Technorama Blog

Difference between Prime Reading and Kindle Unlimited in Amazon India

2018-09-26T00:12:00.000+05:30

Amazon has launched a new service called Prime Reading for their Indian customers. Prime Reading claims to provide all the Amazon Prime members with a catalog of digital books without any extra cost.

For those who own Kindle devices or read their ebooks on Kindle reading software on phone and computer, you would have heard about Kindle Unlimited that also provides a huge catalog of books but for a fixed membership fee.

So what is special about this Prime Reading? Let me explain this below.


	So if you are an avid reader and read several books a month then it might make sense to buy or maintain your Kindle Unlimited membership. If you are an occasional reader and are a Prime User then I guess you can stick to Prime Reading for now. I am sure Amazon will increase their catalog of books for this category as well over a period of time. And if you are not a Prime user then it makes even more sense now to get Prime membership with the plethora of benefits that it offers.
	Feel free to explore the Prime Reading catalog on the site itself. If you have any questions, please comment below.

Setup and Sync Oracle Calendar with Google Calendar on Android Phone

2017-08-14T15:34:00.003+05:30

Just follow the steps below to setup and sync you Oracle calendar with Google calendar so that you get the updates on your Android Phone as well.
It is very useful as you don't have to startup your Outlook or Thunderbird on your laptop every time you want to check up on your appointments.

Configuring Android for Calendar Server:
1. Download the CalDAV-Sync app from Play Store (This is a paid app but a very good one)
URL: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=org.dmfs.caldav.lib&hl=en

2. Add the following server details to configure

- Add Account --> select CalDAV account

- server name: stbeehive.oracle.com/caldav/st/principals/individuals/

- use ssl

- username:

- password: Oracle SSO account password
- client certificate: none

Within few minutes you can view the calendar items on your Android phone.

In case of any issue, please post your concern in the comments section below.

This account is currently not available - user login problem in linux

2017-07-20T11:54:00.003+05:30

I wanted to perform some tomcat related operations and wanted to login as tomcat user after having installed tomcat afresh on my system. As you can see from the screenshot pasted above, sudo su - tomcat gave me the error - This account is currently not available.

Investigating this problem:

To investigate this I needed to check the /etc/passwd file which stores essential information, which is required during login.

Compare this with my current user - vagrant

To fix this problem:

Nologin is used for security reasons but if you are sure that you need to login for a genuine reason, you may edit the /etc/passwd file and replace /sbin/nologin after : with /bin/bash/ as shown below after which you won't receive the error This account is currently not available any more.

Now you will be able to login and go about your business as usual.

More Information on nologin:

How to Upgrade Moto E to Kitkat 4.4.4

2014-07-12T18:24:00.001+05:30

Kitkat 4.4.4 upgrade for Moto E has been rolled out while for those using Moto G and Moto X, you may have to wait a couple of days before it is rolled out for your models as well.

If you have received any message on the notification bar regarding the new version upgrade, click on 'Yes, I am in' to proceed further.

For those who haven't received over-the-air (ota) upgrade notification, you may check for update manually by going to Settings --> About Phone --> System updates. And then you can proceed.

Before proceeding with the update, be sure to backup all your important stuff to your SD card though the upgrade didn't seem to harm anything, but it is better to be safethan sorry! I used Super Backup for that purpose, you may use an app of your choice.

Upgrading your Moto E should be a 4 step process -

Prerequisites-

At least 50% battery backup on phone. More the better, just to be sure.
Connection to the internet for downloading files About 60 MB for Moto E, maybe a little more for the other two models.
Backup is highly recommended.

Steps to upgrade -

Find the upgrade and accept the upgrade notice.
Your phone will download the required files. Make sure you are connected to the internet.
It will give you a confirmation that files have been downloaded and will ask you to install them. Click Ok and the phone will restart. Be patient.
The system will update by itself and your phone will be ready in few minutes.

Please check the images below.


Before upgrade


Download was very slow!


While it was upgrading


After the upgradation


Upgrading the phone took about 5 mins

Please let me know if you have any questions.

Exciting Offers on Kaspersky Internet Security

2013-12-26T10:31:00.001+05:30

Note - The offer has now expired.

