Thursday, December 27, 2012

They invent, we innovate


There’s a difference between developing innovative technology and using existing technology innovatively, claims a tech fan.

BC: Where were you last night?

AD: Out partying with my cousin Arun...

BC: You seem to have started the New Year celebrations rather early this year.

AD: Well, the binges began a long time ago. We weren't sure if the world was coming to an end and hence decided not to take chances.

BC: So who's going to take charge of technology's safe passage into 2013 if you're going to be partying endlessly?

AD: Oh, don't worry about it. Now that your generation has crossed over and has begun using mobiles, handicams and iPods, it is an indication that technology's safe and sound.

BC: I don't believe you said that!

AD: Of course, a few are yet to come to terms with how things work. I have an old aunt who chides her maid for giving her missed calls because she thinks even missed calls to her mobile are charged.

BC: I’m speechless…

AD: Millions of Indians are, and yet manage to keep communication going without saying a word…

BC: Sign language? SMS?

AD: No, through missed calls. You can call it a silent revolution, but India is probably the only country where a missed call could have so many interpretations – from ‘reached safe’ to ‘call back’ or ‘buy something on your way back’…

BC: Free but effective, huh?

AD: When it comes to using existing technology innovatively, we seem to have a knack of finding newer ways of doing things.

BC: My neighbours used missed calls to communicate specific messages - one ring to keep the tea ready, two rings to open the door and so on.

AD: I recall my college friends who had hired an apartment and used to program their TV to act as an alarm clock.

BC: How did they do that?

AD: By setting the timer on for a specific time in the morning. The TV would switch on by itself and would blast in full volume, waking up everyone in the house.

BC: It reminds me of the washing machines in Punjab and Chandigarh that are used to make lassi!

AD: It’s hard to say which deserves more plaudits, the lassi or the machine…

BC: What about the knife sharpener that uses a cycle wheel? Who would have thought pedalling a cycle would result in sharpening a knife?

AD: Looks like India's progress is truly being made on wheels...

BC: Talking of wheels, rural India has created its own transport based on the world's oldest set of wheels...

AD: What’s so novel about a bullock cart?

BC: Add an engine from a water pump, a plank of wood and a set of tyres to it - and you have a multi utility vehicle for a large family. It's called a Maruta, derived from the name Maruti.

AD: One thing seems to be common to all these innovations - they are earthy and come from necessity.

BC: That's also proof that you don't need a lab, a Ph. D. degree and millions of dollars of funding to innovate. All you need is a different perspective and a drive to reach your goal.

AD: Ah, the sermon begins...

BC: No, that’s the reason why India never feared the end of the world.

AD: Really?

BC: Absolutely! We were always confident that even if the earth came to a standstill, we'd find a way to crank-start the planet and keep it moving. 

Thursday, December 13, 2012

Adding dimensions to sound


A tech fan revels in new audio technology that will even make the superstar go, “How is it?”

AD: Hi, so how did you celebrate yesterday?

BC: If you’re referring to the 12-12-12 date…

AD: No, Chennai had a lot to cheer about yesterday. It became the first Indian city to play host to the Dolby Atmos technology, the latest in cinema sound…

BC: Who would have thought that there would be something superior to surround sound?

AD: Imagine sitting in a theatre with 128 audio tracks filling the theatre, with voices and music coming at you from 64 speakers located at various positions...  And the audio you hear is based on the position of the images on screen…

BC: So the sound moves along with the visual…

AD: yes, an object’s location on screen is mapped by the technology – and the sound pertaining to that specific location is played. It’s known as object oriented sound.

BC: How does this play out in a theatre?

AD: There will be two rows of speakers above the audience as well, in addition to the other speakers that are strategically placed in the theatre. These help sound travel across the theatre hall to give a 360 degree feel and make the audio a lot more realistic…

BC: I can imagine the entire horror movie factory licking its lips in anticipation of scaring the audiences more than ever. But what about theatres that have invested in 5.1 and 7.1 surround?

AD: Atmos can help create audio tracks to suit various formats…

BC: Sound has travelled a long way, literally and figuratively. Not too long ago, I recall theatres advertising stereophonic sound, when speakers were played in full blast for impact - and shattered our ear drums...

AD: Then came 5.1 surround, with five main channels and a low frequency channel…

BC: 7.1 surround came after that, right? So all the movies and the theatres they’re releasing in will adopt this technology?

AD: To start with, around 50 theatres across the country will be equipped with the Atmos technology. As for movies, only a few have tried it out, Disney-Pixar’s ‘Brave’ being the first to do so. Incidentally, the Life of Pi had also used this technology, but…

BC: …since Atmos has just come to India, we ended up seeing it our regular Dolby Digital surround.

AD: Right! Dolby and Pixar are becoming a winning combination when it comes to technology.  It was Pixar’s Toy Story 3 that saw the introduction of the Dolby Surround 7.1 system. A couple of years later…

BC: …Atmos was featured for the first time in Pixar’s Brave.

