The Corner Tea Stall

Enlightenment

2011-11-24T08:46:00.001+05:30

Each Indian language has a ring to it. A tone, justice to which, cannot be done on translation.

All of us do things, say things, have things or are born with things. All of them I also term as a quality. All ethics, good, bad, killer, saint, male, female, black, white, brown, creed, job, love for a music genre, love for a sportsperson, rich, poor, tall, short, fat, thin, gay, straight, picking nose, bathing every day, movie lover, movie hater, and the list goes on. Let’s define this universal set as Q. It’s a huge set, a set of googolic proportions. Many of you would say it’s not possible to define this set or it’s too big to be defined. First things first I am not trying to define each and every value in this set. All I am saying is that it exists. When I was in 7th grade my English teacher had asked the entire class, a class of about twenty to come to the board one by one and spell a word I can’t remember. After no one could spell it correctly she screamed, “You are all idiots. I am wasting my time with you. You are all monkeys. A monkey with a typewriter if types randomly will never end up with Julius Caeser”. I raised my hand and said, “How many monkeys are you talking about? Give me enough monkeys & typewriters and I will find out one who would end up with Julius Caeser”. Hope you get the drift. The set of all the qualities exists. The set Q.
Let’s define a new set now. A set that defines the qualities that are attributed to all chutiyas. Let’s call this set C. Clearly C is a subset of Q.
C Ϲ Q
I think I am getting there. Let’s define a set for everyone on the earth. The set V_n which stands for the qualities that can be associated with the nth person on earth. So there are about 6.7 billion such sets. This set in a nutshell defines the nth person of the world. With me? I can now say that if V_n intersected with the set C returns one or more qualities then the nth person is a chutiya. Thus the following formula is the chutiya check.
n(V_n ∩ C) > 0
This helps me define a new term. The Chutiya Index. For any chutiya the Chutiya Index can be defined as
Chutiya Index = n(V_n ∩ C) / n(V_n)
This is amazing I think and help myself with another beer. I think of all the chutiyas around me and may be you come across in my thoughts too. That’s when another crucial thought strikes. The thought of what is this chutiyapa that am I doing? I see myself in the mirror and I see a chutiya. Seriously, if I were to ask you at this point in time to think of a few chutiyas I am sure more than half of you would name me for what I am trying to do here. My world comes crumbling down and I realize the grave mistake I have made. I have to define C in absolute terms and I can’t be the reference point. I need a new definition.
Let’s define the set C_mn which represents the set of qualities that makes the nth person of the world a chutiya for the mth person. Of course if m doesn’t know n or doesn’t think that he/she is a chutiya then this set is empty. So if N is the world’s population then objectivelyC can be defined as
C = U C_ij i=1 to N j=1 to N
I gaze at the formula above for the next sixty seven minutes and instinctively I see the light. It’s the light Newton saw when the apple fell on his head or made Archimedes run out of his bath tub. The problem is simplified. C is nothing but Q. If C is Q then it means we are all chutiyas with a Chutiya Index of 1.00. This is a very important result. I will repeat it again.
We are all chutiyas with a Chutiya Index of 1.00.
Once I understand this concept it becomes so much easier to understand the entropy of the world. To see the world move through this word. The ‘C’ word is not just a word, it is a phenomenon. The word stands for challenging a quality. You challenge something only if you stand for something. So I can derive that you define yourself through the ‘C’ word! Every time you use the ‘C’ word you demonstrate your ability to reason. Mankind’s progress/regress is associated to it. All inventions. All wars. All love. All hatred. All reason. You. Me. This post itself. Try to think of a world without this phenomenon. Everybody will look the same, think the same, walk the same, talk the same and we will all be stalled.
I hail our great culture that carved out this grandeur word. I hope I have made you understand the power of this word and that next time when you challenge something you would use this word. Now close your eyes, take a deep breath and say the word.

परकाले

2011-11-24T08:37:00.000+05:30

न बचा है न बचेगा,

काल ज्वाला सब जलेगा

वक़्त जब तांडव करेगा,

रक्त झर-झर तब बहेगा

सूर्य तब ठंडा पड़ेगा,

सर्द सागर भी तपेगा ..

( From The Incomplete Works of Kartikeya Kaul , Inspired by Doga )

Beauty in Chaos

2011-11-24T08:17:00.000+05:30

Why does anything look beautiful?
No its not aesthetics. Aesthetics are nothing. Its just the associativity of our brain.

Children are taught orderliness and advocated beauty in shapes and symmetry. Boundaries refine and colors define. And that is how art is. Although such a perception originated from nature, it is quite possible that in an alien race (or perhaps one alienated from rest of humans) surrounded by chaotic nature, finds beauty in chaos.

Strangely, this reminds me of India.

Pendulum

2011-11-24T08:10:00.000+05:30

I wasted
a lifetime
on your love
your lies
your
faded eyes
only to be
left hungry
wanting nothing;
would you
come
back,
once
so I can say
no?

and then, the third time she came
I had to oblige.
And thus spoke she:
you made thou calling
nothing contemptible therein;
“stay, till
a cold and stiff companion
you bury”, i requested

Über pessimists

2011-11-24T08:01:00.000+05:30

Arthur Schopenhauer (22 February 1788 – 21 September 1860) was a German philosopher known for his pessimism and philosophical clarity. Schopenhauer's most influential work, The World as Will and Representation, claimed that the world is fundamentally what humans recognize in themselves as their will. His analysis of will led him to the conclusion that emotional, physical, and sexual desires can never be fulfilled.

Wait a second. Reread "the conclusion that ... desires can never be fulfilled." And philosophically they call him pessimistic.

Does thinking and philosophy mostly lead to negativity? Epicurean-ism , Hedonism and most modern school of thoughts would comply.
However, Platonism, Stoicism and other counter-argue.

In real life, around us are people aplenty who are rather 'Über pessimists' . Having pushed the limits of their sadness and got bored by it they have jumped beyond so as to reach the other side. They consider themselves to be very lucky and that they eventually get what they desire.

