sai notes

Prescience in naming children

2007-07-16T12:47:00.000-07:00

On my latest train journey to Kuppam (quite frequent these days!), the Senior Ticket Examiner was an appropriately named Mr. Marga Bandhu (A friend for the journey). One of Seshadripuram Rama Seva Samithi trustees (i think it was Mr. Ramadoss) once mentioned that few parents have the prescience in naming their children. He was talking after a wonderful flute recital by Vidwan K. S. Gopalakrishnan and was a very apt comment. I recalled this comment the moment i saw Mr. Marga Bandhu's badge pinned to his jacket.

There is a long tradition of second names denoting the past profession of a family in many countries. I remember an English hockey team consisting of Barber, Potter and Taylor in the late 80s. Michael Schumacher did have very little to do with mending shoes nor did Nari Contractor do anything with women!!

Are there more examples of first names that reveal more about a person or his profession and parents having the prescience to name them appropriately?

There are only two types of musicians...

2007-06-17T22:01:00.000-07:00

One is and the other not.
- Pandit Omkar Nath Thakur

Gyanvani (107.6 Mhz, FM Radio channel in Bangalore), the FM education radio channel of IGNOU has a very insightful programme on Introduction to Indian Classical Music (both Hindustani and Carnatic ) spread over many 1 hour episodes. The explanatory notes are interspersed with great excerpts from maestros. Sundays, 9pm, repeat on Monday, 9 am.

Heard a wonderful Bhoopali composition rendered by Bade Ghulam Ali Khan and a equally brilliant Malkauns by Pandit Omkar Nath Thakur.

Anand becomes chess World No. 1 : chess, vishwanathan anand, FIDE, world no 1 : IBNLive.com : CNN-IBN

2007-04-04T11:49:00.000-07:00

Anand becomes chess World No. 1 : chess, vishwanathan anand, FIDE, world no 1 : IBNLive.com : CNN-IBN

My favourite Indian sportsperson is now World No. 1 as well. In a country where sports achievements are a rarity, being the World No. 1 and a consistent top ranked player for close to a decade and half is quite commendable. He is a thorough gentleman and a great role model. I am proud to belong to his generation.

The Hindu : National : Laurie Baker, pioneer of low-cost houses, passes away

2007-04-03T01:38:00.000-07:00

The Hindu : National : Laurie Baker, pioneer of low-cost houses, passes away

My good friends, Chitra and Vishwanath, architects of my house were inspired, guided by Laurie Baker quite significantly. In that sense, i have benefited directly from his remarkable work. They called him "architect to the poor", i wonder why just the poor!, it is architecture that is appropriate for everyone to follow (particularly the well to do).

Two IAS officers to get Excellence awards

2007-04-01T20:59:00.000-07:00

Two IAS officers to get Excellence awards

Two IAS officers, Rajeev Chawla and R S Pandey, have been selected for the Prime Minister's Awards for Excellence in Public Administration for the year 2005-6. Chawla is secretary, Government of Karnataka, while Pandey is secretary, Ministry of Steel. The two bureaucrats would receive these awards on April 21, the Civil Services Day....

I have met Rajeev Chawla atleast on three occasions and his enthusiasm is visible to see. He seems to be a workaholic and you cannot fault him for his penchant to get things done. My friend, Anirban Mukerji, who works with him tells me that he is never short of work and has not had such pressure even in the private sector. Rajeev has also managed to be in his current dispensation for over 8 years now (not easy for an IAS officer!) and this is another testament of his focus. Congratulations!

Carnatic vocalist Muktha passes away .:. NewKerala.Com, India News Channel

2007-03-12T11:37:00.000-07:00

Carnatic vocalist Muktha passes away .:. NewKerala.Com, India News Channel:

Have a few recordings of Brinda and Muktha, they were quite well known for their vilambakaala renderings.

"ನನ್ನ ಜನಕ ಆಮ್ಲಜನಕ — ಟಿ.ಪಿ.ಕೈಲಾಸಂ"

2006-11-26T20:31:00.000-08:00

The Hindu : Metro Plus Bangalore : Just drop by for a chat

2006-11-01T22:32:00.000-08:00

An article in the Hindu about the state of Kannada Blogosphere
The Hindu : Metro Plus Bangalore : Just drop by for a chat

Here is a nice quote by M. S. Sriram, Prof. at IIM B

Also, because it's a new space free of the conventions guiding strictly "literary" forums, there is a new variety in the voices you hear. For instance, while the blog of a well-known critic like O.L.N. Swamy offer some erudite articles on literature and the dynamics of language growth, the debates it generates make for exceptionally interesting reading. The observations of M.S. Sriram, an established writer and a professor at the Indian Institute of Management, on the issue of hybrid identities also leads to many discussions. Arguing that narrowing down Kannada identity is counterproductive, he writes: "The search for a Kannada identity is like peeling an onion. If we go on excluding layers, we will be left with nothing but tears."

