Enjoy the thoughtful luxury

I am writing this post to support my friend's endeavor in creating a new product. Vipasa Luxury Candles was incepted, developed and delivered before my eyes. I personally know Ruchi Vipasa, the creator of this brand and really liked her commitment to minimalistic and eco friendly approach.

The the smell is perfect and was developed over 100 of trials. The product and packaging has zero non eco friendly stuff.

https://www.vipasa.co/ourstory

But the journey has just begun for her. She is out with the product in the web jungle where digital content makers are scarce and advertising companies make most of the money. The journey for a startup looks difficult.

Good luck to her!

Customer - Self proclaimed God

Recently I saw an article http://www.quora.com/Flipkart/What-do-Flipkart-employees-feel-about-the-Flipkart-screwed-me-over-article. In my small career I have witnessed it at many occasions. 

In a service company, client is God. You would want to provide all kinds of services to please him/her. We are so much used to say yes to a client that we can even agree to feed his/her dog, wash his/her cloths and clean his/her house. 

In a product company, the end user is God. If some one is not able to click a button you assure to change the color or position to make it intuitive (BS!).

With the invasion of social media even a new born kid would bully you for writing negative feedback. This is there in all industries.

You are a normal human being but suddenly as a customer you become a super hero. The other end should tolerate you loud voice, anger and even threat.

Why it is being tolerated?

Simple answer: for business.

Why is it growing?

Most of the businesses depend on advertisement than the quality of product or uniqueness.

If customer was God, would God do any act to annoy others?

The need is to rate the Customers. Uber does it! So if you misbehave quite often next time you won't get a Uber ride. 

And it is important bring uniqueness and quality to products.

And of course I am not denying the fact that there are many good customers and many bad service/product providers.

Dream!!

I decided to write down my dreams,
Gosh! I choose the sea shore!!
All the time I was fearing for the waves,
But someone walked over!!

In agony I cried, yelled, no one bothered
Gosh! I was mute!!
I got up to see what is left, I panicked
My name was abated!!

I ran for the hills,
Gosh! I saw my name was all over!!
WOW!! I didn't loose my dream,
It only got bigger!!

How to upload pdf (document) to kindle in kindle format?

WOW!
----------
When you register with kindle you get an email account as [you user name]@kindle.com.

SIMPLE :)
-------------
To upload files to your account send email (from any email account) to [you user name]@kindle.com with file as attachment.

THANKS
--------------
Put 'convert' in the subject to get the document formatting taken care by Amazon!

NOTE
----------

You might have to wait for some time (30-60 minutes) for the file to reach into your account.

No looking for external file converters.

BTW if you have not used Kindle app for mobile you are missing something. The kindle app DOES NOT require you to have Kindle :)

Happy kindle-ing :)

Reference:
http://www.amazon.com/gp/help/customer/display.html?nodeId=200140600

Go Google: Search - What you need it what you get

I have heard many of my friends talking about various search engines but anytime when I have been to their computer I have seen google search windlows :)

Many people use Google.com to verify their internet connectivity!! This is trust.

There is always a lot to talk about Google but I open my blog to put simple features those strike me.

Today there was a fantastic Wimbledon finals between Federer and Murray. Federer out played Murry and regained his World No 1 position.

Earlier this evening I was looking for game timing for the final and I entered 'wimbledon' in google search. I got the match fixtures and the timings in IST (my timezone) on the search results page itself!!!

This is amazing. I am putting a screen shot of the search which I did just after the game.

The result is even more surprising when I searched for Andy Murray.

Shows Andy Murray matches on the left. On the right there is Andy Murry pic coming from Google Plus and details from Wikipedia. There is search suggestion for other leading tennis players (we had seen this only on Amazon.com. 'People who bought this also bought').

There is also a feedback link which if you click will ask to indicate if there is any wrong information.