I aim to study a 'middle path' of the two thoughts. There are behavioral test cases for its study but it turns out they are analytically ignorant. Although, I am not saying not being analytical and reasoning prone, makes someone less-a-philosopher. I just demand they be aware post observation. Acknowledging post inference. And open & comprehensive, yet cohesive.

Trip Video Trip - I

2011-09-13T02:06:00.002+05:30

Com Truise : 'FairLight'

Butterfly : 'Delicate Steve'

Chase & Status feat. Takura : 'No Problem'

Gang Gang Dance : 'MindKilla'

Beautiful Swimmers : "Big Coast"

CFCF - It was Never Meant to be (Games Remix)

Justice : 'Audio Video Disco'

Flying Lotus - MmmHmm music video (taken from Cosmogramma)

El Guincho : 'Bombay'

High Places - 'Altos Lugares'

Black Sabbath - 'War Pigs'

Sleep - 'Dragonaut'

Weedeater - 'Bull'

Kyuss - 100°

Witch - "Seer"

More later maybe.

Why I post so less often

2011-08-31T02:46:00.000+05:30

You know why I post so less often?
Because I have the fear of being judged. A fear that whatever I write would be held up against me and would be taken as my viewpoint.
Offcourse I wrote it and it is my viewpoint, but let me tell you 2 things :-
1. My thoughts (and hence sides) , change. I am not arrogant enough to ignore a valid argument.
2. As my nature I think both the sides of an issue. ALWAYS.

So thats it, I now rather maintain a secret blog with an anon name so that I can get my feelings out and not be judged. That doesn't mean I am not gonna post anything at all here. It;ll have to be something neutral or comprehensive or technical , all of which require energy.

tl;dr :- I am lazy :)

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2011-03-08T12:10:00.000+05:30

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Idea #202

2011-03-02T05:30:00.001+05:30

Fans get free music cds ! You can order them on our website or buy from our stand outside gigs. All cds are free.
Musicians release free music on the internet anyway. It won't be quality stuff. Just plain cds written on a disk and printed inlays.

The Catch: Ads. The whole back cover of cd case will feature ads by sponsers. But hey sponsers won't have to pay much ! Just 15Rs per cd !! i.e, only production cost!

Website earns nothing. Runs on donation.

Idea #201

2011-02-24T23:08:00.000+05:30

Build an "automated startupgods.com " !
They charge 50$ for finding names to websites and make sure that the '.com' domain name is available. They take a week and will give you 7 names. If you like none of them, you don't pay ! It's that simple. but they attracted attention on HackerNews.

Now I seriously believe it is a luxury service. So I suggest build a site that 'charges 20$ for service exactly same as above and pays 10$ for suggesting a name !! ' Get the hang? Many people would like to spend time doing this as an hobby and will get paid if their name is selected, so they will work hard !!! To make it even easier, wordpress templates for QnA sites are available . Simply use them. Be quick and ride the wave. Have fun.

Why I am not on Facebook

2011-01-19T05:02:00.001+05:30

I deleted my Facebook account 3-4 months ago. I have a fake account for maintaining my Facebook apps and pages.

That fake account has everything fake ranging from pics, to information to even the name. Through it I joined a community while searching for joining dates of people in TCS. I was rather having fun and making jokes, but a rather long but intriguing chat took place in the group.

It was about 'Why I am not on Facebook' (Or some might also perceive it as 'Am I/ Am I not an Introvert'!!??).

Read on.

.....blahblah (cutting thro..)

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Pagal Sardar Naam mein kya rakha hai vats.. Sab moh maaya hai [Neways if u fancy an ugly sardar u can catch me at http://thecornerteastall.blogspot.com/ ]
4 hours ago · · 1 personLoading...
Nayandeep Sehgal i'll c to it..babas are having their blog corners..greatt...damn..i wanna have one too..but not at dis moment..cnt wrk out da tym mgmt..
3 hours ago ·
Shashi Kumar hi guyzzzzzz.............
3 hours ago ·
Nayandeep Sehgal so u prefr to stay behind da scene..anyways..i respct it..one more ques..is it dat u prefr da theme based charactrs ..or u like to stay da same whole lyf out..???
3 hours ago ·
Nayandeep Sehgal ‎@shashi:welcum to da ashram..!!..some baba is here..
3 hours ago ·
Shashi Kumar aila.....om namah shiway........
3 hours ago ·
Nayandeep Sehgal ‎@pagal: i'm sure mahn..dere's more mystery to ur character dan ur openness..something's fishy out here..
3 hours ago ·
Pagal Sardar Its not that. I rather deleted my real account few months ago. The real reason was that Facebook is prone to our weakest traits as humans. We love attentions. We love to think of ourselves as something we want to be. We trade our true feelings to be included. We want to be popular. We want our taste in music and art to be value. We crave for external success. It was like high school all over again.
3 hours ago · · 2 peopleLoading...
Nayandeep Sehgal and u must b from KU or MDU..
3 hours ago ·
Pagal Sardar lol. How does that matter? It was MDU [thank god for that 'was']
3 hours ago · · 1 personLoading...
Nayandeep Sehgal ‎@pagal:i dnt go da way u r..it's da inner strngth wich resists u from getting prone to it..!!ahh...mahn..come on..jst get a hold of ur identity..how can u..
3 hours ago · · 1 personLoading...
Nayandeep Sehgal i dnt understnd..u mst have got bitten by some deep thought..that purely is taking it's toll over u..
3 hours ago ·
Nayandeep Sehgal ‎@pagal: had i been to ur place..i wud have shown u da MIRROR which shows u UR name..not ur so calld imaginary one..wich u once desired to be.
3 hours ago ·
Pagal Sardar
I felt strange doing anything on it because I felt people were judging me. It was like I had developed this persona of an educated and successful and fun person when I was on it .Facebook befriending = please don't forget about me.

Real frie...nding: Facebook befriending agnostic.

