Moosa Gani's Blog

We are the Champions 2007-2008

Wed, 14 May 2008 02:53:24 -0700

Glory Glory Manchester United....

My condolences in order of biggest looser's:

Liverpool (Always)
Chelsea
Arsenal (Just ran out of steam in the end)

As the Liverpool fans always say..

Don't worry... Next Season. Next Season. Watch us in Europe!

Till the 21st of May 2008. Cherio!

Amatomu Top 100 000 I biggest looser -828 [Lesson to all Bloggers]

Fri, 25 Apr 2008 21:13:58 -0700

To all the bloggers out there. This is what happens when you don't blog regularly or not at all sometimes. Amatomu THANKS!.. You could have warned me at least. An Email would have done ?? :P

What were the odds of me clicking on Amatomu.com to find my blog the biggest looser??

Anyways I would love to see your biggest looser algorithm Amatomu? On the other side I should be getting some SEO from it. Front page nonetheless. And you guys are top 100 000 on the Alexa Rankings (www.alexa.com). I have taken heed. I will blog! Can anyone spell commission??

The next really BIG Thing!

Wed, 13 Feb 2008 21:19:00 -0700

Some time last year, my better half decided to start her own business. And as much as I love entrepreneurship I decided to help her along the way and bring my skills and experience to the table where applicable or possible. What she said back then was that

This could be huge in SA. Its something people haven't seen here in SA. The sky is the limit.

So we started the business and went to the The Good Food & Wine Expo 2007 and received an enormous amount of enthusiasm and feedback from both industry experts and consumers alike. In that regard I am proud to know that my better half's comments were not in vein, as The Business Day "Weekender" tends to agree with her.

Click here to read the article in the Business Day "Weekender"

You can also find the article in print for "The Weekender" edition 9-10 February 2008.

So say Hello! to our Cupcakes

www.hellocupcake.co.za

Lights go out during movie!

Sat, 19 Jan 2008 23:05:08 -0700

Can you believe it? Planned the whole the week to make a movie on Thursday night to watch "American Gangster" because I have been dying to watch it, and guess what?

My initial thought was that Sandton movies were a bad idea because of all the black outs they have been having. So I decided to call Sterkinekor to find out which of their cinemas have lights in the area? I was told The Zone Rosebank has lights. So off I go to rosebank to watch the movie. First of all I could'nt book the movie ticket on the self-help machine because their Telkom lines were done *Go Figure*.. All the lights were off on their display panels for the movie titles because "apparently" they helping with reducing power??????? I buy the tickets, decide to leave my girlfriend in the line for munchies while I go to the toilet. Just as the first drop hits the pot of water, the lights go and I hear a huge row of people *sigh* and *scream*. Now not only have I spent money on a movie I cant watch now, I have to piss in the darkness!! Then find my way out in one piece.

Get to the front, stood in line again to get my complimentary tickets and walk all the way around the zone to the underground parking lot because the lifts are not working and pay them R6 for parking for being there less then 15 minutes. I feel even more sorry for all the people who were actually in a movie while the lights went out!

I've got another reason to tell my overseas friends why I try not to go out too much. If crime was not a good enough reason, lack of power has to be? You always hear people saying that you cant let crime stop you from living. You cant live in your house all day long. Well now the fuck you can! Because they aint no lights all over the show.

You'd think to yourself that things are so bad as it already is, how much worse could it get? I stand to be corrected! Crime, lack of basic service delivery, corrupt police chief, possibly corrupt next president and a lame duck current president.

Eish! We got a long and dark (figuratively & literally) couple of years ahead of us.

A good article on SA's Power Crisis

Fri, 14 Dec 2007 13:28:04 -0700

Fin24's Andrew Kenny wrote:

And most unpleasant of all, we must realise that blackouts and power cuts will be with us until 2017 or beyond.

Check out his full article at http://www.fin24.co.za/articles/default/display_article.aspx?Nav=ns&ArticleID=1518-25_2238346

The really sad truth is that, irrespective of the politics and whose to blame, we screwed! Power stations take really long to build and hopefully our economy wont take such a huge hit during the black outs.

If you ask me Government and Eskom should give the whole country free electricity for 1 years. SARS and the Treasury are quite well equipped to take a knock. They been cleaning us out for the last couple of years. And if they can spend 50 Billion on stadiums the government can surely subsidise on Electricity. They suck at crime, leave us with our lights?

Anyhow, Happy Hunting in the Dark fellow Africans...

I can see 2010 coming, the world watching the soccer finals and parts of SA without lights to watch it.

