Obama's interview on The Daily Show

The Daily Show With Jon Stewart	Mon - Thurs 11p / 10c
Barack Obama Pt. 1
www.thedailyshow.com
Daily Show Full Episodes Political Humor Rally to Restore Sanity

The War Within

It is always surreal to see 'think tank' scenarios play out in real life. The recent, attempted, bombing of NY Times Square, is an ugly reminder of the disenfranchisement process faced by minorities. While listening to a report on NPR what was making the 'official' uneasy was the fact, that this particular individual was radicalized within a span of 12 months, negating any possibility of an counter intelligence effort. Now mental health experts will argue that an individual doesn't become homicidal in 12 months.... and hence once again we come to the another unsavory realization... preventing minorities from becoming disenfranchised, may be the best counter intelligence available to us.

Though I'm far from savvy about public discourse, i haven't seen the following film mentioned with relation the the NY times square attempt...
Art mimicking reality ? or reality mimicking art ?
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0414344/

Proud owner of Nexus One - review

I learn't about not buying first generations phones/products a while ago... so I was patiently waiting for the successor to the original G1. IMO I think it is the N1, so went online and bought it. They fedexed it overnight and I've spent a good 4 hours or so tinkering with it. Now let me admit that this is my first iclone/android phone. It is also my first experience with a touch UI. Needless to say it took me about 10 minutes to get used to it. (this was after the phone initially was buggy and refused to recognise any input for about 3 minutes. Somehow it sort of re-booted itself (didn't respond to any input) for about 30 secs. After that, no input problem at all. Its like magic, since I'm using my thumbs to type. I have big thumbs too. My left thumb input isn't perfect as yet though. Right thumb input no problem. Lets go over the features...