Nice quote by Ambedkar

2006-10-30T20:28:00.000-08:00

Read this on Times of India, a deemed university VC was quoting Ambedkar in the meeting called by Arjun Singh, Human Resources Minister to discuss reservations in private institutions - 'Indian Caste system is like a four storeyed building with no staircase'

Yahoo India SMS Backup

2006-09-20T04:28:00.000-07:00

We launched a new mobile service - Yahoo India SMS Backup (it is about a month already).

The product provides mobile users an option to store their important (not necessarily!) messages online and it neatly integrates with the popular Yahoo Mail application. Users gets near unlimited SMS storage and device independence. They just need to register their mobile phone with their yahoo id and forward messages to a yahoo SMS Backup short code (82438243), messages are automatically stored in a separate folder called SMS Backup in their mail box. You can try the product at http://in.mobile.yahoo.com/smsbackup.html

Will be interesting to see what kind of adoption it will have?

Yahoo Buzz mentions an Indian event!

2006-09-13T21:48:00.000-07:00

I occasionally take a look at the Yahoo Buzz on messenger to see what the world is looking for. The typical buzz movers are Mario lopez, Shanna Barker etc.. (who are they kind of quiz for Indian audiences). To my surprise i saw an Indian topic being covered for the very first time under what the world is searching for - http://buzz.yahoo.com/buzzlog/35820/when-surya-met-jyothika

Amr Awadallah Blog�Blog Archive � Hilrious, yet amazing, Math Skills.

2006-07-21T13:03:00.000-07:00

Amr Awadallah Blog - Blog Archive - Hilarious, yet amazing, Math Skills.

Shunya.in: News for Techies in India, by Techies in India.

2006-07-10T04:36:00.000-07:00

Shunya.in: News for Techies in India, by Techies in India.

Tech news site in Hindi, Telugu, English, Tamil etc on the lines of digg.com

Bangalore bound - Deccan Herald - Internet Edition

2006-07-03T04:41:00.000-07:00

A good list of books on Bangalore
Bangalore bound - Deccan Herald - Internet Edition

Radio channels i listen to

2006-06-17T01:11:00.000-07:00

Most popular radio channels in bangalore are vieing for top honours. Here are two channels that do not appear in the popularity charts but are my favourites.

1. Amruthavarshini, AIR FM channel for classical music, 6pm to 10 pm , 100.1 Mhz
2. Gyan Vani, AIR FM channel for education and music, 6pm to 10 pm, 6am to 10 am, 107.6 Mhz

Peacock Classics - noble venture

2006-06-13T02:19:00.000-07:00

Vijayabhaskar, a friend from the Kuppam HP i-community told me about this interesting venture. Peacock Classics plan to publish about 100 great world classics in Telugu. Take a look.

ಙ್ಞಾನ ವಾಣಿ ಯಲ್ಲಿ ಇಂದು ಡಾ. ರಾಜಣ್ಣ ರವರು ಹೇಳಿದ ಮಾತು

2006-05-17T05:55:00.000-07:00

ವಿದ್ಯಾವಂತರೆಲ್ಲರು ಬುದ್ದಿವಂತರಲ್ಲ
ಬುದ್ದಿವಂತರೆಲ್ಲರು ವಿಚಾರವಂತರಲ್ಲ
ವಿಚಾರವಂತರೆಲ್ಲರು ಆಚಾರವಂತರಲ್ಲ

Top 10 Windows XP Tips Of All Time - Yahoo! News

2006-04-23T21:26:00.000-07:00

Top 10 Windows XP Tips Of All Time - Yahoo! News

Intel Launches New Ruggedized PC Platform For India

2006-04-10T23:04:00.000-07:00

Intel Launches New Ruggedized PC Platform For India: "the Intel-powered Community PC platform was developed to be a fully functional, expandable and shared-access computing solution. It is a highly reliable, manageable system that supports remote diagnostics and control features under low power requirements. Unique features include:

* Ruggedized chassis: The chassis has been designed to withstand dusty conditions, varying temperatures and high humidity. It has a removable dust filter and integrated air fan to regulate the temperature of the motherboard. The chassis is designed to keep the motherboard cool at temperatures as high as 45 degrees Celsius and the PC resistant to humidity levels of 70 to 85 RH (Relative Humidity).
* CPSU: The PC is equipped with a Customized Power Supply Unit which is comprised of an Integrated Power Supply and the UPS (Uninterruptible Power Supply) unit, which allow the PC to maintain continuous load power in the event of a power outage.
* Low power consumption: The total power consumption of all peripherals is less than 100 watts.
* Access Control:The platform comes installed with a certificate-based access, allowing banks to verify the validity of installment payments against the purchase of the PCs."

How IT is changing rural India

2006-04-10T21:31:00.000-07:00

How IT is changing rural India

*Surajeet Das Gupta | *April 07, 2006

Farmers in a remote village in Honavar, 600 km away from Bangalore, are
using ATM machines to open a bank account. Believe us - it's true.

An ATM machine loaded on a van winds its way through the dusty roads of over
five villages offering 22000-odd farmers perhaps their first experience with
a bank - they can open an account, request for a loan and be able to deposit
as well as withdraw cash at will in the near future.