Conclusion: without FB you know who your friends are. With FB, you know who your friends are, or are not: because you are reminded every time you look. And who needs that?See More
3 hours ago · · 1 personNayandeep Sehgal likes this.
Nayandeep Sehgal ‎@pagal:so wat happnd then??did u get da attn u wantd to attrct???..
3 hours ago ·
Nayandeep Sehgal ‎*attntn
3 hours ago ·
Pagal Sardar Lol. Attracting attention is not conscious. everyone on fb does it.
3 hours ago ·
Nayandeep Sehgal so wat u think now..by the time u shatter ur ignorance u ll land into a territory wich wud again be da same..quantity of frnds doesn't mattr..a real frnd ll identify u from nowhere..doesn't mattr whthr u r a pagal baba or somethng else..
3 hours ago ·
Pagal Sardar
Everyone of my friends on Facebook would do a double-take whenever we didn't hear about some large event in their life. They assume that because it was on their Wall, that everyone knew about it. They didn't think to _call_ all their friend...s to talk about the great news, they simply threw it up on their Wall without thought.

No longer do you have to think about your friends as individuals and how you're going to break news to them, or how they are going to react -- now you can simply throw up a general message and lose the individuality in a flood of responses.

The depersonalization of communication has been exacerbated by a number of different technologies (such as email), however Facebook has allowed us to perfect the art of communication without soul.See More
3 hours ago · · 2 peopleLoading...
Pagal Sardar It is not my ignorance. It is rather people's. Now I have real friends calling me. And talking on the phone is much better coversation for me atleast.
3 hours ago ·
Nayandeep Sehgal ‎@pagal:sorry for replying late..yup i agree wid dis fact..but tht's how da world n relations go with da tide of fb..n social ntwrkng..relations are now jst limited to 'like' something or nt..but see..this can fetch u some fruits though..jst like getting connctd wid frnds situatd dis far from u..and well..lastly..don't jst change urslf for da sake of othrs..
3 hours ago ·
Nayandeep Sehgal ‎@pagal:u noe buddy..i wud luv to talk to u..no mattr whthr u r a baba..or jst a real life person..dats da kind of attitude one need to follow..dnt lose ur own identity..i luv myself being calld wat i'm..but not to da extent dat someone shud bow before me..i like to respect myself and othrs too..DUSRO KI JAI SE PEHLE KHUD KI JAI KAREIN..HUM KO MANN KI SHAKTI DENA
3 hours ago ·
Nayandeep Sehgal an optimum befriending is wat shud b calld for..
3 hours ago ·
Pagal Sardar Well I get you. I am not changing myself. I am rather trying to bring out the good in me. I call people i really care about and it means more. Before internet I met more people personally and traveled a lot. I have been to 16 states in India. I had frnds, who were rather very real and enchanting with their whole reality of a personality.
3 hours ago ·
Nayandeep Sehgal ‎..k..let's give it a thought..lets accept dat fb is nothing but a mere medium of communication..a weak link though..but fruitful and helpful indeed..luk at the people out here..they upload da assignmnt..learn new language..and much more..do they really noe each othr..nopes..or indeed..a biggggggggg yesss....all u need is to noe whthr a person is true from da heart or not..won't they accept me wid some othr name or persona..they definitely will..
3 hours ago ·
Pagal Sardar Yup you are right. Optimum befriending. Optimization is only needed in discreet cases. Only then can u say whether something is 'in' or 'out'. For continuous cases it is gradual. Now, fb has made friendship discreet. Some either is your friend or not. That is what I said earlier.
3 hours ago ·
Nayandeep Sehgal no..u cnt jst categorize it by saying either frnd or not..some of them are jst ppl hu jst pass by u to say hii..some of them really luk forwrd to c if u have scribbd out something on their page(treat it as their heart )..some doesn't even care if u r alive or not..u jst need to omitt the last category..rest won't harm u..
3 hours ago ·
Pagal Sardar Bro its not about acceptance. I am not hiding my personality (otherwise I wudn't have linked u to my blog). I just don't feel bonding on fb are strong enough. Facebook is not a particularly brilliant application and the amount of value it delivers is also not that great. If you're a Facebook user or addict, just pause for a moment and ask yourself how much actual value you're getting out of it relative to the time invested.
3 hours ago ·
Pagal Sardar Exactly I am totally trying to depict what u said in ur last post. And I want both the parties to understand the value or the 'level'. Real life mein hamein ye to pta hota hai ki friend kaun hai, but ye nahi ki hamara friend kaun 'nahi' hai... fb pe decide karna padta hai.. u see!!
3 hours ago ·
Nayandeep Sehgal If i pause for a moment..i see dat my time has been spent worth wid ppl lyk u..plus i got to compile my aasignments..and i stay updated abt da latest happenings..in no way out have i wastd my time on apps wich jst kill ur time..
3 hours ago ·
Pagal Sardar Lets suppose there was no fb, Then u wud have made ur assignments urself. And learned something. Plus in less time, u wud have felt bored and hence went to meet real people which wud be more beneficial. Yaar I am very happy to meet you but I cant call , u see.
3 hours ago ·
Nayandeep Sehgal I disagree..real life fetches u out bettr result in identifying ppl..for instance..consider dis..i spend time wid my frnds in real..get to know abt them..spend a plenty of time to dcide before coming to any instant result..in fb too..u shud spend some time..jst add a pal to ur list..watch his/her behavior.. and rest ur dcisn will dcide how much liberty u give to him to peek into ur lyf..
3 hours ago ·
Pagal Sardar After this even if exchange numbers or meet in ILP and become good frnds then that is rather just a special case becoz we had this huge discussion. You cant have this discussion with everyone...
3 hours ago ·
Pagal Sardar
Most of what I see on twitter is this trivia, "I refinished my floors," "I bought an iPad." Would you normally go out of your way to talk about this to anyone who didn't ask "What did you do this weekend?" Probably not, so why do you feel t...he need to broadcast it to the world via Twitter/Facebook/<Insert Lifeless Tech Here>?