AD: But 2013 holds much promise, with Warner Bros bringing out the next edition of the Star Trek series using this audio format.

BC: 5.1 and 7.1 are now available for home entertainment too. What about Atmos?

AD: Right now, it’s restricted to theatres, but let’s hope…

BC: You said Chennai’s got a lot to cheer about. What else…

AD: Well, you must have seen the Tamil movie Sivaji, around 4-5 years ago. It’s back in 3D and incorporates the Atmos technology – the first Indian film to do so.

BC: I can understand remastering the film in 3D, but how did they change the audio to the Atmos format?

AD: Chennai’s not only got India’s first theatre that supports Atmos, but also the country’s first studio with the knowhow for handling the technology.

BC: It is said that a technological revolution is always announced from the rooftops. In this case, with all those speakers in the ceiling, they’re literally doing it. 

Thursday, November 29, 2012

Thanks for the cyber week


Once every year, technology magically transforms a week into a cyber week, claims a tech fan.

BC: Hi, did you finally buy that camera you were looking for?

AD: Yes, I had messaged my friend Mukund in the US - he got me a fabulous Nikon camera on Black Friday.

BC: Huh?

AD: It’s the day after Thanksgiving Day, when the festive shopping spree begins…

BC: So what’s black about it?

AD: A few years ago, the shopping crowds and the traffic on that day gave the American authorities and the police such a tough time that they began referring to it as Black Friday…

BC: Sounds like the various sale events we have here for New Year and Diwali…

AD: The big difference is that a lot of action has shifted to the net – the online version is called Cyber Black Friday.

BC: Technology... and Thanksgiving!

AD: Absolutely. Millions thank technology for the websites and apps that indicate the best deals and the nearest outlets where they are available…

BC: I heard that most malls and outlets have begun opening shutters on Thanksgiving night…

AD: Yup, that’s why Thanksgiving Day is also known as Cyber Thursday.

BC: With people deciding to binge on deals instead, several turkeys must have felt relieved… Guess a Cyber Thursday would help beat the rush of a Cyber Black Friday…

AD: Absolutely, Friday gets pretty manic - many websites and apps crash because of the online traffic. That would explain why most avid shoppers decide to shop on Cyber Thursday. However, for those who are more interested in their Thanksgiving dinner, Small Business Saturdays are always there…

BC: What’s that – a day for small businesses to sell their products?

AD: That’s right. While this is mostly a local event, technology - as always - lends a shoulder to promote the event through social media. Small businesses are offered web pages and online advertising opportunities free of cost to reach out to potential customers, and to offer discounts and coupons…

BC: So what comes after – Cyber Sunday?

AD: Well, Cyber Sunday exists, but it’s a pay-per-view freestyle wrestling event. Instead of chasing deals, you’ll be watching hulks chase each other inside a ring. The idea is to relax and wait for Cyber Monday, which has become one of the most happening online shopping events of the year…

BC: Don’t people have to go to work after the long weekend?

AD: They do, and quite a few of them have tried to shop online from their workplace... There have been cases of employees being fired for shopping while at work.

BC: Imagine looking for deals over the weekend and looking for a job on Monday!

AD: You bet! And as a follow up to Cyber Monday, Australian companies have added another day to the online shopping spree, called…

BC: Cyber Tuesday. Look at the brighter side of it – at least, you don’t have to get fired from work on a Monday.

AD: The real bright spot to the day is actually a concept known as Giving Tuesday – after all your splurging, you could get on to a social media site on Tuesday and donate to charity...

BC: A nice way to atone for one’s greed. Why do I get the feeling that you’ve missed out on something…?

AD: There’s a Cyber Wednesday too, thanks to companies that want to stretch the shopping bonanza for the entire week…

BC: Reminds me of the life of Solomon Grundy – the only difference is that by the end of the week, you would want to bury your credit card instead. 

Thursday, November 15, 2012

Technology to the rescue


There are times when technology kicks up a storm – and times when it helps handle one, claims a young techie.

BC: Hi, it’s sad to see the trees missing in your neighbourhood…

AD: Blame it on Nilam - she took quite a few with her.

BC: But her big sister seems to have created a lot more havoc in the US…

AD: Sandy? Some of my friends in New York and New Jersey had a tough time. There was no power for a week – and you know how almost everything there runs on electricity…

BC: With half the country shutting down, wonder how the media went to work…

AD: It was technology that saved the day. Smartphones captured images and videos, social networking sites became message boards, blogs ran articles while Twitter messages gave regular updates… In short, the local residents turned journalists and offered updates by the minute.

BC: But how does one verify that the news they give is authentic?

AD: You’re right. At times, rumours and fake news did the rounds. For instance, someone had posted that the New York Stock Exchange was flooded. This was picked up by many and re-tweeted so many times that even major news agencies believed it...

BC: I remember residents becoming journalists for a local tabloid in my neighbourhood… So, such collaborative efforts existed even before technology arrived.