The ATM machine is linked wirelessly through Reliance Infocomm's network to
the backend server of the participating bank, which includes Syndicate Bank
and State Bank of India. The software on the ATM is simple - in regional
languages and very easy to decipher.

Says S S Satchidananda, professor in Indian Institute of Information
Technology who piloted the project with funds from a consortium lead by
Microsoft: "What we wanted to demonstrate is a cost saving solution for
banks that are seeking to expand their rural reach but have no other choice
but to set up a branch which is expensive and unviable".

For the last few years state governments, NGOs and some pioneering companies
have tried to crack the technology barrier - by developing pilot projects to
showcase the marvels of IT in a rural setting. The phenomenon is better
known as "Bridging the Digital Divide".

The success of ITC's 6000 odd e-choupals covering over 35000 villages, has
made many believe that this model can be made viable. Big boys are jumping
onto the bandwagon - ranging from top IT companies, NGOs, technology
providers and the government.

*Need to scale up*

The name of the game is clear: how to scale up and still be viable.
Microsoft, for instance, has set up an ambitious target. It hopes to set up
over 50000 broadband connected kiosks across villages covering over 50 per
cent of the rural population in the next three years under the "Saksham"
scheme. The company is funding NGOs as well as local companies with an
undisclosed budget to make the project a reality.

Says Ranjivjit Singh, group director, consumer business: "In the last three
months, we have rolled out over 300 kiosks and our studies have helped us
build a self-sustaining model to enable the kiosk owner make money."

Not to be left behind, Intel recently joined the club announcing a new
program "Jagruti" whereby it will offer PC makers an innovative platform
developed exclusively for the rural market. Points out Bill M Sui, vice
president, Intel: "The requirement for rural India is not cheap PCs, but PCs
which work in that setting."

Intel has developed a rugged chassis to withstand dusty and extreme
temperatures. It has also integrated a UPS as well as an AC\DC converter in
the machine so that it can work on a car battery for six to eight hours, to
tackle the lack of electricity in many villages. Moreover, it has also tied
up with Microsoft in an "affordability alliance" which will look at
partnerships to provide solutions for rural India.

Yes, the ministry of Information Technology has set up an ambitious target
to set up one lakh "common services centres" across villages where
e-governance services will be available by August 2007. It has tied up with
ILFS to manage the roll-out with support from NGOs, ISPs and others. The
government has also earmarked Rs 100 crore (Rs 1 billion) to fund this
Mission 2007.

Local Indian companies who have pioneered the rural move, but have had
problems of scaling up, are now embarking on an expansion spree. Jai Kisan -
an NGO set up to introduce rural IT technology in Uttaranchal - is hoping to
put up over 3000 Kisan Soochna Kendras (a digital hub) across the state.

But tobacco giant ITC is concentrating on creating a physical infrastructure
to support the 6,000 e choupals - which are run by entrepreneurship-driven
sanchalaks (organisers).

It is now creating a second tier of entrepreneurs by appointing
up-sanchalaks (deputy organisers) in over 14000 villages (it has already
appointed 15000) who would directly interact with the e-choupal owners. Also
it is planning to set up over 50-choupal sagars, which will have
hypermarkets, fuel stations, restaurants and even an educational service
centre.

Says ITC's S Sivakumar, chief executive, international business division:
"Till date, the sanchalaks were looking after six villages. We will soon
have a digital infrastructure here in these villages too once more low cost
communication solutions are available".

Chennai-based n-Logue Communications - part of the Telnet group, which was
floated by professors in IIT Chennai, wants to replicate the PCO model to
increase per capita incomes in rural India. It has already rolled out over
2500 kiosks across the country using C-ordect technology (wireless and local
loop) to provide broadband connectivity to the villages.

Says Ashok Jhunjhunwala, who leads the Telnet group: "Our aim is to
replicate the PCO model in rural India so that we can double the rural per
capita GDP through IT. We want to set up a kiosk within 500 metres of
everyone's home".

*The model*

Ensuring a connected kiosk model as a viable unit is not an easy task. That
is why despite all the noise, there are not more than 13000 connected kiosks
across the country (a large chunk of which is run by ITC's e-choupal).
Jhunjhunwala admits that out of the 2500 kiosks that they have installed,
only one-third works regularly.

Microsoft, for instance, undertook a study of over 350 kiosks, involving
4000 users in six states to understand user habits, which could throw up a
viable model. Singh says the study threw up some interesting insights:
kiosks, which only offered e-governance services (like registration of life
and death, land records etc) were unable to sustain themselves very long.

The reason was simple: while 70 per cent of the revenues when the kiosk was
launched came from e-governance, in six months it dropped to 20 per cent. So
there was need for offering more comprehensive services in the kiosk for
farmers to come in.

That is what Microsoft is doing. Says Singh: "Our approach is to bring
different kinds of offline as well as online services together to make the
kiosk viable."