Buy Kaspersky products from Master Distributor For Kasperky India - Sakri IT Solutions Online Shop @ http://bit.ly/18BV9KD and get exciting offers and chance to get into the lucky draw to win exciting prices!

The quality of Internet security products vary from time to time as newer and updated malware get released every quarter, and thus every security product needs to be tested on a regular basis to keep a check on its effectiveness.

To Kaspersky's credit, it has been highly ranked by all the professional testing agencies and this is just one of the reasons why the Kaspersky Internet Security (KIS) products are a must buy!

* As per data provided by AV-Comparatives on Real World Proctection Stats, KIS products were the best of the lot by not compromising on any malware that might affect your system, thereby fetching Kaspersky products an Advanced+ rating in their test results.

(Click on the image to make it larger)

* Even ExpertReviews have marked it 5 stars and are recommending it as 'Best Buy' product. Read more at http://bit.ly/1lh18ai

The special deals are on Kaspersky Internet Security packs and they are as follows -

Kaspersky Internet Security for Android 1Device/1Year MRP: Rs.599 @ 54% off Rs. 275 only Buy Now @ http://bit.ly/18BV9KD

Kaspersky Internet Security for PCs 1PC/1Year MRP: Rs.899 @ 27% off Rs. 650 http://bit.ly/1irctIG only Buy Now @ http://bit.ly/1irctIG

KIS 1PC/3Year MRP: 1798 @ Rs. 1300 http://bit.ly/1irctIG Effective Price less than Rs. 435/PC/Year & get + KIS Android 1 Device/1Year worth Rs. 599.00 free

KIS 3PC/3Year MRP: 2998.00 @ Rs. 2350 http://bit.ly/1irctIG Effective Price less than Rs. 395/PC/Year & get + KIS Android 1 Device/1Year worth Rs. 599.00 free

Buy 2 packs KIS 1PC/1Year MRP:1798.00(899.00 each) @ Rs. 1300.00 http://bit.ly/1irctIG and get KIS Android 1 Device/1Year worth Rs. 599.00 free

More offers -
* Buy KIS for MAC 1PC/1Year MRP: 1499.00 @ Rs. 900 (40% Off) http://bit.ly/18BV9KD

* Buy KIS 3PC /1Year MRP: 1499.00 @ Rs. 1175 (22% off) http://bit.ly/1irctIG

Lucky Draw prizes include routers, mobile phones and datacards!
1st Draw winners have already been announced. So what are you waiting for? Grab the offer while it lasts!

For T&C, visit http://bit.ly/1gJ9Y0e

Note that these offers are from the Master Distributer of Kaspersky products in India and is being sold at cut rates as they are trying to popularize internet sales in the country. As of now, most of the computer/electronic sales in the country happen through age old tradition of buying them directly from shops.

Free BIGFlix ONE Month Membership

2012-11-19T14:10:00.000+05:30

BigFlix is offering free one month membership for their Indian customers, as they put it. Though, in reality, they are offering it for Re. 1 which they charge your credit card during their verification process. BigFlix is trying to promote their services in India which is relatively new and it makes more sense as the Indian populace is slowly but steadily moving more towards increased internet usage for their daily requirements.
To avail the service, all you need to do is go to www.bigflix.com and click on the image as shown herein. It will take you to their facebook page where you need to like their page (it can be safely assumed that most of you will be having your fb account) and share it to your wall.

Click on the link as shown above to start your free trial. You will need to register an account with them (you can login with your facebook account alternatively) and then fill in your credit card details.

You can pay Re. 1 through credit card or even your debit card. I registered using my SBI Visa debit card.
Complete the process and you are done.

To get the free membership:
1. Go to www.bigflix.com, click on their 'Free 1 Month Membership' advertisement and follow through the on screen instructions or click here
2. Pay Re. 1 for the verification process using your credit/debit card and activate your 1 month membership.

Pros:
1. You get access to unlimited online streaming of movies on BigFlix for 1 month.
2. There are movies from various Indian languages as well as some international ones.

Cons:
1. You cannot scroll through the movie smoothly as you could in Youtube or other streaming sites.
2. The collection of movies is rather poor in quality as well as quantity.

One can expect BigFlix to improve their movie library but I do not think you would see it anytime soon.