Now take something you have a passion for. I personally am an avid reader. I meet my local friends and we discuss smthing we read and have completely different conversations and get insights into what they like. I have friends that are huge into climbing, now I have no big interest in it myself, but their passion draws me into the conversations and over the past decade I've learned more about climbing than I ever would have if it were just some posts.

It takes an amazing writer to really evoke the emotions that most of our daily conversations have, and let's face it, the world isn't exactly filled with amazing writers.See More
3 hours ago · · 1 personNayandeep Sehgal likes this.
Nayandeep Sehgal ‎~making assignments dis early is nt possible for some..plus..i lead a balancd lyf b/w real and dis virtual one..and 'm happy to noe abt u..dis way or the othr..v still can remain connctd..and we have divided opinion only in case of revealing da identity..dats it..i jst to say u..jst come out of nutshell...a li'l bit..!!
3 hours ago ·
Nayandeep Sehgal superliked ur last post..i completely agree wid wat u jst said..jst wana tell u again..don't take ur personal life break open here..but jst come out of nutshell to reveal ur name and to some extent ur dentity..dats it ...
3 hours ago ·
Nayandeep Sehgal BTW sorry if u get my posts late..i'm using on screen keyboard..coz some of the keys aren't ready to face da heat off my hand..!!
3 hours ago ·
Nayandeep Sehgal i hope..rather m sure dat u got wat i wantd to say..there goes anothr reason for it..i jst dnt wanna see u getting into a complex..do u..???
3 hours ago ·
Pagal Sardar Bro I really appreciate you concern and your best intentions, but I do not have identity issues. I am rather an extrovert. I am revealing my identity(I gave u my blog address in public) when appropriate. Loved talking to you. And your physicals effort too. Take a rest. Get a new keyboard tomorow (If you type too much get a Dvorak rather than Qwerty type it'll increase ur speed5 times in a month). I am off to eat something..
3 hours ago ·
Nayandeep Sehgal k..aftr so long i got someone to discs something dis much deep..and only serious minded ppl can appreciate and expend their enrgy to put forwrd their thoughts..i'm used to this keyboard..qwerty type..but sure will try dat one out..and dis keyboard is still alive..jst need a couple of pat to work again..lol..:P..go and have something..
2 hours ago ·
Nayandeep Sehgal
It's gud that u have given me da blog link..have gone thru two poems of urs..brilliant i mst say..especially da first one..jst got hang on to some of the words.. :) it's da writer who adheres to da feelings bettr dan othrs..and wen will u c...hange ur profile name here..????u spend tym here..b it constructive or destrctive ..we share feelings..if not cell nos..and moreover..u can follow da rule of 'be wat u r,not wat u want to b.'..wid ease..while keeping intact ur emotions..and coming out of some unknown pseudo persona..ques is yet to be answered..:)See More
2 hours ago ·

_____________________________

(PS: The occurrence of this 'anti-fb' chat on fb is rather an irony. Or it makes me a hypocrite atleast.)

The Search Engine paradox

2011-01-02T23:38:00.000+05:30

Search Engines search for the text content in any website.

Other modes of search using images etc. (Google Goggle) are in development stage and nothing successful for daily use.

Now, I especially spend, a lot of time researching how to make the internet reach Indian masses. This penetration is hugely affected by the fact that most Indians are illiterates. Even amongst those who are, many can hardly write complete sentences in English. So I want to build easy-to-use websites with 'natural' navigation.
For example a site that explains people what is email, pictorially (no text) and using audio etc. Note these sites have no text.

Here's my problem (I call it 'Search Engine Paradox') :

How do you use a text-based search engine to provide assistance to people who can't read? If you have no text, the search engine doesn't know what it's looking at. If you have lots of text, people can't use it. If you hide the text, well, search engines don't like that, either.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Paradoxical

2010-12-31T07:48:00.000+05:30

A moment away from madness. The temporal separation between sanity and insanity, life and death, bravery and stupidity. That's what we are.

What is stopping you from reaching out and punching the oversized belly of the grease-laden lard-bag standing in front of you? Why not take a running leap into the path of an oncoming bus, they'll never expect it, nobody will!

How about inducing vomit in a posh restaurant after you have thrown about their overpriced food at other well-dressed patrons? That would be funny on television. Try doing it in real life. It just isn't quite the same.

Or perhaps when in an elevator with another person, as they watch in strung horror, press every button in there right until their floor. How will they react to that? Will they react to that? You'd think they'd find that funny. But they'll probably get annoyed and aggressive.

Why don't we have a sense of humor?

Think about it, it is a simple decision, or lack of a conception which guides our actions or prevents us from doing something that tears away at the rigid fabric of any society.

What is to stop the R-Complex from kicking in so that we may descend into violence, anarchy, pogroms and constant war? What's wrong with anarchy anyways? Perhaps we feel the need to conform to a social hierarchy. Social hierarchy must give us comfort, the fact that it guides us and there is always a scapegoat for our problems. Maybe that's why we need religion. Those of us who feel no need for religion, are we emancipated from the irrelevant shackles of such trivial conformity? After all, the morals laid down need not be adhered to only when subscribing to a religious cult. Or are we misguided and living an illusion?

So, what is wrong with anarchy anyways? It is a social manifestation of entropy and yet we, the products of similar entropy on a vast cosmological scale, feel the need to find patterns in all we do, hear, see, feel... that must be the entropy. And conflicts or chaotic behavior must be a departure from it. Or perhaps it is the other way round. No, it must be the appeal of comfort. We need the comfort. We don't want this paradigm altered or shifted. So we fight.

That makes chaos our adversary. Once in a while though, we like to explore this adversary of ours. Some of us want to do it. Then we kill and rape and riot. Riots must be our disposition, our inner, hidden, suppressed disposition in favor of the adversary I speak of. In a riot everything goes. You are part of it because you are not an individual. We are one mind. And after a while, we are as we were before, as though nothing happened.

Should we study this area? Should we explore this self-darkened portion of our psyches? Find out what we are really capable of? Then stories of riots, massacres, cannibalism, incest and war will not affect us. We will have been conditioned to "accept" it. We will be insensitive to all of it, a dead body will not disgust us, nor will a brutally murdered baby.