The company has developed educational content online for children in local
languages, which is available for a subscription of Rs 50 to Rs 100 a month.
A printer and software for desktop publishing ensures that you can publish
marriage or invitation cards or even a CV for a nominal Rs 10 to Rs 12 a
piece.

And as PCs our loaded with Windows Media Player - many local kiosks owners
have converted themselves into mini movie halls - offering movie shows at a
nominal Rs 2-3 a show.

How does Microsoft ensure that the model is viable? Take, for instance, its
tie up with Dhristee - an NGO, which has perhaps the cheapest-priced kiosk
model. Kiosks are not cheap - one connected with a VSAT (Very Small Aperture
Terminal), battery pack and printer, requires an investment of over Rs
70000.

The method is straightforward: the entrepreneurs have to pay Rs 20000
upfront. The rest comes from bank loans. Kiosks owners need to pay about Rs
1666 per month to pay off the loan but Drishtee offers them a minimum income
guarantee of Rs 3000 a month.

Says Singh: "Our experience has shown that the entrepreneur is cash positive
within the first two to three months." He points out that an average in a
village of 5000 homes at least 20 people go to the kiosk everyday - and that
is enough to break even and make money.

Microsoft of course funds Dhritsi lumpsum or with software support - which
can be used to subsidise the overall investment, reduce his upfront cost, or
his loan burden depending on individual needs.

There are other models too. And many are using innovative ways to generate
revenues. Jai Kisan has, in fact, gone up-market by creating a "Kisan
Soochna Kendra" in far-flung villages of Uttaranchal where road
communication is not at its best.

The kendra has swanky styling - it is built with glazed tile floorings and
equipped with the latest gizmos - laser printers and scanners and even a
movie video camera and PCs connected by VSAT to the outer world. But is also
costs money - an investment of a steep Rs 510,000.

*Challenges*

However, Sanjiv Sharma CEO of Jai Kisan.org says that despite the high cost,
the model works. The owner of the Kendra - who is generally the gram pradhan
puts Rs 25000 upfront. Jai Kisan (which gets funds from various agencies
including companies like Microsoft) forks out Rs 40000, and banks fund the
remaining portion.

Then you also get grants from the Khadi Vikas Industry Board - which use the
kiosks for selling and promoting khadi products. To add to the viability,
Jai Kisan guarantees the owner Rs 11,000 a month - which ensures that even
after paying back the loan instalment (Rs 7500) he is making money.

The question, though, is how does Jaikisan afford to provide such a high
level of guarantee? Well, simply put, it has innovative ways of getting in
revenue.

The NGO for instance has roped in companies ranging from Pepsi to Coke to
advertise by using the walls of the Kendra to sell their products.

Last year, it generated at an average Rs 5000 a month from selling
advertising space. This year, it expects to hit Rs 11000 - which will take
care of the minimum guarantee it offers the entrepreneur.

Secondly, the NGO has helped in floating Jai Kisan Foods (made out of farmer
enraptures in the village), which sell farm products ranging from mangoes,
herbs, medicinal plants through the Jaikisan portal to potential buyers -
dispensing with the middle men. Already companies like Dabur are using the
structure to buy medicinal plants directly from the farmers.

No doubt communication costs - through VSATs - are a key impediment in
proliferation of the kiosk model. But as Jaikisan executives tell you,
telephone connectivity of BSNL is unreliable (exchanges don't have power for
days), private sector wireless connectivity is conspicuous by its absence -
so there is no choice but to go for a VSAT even if it is not cheap.

Singh says if wireless connectivity was available, investment costs would
fall by more than half and kiosk owners would have to pay only a monthly
running cost of broadband connectivity. That, of course, remains the biggest
challenge.

*Solutions*

Some are trying to get over the problem. Intel is pushing for Wimax as a
cheaper solution but with its standards still not been fixed, this might be
a while away. n-Louge, has deployed cordect (wireless and local loop)
technology to bring in connectivity to the villages. And it charges between
Rs 500 to Rs 1,000 monthly to ensure uninterrupted connectivity.

Says Jhunjunwala: "It is a much cheaper option virtually one sixth the cost
of a VSAT connection. And the bandwidth which is not shared is far superior
in quality than VSAT".

This would require a cluster of kiosks in a 25-50 kilometre area to justify
the initial investment, which could be around Rs 40 lakh (after all you need
to put in a couple of base stations around).

So Jhunjunwala says you need at least 200-300 kiosks to make it viable. At
the moment with most companies spreading the kiosks over a larger
geographical distance - it might not be the best option.

Agrees ITC's Sivakumar: "At the moment, only a VSAT is viable because you
don't have the concentration of digital infrastructure in a small
geographical distance".

But that is not deterring many companies and researchers to work out niche
applications - which can be converted into a viable business model. One such
area is banking. Mobile wireless ATMs-developed by IIIT Bangalore is one
such solution.

Satchidananda points out that it costs a bank Rs 12 lakh (Rs 1.2 million) to
set up a one- man branch in rural India, add in the huge running cost and it
is unviable. But a mobile ATM operator invests Rs 12 lakh - and the
infrastructure could be used for many villages, across talukas and many
banks. So it is surely a cost-effective solution.