JetFlash Online Recovery - Repair Your USB Drives for Free

2012-03-23T19:05:00.000+05:30

Fix your damaged USB pen drives for free using this tool provided by Transcend. It is mainly useful when your usb flash drive has started acting dead and is not responding when inserted into the computer.

The tool not only works on Transcend devices but many of the other non Transcend brands too. Just download the small tool from the link below and run it. For instructions, check the images at the link below step by step process for using the tool.

Download JetFlash Online Recovery Tool

The site description reads,

JetFlash Online Recovery is an advanced new software tool specifically developed for Transcend JetFlash USB flash drives. If your flash drive is not working properly, in most cases it can be repaired instantly by using the recovery tool's simple user-friendly interface. The JetFlash Online Recovery Tool is conveniently located on the Internet, so no matter where you go, you can service your flash drive 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.

* All data on your JetFlash drive will be permanently erased during the repair process.
Please backup the contents of your JetFlash before proceeding.
* This software is designed to repair malfunctioning JetFlash USB flash drives. It will not recover any data/pictures stored on the device.

Windows 8 Consumer Preview (BETA) Version Free Download

2012-03-01T19:06:00.002+05:30

Microsoft has launched the beta version of the latest in Windows lineup named Windows 8. It has started offering Windows 8 Consumer Preview for the general public to use it for free since yesterday.

Windows 8 is essentially an operating system that tries to bring together computing from the mobile, tablet and the pc world. Launched at the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona, the new version of Windows has been enthusiastically received among the Windows users. Windows 8 shifts away from the traditional look and feel and instead gives us the new mosaic tiled-like appearance which they call as the Metro UI.

From the developer's site:

It's Windows re-imagined and reinvented from a solid core of Windows 7 speed and reliability. It's an all-new touch interface. It's a new Windows for new devices. And it's your chance to be one of the first to try it out.

With a lot of new features and improvements over Windows 7, this new operating system from Microsoft's stable is betting big and is a must try out for every computer user out there.

Do download Microsoft Windows 8 Consumer preview from the following link:
Windows 8 Download

Another Link

Kindle Fire!

2012-01-24T23:11:00.002+05:30

Coming from a long sojourn off the blog, I would like to share a whole lot of things I have been busy with. Many things got me busy for past few months preventing me from blogging regularly. I shall try my best to be as regular as possible from now on.

As you may have already guessed, this post is about Kindle Fire. If you don't know what a Kindle Fire is, here is a short description to help you get acquainted with the term. Kindle Fire or more specifically, Amazon's Kindle Fire is a tablet computer introduced by online retail giant Amazon. Kindle Fire looks exactly as you can see in the picture above and is very similar to Apple's iPad but comes with some limitations (but with a much lesser price tag of $199).

The best thing about this tablet is that is offers great hardware for a very minimal price. It is more of a multimedia tool to be used for using Amazon's products (ebooks, games, videos, songs etc sold by Amazon). It is not a full fledged tablet computer like the iPad but for a price as low as $199, what more can you expect! This 7" tablet runs on Android operating system and does all your average computing needs such as listening to songs, playing videos, games and surfing on the internet using wifi. I got one as a new year gift from my uncle. For more details on the product check out Amazon's page for Kindle Fire here.

I shall, in the days to come, post 'how to' things on Android and Kindle Fire, the ones that I have been learning and using while customizing my Kindle Fire. I shall also post a short review on the Kindle Fire soon. I shall see you guys tomorrow.

How to Get Gmail Alerts via SMS on Mobile Phone for Free

2011-07-02T06:51:00.000+05:30

Ever wondered how to get Gmail mail alerts on your mobile phone through sms for free? I too was looking for such a free service, also called as sms alerts, but I could not find a proper solution to do so. There are a few of them online but they usually are in a very disorganized manner.

Here am putting up one of the simplest ways to get all your Gmail mails on your sms alerts on your mobile phone through sms for free!

Please note that this technique mentioned below caters only to the following group of people.

One should have an account at Way2Sms. (You can always get one if you do not have)
One should be an Indian resident as making an account on Way2Sms requires an Indian mobile phone number.

Continue reading through the step by step tutorial on how to get Gmail alerts via sms on your mobile phone. You can click on the images to see them at their original size.