The Google feedback is integrated on so many of the google product making it easier for the users. But think about the amount of feedback they might be getting. I guess only computers would be reading those!

Again I am a happy Google Search user. Thanks to Panda and Penguin :)

Go Google: gmail - the diff tool

I sent an SQL query to my friend and later I added a line to that query and sent it back. To my surprise, I observed that only the changed line appeared in black and rest in quoted text color (I guess that is purple). WOW!! Knowingly or unknowingly gmail turned out to be a diff tool for me. Then I did another experiment and this is the result.

Apple

Blackberry

Carrot

Desert fig

Etrog

...

On Fri, Nov 11, 2011 at 10:18 PM, Amod Pandey <amod.pandey@zovi.com> wrote:

- Hide quoted text -

Apple

Banana

Carrot

Desert fig

Etrog

...

As always I would say, enjoy the Googles!

Search it the right way: choose the timeline

There are so many tips around on the web on how to make your searches efficient. Here is one I would like to share (may be a reiteration) 

I was looking for a software. So I put this string in my favorite Google, 'mount iso virtual CD'. As usual I got many results. Google always boasts about its efficiency 'About 1,870,000 results (0.13 seconds) ' :) But while going through the results I observed the links to be old 2008, 2007, .. I was wondering if no one wrote a new tool for this after that time??? Then it strike to my mind that probably the old pages are ranked more than the new pages and later with more usages the new pages will come up in the result. Remember search engines primarily do it by ranking and not by creation. So I clicked on Advanced Search and I was happy to locate what I was looking for 'Date, usage rights, numeric range, and more'. Out of the options available for 'Date' I selected 'past year' and weehoo!!!! I got the latest results :)


So the takeaway is, Advance to Advanced Search! The content on the web is huge and you should get wiser.


I know many of you would know this but it is always good to share for others!

Go Google: Also include

You might miss to include a friend in a mail but GMail is going to suggest you whom all you could include based on what you have in the To/CC list. The suggestions appear in a hyperlink and you can click to add. The logic is recent and common. So if you add a@abc.com then it would suggest you b.xyz.com, c@abc.com and other. Now if you select b@xyz.com now it would suggest the names common to a@abc.com and b@xyz.com which might not include c@abc.com.

Go Google - The wiser Google

Google is growing wiser with its age. It is becoming more intuitive so more helpful.

Say you want to search for "Cinema". No need to add your location to the search string. It gets your location from you IP and then displays results for that  location (location based search). In case you want to search for a different location you can either update the location to on the left panel or may add it to the search string.

At the very top it will display the show timings for various movies and various theaters near you. In case you enter a movie name it will display the show timing of that movie running in theaters near you. It will also display video clips or song links. It will also display a map results for theaters near you. Simple isn't it!
Earlier at the top it would have displayed a wiki link describing what is "Cinema"! Only few needed that.

Now if you want to try the same with the word "fruit" you have to wait for some more time. One hypothetical situation could be. A "street hawker" tweets/buzz that he is selling Bananas in 17 street, NYC and someone from 17 street googles for fruit and gets an answer, Bananas: "Go out from your apartment. 3 steps to your left" :)

Go Google - Up-Down arrow key navigation of the search results

This feature is a Keyboard lovers delight. Now you can navigate the Google's search results using Up-Down arrow keys. You might have observed a cute little blue colored arrow marking a search result. If not yet! then please find it now. If you see this arrow you can use Up and Down arrow keys to navigate through the search result and press enter to open a particular selection. Cool isn't it! and also better than the usual tab thingy.


If you do not see this arrow then you might need to press tab one or two times and then the up arrow get it back.

Happy Googling :)

They ask me, what if Google was NOT there? I say, there should have been something else from the "The Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy" :)

xyz is typing... xyz has entered text.

You should easily remember where you see these messages. If you ping someone and do not hear for a while and then when you see this message 'xyz is typing ...' it makes you happy. It is the best when you are anticipating an answer. You keep seeing

xyz is typing...
xyz has entered text
xyz is typing...
xyz is typing...
xyz has entered text
xyz is typing...