Satchidananda and his team are also working on creating a databank of
village homes - information any bank, insurance company or even an FMCG
would pay for - to process a loan application, an insurance claim or target
a product.

The solution, underway in Karnataka, aims to encourage entrepreneurs to
invest in a PDA and go to each home to collect information on topics like
assets, livestock, crop patterns and income (they are paid for this
collection of course by the bank or by the data center which wants to
collect this information). This information is then sent wirelessly to data
centers, which are owned by telcos.

Companies can tie up or pay for this information available with telcos. Says
Satchidananda: "A bank can use this information to do individual credit
rating and it can outsource the loan recovery work to the PDA owner. So it
is a win win for both". Surely even telcos can make money-by selling this
valuable information to potential clients.
Bridging the "digital divide" might not be as easy as it sounds. However,
companies are taking the first steps to work out viable and scaleable models
to make it a reality.

http://in.rediff.com/money/2006/apr/07spec.htm
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Shubhranshu Choudhary Freelance Journalist
Ph : + 91 98110 66749 e mail : smitashu@gmail.com
http://36garh.notlong.com http://smitashu.8m.net

new symbol

2006-03-27T02:00:00.000-08:00

new symbol
Originally uploaded by karthiks.

Found this nice cartoon on flickr when i was generally browsing for photos tagged with kumaraswamy. Very symbolic of regional humour/satire.

Interesting post on different learning methods by RadioJois in Collective Chaos mailing group

2006-03-26T05:49:00.000-08:00

My name is Suresh Jois. Im new to CC, new to filmmaking but
reasonably well worn in that greatest school and teacher of all -
life. I think one way to illuminate this issue is to begin by making
a distinction between what obtains from "learning", vs. "learning by
being taught."

Anyone can learn anything from any source - a professional teacher,
the rear window, the screen, an ant, the stars, tea leaves,
dreams ...

From all of the above sources, you learn. But from a teacher, you
learn by being explicitly taught by another human being. Because of
this crucial difference between the two types of learning, there are
different affects and effects, on how you learn, the neurological
pathways invoked, the memories formed etc.

Actually beyond these two types, there is a third way - apprenticing
under a master - which I feel offers the best of both, but more on
that some other time ...

Learning and being taught are potentially complementary but NOT
mutually or causally dependent. Both a good student and a good
teacher know the distinction between the two, and know when to
pursue the appropriate activity. Depending on the recipients
personality, he/she can be impacted beneficially or adversely from
either method. It is naively fascist to assert one is
better/mandatory or worse/irrelevant than the other.

So the best way to answer the central question of this thread, is to
ask yourself - HOW is that you learn, and is your personality
amenable to being taught by someone else. IMHO the WHAT part of this
debate is irrelevant, ie, whetner you can learn focus pulling from a
teacher vs. scripting on your own is not the right segmentation or
partitioning of this problem space.

Another question that I think will help a "learner" chose the best
path is - betweem "learning" vs. "being taught," which method sets
you the most free? Which method gives you the most degree of
FREEDOM? Do you express your best only when guided by a teacher, or
you crave the freedom of making any and all mistakes with no one to
constrain you? Maximizing your freedom of expression, rather than
aquisition of knowledge or skill per se, should be the primary
payoff.

Now, from the above general points, here's my own personal
experience which invariably comes down on one side of the issue, but
expectedly so per my above explanation.

If I go back and remember the essence of HOW (and hence what) I
learnt from teachers/instructors, it always turns out that an
essential resonance between their *personality* and mine was key,
not the specific pieces of knowledge or subject they specialized in.
If a teacher had an impactful personality, then the subject he/she
taught would be stored in association with the teacher's personality.

Ive had a mere handful of teachers out of the 100s Ive encountered,
who have been impactful enough that I can attribute specific pieces
of my knowledge to their instruction. My physics teacher was more a
friend, my math teacher spoke more of the valor of conquering
calculus, my English poetry teacher stunningly personified the
romance, passion and beauty she spoke of. And each of these taught
me for just a year each in school.

Most of everthing Ive learnt and applied, ranging from the alphabet
to math to biology to software engg, has been mostly by observation,
reading, association, serendipity, sheer pressure of deadline ...

Even my prospective film "teachers" (of sorts, since I dont attend
any film school) seem to impact me more by their saintly
personalities, than film-making specifics.

Also to an extent, IMHO those that are "prone" to learning ONLY by
being taught, have the risk of becoming inbred, conditioned by and
habituated to that specific portal (teacher or institution) of
knowledge, and its world views, its currency of power, mode of
expression etc. The more complex/subjective/abstract the subject
matter that is learned-by-being-taught, the harder it is to be
chaotically creative!

And a last personal view is that in this era of highly commoditized,
democratized, mass-customized media, everyone can and should be a
spontaneous film-maker, without waiting to be anointed by a course
or teacher. I glimpsed this future unfold, when I handed a camera
phone to my kid niece.