Step 1: Login at Way2Sms

Step 2: Click on the Gmail icon on the left side bar as shown in the image.

Step 3: Then click on the Mail Alerts option on top as shown below.

Step 4: Activate your email alert as shown. Complete the activation process by selecting the day and time you would like to receive these alerts.

Step 5: After the activation, now link your Gmail account with Way2Sms by clicking on the link as shown.

Step 6: Follow the on-screen instructions as in the first image below or follow the marked steps as shown in the subsequent images. Note down your way2sms mail id from the first image as marked.

Step 7: Now add the way2sms mail id in the dialogue box that opens up as shown. You can get the way2sms mail id as shown in the first image of Step 6. Add and confirm.

Step 8: You will get a confirmation code on the mobile number that you have used to register your account at way2sms. Enter that code into the appropriate place as shown below. Or you may also get the code as shown in the area marked in the first image in Step 6.

Step 9: Follow the steps as shown below and save the settings.

Your account is now setup and you will get the emails from your Gmail account delivered in your mobile inbox through way2sms.

Positive features:

You get alerts to the mails you receive in your email account.
You can add Yahoo email account too in a similar way to get the alerts.
You can set filter for email ids for which you would not like to receive alerts.
You can set a particular day and time too for receiving these alerts.
Best of all, its free!

Negative features:

The service is activated for a period of 14 days after which you have to come back to this site to re-activate it again. There's no permanent activation solution to this.
You do not get the entire mail in your sms alert. The text date your receive in your alert is limited to 160 characters only. But most of the time it is enough to let you know who the sender is and the subject of the mail id. Once you know about it, you can go online and check it in details. After all, its only a sms alert feature and it is doing its job well!
The website is loaded with advertisements and can be irritating and/or confusing for new users to navigate through the site.
In case of mobile network congestion, your alerts may get delayed.

Overall, its a worthy feature and thanks to way2sms we are able to use it for free. Mobee.in has a similar feature which has turned into a paid service now. You can try their 7 days trial plan.

I have been using way2sms for getting Gmail alerts on my mobile phone through sms for quite sometime and am satisfied with the service. There are minor problems here and there but one cannot really complain for something that is being provided for free!

Try this out and feel free to ask questions if in any doubt.

How to play Angry Birds online

2011-05-17T19:35:00.000+05:30

Angry Birds is an extremely addictive but simple game that has been downloaded in millions ever since its first release for iOS platform in December 2009. Since then, Angry Birds has been released as a free version for Android (but ad supported) and paid versions for Symbian, Windows PC, MACs among others.

For many of those who wish to play Angry Birds online for their very own reasons, here is the link to an online version of the game. Click on the link below to start playing the game online!

Play Angry Birds Online

Be patient as it might take a few minutes to load Angry Birds depending on your internet connection speed. If you are running a slower connection on your computer, prefer selecting the SD(Standard Definition) version than the HD(High Definition) one.

Have fun playing!

How to Register 32 bit dll on 64 bit Windows

2011-05-12T17:31:00.000+05:30

Trying to register a 32 bit dll on a 64 bit system running Windows fails and gives the error-

Filename.dll is not an executable file and no registration helper is registered for this file type.

The reason :
This happens because even though you intend to access the 32bit version of regsvr by typing regsvr32, it actually opens the default 64 bit regsvr that lies in the system directory(of 64 bit Windows).
That is, when you run regsvr32 to register a dll, you are actually running the 64 bit version by default.

The solution:

To resolve this issue, run Regsvr32.exe from the %SystemRoot%\Syswow64 folder. For that
1st save the dll file in c:\windows\syswow64
Now, open the command prompt by
Click on Start-->Click on Run-->type cmd
else press Win button (the one in between Ctrl and Alt on the bottom left hand corner of of keyboard, near the space bar) and R. ie press Win and R .

and then type the following commands to register the DLL:
cd \windows\syswow64

regsvr32 filename.dll

(replace filename with the actual name of dll file)

P.S.: The Syswow64 folder contains the 32-bit versions of Windows program files and DLLs.