Eid Mubarak

Sun, 14 Oct 2007 03:46:07 -0700

Wishing you all wonderful Eid and a Blessed year ahead of us Inshallah.

And take it easy on the feasting...

PS: Here's a little Eid Greeting Card I created.. Enjoy..

Microsoft Releasing Source Code - WoW!

Thu, 04 Oct 2007 23:21:17 -0700

No Lies. Seriously. Microsoft are releasing all the source code for their latest and greatest Microsoft Development Platform known as ".net Framework 3.5".

Basically it what all Vista and Windows based products will be built on going forward into the future. Fortunately for MS and unfortunately for the open source guys they have released it under what they call

"Microsoft Reference License (Ms-RL)"

Which means that you can only use it as a reference purpose. Yes you allowed to roll your eyes now. But hey! Its better then nothing. Its going to make debugging your applications a whole lot easier.

For more info check out:

http://weblogs.asp.net/scottgu/archive/2007/10/03/releasing-the-source-code-for-the-net-framework-libraries.aspx?CommentPosted=true#commentmessage

http://www.microsoft.com/resources/sharedsource/licensingbasics/referencelicense.mspx

Excellent Article on Political Islam

Tue, 02 Oct 2007 18:55:35 -0700

An author by the name of William Dalrymple has written an article called "Political Islam on the march". A very factual and honest opinion on the politics of the Middle East and Islam in general.

Click Here to Read It!!

In short its basically saying that as much as the West is trying to promote and impose their western diplomacy and democracy through illegal wars and dirty politics in the Middle East, the more the Muslims in those regions are backing behind pro conservative Islamic Factions. From Iraq to Algeria the people are becoming frustrated with their "pro-western" ruling parties. From Musharraf to the ruling monarch in Saudi Arabia, people are starting to see that the American Puppets who practice western democracy and politics is nothing more then inequality for the people and riddled with hypocrites and personal hidden agendas. Whereas the conservative Islamic parties are more aligned to equality and Islamic Sharia Law.

The fact is that the revolution has begun. The most pivotal point in Western/Islamic history will be the disaster of 9/11. American Foreign policy is back-firing. And as long as the bombs continue to fall, the revolution will rage on.

Don't Order ADSL Through ISP's. Naughty Telkom

Wed, 26 Sep 2007 02:27:46 -0700

At the moment ISP's like WebAfrica and CyberSmart offer what is called "All Inclusive" ADSL Packages. That includes the ADSL Installation and Bandwidth charges all in 1 price. They are basically reselling Telkom's services.

What's happening is that, if you order through e.g. WebAfrica they deny your order. Then if you order through Telkom's ISP "TelkomInternet" then your order gets approved. You can wait anywhere between 1 day to a 3 weeks before you realize your order has been denied when going through an ISP.

In short don't order through the ISP there is major potential that you'll end up waiting longer for your ADSL. Don't get me wrong here. I love the local ISP's. I use WebAfrica myself. I would rather die a 1000 deaths then have to deal with telkom.

http://mybroadband.co.za/news/ADSL/1418.html

The above article explains it all. Telkom is basically just being full of shit as they always are!

My suggestion would be to order your line through Telkom and then switch ISP's after 1 month of usage with Telkom. ISP's give you better service and they don't steal your cap!

Yes Telkom are known for stealing your cap. I've caught them out on numerous occasions.

Good Luck

How SA Software Dev Companies Work

Mon, 24 Sep 2007 16:36:27 -0700

This is an all to common approach by local Software Development companies here in SA. Big or small. From a Million rand project to a Thousand rand project. Its amazing how professionals work together, isn't it?

You got to Love MS Updates

Sat, 22 Sep 2007 08:34:49 -0700

Just did a fresh Re-Install of my PC. Windows XP Pro SP2.

Installed the following Programs:

Visual Studio 2005
Visual Studio 2008 Beta 2
MS Office 2007 Pro
MSN Live Messenger
Live Writer
SQL 2005 Express (With all Bells & Whistles)

And this is what the folks over in Redmond are telling me to download as "Updates"

And I clicked the "Express" option??

WTF do they think? Bandwidth grows on trees here in South Africa???????

Anyway's Microsoft really need to re-think their strategy when it comes to their updates as such. The only real reason they make it so difficult is because of this nonsense "Windows Authentic Validation Program" of theirs. Basically if you sitting with a phong kong version of Windows you aint getting any updates. And yes my copy of Win XP is authentic if you were wondering. It came with the Laptop :)

Pictures tell a thousand words... Now you know how I feel!!