But besides my personal view, based on my earlier more neutral
points, I'd say each unto his/her own.

In other words, an individual can either be a Rumi to his Shams, or
an Ekalavya to a merely nominal Dronacharya.

Let me end with a few quotations, which taken together, express a
good range of views on this issue:

"If you think of learning as a path, you can picture yourself
walking beside her rather than either pushing or dragging or
carrying her along." Polly Berrien Berends. Whole Child/Whole Parent.

"Everybody who is incapable of learning has taken to teaching." -
Oscar Wilde

"Learning and teaching should not stand on opposite banks and just
watch the river flow by; instead, they should embark together on a
journey down the water. Through an active, reciprocal exchange,
teaching can strengthen learning how to learn." Loris Malaguzzi
(19201994), Child learning specialist.

"The detour becomes the path" Zen Proverb

Renewal of Passport

2006-02-23T20:12:00.000-08:00

It is ten years since i got my first passport and time for renewal. Much has changed in the last ten years (at the regional passport office, bangalore)
* I reserved an appointment online to submit the application and was able to complete the submission process in about 35 mins. It took more than 3 hours of waiting in large queues ten years ago. Appointment through the web was unheard of.
* You can view the status of your application on the web, phone or even via SMS
* New passports are expected in 40 days, a huge improvement from the 3 to 5 month wait earlier
* Documentation has been simplified but there is still room for improvement
* Amenities (waiting halls, seating, hygiene, audio systems etc) for users at the office require improvement, has not changed much in the last ten years though it looks a little more organised. A new passport office is being built in Koramangala and this might make it better for users.

Look forward to the police verification and issue of the new passport soon.

Emergic: February 14, 2006 Archives

2006-02-14T04:51:00.000-08:00

Emergic: February 14, 2006 Archives
TECH TALK: India Internet and Mobile: Role of Venture Capital (Part 2)

Venture capitalists should also think of building up an ecosystem of companies along a value chain in the selected areas, rather than making an independent string of investments. This is because most of the elements of the value chain that are required to make a new venture succeed do not exist fully in India. This lack of legacy can be turned into an opportunity rather than a drawback through smart thinking and investing. It is a bit like the keiretsu approach of Japanese companies. Such an approach will require thinking at an early stage of what tomorrow�s world is going to be � and then working to put in place all the companies that are required to make that world a reality....

Emergic: February 13, 2006 Archives

2006-02-14T04:50:00.001-08:00

Emergic: February 13, 2006 Archives
TECH TALK: India Internet and Mobile: Role of Venture Capital

What is the role venture capital can play in addressing these challenges?
Venture capital in India has to be thought about a little differently from that in developed economies. India lacks not just the ecosystem of seed (and angel) funding, but also a large base of first-generation entrepreneurs and education-industry interaction. In addition, the value chain of entities required to capitalise on the new world being created is also not there. So, how can venture capitalists help build out the Indian Internet and mobile businesses?...

Emergic: February 10, 2006 Archives

2006-02-14T04:50:00.000-08:00

Emergic: February 10, 2006 Archives
TECH TALK: India Internet and Mobile: Connecting Indians (Part 2)

The opportunity in India of addressing the Internet and mobile needs of the tens of millions of users thus lies around the twin tracks of providing an Internet computing infrastructure for the next 100 million users, and building a content and services platform for them so that urban users can (among other things) alleviate life�s daily inconveniences and rural users can increase their incomes. How do we build this out?....

Emergic: February 9, 2006 Archives

2006-02-14T04:48:00.000-08:00

Emergic: February 9, 2006 Archives
TECH TALK: India Internet and Mobile: Connecting Indians

This backgrounder brings us to the second issue.

What is required to service 300 million mainstream connected Indian consumers with diverse usability requisites & language barriers?

Let us first segment the customer base. I like to look at this from two different viewpoints. The first, who these potential users are, and the second, what devices are being used.

There are five segments in which users (and usage) can be classified: home users, small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), large enterprises, educational and rural. Of these, the large enterprise users are most likely to be like their brethren in the developed world � using mostly mid- to high-end desktops (and increasingly, wireless-enabled laptops) to get their work done. The two biggest opportunities in India are with home and SME users. The penetration of computers in both segments is about 10%: about 5 million out of 45 million middle and upper-middle class homes in urban and semi-urban India have computers, and about 1 in 10 of the 50-odd million infoworkers across SMEs have access to computers. There is very large �non-consumption� across both segments....

Emergic: February 8, 2006 Archives

2006-02-14T04:45:00.000-08:00

Emergic: February 8, 2006 Archives
TECH TALK: India Internet and Mobile: Mobile Challenges

It is somewhat ironical that commercial Internet and mobile services were launched in India at the same time � August 15, 1995. Today, the mobile industry is way ahead of the Internet. With calling rates amongst the lowest in the world, Indian mobile operators have been forced to adapt their business models to make money. The result: a user base of 75+ million users growing at nearly 5 million a month. The mobile industry is the big success story in India. In other words, it has been a win-win situation: for consumers and for the service providers....