Getting "SDL.dll not found" error

2011-05-12T17:19:00.000+05:30

If you are getting SDL.dll not found error such as the one shown on the left(click on it to enlarge it), then follow the below mentioned steps to resolve the issue.

First of all download the SDL.dll file from HERE.

Now copy the SDL.dll file to the location
c:\windows\system32 (for Windows XP/Vista/7)
c:\winnt\system32 (for Windows NT/2000)
and then restart the computer.

If still, this does not work then try the following:
open RUN:
Click Start-->Click RUN(for 7 type run in the search bar below)-->type regsvr32 SDL.dll as shown below

If you still have problems registering the dll file, it is probably due to the 64 bit Windows you are using. To resolve that issue check the link mentioned below-
How to Register 32 bit dll on 64 bit Windows

Webcam detected but not working/ getting a black screen on MSI Notebook

2011-02-11T00:37:00.004+05:30

Do you have a problem with the webcam in your MSI notebook ? Is it giving blank screens or an error message such as 'cant connect your webcam. The webcam may already be in use' or maybe- 'webcam not found.' There exists a variation of problems that a non functioning webcam can cause. So if there is such a problem in your MSI laptop then kindly read the below mentioned points.

Note: this problem has been known to occur on notebooks by some other brands too but the resolutions in most cases are brand/model specific (depending on the hardware they use) so the ones mentioned here may not work for notebooks of brands other than MSI.

Problem 1: webcam (Bison webcam module) does not work.

You need to TURN ON the webcam which probably is turned off.

Resolution:

Depending on your notebook, there is either a keypress combination (eg Fn Key + F6 on Wind U100) or there is a dedicated button which will do this.

Just try using Fn + F6 combination to turn on your webcam. Once pressed, you should see a webcam on symbol on the right hand corner of your desktop screen.

If the key combo doesn't work on your model of notebook then refer to the user manual provided with your notebook for how to turn on the webcam. If you have lost or discarded your manual, you can download it from the MSI website.

Problem 2: webcam detected by Windows but doesn't work. Gives an error 'webcam already in use by another application', 'webcam not detected' when you try to open the webcam through the default webcam application or through software such as Skype or Yahoo messenger or it just gives you a black screen.

Cause: software issue with the command 'clear'

Resolution:

The problem is with the firmware of the webcam and can be resolved by updating/flashing it with the latest firmware for the same.

The 1st link from MSI UK Support shall solve the problem in most cases.
Click Here (to read the pdf file)

Click Here(to download the actual firmware file)

for additional reference you may check the following link too (use it only if the firmware in the above link doesn't solve your problem).
Click here

Facebook Hacker Cup 2011

2011-01-05T23:56:00.000+05:30

So what is this all about ?

The Facebook Hacker Cup is an annual worldwide programming competition where hackers compete against each other for fame, fortune, glory and a shot at the title of world champion.

Hacking is a central part of Facebook's culture. Whether we're building the next big product at one of our Hackathons or creating a smarter search algorithm, we're always hacking to find a better way of doing things.

We're starting the Hacker Cup to bring engineers from around the world together to compete in a multi-round programming competition. Contestants will have to successfully solve algorithmic-based problem statements to advance and are ranked by accuracy and speed.

What: An annual algorithmic programming contest open to hackers from around the world.
Where: Three online rounds with the finals at Facebook's headquarters in California.
When: Registration opens December 20th with the three online rounds occurring throughout January 2011. World finals to follow.
Finals: We'll pay to fly and accommodate the top 25 hackers from the 3rd online round out to our campus.
Prizes: Of course! $5,000 USD and title as world champion to the top hacker, $2,000 for 2nd place, $1,000 for 3rd, and $100 for 4th through 25th. Awesome t-shirts for the top 300 hackers coming out of the second online round.
Fine print: See below.

Thousands will enter, but only one will emerge as world champion.

The Fine Print

The competition commences with a 72-hour Qualification Round on January 7, 2011 at 0:00 UTC (4:00 PM PST) to January 10, 2011 at 0:00 UTC (4:00 PM PST). All registered competitors will be presented with three problems. Only competitors who correctly solve at least 1 problem will advance to Online Round 1.