Then maybe, we will not need these things. Or perhaps it will be all that we ever need. Either case, it will not be necessary for anyone to fear the darkness. Because it is not an adversary. Can this be the utopia we often refer to in philosophical digressions? The same concept, only a different path towards it. Because knowledge of it is what shall guide us there. Knowledge of all our capabilities, that is all we need.

So go ahead. Stab your friends. Shoot a dog. Punch your monitor. Right through the middle. What is it you fear? The glass will shatter and cut your veins. The electricity might jolt you. You will feel pain, definitely. The pain may make you feel alive, or fill you with fear. The pain will guide you, teach you. What will you learn from it? Nothing, really.

Just one moment away from madness. A step towards chaos. For nothing, for something. How do you look at it?

What are you going to do now?

Enough !!

2010-12-31T00:10:00.000+05:30

I have been watching a lot of 'emotional porn' (sentimental movies) over past few days and have been on an 'emotional masturbation' trip all along. Feeling just too much and happy to be sad.

I say its enough , fuck it, and no more. Thank you.

'Superman' - Eminem

But I do know one thing though, bitches, they come they go
Saturday through Sunday, Monday, Monday through Sunday yo'
Maybe i'll love you one day, maybe we'll someday grow
Till then just sit your drunk ass on that fuckin' runway ho'...

Seen on the back of a tanker

2010-12-23T22:51:00.000+05:30

Translations :

कालका माई की फ़ौज

Devi Kaalka's army

करेगी मौज |

will live with ardor.

अकाल मृत्यु वो मरे ,

Premature death, he dies..

जो काम करे चंडाल का |

One who works for the devil.

काल उसका क्या बिगाड़े ,

Even Time can't destroy him ,

जो भक्त हो महाकाल का ||

who worships the Lord of time and space [Shiva].

Emotional Memory

2010-12-23T21:58:00.001+05:30

I always thought I had some 'emotional memory'.
By it, I mean, simply that I remember the emotions that I go through. And when other are in same situation I can feel their happiness/pain/anger.

Recently certain events occurred in lives of my close friends. They looked very familiar to me. Some of them (events) I had actually been through.

So I thought I understood the events. And I understood my friends. And hence I knew what they were going through.

Now the worst part. All of them looked too emotional too me. Like they were overacting or something. I thought they were reacting too much, to a relatively regular event.

Its not that I didn't help. They are my friends and I want them happy. But I didn't connect. I didn't feel their pain. So I also tried to console them.
See. When your near ones are sad, you approach in two ways mostly. Either you are sad with them and curse in unison, "Fuck it man..". Or you oppose them by consoling them, "Don't worry. Its not so bad. There are other options like....".
I found myself following the latter lately. In fact, I found myself incapable of the former.

It struck me that I was heartless or something. Like less human. That I had no emotional memory...

It continued for too long to alarm me. I tried talking to people, but was incapable. You know, if i had talked to people, I would have been contrary to my own belief !! (that of overreacting)

But it was driving me crazy. Crazy to the point that I burst up in front of someone. And it was the best that could have happened. That person gave me a very good suggestion that brought me out...

She said, "Sukhvinder .. People have different emotions in same situations & every person feel same emotions differently..."

Thanks.

(And now I know, I am just an emotional toddler. Many emotions, I yet have to feel.)

......

Ask to Persuade

2010-11-20T01:33:00.002+05:30

Recent observation:

When a statement is presented as a question, it becomes more persuasive.

For instance:

normal statement:

Paani-Puri is the best street food because it's great taste is so hard to describe.

persuasive question:

Could it be that the difficulty in describing the great taste of Paani-Puri that makes it the best street food in the world??

Isn't it amusing how the speaker supposed the fact that 'Paani-Puri is best' and jumped to the next step of arguing the 'reason' for it being so?
Isn't the first statement more prone to argument at the first step of concluding that 'Paani-Puri is really the best'?
Aren't you persuaded enough to believe that I am right by my writing these statements in questions?

:)

Free Phone

2010-11-17T01:18:00.000+05:30

Facebook recently launched a seamless messaging service. Many other companies have tried to do so recently.
What is seamless?
It simply means that the user has no need to worry over the mode of transport(sms, IM, email) of the message. Hence they don't need an email address, or IM or phone number. All they need is to type in the name!

But problem is that every smart person who's ever worked on SMS, IM, or email clients has come to this identical conclusion before.And have tried their hands on building this perfect world, whre user didn't have care about the transport (sms vs email). But, nothing such exists, does it? Some reasons...

SMS and email are different. SMS costs money per message. Email does not.
If i don't have a phone and send u a message on your phone through my email, u will get it through a peculiar system. something like 56006T-MAIL. Can u reply back ?? That could mess up the whole system. So could, mass mixed messaging and group chats.
This solution doesn't actually solve any user problem. Humans were successfully texting, IMing, and emailing each other!

So while some are saying Facebook is the new Google, I say Facebook is the new Microsoft. They're building convoluted solutions to problems no one has!

Anyways , this got me thinking why are the two systems different? What is the difference? Why is email free but messages paid?
The answer is as follows..
Internet expands in first person, while phones expand in third.

What I mean by the above statement, I say henceforth try to explain.
Assume the current internet as a box. All the computers and peripherals and all the other machines that are a part of the internet are all inside that box. Now suppose you buy a new computer X. how does X become a part of the box? How do u connect to become the part of the internet? You build your own 'hook'.
Yes, you build your own hook. By any means you pay or develop devices(hubs, switches, routers etc) to connect to the internet. All u need from the box is permission to do so. You arranged for the hook and connected to the box.

Now assume another box, the mobile world. Now again assume you buy a new phone. Now you hook up to this box and ask permission by buying a sim card and activating to a service provider. So far so good. You have arranged the hook (your handset is sending out signals) and have arranged permission too(got your number and service). But here the thing starts. That is not all !! In comes the management. Cellular service provider's main job is to manage all the connections. Handoffs while moving and huge chunk let alone sudden spikes are not uncommon. Thus they provide special management.