Emergic: February 7, 2006 Archives

2006-02-14T04:42:00.000-08:00

Emergic: February 7, 2006 Archives
TECH TALK: India Internet and Mobile: Internet Challenges

We would like to explore the salient challenges facing businesses predominantly driven by Internet & Mobile.

The Internet user base in India is said to exceed 35 million with two-thirds of that access coming in from cybercafes. I believe that for the Internet to play a significant role in our lives much of that access has to shift to homes. Only then will people start building their lives around the Internet. Availability of access away from home for a few minutes a day is not how the Internet usage will take-off, even though the user base may keep growing.

Emergic: February 6, 2006 Archives

2006-02-14T04:38:00.000-08:00

Emergic: February 6, 2006 Archives

FOSS in primary education - Indian context, Talk at foss.in/2005

2005-12-02T04:04:00.000-08:00

Swaroop C H, The Dreamer: "Then, Sai Sreekanth spoke about FOSS in primary education. He presented his experience with schools in Kuppam and how freely available software made a difference to the learning of the children. Interestingly, he said that training and English were not the barriers - just having a computer running with all the software loaded were enough and the kids really learn to explore on their own. He demonstrated a few software that were very useful and the audience were quite fascinated by the breadth and depth of the software such as Tux Math Scrabble, Celestia, Anagramarama, edu.kde and many more. There is a whole lot of software out there available for school education that need to be taken advantage of, especially in hinterland areas where good teachers are rare and there are budget constraints. For example, if a school can’t afford a real chemistry laboratory, then ChemConnection is an amazing piece of software where you can mix and match chemicals and see the result of the reactions. Sai pointed to many more resources such as iosn.net, ofset.org, pratham.org and Edubuntu.

FOSS in Primary Education FOSS in Primary Education FOSS in Primary Education FOSS in Primary Education FOSS in Primary Education"

MP3 downloads - carnatic music, MDR, MMI

2005-09-01T04:57:00.000-07:00

Found several hundred hours of concerts of M D Ramanathan, Madurai Mani Iyer, K V Narayanswami and several others posted at shared xdrive folders - some great work done by carnatic music fans

xdrive.com does not behave consistently but there are treasure troves at these shared drives and it is worth trying your luck several times. On good days i was able to have four parallel downloads at about 200 KB each. Some of the shared drives are (Bala, srini, george et al)

http://plus.xdrive.com/u/132889792/154056964kIG0Z0yPEkVylUUfT4a
http://plus.xdrive.com/u/163450663/855346496YdjYbHpYtTBo8AfWJp9
http://plus.xdrive.com/u/162491858/622650364SYSABiXC8Z2SZJvHg1A
http://plus.xdrive.com/u/163450663/570389922FDwVZ4W4PnTPygXkFkV
http://plus.xdrive.com/u/162491858/2111868609rW5gq2qjasZF6WaEyM

Bangalore - Suggestions

2005-07-31T22:46:00.000-07:00

Listed below are some art, culture, food, religious options that i have personally enjoyed living in Bangalore over the last three decades. The list is not exhaustive but includes only those that i have tried out. Personally i look for value, functionality, economy options and disregard ambience, hype etc., I have had some of my best experiences for free or for very little price.

PS: Good sources for local listings are Deccan Herald, The Hindu and Times of India in the city today pages and all of them have weekly round up pages as well

Music

Seshadripuram Ramaseva Mandali, Seshadripuram college, Ramanavami season, April - May
Sree RamaSeva Mandali, Fort High School, Chamarajpet, Ramanavami season, April - May
Sri Odakkatur Mutt, Ulsoor, Shivarathri, Krishnashtami seasons
Bangalore Gayana Samaja, K R Road : check local listings
Ananya, 13th cross, Malleshwaram
R T Nagar Sangeeth Sabha
Indiranagar Sangeeth Sabha
Devagiri Sangeetha Sabha
Raj Mahal Vilas Sangeetha Sabha

Theatre

Rangashankara : Plays round the year, Mondays off
H. N. Kalakshetra, Jayanagar: Look at the local listings, have kannada plays regularly
Ravindra Kalakshetra : Look at the local listings, have kannada plays regularly
ADA Rangamandira: Look at the local listings, have kannada plays regularly
Chowdiah Memorial Hall: Look at the local listings, have plays around weekends but not really value for money

Cinema

www.collectivechaos.org, a non profit forum to promote meaningful cinema, do not have a personal experience yet
Suchitra