Online Round 1 consists of 3 sub-rounds, each lasting 3 hours in length that are offered at different times from January 15, 2011 at 15:00 UTC (7:00 AM PST) to January 16, 2011 at 0:00 UTC (January 15, 2011 - 4:00 PM PST). Competitors who advance to this round can participate in any of the three sub-rounds until they qualify for Online Round 2. The top-scoring 1,000 competitors from each of the three sub-rounds will advance to Online Round 2.

Online Round 2 begins January 22, 2011 at 15:00 UTC (7:00 AM PST) and will end on January 22, 2011 at 18:00 UTC (10:00 AM PT). The 3,000 competitors will have three hours to solve the presented problem sets. The top-scoring 300 participants from Online Round 2 will receive an official Hacker Cup t-shirt. The top-scoring 25 competitors from Online Round 2 will be notified via email that they have advanced to the final round at Facebook.

Facebook will fly the top-scoring 25 competitors to Palo Alto, California, for the final round of competition on March 11, 2011, where they'll receive some great cash prizes and other awesome goodies. Out of these 25 finalists, one champion will emerge and be immortalized on the Hacker Cup trophy.

Keep an eye on the Hacker Cup page at www.facebook.com/hackercup for more announcements as the January 7th qualification round approaches.

May the best hacker win!

Download Chrome OS

2010-12-09T20:30:00.002+05:30

Google had announced sometime back about building an operating system that would be light, powerful and more importantly a strong competitor to Microsoft's Windows operating system. Looks like those day are not far away.

Google has made announcements about selling Chrome Cr-48 notebook, its Chrome OS based notebook. Chrome OS is in its release candidate stage (just prior to retailing) and can be downloaded freely off the net. Remember that Chrome OS is ought to be free and not sold. This is Google's main challenge to Microsoft where they are offering a quality operating system for free while the later flogs the public for their piece of software.

Google Chrome OS Release Candidate Live CD can be downloaded officially at

http://getchrome.eu/download

How to install: Download the iso file and burn it into CD-R. Boot the computer from it and when Chrome OS is loaded, click Live Installer on the desktop. Follow the instructions.

User password: user

Root password: root

Command and Conquer Red Alert Free Download

2010-11-25T23:16:00.006+05:30

Command and Conquer Red Alert has been made available for free download too along with Command and Conquer Tiberian Sun and Command and Conquer Gold (full game) .

Also of these downloads have been added in the Command and Conquer Classics collections and have been made available for FREE and LEGAL download to promote their latest offering from the hit series.

One can download Command and Conquer Red Alert and play from the Soviet side or the Allied side as both the downloads have been made available on the official site.

Download Command and Conquer Red Alert (Allied version) from Link
Download Command and Conquer Red Alert (Soviet version) from Link

Command and Conquer Gold Full Game Free Download

2010-11-22T23:12:00.006+05:30

Command and Conquer Gold full game can now be downloaded for free, thanks to Electronic Arts who have added the game for free download officially on their Command and Conquer Classic collection.

This game had two options, the GDI and the NOD downloads. You can download whichever side you feel like playing.

Command and Conquer Tiberian Dawn can be downloaded for free at
GDI here and NOD here

Visit Command and Conquer Tiberian Sun Free Download to download the game for free and legally too.

You can additionally visit Command and Conquer Red Alert to download that version of the game for free!

Command and Conquer Tiberian Sun Free Download

2010-11-19T18:00:00.006+05:30

Command and Conquer Tiberian Sun is a real time strategy game developed by Westwood Studies and released in 1999. This game was a big hit with the strategy based game players and had a huge fan following.

Command and Conquer Tiberian Sun is now available for FREE and LEGALLY on the official website. Electronic Arts, the publisher of the game had decided to make this game available for free download to the masses as a means of promotion for their latest in series.

Thus it is a good news for all Tiberian Sun lovers as they can now get this game for free! Command and Conquer Tiberian Sun is being issued along with its expansion named FireStorm.

You can also download download Command and Conquer Tiberian Sun and Command and Conquer Gold (full game) for free and legally too.

Download Command and Conquer Tiberian Sun + FireStorm from their Command and Conquer Classics collection at LINK

Play Mafia Wars Atlantic City from PC

2010-11-18T20:28:00.003+05:30

Mafia Wars Atlantic City which was launched for mobile play can now be played through your pc too. Atlantic City is costlier in terms of stamina and energy needed to play there but the advantages are many. You will get free boosts everyday(I got +200 energy on my 1st visit) plus the rewards are very cool ones.

