July 2008 Archives

I was on code.google.com, and was surprised to see an image in the usually text-based search website. In what looked like an ADvert for RadioHead's "House of Cards", there was this interesting line.

In Radiohead's new video for "House of Cards" from the album "In Rainbows", no cameras or lights were used. Just data.

Images were all formed by some dots or english characters all through the video.. and it looked quite interesting to see something like this for the first time. Something like effects we have seen in the film series 'Mummy'. The extra effect on the RadioHead video seems like, they have allowed some part of the image formed by the data to pulsate or move high/low based on the music.

The technology uses a mix of contouring techniques + lasers + geographical information scanners.. to deliver the goods.

Interesting!! presentation.. Out of Box stuff. Shows why google was so excited about the idea that they put this on their website(they have a policy not to put images or adverts on their sites other than their logo).

You will find the video and more information on how it was created at:
http://code.google.com/creative/radiohead/

The world of Tennis held its breath yesterday, as Rafael Nadal (Rafa), challenged Roger Federrer in the Wimbledon Men's Singles Final.

The match started with big expectations, because whichever of the finalists won, this final would be creating history. Also, this was the third successive time Rafa and Federrer were clashing in the Wimbledon finals.. both previous times Federrer reigning supreme and Nadal improving his game every year.

If Nadal wins, he were to equal the tennis legend Bjorn Borg's record of last winning both the French Open and the Wimbledon in the same calendar year.

If Roger Federrer wins, this would be his sixth successive wimbledon win, and could be poised towards beating another legend Pete Samprass's 7 successive wins at wimbledon. At the same time, Roger's sixth victory would surpass Bjorn Borg's 5 successive grand slam wins.

And so on.. the records were all there to be made, broken or to be kept.

Eventually, the 22 year old spaniard Nadal won his first ever wimbledon title, also his first ever title on grass court. Everybody is talking that this is a final that nobody who saw it live in the stadium would ever forget, and with Nadal winning, another era of tennis moves back with Federrer's achievements.

You should see the match hightlights and commentary here.

Photo Copyrights: wimbledon.org and getty images.

You are in India, and whichever news channel or newspaper you try, you see one thing big .. Indian politicians mulling over the nuclear deal that they signed with America. They signed it and then they stopped doing anything about it.. That should firstly give Americans some sign as to how to trust India next times when anything is signed.

Anyway, coming to the real part. .. Firstly, I suggest you ignore the drama the Indian politicians are doing with this nuclear deal thing. Yes, DRAMA.. you got it right.. they are not **really** really talking the deal, neither is the prime minister Dr.Manmohan sign a very positive person trying to do something good for India. It is all happening because, they want the country and importantly the country's media diverted from all gross problems in India today..

Gross problems from were we are being diverted:

1. Inflation is in two digits and strongly rising and seems to be steady for long at the higher mark.. never happened before.

2. The stock market made some uncalculated bullishness after the present government came to power and fiddled with something in the market. Everyone kept on diverting saying it is because India is really growing very fast economically.. and now the obvious BIG crash happened.. everybody outside India and many politicians and a few people who knew about all the eye-wash and brain-wash made loooot of money in this.... last time it happened they made a scape goat of a stock broker Harshad Mehta and bundled every other problem on him and put him in jail for many years. .. this time they are trying all means to divert attention so the truth about many billion India rupees never comes out.

3. Petrol prices are uphill.. and though the government can reduce some taxes on it and help the people, they want to continue making the money in taxes without any any consideration for helping all Indians at large.

4. Real estate prices are exhorbitant, because none of the government control authorities on the prices are working, because if prices increase fast and quick, the government gets lot of money in taxes quite quick.

These are some of the problems that you and I are made to divert from, so we don't discuss it, talk it, voice it, protest it.. and the government and most Indian politicians in power today seem to be more interested in the benefit of people outside the country by helping them make more and more money in India, rather than helping Indians live. Capitalism is fine, but not to do it outright when nothing in the country is ready for it immediately except the Software industry.

So, are you still diverted into the artificial Nuclear deal chaos, and still thinking Dr.Manmohan sign is trying to do something for the country.

This bank called UTI in India was in a financial crisis, and they smartly sold off when market was at its prime couple of years back. They became AXIS bank and all UTI branches and operations became AXIS.. They advertized, with twins in ADs, saying both UTI and AXIS are one and the same, not to worry, just the name is different. I am sure they will be cursing all their intelligence for that concept (of the ADs) now. Because the once happened financial crisis, is back with the bank and they are probably worser than the state what UTI was in to earlier.

I have a savings account with the bank, with some namesake money in it.. Obviously that is not the interesting part...and I am not going to ask you for donations to lift my account balance. Because the bank is doing just that. They are asking all their savings bank customers to put money into the bank to help their bankruptcy.

I got a call today from AXIS bank, a business development officer, who said, the bank's status with funds is not good.. I asked "do you mean.. the *bank's* status is not good? ".. and he said "yes, we don't have enough funds to run operations, and we thought it is a good time to call our known customers and ask them to transfer all their money in other banks into ours.. for the time being, to get us back in shape"

I couldn't feel anything for a while, let alone sympathizing, and after a while I got irritated and asked the officer is this how AXIS bank does business development.. and he got into the same thing.. couldn't feel anything for a while..

So much so, I kept the phone and was thinking what was happening..

Is this something that is there with all banks.. ?
Is this why recently when all banks increased their lending rates by 0.5%, ICICI bank increased its lending rates by 0.75% ?
The only thing that is coinciding financially is the stock market crash.. Did all banks put in a lot of money in to the stock market when the markets were hugely bullish a few months back ? and now that the market has crashed royally they are all crying over the pain of the money ?

Whatever, but we all think all the time, that banks know it best when it comes to managing money. No, they also are run by people like us is the fact.

Get back to some hard work with hard earned money.
If you want to invest in stock market, invest yourself and learn the nitty gritty.. not through mutual funds..

If you want to invest in anything.. invest yourself and learn the area, don't don't trust anybody with all that money.

At the end of day, I keep trying to think on any positive sides in this whole thing to keep my head away from worrying about that namesake money in AXIS bank.. oh yes.. there is a positive side.. I can tell everybody... "A bank...a bank.. asked me help by requesting me money.. imagine how big and rich I should be .. ha.. that's something".