PS: I am creating a Ghost Image of this drive and its going into a Swiss Bank Safety Deposit Box!

Technology - Part 1 - What is it? And why you should understand it!

Tue, 18 Sep 2007 02:37:24 -0700

Being a Software Developer on the Microsoft Platform of Technologies I have built a multitude of systems across different industries. My knowledge of Technology has compounded over the years based on the work I have done and the experience I have gained. Among my family and friends I am known as the "IT Guy". More often then not I get asked, "I need a new computer, what should I buy? Should I buy a laptop over a desktop? I need a piece of software that will make my job really easy? Can I do the following in MS Word? How do I copy my music CD's onto my Computer?". Being the good fellow that I am I always try to help out where I can. As they say, you never know when you might need someone's help one day.

The intention and purpose of this series of posts is to help you with the following:

	Understanding the definition and looking at a brief history of Technology
	Identifying the different categories of Technology
	The power of Leverage: How to use technology to your advantage, identifying opportunities and capitalising on today's technology & innovation tomorrow
	Defining what you know, what you don't know and what you need to know!
	Looking at technology and the effects on us and the environment around us
	And So On... (I will add excerpts based on feedback and my own discretion)

So What? And why do I need to know this?

Good questions, and if you not asking it, you should be!! Simply put, You doing yourself a major disservice and in-justice by choosing not to understand technology and technology related items. You'll end up missing great opportunities that complement your skills or profession. And here's why? Lets take the example of the IT Guy above with regards to my family and friends. They ask me those computer questions because I have the knowledge, the skill and the experience. If you were building a house you wouldn't go to an Accountant rite? You'd go to an Architect and a Building Contractor. Point is, we live in a society based on professional skills. Ranging from Lawyers to Accountants to Nuclear Physicists. Each profession is a Technology in itself. Its a culmination of techniques, methodologies, teachings, years of research and scientific experiments that make it what it is today.

Remember Technology is not just about computers. The Computer is a technology.

We often make the mistake of thinking that Technology is always computer related. Remember that we live in the year 2007. We live in this ultra fast pace lifestyle and the global village. We can travel 10 000 Km's in a week. Send a message to 1 Billion people with the click of a button. Our lives are so consumed with gizmo's, gadgets, computers, Internet and all this Computer Related Technology that we often forget where it has all come from.

Food for thought:

Just like every human has 5 senses: Eyes to see with, Ears to hear with, A Mouth to speak with, Tongue to taste with and nerve endings to feel with, would you have ever thought that Technology has practically given us a 6th sense. The sense of digital communication. By that I mean the Cellphone.

Practically every human being who is financially able has a cellphone. It has practically become a digital appendage to our anatomy, and I bet you didn't even realize it ? Its with you 24/7! The only differences between a cellphone and your hand for example is that one is biological and the other "technological". One was created by God the other by Man. One to type the SMS with and the other to send it with.

Now Lets have a look at the Definition of Technology

Fist, lets look at what the experts and academics have to say about it.

Dictionary.com

1. the branch of knowledge that deals with the creation and use of technical means and their interrelation with life, society, and the environment, drawing upon such subjects as industrial arts, engineering, applied science, and pure science.
2. the terminology of an art, science, etc.; technical nomenclature.
3. a technological process, invention, method, or the like.
4. the sum of the ways in which social groups provide themselves with the material objects of their civilization.

Wikipedia.org

Technology is a broad concept that deals with a species' usage and knowledge of tools and crafts, and how it affects a species' ability to control and adapt to its environment. In human society, it is a consequence of science and engineering, although several technological advances predate the two concepts. Technology is a term with origins in the Greek "technologia", "τεχνολογία" — "techne", "τέχνη" ("craft") and "logia", "λογία" ("saying"). However, a strict definition is elusive; "technology" can refer to material objects of use to humanity, such as machines, hardware or utensils, but can also encompass broader themes, including systems, methods of organization, and techniques. The term can either be applied generally or to specific areas: examples include "construction technology", "medical technology", or "state-of-the-art technology".
The human race's use of technology began with the conversion of natural resources into simple tools. The pre-historical discovery of the ability to control fire increased the available sources of food and the invention of the wheel helped humans in traveling in and controlling their environment. Recent technological developments, including the printing press, the telephone, and the Internet, have lessened physical barriers to communication and allowed humans to interact on a global scale. However, not all technology has been used for peaceful purposes; the development of weapons of ever-increasing destructive power has progressed throughout history, from clubs to nuclear weapons.
Technology has affected society and its surroundings in a number of ways. In many societies, technology has helped develop more advanced economies (including today's global economy) and has allowed the rise of a leisure class. Many technological processes produce unwanted by-products, known as pollution, and deplete natural resources, to the detriment of the Earth and its environment. Various implementations of technology influence the values of a society and new technology often raises new ethical questions. Examples include the rise of the notion of efficiency in terms of human productivity, a term originally applied only to machines, and the challenge of traditional norms.