Do give Atlantic City a visit. Now it can be played from your computer (pc) too. Use the following link to visit Mafia Wars Atlantic City page from your computer :

http://m.mafiawars.com/mobileweb

UPDATE:

Many people are complaining about Boardwalk (ie level 2) is not getting unlocked even though Uptown (level 1) has been mastered.

The thing is that Atlantic City implementation though computer is very buggy. Many people are unable to unlock successor levels, or they are not getting the completion rewards. For me it works just fine. Click on the image below and check out. I was on Boardwalk, I completed the bronze master and unlocked the next level. So it is working fine for me.

On doing a bit of research online and consulting my Mafia friends, I understand that its looks like a glitch from Zynga which is creating all such problems. The web interface for the above mentioned link was different and was later changed to what it is now. This new interface causes the unlocking problem for some. Not all players are facing this problem it seems.

We cannot do much about it. But try the following in case they work for you. No guarantees here friends.

1. Many players have reported that the link is working perfectly on Google Chrome browser. So if you are on Firefox, Opera or any other browser, just give Chrome a try.

2. I found this online, contributed by a Mafia Wars player. Just try it and see if it works.

Found a workaround for the locked into uptown problem... Right click on the first job and copy link, paste it in your url address box and change the job number to 2001 and story to 10 like "http://m.mafiawars.com/mobileweb?xw_controller=StoryMobile&xw_action=dojob&iframe=1&job=2001&storyId=10" - your info that follows, the tracking id and such shouldn't be changed. The problem is they're sending you to storyId=9 and job=2019 to 2024 - which should be later in the mobile chapter... My guess is someone screwed up when they fooled around with the next chapters.
When you do this, you'll have to complete a different set of jobs for uptown and you'll have to do it every time you log into mobile until you can get to boardwalk then go back to uptown.

3. Go to this site : www.iphonetester.com

Type : m.mafiawars.com in the address bar of the iPhone you see on screen.

These methods are not guaranteed to work for everyone. One could try and see his luck.

I would be grateful if people using the above techniques report here whether it worked with them.

Also, kindly report if http://m.mafiawars.com/mobileweb is working normally for you guys.

Windows Phone 7 Development for Absolute Beginners

2010-11-13T17:18:00.000+05:30

With the Windows Phone 7 already released and gaining a steady sales figure, there has been a scurry among developers and amateurs to develop applications for the Windows Phone 7. Microsoft has a big power when it comes to marketing and trade pundits believe that it will end up selling a larger volume of its phones than it is selling at the moment (which is not too flattering).

If you are interested in developing applications but do not know much about Silverlight or C#, then Microsoft presents a series of videos to help you through their Channel9 network on MSDN. These videos are for absolute beginners but could be used by professionals to brush up their knowledge.

The description on the website reads :

This video series will help aspiring Windows Phone 7 developers get started. We'll start off with the basics and work our way up so in a few hours, you will know enough to build simple WP7 applications, such as a GPS aware note taking application. We'll walk you through getting the tools, knowing what an if statement is, to using the GPS built into the phone and much more!

Check out the videos, starting with the introduction video by clicking on the link below.
Windows Phone 7 Development for Absolute Beginners: Series Introduction

Life of a Software Engineer

2010-11-12T22:09:00.002+05:30

Pays damn good. Life Sucks!….Software Engineer

Here is an story I had read quite long ago at AboutMyJob.com that interested me. The website is about a place where professionals can put up their job experiences, whether good or bad(though it is often the later!), for everyone to read. Most people you find here are complaining and this is no surprise. The article quoted below was written long back in the year 2001 and probably doesn't hold true in today's IT world. But it still makes for a good reading. Read it below...

I’m a software engineer writing this so that someone can learn from my experience.

I graduated in 2000 and got two technical degrees from one of the most “esteemed” universities in India.(I would not be able to answer even the most basic questions if asked a question on the subject of either of my degrees. This might sound stupid but you wont believe the number of people who are like me!!!) I got my first job in the US of A. And my first car is something I only previously saw in american movies.