Starting from right to left (home screens)....
Camera: press screen 'button' to click. Camera autofocuses and then takes a picture after a few seconds. The LED flash seems to be ok indoors. Autofocus works in macro positions (very impressive) but with the flash on, it ruins the picture (obviously) so Macro mode will only really be effective in well lit conditions. Haven't gotten around to testing the white balance in different conditions as yet, but 'auto' did a good job of handling the mixture of white and yellow light in my living room. No complaints on that front. Interesting side note. You can get an app from the android market place that allows you to use the LED flash like a flash light - haven't downloaded it as yet, but there were some user comments that it doesn't work with the N1 - it was made for the Droid.
Gallery: For those familiar with the Cool Iris plugin for firefox - you will feel at home with the UI of the 'gallery'. for those note familiar with it, check it out, it's pretty cool. The phone synced my picassa web albums and also created a separate folder for the pictures that I transfered from my n95. via Bluetooth, by itself. Most impressive. I still haven't been able to browse my memory card a la windows as yet. I had transfered some songs to the phone again via Bluetooth, they magically appeared on the music app. Haven't plugged it into my computer as yet. Cool function in the Gallery is the ability to crop pictures and then use them as 'backgrounds'
Apart from that there is the usual 'sharing' options.
The phone app is cool looking nothing extra-ordinary there.
The browsing on the phone is nice. Data loads well (I have a T-Mobile data connection and it access the data with a 3G symbol on my phone. Ported the settings from my previous phone as they default setting sent to my phone from T-mobile weren't working) Double tapping on a web page enlarges the page and a subsequent double tap shrinks the page again. Finger Strokes move the page up and down (note this is counter intuitive initially if you think that using the scroll bar in windows is the opposite action - takes about 2 minutes to get used to it) The default graphic settings (from my limited understanding of these settings) enables a smooth transition from one part of the page to the other. Very cool. Voice search works well with western words/names. Not so much with indian names - so far, the one's that I've tried. - haven't tried english cusses as yet. I've made it a point to share all my voice mails from google voice (predominantly indian accents) in an attempt to get the google ppl to release an 'accent' update for the voice search. Interestingly, the voice to text function was able to transcribe 95 % of my sentence. Since I only attempted this once, need more rigorous testing. As expected, was able to look at all my google stuff (apps et al) calendar/gmail/voice/contacts/etc... all nicely synced. Haven't found a specific 'tasks' app as yet. It has to exist. There has been much said about the 'live wallpapers' and the 'weather/news' app - so won't bring it up here - needless to say, the 'live water' background is very cool. However, one could get bored playing with it after a few minutes. Looks very cool though :)
What else... can arrange the icons/widgets on the various 'desktops' just like a pc.
Video content played well - however, will have to see proper content (not vids from the n95) to really compare video rendering. The Samsung Omnia does an outstanding job at HiDef content.... if the N1 can do something comparable, i'll be very impressed. There doesn't seem to be a podcast 'reader' installed into the phone, though I could be wrong... there are like about 20 apps pre installed. haven't been able to get around to all of them. Though the concept of apps are similar to the symbian n95, there still is a learning curve associated with going from 'hardware/button' interface to a touch UI.
There is no video-out on the N1. the N95 does have one... and I feel a little sad that the N1 doesn't have one. I don't think I'll miss it as much, but its still a cool feature to have.
Interesting cross application feature which I discovered. If i click on an address in the email, the phone tries to find it in Google Maps. Very Cool !
Now if anyone reading this already has an android phone may find my enthusiasm at 'discovering' android features quaint, well so be it. I haven't needed the N1 until now, as the N95 can do everything that I need it to do... it doesn't live on google, as I do now; hence the switch from Nokia to HTC.
The maps features and gps navigation have been well documented and there is a voice step by step offered when you put it into navigation mode. I've had the Garmin on my n95 for a while, so can effectively compare performance after a test drive. From the cursory fiddle that I did with the maps, it seems comparable, map wise. GPS and positioning wise the N1 was able to accurately tell me my position indoors whereas the n95 can't.
What else, the engraving feature is cool. Haven't tested the headphones as yet. However, I'll be using it with my bose in-ear plugs so not too concerned about it. Engadget mentioned the 'trebly' nature of the in-built speaker. This is true, is does sound a bit 'trebly', however as easy way to compensate for that is to place the phone over some 'hollow forming' object/place/angle etc.... For example, I placed the phone up against a pizza box, with the phone at 45 degrees to the box/table and the sound quality audibly improved; it was less trebly and provided a better viewing angle. Since the speakers are small, for the rare times that i'll be using the m, i prefer the 'treblyness'. Its easier to hear higher frequencies at a distance compare to lower ones. For the times that sound will matter, say in a conference call - maybe- i'll place it over a plastic cup or something.
Apart from these observations nothing to add, which hasn't been mentioned elsewhere.
My cousin is bummed about not having a lens cover, I agree it should have come with a lens cover. I also don't know what kind of a screen protector to use on a capacitative screen... must ask other omnia owning cousin about that. lol
all in all happy with the new phone... lots to discover still. Since it can integrate various 'accounts' google or otherwise, its a great place for putting everything in one place for when you have the ability to connect to the internet.

Glen Beck Cont... uhh! - no, national hero !

So you think I forgot ! - Admittedly I'm only mentioning Beck because he dissed India (in a sense). I had thought that this was the first time. However, a cursory google on "Glen Beck India" returned results as old as 2006. He's being going on about Indian doctors and the river Ganga etc... This one is just another string of his rants. Mmmm it's good to look outwards - from a psychoanalytical point of view - having a 'world view' is good, for sure. It deters from obsessing about one's self and helps alleviate neurosis. So if viewers of Glen Beck's show get off on making fun of others countries and cultures then so be it. I think there is a place for such incendiary commentary; if only to relieve their isolation and neurosis about their own culture and society. For this alone, Glen should be commended, as well as the owners and sponsors of Fox News (fair and balanced of course). Mmm I almost regret watching Avatar now... money goes to Rupert Murdoch. Must stop reading WSJ too. oh no ! For the rest of humanity that doesn't prescribe to the 'adventures' of Glen Beck ? We must wait till his demographic changes its perspective on things. Long wait you say ? Well, there is a generational change in America - this is its last throes.

