pro TLH: December 2008

Monday, December 22

N97 unveiled

Wow.. so the ultimate device for mobile 2.0 arrives?

The N 97, first qwerty for Nokia in N series line up and this one comes with S60 5th generation touch screen interface. Claims to have the biggest memory (upto 48 gb) and the best in multimedia capabilities including the DVD quality recording and playback and its seamless integration with Ovi.com service.

Highlights

640x360 resistive touchscreen
qwerty keyboard slider
customizable desktop widgets
32GB of on-board memory
Maps 3.0 app and a compass
e to begin shipping in the first half of 2009 at an estimated retail price of EUR 550 before taxes or subsidies.

Setting aside the 5 mp camera and big screen with horizontal qwerty keyboard, whether N97 can take on iPhone in user interface needs to be seen. Gizmodo's report already indicates a not so perfect touch screen response.

HTC touch diamond, SE experia, Blackberry Storm and many more tried to out do Apple iPhone with more features and hardware but failed to make a serious dent to iPhone's leadership in Lifestyle device segment.

Expected to hit EU and Asian markets in H1 2009, this might reach US by the second half or 09. And Mr. Jobs would be announcing iPhone 3.0 by that time.

Engadget - nokia unviels N 97

Techmeme - Nokia N 97

Gizmodo - First ever N series touch screen qwerty device

Thursday, December 18

God of War 3 - VGA Trailer (HD)

Just awesome!!! The world's best game series is going HD. The fifth one in God of War series - God of war III is the most anticipated game for year 09 and is exclusive to PS3.

Kratos takes on mighty Zeus himself.

This is one game that will extract the full potential of PS3's hardware and blue ray disc. Ghost of Sparta in high definition is going to be the new bench mark in console gaming and can tilt the console war in favor of Sony.

Check out this video on YouTube:http://www.youtube.com/watchv=WKtWwEmJoqI

Watch the HD version of this video. This GOW III teaser gives a preview to the new weapons, moves and the game environment. Its just awesome.

Sent from my iPhone

Jammy

Sunday, December 14

vurnerable like a Goliath

Image by Telendro via Flickr

There is a big debate going on the misuse of tools like Google maps and messaging platforms like twitter by terrorist organisations. Many have called for restricting the availibility of google maps and similar services including global positioning systems.

Instead of being restrictive like Taliban, we should use the same technology and information to our advantage. Had mumbai police been better equiped with gps and similar navigational and command n control aids, we might have possibly save more lives. From managing traffic for quick movement of armed forces and fire engines to locating and alerting the nearest police team, the scope is endless.

We should be using our edge in IT in building an intelligent survillence network that can cover our huge shoreline and the porous borders with pak and bangladesh.

Make it mandatory to have gps onboard all small n large vessels for entering indian waters. We have every right to know who enters n exits. If there is a deviation from pre declared routes, then our survillence software can alert the nearest coastguard vessel.

Such an approach to adopting technology to leverage the best of our existing infrastructure would be far more productive than investing 100s of billions in an aged russian aircraft carrier.

Our enemy is not one country anymore. What we are dealing with is a small agile group of perverts who probably have more funding than the whole of Indian army. They remain so small and obscure that they still manage to evade even american search lenses. Like micro organisms they disperse and regroup across the globe, like mutants, they strike in different locations in different forms.

Our intelligence networks and security setups were designed for the coldwar period, for spying on countries, to fight invasions. Infront of these small groups, we stand vurnerable, like GOLIATH.

We must embrace technology to be one step ahead of terror groups. Else all our measures to combat terrorist threats will be only reactive and cannot pre empt such an event.

A Restrictive mindset wont help fight terror

I read an article about an advocate filing a public interest litigation against google n similar saterlite imagery based mapping services, sighting use for terrorist activities!

Wtf

They are just providing information that already exists in public domain. Gmaps increased accesability of information. Detailed hardcopy maps have always been available for purchase at any bookstore since ages.

Technology has always been a Two sided coin. This debate has been going from the day man started using science to his advantage. Probably from the time man tamed fire. Atomic energy has been the subject of another major debate.

Registering case against google cause gmaps were used by terrorist is ridiculous. would someone register a case against cycle manufacturers cause cycles were used for the serials blasts across our country a few months back? Nor do we think of stop making planes because it was used for 9 / 11.

We should be using our edge in IT in building an intelligent survillence network that can cover our huge shoreline and the porous borders with pak and bangladesh.

Such an approach to adopting technology to leverage the best of our existing infrastructure would be far more productive than investing 100s of billions in an aged russian aircraft carrier.

What you and I can do for better security?

CO Operate. Co operate with security agencies, follow their guidelines while hiring a servant or while renting out an apartment.

AND VOTE. Exercising one's right to vote is now also one's duty to society and the Nation.

Arun

Tuesday, December 2

Where The Mind is Without Fear..

Tagore knew it was comming,

Where The Mind is Without Fear

WHERE the mind is without fear and the head is held high
Where knowledge is free
Where the world has not been broken up into fragments
By narrow domestic walls
Where words come out from the depth of truth
Where tireless striving stretches its arms towards perfection
Where the clear stream of reason has not lost its way
Into the dreary desert sand of dead habit
Where the mind is led forward by thee
Into ever-widening thought and action
Into that heaven of freedom, my Father, let my country awake.: --Rabindranath Tagore

A case of short memory

As the nation, infact the whole world condemns and debates on the new face of terror, I wonder, how long will this be a major event in our collective memory.

From the very blasts in 1993 till now, there has been countless terror attacks on innocent citizens across the world. But how many of them can we recollect without putting a major effort on our memory? Probably 4 or 5.

Even when we look at the major attacks, the media attention and consequently the collective public memory of the event would have been for just 3 or 4 days. 9/11 managed a better 2 week coverage as it was a high profile attack. Blasts in Assam and attacks by Naxals dont even manage to get a front page or breaking news listing.

Media's role is supreme in shaping public opinion and today, it even controls the collective memory. I am dead sure, if we provide our our media with a leak on abhi-ash tif, all the recent terror related coverage will be replaced with "live" coverage on Bachan family. They will even stitch together various movie clips and have the news enacted and post mortemed. Within a day of media overdoze, the anguish and grief we had about the terror attack will be replaced by excitement and gossip related to Abhi Ash.

As the media coverage of terror attacks fade away, our beaurocracy, politicians and we as citizens turn complacent and puts the promises we took for improving the situation on to the back burner. There it will remain till the next bomb explodes in the parliment or presidential palace.

A month from now, How many of us will remember the pledge we took, the 2 minutes of silence we offered, the promise to self that "I will do what I can, instead of blaming the politicians"...

In one way, why blame the media, its profit driven, serves us with what we in general wish to see. Sensationalized news of trivial issues happening to our celebs, or "khufia cams" on our politicians.

We are the problem. We are the solution.