A few thoughts...

>>>---C-O-M-M-U-N-I-C-A-T-I-O-N-->> OUCH!

2009-07-03T18:39:00.006+01:00

“Communication!!!”

When I typed this word in MS Word and asked it to show me synonyms, I got a list…

Message
announcement
statement
letter
Email
Phone call
interaction
transmission
exchange of ideas…

And this is just a list given by MS Word! MS Word which unfortunately is not a dictionary related piece of software. If I check with some specialist software, the list would be longer.

No! MS Word is not a problem for me neither is any other dictionary a problem. The problem is we; the software guys, who have taken this word ‘communication’ too seriously. And even the synonyms are not spared. Not even one.

Years ago, someone somewhere came up with an idea of postal system to ‘communicate’ with letters. People loved it and it was widely accepted. Even today it forms an integral part of our lives. Then a learned guy invented something which we now call a Telephone to ‘communicate’. People again loved it. Things were good and simple. You send letters, you get replies. You phone someone, you talk to the person. Such a simple life!

Then someone invented internet to ‘communicate’. Good for him and good for us. As the time progressed the phones became cell phones and mails became emails. Every person must own these gadgets called mobile!!! The new electronic way to ‘communicate’! We were so happy, again! The fastest ways of ‘communication’ were here. If you didn’t have an email address, it was like you didn’t exist in this world.

I was so happy that I owned an email address. Then one day I noticed that I had not one, not two, not three but 4 email address. All with the biggies of the internet world! And still I was craving for a new one on a service that was then launched recently and had a few features that none others had. The space was like a zillion emails could be stored. Every other person was running to catch on the new sensation. I finally got it one fine day!!! Ok… again my problem is not emails!

Then one fine day one, of my friend sent me an invitation. That was for some site named ‘Orkut’. The first reaction from me; what a stupid name??? But I did register and created a profile for myself. It was like creating a profile for some matrimony site. I added various friends of mine and I continue to add till date.

Then another fine day, I got an invitation from one of my other friends to join something name Facebook! Again something on similar lines. I thought I should not offend my friend and accepted it. Created one more matrimony… oops, social profile!

Then another fine day someone invited me to Yaari. Then came the day when someone gave my email ID to some Skoost. Then someone thought I am not doing anything professional in social networking so I was sent a link to Linkedin. Then came Yahoo 360 (with due respects, it is dead for good now), connexions, MySpace, Bebo, Twiter, Friendster, Bigadda, hi5, Multiply, Plaxo, WAYN and many more!!!

And let me tell you one more tragedy! I have all the same friends on all the profiles that I have created and maintain till date. Many of them don’t use any one of the site to communicate, but still want me to accept their invitation to some new site. Various guys who haven’t scrapped me in ages on Orkut, want me add to add them on Facebook! Why????

Believe me, I have a landline number, two cell phones (one personal, one official), one professional looking email id, one personal email id, one corporate email id, one fake email id, one backup email id, a profile on Orkut, a profile on Facebook and a profile on Linkedin (spare me if I missed out on anything else that I use).

Isn’t this too much for a poor guy like me? How much should I manage? The other day a friend of mine told me “I will let you know!” (about something). I literally kept on checking my landline voice mail, my cell phone voice mail and SMSes, all my email accounts known by him, the scraps on orkut and ‘don’t remember what’ on Facebook!

So next time when someone tells me that he ‘will let me know’, I will have to ask him, where and how???

This makes me feel, is it really helping us!!! Are we more connected or more concerned? Should not the communication be simple? Wasn’t I happy when I had only a telephone to answer? Is it really necessary to badly complicate the way we communicate? So much so that finding a message becomes finding a needle from hay!

As usual …who else???

You and your digital camera...

2009-06-22T16:58:00.027+01:00

One of the topics that I want to write about for long is the use of a digital camera. Don’t worry, it’s nothing technical in here. So you can go ahead and really read it.

It’s not that I am some master of photography or something. I have seen that there are a few misinterpretations among the users of digital cameras. And these little misconceptions are the cause of inappropriate use of digi cams.

Every other person today has a digital camera of some or the other type. But very few understand that photography is not just clicking the shutter button on camera. Instead, it is looking at a common object in the most uncommon way. It is to capture something in a beautiful way, even if it is not. It is looking at the things from an angle which usually is ignored by all. It is about keeping your eyes open to capture small objects in your everyday life which have surrounded you since ages, but never got noticed.