2010 Update - what a year

So I've joined twitter. Not too sure what I'm going to do over there, but I reckon if I can get tweets on snowy days indicating that college is closed, I'll consider it worthwhile. Not too sure if 'campus alert' has me in their data base. So big shift to the US and a few months later I'm in sub zero temperatures for the first time in my life (living in sub zero temperatures). Finished the first semester of the MBA program with a GPA of 3.9 something... i think. All in all, fun and the weather isn't too bad. Getting myself a nexus one and have realised that Google is our overlord and master... Had an interesting discussion with my cousin about Google 'knowing' all my personal information. Identify theft is real, no doubt at all. However, that can occur anywhere you go on the web, potentially. Google selling my information to a third party is something I don't think will happen. Google 'knows' what I do so that they can 'place' adds on the pages that I visit. Of course there are script blockers that one can use, but to be honest it took me a while to realise that those miniature add looking paragraphs were actually adds. For the longest time after starting with gmail, they didn't even register in my perception... anyway, Google will earn more revenue keeping my information a 'secret' rather than a one time sale to a third party.
Why no blog throughout 2009 ? Wow a year has gone by ! I was tired of blogging... everything I have to say that isn't created out of thin air, requires I search the net for links and references etc.... too time consuming. And here I am a proud owner of a twitter account !
I think I'm going to use twitter as a medium for spreading totally imaginary events/stories about myself. A sort of creative outburst of sorts. Good idea.
Saw Avatar... in 3D... very good. I had seen a sort of T3 promo in Universal Studios (i think) some years ago, and after watching Cameron's interview on Charlie Rose (I'm twitching to attach some sort of video link here) I totally get the idea of 'not' throwing objects at the viewer (a type of 3D experience exemplified by the T3 promo); rather an immersive experience, where the viewer is drawn into the 'world', so to speak. Oddly enough, didn't get motion sick.
Have continued to watch Jon Stewart and the Colberius Report (must include that as a 'word' in their site). The Colbert Nation continues to astound. They have gone ahead an 'sponsored' the US Olympic speed skating team. Though not surprising in itself... the fact that groups of people are getting together like this is encouraging. (link - couldn't resist) Why you ask ? because individuals are getting together and using the power of Capitalism - yes you communists capitalism - for good stuff. Another example is Kiva; a portal that lets individuals donate/make micro loans to entrepreneurs in third world countries. Very Good Idea.
I have fastidiously ignored Glen Beck for the last year or so. I mean, he panders to an audience who obviously love what he does (otherwise Glen would have got into a different shtick), but seriously... who watches his show !?!. I mean the kind of crap that they pull off is retarded !!! What broke the camel's back you say ? why start the year off by mentioning Glen's name, when I could easily invoke the great Elephant God himself/itself.... ok the link won't be up until tomorrow so check out my next update below... more on Glen later...
Mmm watched the New Moon Movie and gained brownie points with the wife. Ditto for the Frog Princess. Couldn't recognise Dakota Fanning until a throne session with 'Entertainment Weekly' enlightened me.
Jackson died. Very Sad... in the sense what he had become. At the risk of sounding like Billy Joel - we didn't start the fire - there were so many things that stood out this year... but not going down that alley. The housing crisis still hasn't run its course in the US. There is still a moratorium on foreclosures. Joblessness is rising... corporations are tightening their belts, and as they talk about an economic recovery based on firing people, I wonder what is going to happen to the 'state of the consumer' ? I wonder... Oh Health Care. What a fiasco that is. oh and the underwear bomber. Yemen... really people didn't see that coming ?!? Can attach a link for this (link)... Mmm what else. I'm developing a penchant for cooking. Always good. Slowly getting addicted to reading user comments below internet articles. Must stop - most people commenting on the internet - as you can see from the quality of prose on example here - don't have anything intelligent to say.... which really makes me wonder about the 'quality' of the internet as a 'social media'. Oh another theme which I think will change is the 'age of misinformation' will now become the age of useful info by means of reliable apps/portals etc... Don't know why I feel this way... but I think technology and what is going on with the Wikiality of the internet will lead to a larger percentage of people leaning towards rational thought - simply because I think - despite/inspite of the various tea bagger movements - that we've reached a peak with the 'irrational' thoughts. I could be wrong. Won't bet a few beers on it.
Post getting to be a bit of a downer... let's escape with a bit of technology. It is getting cheaper and its easier to set up and HTPC (google it) - The various android based phones/tablets/e-book readers - all very exciting.
What am I looking forward to ? Wellness research - power of the internet/information to drive research and provide useful information - I'm going to immerse myself in Google apps - very useful tools - and ofcourse many home cooked meals with family and friends. Will post some snow boarding pics and promise to write more often.
Have a great year my imaginary readers !!