In short, the world would not be where it is today and you would not be sitting in front of your computer reading this post. Technology is practically an "Evolution" of sorts.

Please note that for the purpose of this series of posts, I will purely be focusing on the positive and optimistic aspects of Technology. I.E. not weapons of mass destruction and Technologies effect on global warming.

Bringing it all together

As the title of this post states "Technology - Part 1 - What is it? And why you need to understand it!". That my dear friend is 120% dependent on you. There are all kinds of people in this world. Some are content with what they know, others are like sponges taking in whatever they can get.

If you've ever read Robert T. Kiyosaki's series of books called "Rich Dad, Poor Dad" you'll notice that he constantly makes reference to the term Financial Literacy. That would be the culmination of Accounting, Legal, Investment and People skills. His biggest argument is that, globally education systems around the world teach people "Professional Skills" i.e. how to be an Accountant, Software Developers and Lawyers, but does not teach them "Money Skills". I have seen University / College Graduates who go into the corporate field only to find themselves in a mountain of debt. Accountants who have in-depth knowledge of interest rates, credit card debt, etc.. They know of it, but do they understand it? Do they understand the uses, the consequences, the knock on effects and most importantly do they realize that by giving into temptation now, they risk financial crisis in the future. Part of the authors recommendations has to do with broadening your skill set. Putting yourself in a constant learning mode. As they say, "The more you learn, the more you realize how much you don't know!". So the question is? Are you willing to go that extra mile to learn more? This series of posts will be an attempt by me to simplify and help YOU! understand the different technologies out there. What it means to you? And what possible consequences and potential it holds for the future.

All of us are practically broken down into the following categories. Employed, Self-Employed and Studying. We all fall somewhere in-between these categories. Point is we're after the money. To survive, for our kids, for entertainment or whatever reason it is you wake up in the morning and go to work for! Technology is part of our lives. It plays a pivotal role in everything we do. Question is... Do you take notice of it? Do you understand the difference between choosing an Apple Mac Platform compared to a Microsoft Windows or even a Linux Platform for all your computing needs? Hopefully going forward, we'll help each other to gain a better "Technological Literacy" so that we can better make decisions in our businesses, lives and homes to either save money or make money. To be able to look at new Technology coming out and say "Hey! That's quite cool. I can see how I can take advantage of this new Technology in the next 12 months, or help improve my companies bottom line, or even create a better home entertainment system for me and my family."

Technology and the Internet has changed the world as we know it. Practically on a daily bases people are going against the norm of traditional corporations and making millions. Kids half your age know more about computers then me and you will ever know! Niche's and markets are emerging from places you never thought existed. Governments tighten the leases and people begin revolutions. Even with all this great and wonderful technology you'd need more then 24 Hours in a day to read all the news and keep up to date in this Global Village! By opening your mind, broadening your horizons, looking at everything from a birds eye view perspective and taking everything into account you stand a better chance at making the right decisions at the right times as you journey through life.

In the up coming series of posts we'll be looking at the following Technologies to help you better understand what it is and how it could possibly help you. Whether you're a seasoned Technology guru or someone who knows nothing about computers, there will be something for everyone. We'll be going through things like:

-> Basics in Computers and what you need to know

-> Networks and digital communications

-> Broadband & the Internet (PS: This is a hugely vast topic and will probably take time to cover it all)

-> Existing Technologies and case studies. Looking at the grass root levels of e.g. Googles Success. Looking at how we got from HTML to AJAX and RSS

-> Most importantly how to look at Technology from a liberal and a level playing field perspective and take advantage of it.

If you have read up to this point, Thanks! I know its quite a mouthful of words. I appreciate your time and patience and hopefully we'll have fun and uncover some interesting facts as we go forward.

Holy Month of Ramadaan

Thu, 13 Sep 2007 16:31:45 -0700

Ramadaan Mubarak to all fellow brothers and sisters out there. May Allah bless us and guide us. May Allah pardon us and shower mercy upon us.