Food

MTR (Mavalli Tiffin Rooms), Lalbagh Road
Krishna Cafe, Koramangala
Kamat Yatri Nivas, Gandhinagar, Jayanagar and JC Road, North Karnataka Jowar Roti meal
Pai Refreshments, Ananda Rao Circle, North Karnataka Jowar Roti meal
Hotel Brindavan, MG Road
Food Street at V.V. Puram
Churmuri (kind of South Indian Bhel puri) joints at Sajjan Rao Circle, Avenue Road-Mysore Bank junction, off Residency Road on the LIC office cross road
Chaats near Seshadripuram College, Nehru Circle
Sree raj Lassi Bar at several locations across bangalore - Shivajinagar, off Brigade road, Jayanagar, R T Nagar, Gandhinagar, for lassi, kulfi, mango milk shake
Deepa Stores, 15th cross, Margosa Road, Malleshwaram, for Idlis
Janata Hotel, 8th cross, between Margosa road and Sampige Road, Malleshwaram for Masala Dosas with carnatic music
Vidyarthi Bhavan, Gandhi Bazaar
Amruth Ice Cream Parlour, 13th cross, between Margosa Road and 8th main, Malleshwaram, Vegetarian Ice creams
Hotel Ajantha, MG Road, for mini idlis
VB Bakery, Sajjan Rao Circle, Fruit cakes, Rusks, Bun Butter Jam and several other bakery items inc

Religion

Sri Sankar Mutt, Sankarapuram, near Chamarajpet
Sri Ganapathi Temple, BEL Colony, Jalahalli
ISKCON Temple, West of Chord Road, - special attraction daily prasadam
Sri Venugopala Krishnaswamy Temple, 11th Cross, Malleshwaram
Sri Raja Rajeshwari Temple, Raja Rajeshwari Nagar,
Haji Tawakkal Mastan Dargah on OTC road, near Majestic,

Recommendations

2005-07-28T06:28:00.000-07:00

Movies

Taayi Saheba, Language: Kannada, Director: Girish Kasaravalli
Dweepa, Language: Kannada, Director: Girish Kasaravalli
Nizhalkuthu, Language: Malayalam, Director: Adoor Gopalakrishnan
Kanoor Heggadathi, Language: Kannada, Director: Girish Karnad
Gandhi, Language: English, Director: Richard Attenborough
Piravi, Language: Malayalam, Director: Shaji Karun
Pather Panchali, Language: Bengali, Director: Satyajit Ray

Television

Malgudi Days - TV series, Language: Hindi, Director: Shankar Nag

Theatre/Dramas/Plays/Folk Arts

Odakalu Bimba, Language: Kannada, Director: Girish Karnad & Chaitanya
Typical T. P. Kailasam, Language: Kannada,
Charan Das Chor, Language: Chattisgarhi, Director: Habib Tanvir
Agra Bazaar, Language: Urdu, Director: Habib Tanvir

Ramanavami Season 2005 concerts in Bangalore

2005-05-12T06:42:00.000-07:00

Went to some good concerts at fort high school and Seshadripuram. Notable ones were
* O.S. Thyagarajan
* Malladi Brothers
* Vijay Siva
* Trichur V. Ramachandran, actually Mysore Nagaraj was in great form that day
* N. Ravikiran
* M.S. Gopalakrishnan and Narmada
* S. Shankar

Favourite Sites

2005-02-12T06:49:00.000-08:00

ICT for Development
www.kuppam.in
www.emergic.org : blog of Rajesh Jain on ICT4D issues
www.wri.org : World Resources Institute site
www.nextbillion.net : World resources institute sponsored blog on sustainable models for BOP

Generic Portals
www.archive.org : archived text, audio, video and web content from around the world, very exhaustive
www.hojohnlee.com : Blog of Ho John Lee, a good friend with very diversified interests

Carnatic Music
www.sruti.com : premier magazine on carnatic music and dance
http://www.ecse.rpi.edu/Homepages/shivkuma/personal/music/ : loads of good audio, text content
www.sangeetham.com : carnatic music portal, good bulletin board, several pointers to downloads of great concerts of yesteryears - MDR, MMI, KVN loads of them
www.carnatica.com
www.kutcheribuzz.com
www.karnatik.com : krithi lyrics, raga lists, audio lessons, introduction
www.narada.org : good content on Ariyakudi, KVN, audio downloads

India Data
www.ibef.org : CII site propogating the india brand

Religion and Philosophy
www.prapatti.com : Extensive information about Sri Vaishnavisim, strotras, audio mp3s,

Travel
www.karnatakatourism.org : Karnataka tourist information

Thyagaraja Aradhana

2005-02-12T05:19:00.000-08:00

Attended the Thyagaraja aradhana at Thiruvaiyaru on 29th and 30th of January 2005. The music was from the sublime to the ridicule. Bhagavathars singing thyagaraja's kritis while on their unchha vritti was very nice to hear. Some sort of screening for aspiring artists is badly required for singing/playing at the aradhana.

2005-01-03T05:52:00.000-08:00

Prasar Bharathi has released audio cassettes, CDs and VCDs from its large collection.

Have purchased the following

- Mallikarjun Mansur VCD
- M S Subbulakshmi VCD two volumes
- M L Vasanthakumari VCD two volumes
- Ustad Bismillah Khan VCD two volumes
- SS Iyer, MDR, MMI, Pannalal Ghosh, Omkarnath Thakur audio cassettes

Got a special 30% discount on these

Intro

2005-01-03T01:35:00.000-08:00

First posting.

Want to develop the free writing habit and hence created this blog. Lets see where it will go.