What was happening in the internet box was that such management to certain extent is provided by the user itself. Although ISPs have to do their job, but figure this... I request a bandwidth; If my ISP doesn't have it, I don't get it. Thats it! Whereas in the mobile box, you make a call and it has to connect more often!
So, in very short its the direct relation between reliability and management (cost).

Sms have higher reliability, email has low (no) cost.

Free Phones:

The step to build free phones i.e, free calling and messaging can be instantiated if less management is facilitated. We can build such a network.
The only price would be the initial cost.
But the system won't be as reliable. The signal simply says "Hey, too many callers on-air, no bandwidth available". But I don't mind calling later. Oh, comeon.. IT's FREE !!!

(PS: Hell, lets build it! Isn't it a step towards freedom?!! )

The fall of Facebook

2010-11-13T01:46:00.001+05:30

The facts:

Facebook has 500 million users.
Facebook has 2000 employees.
Facebook has (only)1 comprehensive product.

Estimates (and not facts!):

Facebook is worth 100 billion (They haven't gone public yet).
20% of facebook employees are Xooglers (ex-google employees).

The FIGHT !!!

Facebook allows users to import their Gmail list of email contacts to find friends on Facebook.
Google asks Facebook to reciprocate by allowing users to export the emails of their friends on facebook.
Facebook start verbal war.
Facebook adds a so-called 'downloading' app , allowing user to download all his data. The fun is, that data can only be read by Facebook! Its of no use to users!
Google also bitches.
Facebook bitches some more.
Google shows middle finger.
Facebook slaps. Develops a hack around Gmail! Provides deeplinking to download contacts.
Google hits back hard. Now you get a very peculiar notice saying Facebook is "trapping" you !!
Facebook is launching email service in 2 days !! Project Titan a.k.a "Gmail Killer" !!!!!!!

Some Points:

The very talented, Lars Rasmussen, the man bwhind google wave, and respected all around has left Google to join Facebook. So have 200 others. Their job description is following : "come hang out with us for a while and we'll see what happens" Isnt this super cool !!?

In one case an engineer making around $150,000 turned down a 15% raise plus $500,000 in restricted stock and left for Facebook anyway.
This means he was getting more at Facebook !!? Or is the job better?? Lets compare...
The job:
Facebook and Google both have very cool and awesome working environments.
Facebook has only 1 big product(its website) and Google is soooo very very ahead in the list of 'interesting' projects.
If developers are most interested in handling huge chunks of data sets, then (a) Google has much much more data and (b) all the scalability problems must have been solved on Facebook long ago since it already has 500 million users.
So we can conclude that it's not the work environment or job interests. That leaves us with only two options.
Personal Conflicts.
It must be a great reason behind Lars Rasmussen leaving Google because Google shutdown his project 'Google Wave' prematurely. It was a wonderful product!
But since this may not be the case behind everyone, only one option left.

Money!!!
We have two examples. First is mentioned above. He left a salary of 175,000 plus 500,000 in stocks !!!
Second case of a staff engineer at Google being heavily romanced by Facebook was offered a jaw dropping $3.5 million !!! in restricted stock by Google (this means Google is handing over stock worth $3.5 million based on its value today, and that stock will vest over time). He quite wisely accepted Google’s counter offer. Facebook lost this one.
So maybe we can conclude that Facebook is paying more than half a million and less then 3.5 million to the Xooglers. No one knows the exact amount.
So let us give the benefit of doubt to Facebook and assume the price to be 1 million.
i.e, Facebook pays 1 million in stock to Google employees to join them.
Given that Facebook has 20% of its employees as Xooglers amongst the 2000 totals, an amount of 200 million in stock is already given away !!

Now here is the fun part. Facebook is NOT WORTH 100 billion! It is just a projection, and for an ambitious two years into the future !!! A prediction of Facebook's value in 2013 !!!!! Forbes reported Facebook's value to around 18 billion dollars only !! If so, 12% company is gone already !!

The fall of Facebook

I think that people are now going to leave Facebook. The reasons:
1. Freedom factor, the sense of being trapped.
2. Increasing spam.
3. The next big thing is in the wait. When it hits... The same happened to MySpace.
4. Future is not about social. Theorists say that the birth of internet was marked by 'informational' (the past), the growth by 'social' (the present), and the future is about 'personal'. It is already evident with the huge mobile market share that is a part of a very personal experience.

Why am I on Facebook? 'Cause it's cool. And what makes it so? Most of my friends are there. (And hence you'll leave too when they start leaving.) I love the apps. (Until they spam me. And are all profit based third-party and hence they will move too.) The data resource. (Videos from youtube? Links from around the web? All external.)
Facebook is fashion. Like friendster was. Like MySpace was. Fashion will change.
In fact MySpace had exact the same share of internet as Facebook has now !!!
Facebook will not shutdown in 2-5 years. It will be there. Like MySpace still is. But the 'tip of the curve' is reached, and will be 'downhill' soon. I predict it will be pretty evident in June 2011, 6-7 months from now.

(PS: I am on Facebook. Its the most detailed source of Indian Rock Music. Also I can stalk my ex.)

Update: Paul Buchheit , the creator of Gmail, had joined Facebook, and has left it for YCombinator.(\m/)

Afraid of the Dissimilar

2010-10-30T17:21:00.004+05:30

Humans are generally afraid of the dissimilar.
Its a mind set. Applies to most.
You see something different from you, you are scared of it.

Not only does this apply to things , but also to people. You see a person different from ones you have being living with you get afraid. Its a form of racism.

I asked this from some people :
Why do people get scared of people who are different?
Some answers are as follows ..

Ritsuka : ♥ isnt it the ones who try to be all the same that are scary..?

Mm : Yes, I agree with you, the scariest people are the ones who try so hard to be status quo. In doing so, they shun anything and everything around them that doesn't look, smell or in anyway typify their ideal of normalcy. These people are definitely at odds with the world because we are all unique and different from one another and you just cannot change that or cover it up no matter how hard you try.