Sometimes you are so involved that you might respond to this visual asking 'What are you typing for so long?'

I was thinking what if one can set these messages for his/her friends. So one can have something like this (here I am killing my crazy thoughts and making is simple. But you need not be as that is your chat box ;))

xyz is dancing...

xyz has stopped dancing

xyz is dancing...

xyz is dancing...

xyz has stopped dancing

xyz is dancing...

Even waiting for a response could be more interesting to watch. You can be creative, naughty, wicked, funny... ;)

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Go Google - Instant Search

Google has introduced this nice feature of 'Instant Search'. So apart from the search keywords suggestions, they now perform 'Instant Search' as you key in! If you are not able to see this feature in your country specific Google Search site. e.g. google.co.in then on the bottom of the search page click on 'Go to Google.com' and enjoy this feature.

They have also taken care for inappropriate content. So if you type in 'porn' they do not perform this auto search. Nice, eh! You can turn off this feature from the down arrow to the right of the search box.

Here is a food for thought. How does it help to see results while keying in? To me it is fancy but of less use. But as always I appreciate Google for their work towards making search faster, easier and fun.

Another feature that I have noticed is the 'Something Different' section on the left panel (if you have not hidden the left panel). It provides similar suggestions. e.g. if you search for 'american airlines' you will get

Something different
united airlines
northwest airlines
continental airlines
alaska airlines
delta air lines

Happy Googling!

Joke Launchpad: Q/A [1]

One time attempt: try
Another attempt: re-try

One time worked a lot: tired
Another time worked a lot: ....... :)

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Let's go to the MALL

Today I could make it to the New FORUM MALL @ Whitefield. Here are the impressions those I carried out with. All good for now...

First impression: I found it big from Outside and a Mall should better be.

Second impression: Free PARKING (I guess it is only for the time the crowd is less)

Third impression: The center area is huge and open till the roof. Everyone likes free space in Bangalore.

Forth impression: Every stuff has got discount :D But you have to pay for alterations (Rs 30 only)

Fifth impression: Good variety of outlets and many more yet to open.

I am yet to explore the Multiplex. If you are around Whitefield you should go there once...Let's go to the MALL (HIMYM :) )

I discovered a Hindi Proverb

One funny afternoon while working I discovered one hindi proverb...Kaan Dikhana (कान दिखाना) Now guess from which actual proverb it is derived from??? And the answer is...

Muh Pherna (मुह फेरना) If you turn your face won't you be showing your ears :D What a discovery sir jee :)

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My Experiments with Broadband (BB)

