving-Kindness".

These two words, rahman and rahim, also express slightly different variations of meaning, as described in the following paragraphs.

rahman:

The term rahman describes that aspect of the source of all creation which is endlessly radiating, endlessly nourishing, regardless of who or what is receiving the endless flow of blessings.

Rahmân conveys the idea of fullness and extensiveness, indicating the great quality of love and mercy which engulfs all of creation without regard to any effort or request on our part.

According to Ibn Qayyum (1350 AD), rahmân describes the quality of abounding Grace which is inherent in and inseparable from the Almighty.

rahim:

On the other hand, the term rahim describes that aspect of the source which is issued forth only in response to the actions and behavior of the recipient. It is in this manner that God takes ten steps toward us when we take even a single step toward God.

Rahîm conveys the idea of constant renewal and giving liberal reward in response to the quality of our deeds and thoughts.

According to Ibn Qayyum (1350 AD), rahîm expresses the continuous manifestation of the Grace in our lives and its effect upon us as a result of our own activities.

ir rahman ir rahim:

Rahman points toward the Beneficent One whose endless outpouring of love and mercy are continually showered upon all of creation, while Rahim points toward the Merciful One whose love and mercy are manifested in that which is received as the consequence of one's deeds.

So, the phrase ir rahman ir rahim is a recognition and honoring of the very source of all existence, the source of all blessings, the source of all compassion, the source of all mercy who gives endlessly to us and who also responds according to our moral integrity, our harmony with all of creation and our love of Allah.

Poetic Renderings:

There is no way for any one translation to capture the many facets of this beautiful phrase Bismillah ir-Rahman ir-Rahim. Here are some poetic renderings that attempt to capture some aspects of the meaning without being literal translations:

With every breath that we breathe, may we be ever aware of the Divine Presence, the Source of all that we receive.

With every step that we take, may we always honor the Light which guides us, the Source and Nourisher of all of creation.

Every moment of this life is filled with your eternal radiance my Beloved, You are the Beneficent One who endlessly showers all of creation with nourishment and blessings, and the One who generously rewards those who live in harmony with Your Divine Will.

Calligraphy:

The words Bismillah ir-Rahman ir-Rahim are so magnificent, so inspiring, so joyous that they have long attracted the hand of calligraphers who have used pen and ink to bring this phrase to life. The samples of calligraphy on this page are all renderings of the magnificent words Bismillah ir-Rahman ir-Rahim.

Songs:

The magnificence of the meaning of these words Bismillah ir-Rahman ir-Rahim brings out music from somewhere deep in my soul, celebrating the majesty and glory of the One.... and you can find some of these songs, on my music page.

with love,
wahiduddin

Sunrise and sunset in Glasgow

2008-05-22T10:15:00.000-07:00

Sunrise and sunset in Glasgow
Date: Jun 20, 2008
Sunrise: 4:31 AM
Sunset: 10:06 PM

Length of Day

This day: 17h 35m 17s
Difference: + 0m 07s

Solar Noon

Time: 1:19 PM
Altitude: 57.6°
Distance (10⁶ km): 152.019

Thanks Democracy

2008-05-04T21:12:00.000-07:00

Since the formation of democratic elected government calling rates to Pakistan form UK are doubled. I am using VOIP service from www.voipwise.com that was charging me 0.010 EUR/min but now they are charging me 0.015 EUR/min.

Big change is for the calling card users who are getting just 70 min for a £5 card. My friend was crying yesterday because of the hike in charges. People are making fun of this hike by saying it’s because of ZARDARI tax.

But more worried are the poor Pakistani residents who are milked to dry by PTCL with very expansive local call rates. I can’t understand there Pakistan+ package. Is local city is not a part of Pakistan. And its first time in my life I see a package like this where national calls are in a cheep package and local calls are charged at high rate. Yes its Pakistan going against the odds.

May Day Holiday

2008-04-30T19:51:00.001-07:00