I work in a major communication systems deveopment company and spend my life sitting in front of a computer screen ( mostly thinking “What the hell am I doing here???”. ).

I have been working only for a year now and already I feel I’ve burnt out. The work that I do is really interesting as far as software engineering goes.The field is in embedded system developement. Real systems work. You also get to work on real life problems which affect millions of users worldwide and problems which most computer developers would kill to be working on.

You work with new technology and even have a sense of accomplishment that your work is really being used by people. The work culture ensures that you get the sole credit for any work that you do.

The Good points of my job:

1. Good pay.

2. Intellectually stimulating.

3. Not something anyone can do!

The bad:

1. NO women!

2. No or minimum contact with people.

2. LONG hours in the office.

3. Lots of stress.

4. No social life.

5. Radiation burns from the monitors.

Guys at college: (esp in India)… MONEY IS NOT EVERYTHING! THINK about what you REALLY want to do in life!Its not a joke. And usually in India you dont have a choice. Its YOUR life… dont let anyone else (even parents) make this decision for you.

I am seriously thinking of changing my career. Unfortunately I dont know what I would love to do. And the things that I do love …people would not pay me to do .

I’m searching alternatives right now. Lets see what happens.

I had previously thought that I’d make a million and retire by 25… (yes I said 25). That was possible in my field maybe a year ago but not now and probably not for the next two/three years. And I cant waste those precious years.

In five I years I want see my self on a place with tropical beaches. The same for when I’m thirty… doing something I really love.

Umm enough … I think I’ve bored you enough.

Click here for the original article.

Computer Virus Leads to $20 Million Scam Targeting Pianist Composer

2010-11-10T22:18:00.001+05:30

A noted pianist and a composer in The United States has been duped over the years to a tune of $ 20 million by a computer technician citing virus problem! The musician had approached a New York based computer technician named Vickram Bedi and his girlfriend Helga Invarsdottir to get his laptop problem solved which he guess might have been caused due to virus. The technician duo manipulated the gullible musician citing some devious group being behind them and The U.S. Government.

The ridiculous thing is that the musician bought their stupid idea and allowed them to leech him for exorbitant amounts, which are now being touted to be anywhere between $ 6-20 million.

The culprits have been caught while they were preparing to leave on a trip to Iceland. If convicted (which they most probably will be), they will each get a jail term of 25 years!

Google Chrome Offline Installer

2010-11-08T21:25:00.000+05:30

Google Chrome download can become a mess for people with very slow internet connections. This is because the chrome setup that you install from the official website is actually the online installer. The size of the file is very small too (~555 KB). Once you finish installing and run the setup, the application connects to the internet and downloads additional files which will then install the main application. For slow internet connections this may not be desirable. That is, downloading the full software(~23.3MB) using a download accelerator may seem a better option.

For such people, below is the link to the Google site for Google Chrome's offline installer. It is also called as the standalone package/installer.

Download it from here - Google Chrome Offline (standalone) installer

Breaking News - Michael Jackson's New Song

2010-11-08T21:05:00.001+05:30

Michael Jackson's new album entitled 'Michael'

Sony has released a never before heard song from none other than the late Michael Jackson. This song is entitled as 'Breaking News' and is included in the official album due release next month. Sony has released this full song as a teaser to the album.

The album itself is shrouded in controversy as some members of Michael Jackson's family and close friends are claiming that the sound is not that of Michael Jackson's. But Sony claims that a lot many experts and artists have confirmed that the song is indeed authentic and that the vocals are indeed Michael Jackson's.

If you are a Michael Jackson fan you will surely like the song. The song is essentially a good one with beats and chorus that will get you hooked. The song somewhat reminds of his 'Tabloid Junkie' from his History album as it has a similar overtone. The song has Jackson trademarks throughout the song but in these days of the digital world, it is possible to easily digitally modify any music.

What ever is the case, Breaking News will surely turn out to become a hit with the fans. Listen to the song and decide for yourself. The song will be on air on the official website for only a week. So hear it till you have a chance. I have already heard it over a dozen times!

Listen to the song at http://michaeljackson.com

Note : the image and the art work is the copyright of its owner. It has been taken from the internet and is not mine.