Even if you have the best digital cam (or even an SLR for that matter) the photos can’t be beautiful if you as a photographer don’t see the object in a beautiful way. The first shutter is your mind and the first view finder is your eyes. If they form a good photo there, you may be probably able to form a frame using a camera.

Photography need not always comprise of beautiful landscapes according to me. As said earlier, it can be your regular objects which have been sitting in your room since ages. It can be anything in your garden, living room, car or refrigerator. If you see beauty in it, your camera will see the beauty as well.

One of the best ways to capture good photographs is to use the preset modes on your camera. If you use right mode at right time, no one can deny a good capture to you. Just try and avoid the use of ‘Auto’ mode as your primary mode. That’s an insult to your camera according to me. It is good for practicing the basics. But once you know how to press the shutter button, forget that the auto mode even exists. Try various modes and you will yourself see the difference.

One of the other misconceptions is about the close up mode (macro mode). I use a 15x optical zoom camera and people frequently ask me, why I go so near the object to capture it when I can just zoom it from wherever I want? People fail to understand that close up photography or macro photography is a completely different subject in photography. There are various versions of this, but when you capture an object at a ratio 1:1 or less, it is called a close up. Some people say that if the distance between the lens and the object is less than 28mm, it can be called as a macro. You can’t have a close up if you are using zoom! That’s what I feel. Just try and explore this area of photography and you will love it. I love capturing macro shots. You need not have an expensive camera to capture good close ups.

Believe me, if you use proper modes, you can really obtain good results. Once again, abandon ‘Auto’ mode. Mostly the names of modes themselves suggest when they should be used. E.g. Landscape, Portrait, Night Portrait, Beach, Night/Twilight and so on… Is it not simple? Aren’t the questions themselves the answers? Proper usage of mode and flash can not only give you better photographs but also can help you preserve battery.

Well, this is not a tutorial or something, so won’t drag too long.

I think, the cheapest of cameras can give you best of the results and the costliest of the cameras can disappoint you. It is up to you how to extract the best picture quality from your camera. Remember, they say a picture equals thousand words. I say, a well taken picture can tell a complete story, and a badly taken picture can spoil the most beautiful object in the world. The best pictures require patience and more than one shutter clicks.

Memories are abstract and can’t be shown. Pictures are the possessions that can help you revive your beautiful moments and refresh your memories . They last even when you have perished. So click them with the deepest corner of your heart. Who knows… you will be remembered by your clicks?

…who else???

Sharpening The Axe

2009-06-19T11:36:00.002+01:00

My first blog… Hurray!!!

Now a days, I am completely occupied with learning a new technology. This is awkward as I have been working and have succeeded in mastering quite a few technologies over past five years. Sometimes I sit and think… is this really required even at this stage? Why should I learn something new, when I am an expert for something else? Can’t I just use the expertise that I have? But then the situation reminded me of one of the stories I heard as a kid.

It goes something like this…

An old man used to earn his living by selling fire wood. He was not learned and the only way he could earn was to work hard. He used to go to the woods early in the morning and return late in the evening with a few pieces of wood cut through the day. He used to get tired by repeatedly using his axe to cut and split up the large planks of wood into small ones. The poor old man used to work hard, but the returns were really undersized.

Once during the summer vacations, his young grandson came to visit him. He observed his grandpa working so hard at that age. One fine day, he went to the jungle to help his grandpa with his work. During the course of the day, when he was working to gather the woods, he saw that his grandpa really closely. He observed the way he works.

After thinking for a while, he gave grandpa a simple suggestion. The axe being blunt required more efforts to split the wood into small pieces. He recommended his grandpa to sharpen his axe, so that he can axe more branches in small amount of time with a sharp axe.

Though the idea was a practical one, his grandpa resisted. He said, he would not have any time left for work if he wasted time on doing the something that did not give him any returns. He better continue axing the branches.

The advice of the grandson was given no heed by the grandpa and he continued working the way he liked without any progress!

Now, what do you think? Isn’t I the grandpa in my situation? We all know that if the axe is sharpened, more wood can be cut in smaller amount of time and work can be more effective. Axe has to sharpened over a period of time to keep up with pace. There is nothing wrong in doing that.

And so that’s what I am doing…. Sharpening my axe!!!

The story also tells us one more very important lesson and that's... age doesn't matter, the person giving you an advice can be younger to you. But he may have a good point to make. Open your arms for the suggestion and embrace the good ones!!!!

... who else???