So you might as well just relax and realize that you are different and come to terms with it and learn to like who you are instead of trying to be something you are not.

KjKg : Because people like patterns, and they like things that are the same. When something's different, they're like, "Whoa! I can't predict how this person's going to act! Or what they like!" And maybe they don't want to go through the trouble of figuring them out, or they're just scared of what they don't know and can't predict.

NwyeKid : i dont get your question. i mean, people are scared of what they dont know. so if someone is different and they're too much of an ass to learn, they just judge what they dont even know. like my parents. they judge some of the music that i like that they dont know crap about. (punk rock)

Little Red Dragon : because people fear what the don't understand... and wot man truly fears is fear itself...

I would say... "I fear nothing..." but that would be a total lie... everyone fears something... (even religious people feel fear... the fear of their gods and goddesses...)
take Batman Begins for example: in the film Bruce Wayne feared "bats" and so created his alter-ego... so that criminals would experience the same fear he had endured when he was a child...

but now that I think about it people hated me when I was in school and so... I guess that was coz they knew I had Autism and I was the only one who neva knew until I turned 13 (or was it 15? - I can't remember...)
truth is... fear is wot ruins lives... and plus it makes u feel like u r worth less than b4...

so I believe that change is good...
just think in a few years time we could be living with cat people and bat men and woteva else - hell I wouldn't give a damn wot they look like just as long as they are good ppl at heart... u kno?

______________

So we have some insight there. People fear something they cant predict.

What is normal? Its an average of the behavior. But it is just what it is. An average. No one is normal.

Websites for Social Change

2010-10-29T03:00:00.001+05:30

Sites that have responded by setting up social platforms designed to connect volunteers, students, charities, entrepreneurs, and individuals, as well as make it easy to learn about the causes and campaigns that are impacting our world.
Grouped in to 5 Categories: Environmental, Volunteering & Social Responsibility, Health, Global, Others.

Environmental Issues
Learn how to help the environment by joining these networks for change.

Care2: Care2 is a huge site devoted to all things green and making a difference. Learn about causes, start petitions, network and more.
TreeHugger: Laern about, comment on and share your own perspective of green shopping, design, travel, science and living.
WorldChanging: This site features a blog, community, and channels for learning how politics, business and design impact the future of the environment.
OneWorldTV: If you’re looking for videos about climate change, desertification in Mongolia, or the oil wars in Nigeria, head to this social site.
WiserEarth: WiserEarth connects advocates and activists who are interested in promoting sustainable living practices.
emPivot: emPivot is another video sharing site for green enthusiasts. Categories include energy and climate, politics and advocacy, and green building.
ecovian: Find real-life networking in your city through this site, which also has information and groups for green clothing, transportation, beauty, energy and more.
Greenvoice: Greenvoice gets the word out about green issues and campaigns in the UK and around the world.
Greenopolis: Greenopolis is an all-in-one green site that educates users about green practices, lets them react to issues and network, take polls, watch videos, keep a profile, and more.
Holistic Local: Here you can learn about green, holistic living while looking up green businesses, meeting others who share your interests and find exchange listings to trade courses, massage services, art, and more.
Zoobird: Those who lead an organic lifestyle can turn to this social site for groups, notes, photos, event notices, videos and good discussion.
GreenlTers: This network is comprised of "clean tech global thinkers." Find videos, a forum, photos, groups, profile support and more.
Do the Green Thing: Add your stories to share what you’re doing to support the environment in your daily life.
Reyooz: Reyooz is an online trading platform for items you no longer need but don’t want to throw away. All trades are free.
Green Ideas: Pledge to live your life in a more eco-friendly way by searching through the lists of "simple ideas" that make big differences.
Easy Green Living: On Easy Green Living, you’ll learn how to be healthy and green in the kitchen, at work, with friends, and everywhere else. The site’s social network, Green Walls features photo sharing, videos, blogs, groups and a message board.
Earth Tweet: Keep up with environment-related tweets here.
Playgreen: This "wiki on green living" has articles, a community wish list for fun green activities, and more.
Greener One: This green shopping site has contributors who rank and review products.

Volunteering and Social Responsibility
Get connected to volunteer and social organizations that let you make a difference in your

Idealist: Idealist is a popular job and volunteer site for those who want to make a difference, but it’s also great for networking online and in the real world.
Justmeans: This social network supports businesses who promote responsible, ethical practices, sustainability, and good deeds.
Change.org: Find nonprofits to support, campaigns to support education and women’s rights, jobs, and more.
betterplace.org: This site truly belives that "everybody can help" and "everybody can get help." Meet others who want to support the causes you’re interested in so that you can start making a difference.
pachube: Pachube relies on the idea that social relationships can help change the world and reduce climate change.
Kiva: Kiva connects people who can provide loans to poverty-stricken communities and their entrepreneurs. Join to start your own lending team.
Causecast: Watch videos to learn about issues and social projects to support.
Bloggers Unite: Through this network, you can browse through 63 events around the world (or add one of your own), add its badge to your blog, and write a post about it on the day of the event.
FirstGiving: Join this network to help nonprofits and others raise money.
Social Actions: Find volunteer projects through this site, and join the community to network with others who want to change the world.
Make the Difference Network: Browse wish lists and charities to support through this social network.
Do Good Channel: Log on to this site to find campaigns and volunteer partners.

Health and Patient Advocacy
Patients and medical professionals can now find support, information and respect on these sites that are revolutionizing the way our society treats the sick.

Livestrong: This health network features healthy living tips, groups, and a mission to change the way Americans take care of themselves.
Daily Strength: Visit the Daily Strength to get support from other patients, look up treatment options and medical information, and join groups.
iMedix: Here you can find answers to health questions, join support groups, and share your own story.
Patients Like Me: Patients Like Me connects patients suffering from chronic and life-changing conditions to facilitate the spread of information and support.
Planet Cancer: Young adults who have cancer in their 20s and 30s network on this site to talk about their disease, blow off steam, gossip about pop culture, share photos and more.
Starbright World: Teens who are terminally ill have a chance to be kids on this networking site that lets them create profiles, meet other patients like them, blog, and chat.
MyCancerPlace: Cancer patients can join groups, chat on the forum, set up a personal web page, learn about cancer, find out about special events, and share photos on this network.