A bit of History

The third pillar of Islam, which is fasting, is practiced during the month of Ramadan. Ramadan is derived from an Arabic word for intense heat and scorched ground. (in Arabic: رمضان, Ramaḍān) – – and it is the ninth month of the Islamic (Hijri) calendar, established in the year 638 CE. It is considered the most venerated, blessed and spiritually-beneficial month of the Islamic year. Prayers, fasting, charity, and self-accountability are especially stressed at this time; religious observances associated with Ramadan are kept throughout the month.

"Ramadan is the month during which the Quran was revealed, providing guidance for the people, clear teachings, and the statute book.

Those of you who witness this month shall fast therein. Those who are ill or traveling may substitute the same number of other days. Allah wishes for you convenience, not hardship, that you may fulfill your obligations, and to glorify Allah for guiding you, and to express your appreciation."[2:185]

Courtesy of www.wikipedia.com

Wishing you a wonderful and blissful Ramadaan.

The Long Overdue Update...

Thu, 13 Sep 2007 00:52:29 -0700

First off, my apologies for the lack of updates. I have just been busy working my socks off, and enjoying the benefits of being self-employed. So sue me :P

Secondly "Eish"... I stop blogging for a month and the World goes for a ball of shit. Pavarotti dies, Markets crash, Manto gets caught for stealing and a white boy gets kicked out of Parliament. Oh and I forgot to mention Helen Zille gets arrested for saying "NO" to drugs.

Shit like that only happens in South Africa. As much as you hate it, you just got to love it! How many Europeans can say they live in a country where the "Health Minister" who is supposedly setting an example of being "Healthy", Drinks like a Fish and gets a liver transplant at age 60. Moving on from the rants and raves lets see what's hip, hop and happening!!

Telecommunications -

Its Sizzling Hot I tell you! TELKOM is up for sale! Yay! Bring out the booze and lets party! They day I heard about it was the happiest day of my life. It brought tears of joy to my eyes. Any how, MTN looks like its in for the running, which is good news. MTN are in over 5-10 Different countries world wide. They have just stated that they will lay 5000KM of fibre across the country ranging from 2MB-1GB speeds. I am pretty sure Telkoms assets will be put to good use. Vodacom on the other hand (Remember Vodacom is 50% owned by Telkom) will probably be bought over by Vodaphone. For those of you in and around the JHB area, you must have come across the pot holes, dug up sidewalks and just plain old dirt everywhere you go. Well that's NEOTEL at work. They also laying cable and fibre like its going out of fashion. I am not complaining. The more bandwidth the better. Then there is "InfraCo". Governments little broadband initiative. Apparently they will be funding the undersea cables on the East & West Coast of Africa. They'll also have to accommodate the bandwidth requirements for the 2010 World Cup Soccer. So all in all, competition all round. That's good news. Prices should start to fall. Speeds are already increasing. The only hurdle left is the bandwidth portion. Anyone with a Telkom 4MB ADSL Line and 3GB Cap will get left behind the digital race faster then he can say Penelope Pit Stop. The only negative factors involved here are 2 elements. ICASA and the DOC. Basically ICASA needs to make sure that all these Telecom players play nice and don't screw the consumer. I.E. what MTN and Vodacom did to CellC. The DOC on the other hand is run by Manto's shadow copy, DR Ivy Matsepe Cassaburi. Lets all hope and pray that things turn out for the better. Nostradamus could not predict what impact ICASA and the DOC would have on the local Telecoms landscape. Government is like a Jack in the Box. Moving On...

Finance

For those of you who bought MTN shares, well done. I am no investor Guru but I am sure over the next 24 months you'll enjoy a steady climb on the JSE, unless Disaster strikes, markets crash and the shit hits the fan. PS: MTN shares did get oversubscribed so if you don't get your full allocation of shares, my suggestion would be to take the partial refund and invest in MTN anyway. I honestly think its money well spent.

On the flip side, Sasol are undergoing a BEE Transaction to the tune of R8 Billion. Keep your eyes and ears open as another Share Scheme should be coming around. No details of the share scheme have been made available yet to the public, so when I know you'll know.

Technology

Microsoft Office OneNote 2007, part of the MS Office 2007 suite. Use it, learn it and thank me afterwards! Windows Vista SP1 should be coming out Q1of 2008. That's when I will possibly switch.

Other then that, there is not much else I can think of. Good luck, keep safe and God Bless.

Welcome to My Official Blog

Sat, 08 Sep 2007 06:45:13 -0700

Hold your breath, cross your thumbs and here we go!