In today’s world how can one avoid having a gateway to the e-world? Let me narrate how we explored various vendors for internet services.
We (me and my roommates) got ourselves connected and hooked to Tata Indicomm BB (TIBB). With our new connection we were happy for few days. One day the flickering of the LAN connection in the MODEM went off. We registered a complaint. In a month, once or twice somebody will ring up to the mercy of waiting souls to tell them their efforts towards resolving the problem. After futile N number of attempts to get it fixed we requested to terminate the connection.
After few months, one day we happened to visit Reliance Communications. We, BB beaten guys, took the Reliance Dial-up (RDU) internet connection. Thanks to the consistent 10-15 kbps of the download, just few kbps less than the TIBB, for keeping us abreast with the e-world.
Knock-knock!! We got a Registered post from TIBB. We have been asked to appear in the Court of Law for not paying the bill for three months!!! Yes, three months but only 15 days of usage. The TIBB technical guys knew it, but still it happened. I guess TI has got its different units, as in Technical and billing, on different planets without interconnection. We were shocked!!! We talked to TIBB guys and closed the issue. We made sure to close the connection with a note of confirmation from their end.
We were happy with the Reliance Dial-up, slow but steady. One day we had a call from Reliance regarding their broadband (RBB). As we were quite happy with them we happily agreed for it. We requested to close service for the Dial-up. We filled in the termination form at one of their outlets, handed over their telephone set, paid the balance and got the acknowledgement. We went for Rs 750 plan (128 kbps and unlimited download) in RBB. We were paying nearly the same for TIBB. But we were paying more for the Dial-up as it was a RS 350 plan with free surfing only between 10 PM to 6 AM. Initially we managed but later we started using it any time of day and ended up paying nearly Rs 1200 a month for it. This was one of the reasons for why we wanted to change to BB again. We did not have Airtel BB (ABB) connection in our locality so it was ruled out. My friend has one and stays happy with his 14 kbps of download speed for the so called ABB.
The RBB installed their WiMAX antenna. Wow! I was happy with the technology and gave Rs 100 to the guy who installed it. I could not hold the glee for long. I found the LAN icon with a Limited connectivity warning. I called up the customer care and found that their server was down for sometime and soon it will be up. It happened countless number of times.
Let me rewind a little. I was about to call the RBB customer care and I yielded my nerve after finding the number to be a STD call for me. They have only a Mumbai number and if you want to try your nerves just try getting a guy from the technical department online.
With the RBB only advantage was 24 hrs unlimited download. Dare anyone who thinks to download at 18 kbps. With some currency in mobile I called up the Customer care to complain about the speed. I would have never known the concept of a group and the division of the download speed in a group. Since I had taken 122 kbps and as Mr. RBB TP told it’s divided to four (Where did they mention it??) I should be getting 122/4 ~= 30kbps. So 18-20 for 30 was not bad!!!
I have a motto; I will STOP on my LAST day. We had heard about BSNL broadband (BBB). For Rs 900 pm they provide unlimited download with 2mbps speed. Woooo...We got BSNL landline telephone connection and applied for BB. Finally we got the connection. We had a MODEM with us, so we didn’t buy one from BSNL. The BSNL MODEM’s are preconfigured so that it could be given to anyone to install the connection. When the BSNL guy came we handed over our MODEM. Giving it a strange look he said it is not an ADSL MODEM so this will not work!!! Not knowing what ADSL stands for we requested him to try once. He did many things, according to me nothing and just kept murmuring ADSL. We told him, later we will let him know if we will buy the BSNL ADSL MODEM worth Rs 2k.
This is from Wiki; Asymmetric Digital Subscriber Line (ADSL) is a form of DSL, a data communications technology that enables faster data transmission over copper telephone lines than a conventional voiceband modem can provide. It does this by utilizing frequencies that are not used by a voice telephone call. A splitter - or microfilter - allows a single telephone connection to be used for both ADSL service and voice calls at the same time.
I had one XAVi’s X8821r+ MODEM which is supposed to have all the ADSL breeds. In the evening I tried and in an hour, with help from some sites, I did set up my MODEM to work. Read my next blog where I will describe the steps to set up personal MODEM for BBB.
In the mean time we had requested to close the RBB. They told they will get back after 15 days. They never got back till date. Lets me summarize now,

• TIBB – Connection status closed. They are yet to collect their stuff from my house. I have requested them many times but it has not happened yet.
• RDU – Surprisingly I am still getting the bill. Sometimes I get calls from them, asking me to transfer the number to someone or convert it to pre-paid. I was very angry on the last guy I had spoken to. He confirmed for no further calls in this regard and said he will cancel the bills generated.
• RBB – The process has not started yet. It’s been a month since I had raised a request to close the connection. I am getting the bills. Few days back when I had been to their outlet they told that I need to go to one of their office and fill a form. No one told me this earlier. Let’s see how I resolve it.

Today is my first day with BBB. Will update how it goes. With all these roundabouts I suggest you to do a sort of review and then decide which internet connection to take based on your need.
Happy surfing,
AMD
26-Dec-2007 Bangalore