Global
These networks make it possible to make a difference in a country or town across the globe.

The World Cafe: Log on to this site to join the conversation about global issues that matter.
Better the World: Here you can learn about different global causes like disease, human rights, climate change and housing, discover your impact, and raise money.
Protect the Human: On Protect the Human, you can network for the sake of human rights.
SAWA Global: SAWA Global lets members brag about local heroes and share stories about how they are changing the world.
Aidpeople.org: Aidpeople.org connects those interested in joining humanitarian aid projects.
Take Part: This user-driven site educates members on global conflicts and issues and lets them add their own content, too.
Changing the Present: Browse charity wish lists and registries and set up a community to give gifts and make a difference.

Miscellaneous
Here you’ll find more social sites for kids and teens, social workers, and more.

Good2Gether: This social site connects volunteers with nonprofits.
PETA: PETA’s website features an action center, forums, and plenty more opportunities for networking and education.
YouthNoise: YouthNoise lets kids join causes, set up a profile and learn about the issues that affect youth in places like Iraq.
JustCauseIt: Learn how others are making a positive difference in areas like health care, the environment or the arts, and share your own causes and stories.
Social Work 2.0: Social workers connect on this site to learn about events, discuss issues and more.

Easiest way of hacking Facebook, Twitter etc. in your hostel.

2010-10-25T16:46:00.002+05:30

No technical know-how needed...

Why do I say hostel, office?
Because you basically need is to be logged in to any wifi network.
Once you are, you are just few clicks away to logging into someone's facebook or twitter account!

How does it work?

When logging into a website you usually start by submitting your username and password. The server then checks to see if an account matching this information exists and if so, replies back to you with a "cookie" which is used by your browser for all subsequent requests.
It's extremely common for websites to protect your password by encrypting the initial login, but surprisingly uncommon for websites to encrypt everything else. This leaves the cookie (and the user) vulnerable. HTTP session hijacking (sometimes called "sidejacking") is when an attacker gets a hold of a user's cookie, allowing them to do anything the user can do on a particular website. On an open wireless network, cookies are basically shouted through the air, making these attacks extremely easy.
This is a widely known problem that has been talked about to death, yet very popular websites continue to fail at protecting their users. The only effective fix for this problem is full end-to-end encryption, known on the web as HTTPS or SSL. Facebook is constantly rolling out new "privacy" features in an endless attempt to quell the screams of unhappy users, but what's the point when someone can just take over an account entirely? Twitter forced all third party developers to use OAuth then immediately released (and promoted) a new version of their insecure website. When it comes to user privacy, SSL is the elephant in the room.

Actually it's a very old method. There are many a codes out there that do this. But it has never been as easy as this to execute. All it takes is few clicks. Even your mom can do it!

The method
Install (the best browser) firefox browser. Then install the firesheep plugin. Thats it !

Demonstration:
After installing the extension you'll see a new sidebar. Connect to any busy open wifi network and click the big "Start Capturing" button. Then wait.

As soon as anyone on the network visits an insecure website known to Firesheep, their name and photo will be displayed:

Double-click on someone, and you're instantly logged in as them.

That's it.

Credits
This is developed by Eric Butler. A developer from Seattle.
Firesheep is free, open source, and is available now for Mac OS X and Windows. Linux support is on the way.
Websites have a responsibility to protect the people who depend on their services. They've been ignoring this responsibility for too long, and it's time for everyone to demand a more secure web. My hope is that Firesheep will help the users win.

How to protect yourself against this !
If you want to use Facebook completely over https. Install the "HTTPS Everywhere" Firefox addon. It forces a number of sites to make all of their requests over an SSL secured channel.

or
Read here

or
For anyone who has SSH access to a server (but not VPN) and is wondering what to do when you need some security in a pinch, here is a quick fix...Open an ssh connection to a server you have access to using something like the following:
ssh -vND 8887 -p 22 rufus@12.120.186.8
where 8887 is the port on your laptop that you will tunnel through, -p 22 is the port the ssh server is on (22 is the default but I use a different port so I am used to specifying this) and the rest is your username and the address of the server
Set your network to point to the proxy. On a Mac that would be…
... Open Network Preferences…
... Click Advanced…
... Click Proxies…
... Check the SOCKS Proxy box then in the SOCKS Proxy Server field enter localhost and the port you used (8887)
... OK and Apply and you are done!
Now you can surf safely.

Also, http://lifehacker.com/237227/geek-to-live--encrypt-your-web-...That link has screenshots to help you configure Firefox to use the ssh proxy.

And, make sure you already have the key in your known_hosts, otherwise you could be subject to a MITM attack :)

A perfect con

2010-10-24T13:08:00.001+05:30

"In a perfect con everyone gets what they want."

A girl is rich, but she is looking for love.
A boy has a good job, but he wants a life.
His elder brother wants him to be independent and happy.

Here is what happens. A little adjustment takes place.
The elder brother plans a con.
The boy and girl fall in love.
The elder one steals from the girl.
He becomes a villain in his younger's eyes.

Everyone got what they want.
Everyone is happy.

view

2010-10-14T16:05:00.000+05:30

You saw the seasons
changing, through me

You were happy, I
kept the rains out of me

You put a curtain
on me, so that you could sleep

You were always certain
'd keep the wind out of reach

Then why now I feel like a window pane?
And why now I classify existence in vain?
and Why did you break the glass
when you could've just opened
just opened
opened me
to see
what is to be
to be beyond me
only through me ...

Chemistry Porn

2010-09-20T18:32:00.000+05:30

Hello fellows.

A hardworking chemistry student was so frustrated he came up with this.

We've heard that love is chemistry. Here we see how sex is.