AD: It’s not just about local tabloids – even TIME magazine decided to capture Sandy through mobile cameras and uploaded the images on Instagram…

BC: I think one of those images made it to the cover of the magazine, right?

AD: Right! And with social media coming in, the role of technology in disaster relief has become more prominent. Take every natural disaster that has struck us in the past few years, like the earthquakes in Japan and New Zealand last year, or the floods in Thailand…

BC: Good to know that people use Facebook for better things than wishing their spouse a happy anniversary…

AD: No kidding! Reports have it that Instagram had as many as 10 images with the hashtag #sandy being uploaded every second.

BC: For once, the general public wouldn’t have minded being bombarded with updates and messages…

AD: Well, even the authorities were on social media to reach out to people when they realised that newspapers and television would never get there. From passing on important warnings to announcing relief measures, social networking sites became the favourite media vehicle for many.

BC: I’ve been reading about the death toll and the widespread damage caused – seems like a nightmare…

AD: Reports mention losses amounting to over $ 20 billion. Sandy had become such a hot topic on Twitter that it was popularly dubbed Frankenstorm, in other words a ‘Frankenstein of a storm’. Unfortunately, it turned out to be true…

BC: Guess it just goes on to show that when faced with nature’s fury, even technology has to stand and watch helplessly.

AD: But technology did help many who were trapped in their houses or in flood-ravaged areas. There were several SOS messages that were constantly forwarded, shared or re-tweeted by many. This helped as these tweets found their way to various rescue forces and government departments that despatched teams to help those who were stuck.

BC: Back home, Nilam has done its bit to mess up the city... There was so much garbage piled up everywhere.

AD: And before all that garbage could be moved out, the streets have exploded with more trash…

BC: Another cyclone?

AD: No, I was referring to Diwali – the streets are strewn with leftovers of crackers, cartons, plastic covers and paper. 

Thursday, November 1, 2012

Shall we tag the President?


‘The US Presidential elections have found a new weapon – social media,’ claims a young enthusiast.

BC: Hey, did you watch the Presidential debates on TV?

AD: That’s 60s stuff… You should have caught the action online - it was incredible.

BC: Really?

AD: Reports have it that the first debate was the most tweeted political event in the history of Twitter, with over 10 million tweets.

BC: I’m surprised at the importance being given to social media…

AD: With almost 60% of the voters in the US active on social networking sites, neither party wants to miss out on them...

BC: So, who’s leading?

AD: While there are reports favouring both sides, Obama is generally considered more active online. He has over 21 million Twitter followers and over 31 million fans on his Facebook page. These numbers dwarf those of his Republican counterpart…

BC: Guess he had a headstart, having been President for a term already…

AD: That’s right. Social media is also being used as an analytical tool to gather data, like the response of the public to the campaigns…

BC: So what’s been the response like?

AD: Sometimes, it soars like Big Bird…

BC: What’s that - the eagle?

AD: No, Big Bird is a character from a popular series, Sesame Street. In one of the debates, Romney had mentioned that he liked the character – and soon, there were several videos, photos, spoofs and comments, all of which went viral…

BC: So now, Romney has both the donkey and Big Bird to watch out for!

AD: He also has the internet to monitor, because more Democrats have been contributing online - through websites and smartphones - to see their party win, compared to Republicans...

BC: Perhaps Republicans are more comfortable with old-fashioned methods of donations…

AD: What’s equally concerning for Romney are jibes that are creating havoc online - like Romnesia, a term coined by Obama about his opponent backtracking on his original policies…

BC: I’m sure the social networks must be lapping it all up…

AD: Absolutely! Likewise, Romney’s ‘binders full of women’ comment, which was originally intended to explain his search for qualified women to be part of his team, ended up being parodied on Twitter and Facebook.

BC: Poor man, so technology does have him in a bind…

AD: The other big problem is when your opponent has more followers – they simply take over your hashtag and ‘out-tweet’ you. Apparently, the Democrats have stolen the Republicans’ thunder at least a couple of times on Twitter.

BC: But the number of fans or followers in an online forum may not be an indication of the number of votes that a candidate might get…

AD: Absolutely. Besides, if popularity on Twitter can decide who’s going to be President, then the United States could well get its first woman President.

BC: Really? Who?

AD: Lady Gaga. She has over 30 million followers, which is 10 million more than Barack Obama.

BC: Well, the voters will truly face the music if that happens…

AD: It’s a bit like the opinion polls before an election... The final result could simply make a mockery of the predictions – we’ve seen it happen many times in India.

BC: However, whoever wins the US elections is going to feel like Superman as he occupies the world’s most powerful chair…

AD: But even Superman has acknowledged that social media is more powerful than he is.

BC: What do you mean?

AD: Well, news has it that Clark Kent has quit his job as a reporter for the Daily Planet and has taken up a job as a blogger in a social network…

Thursday, October 18, 2012

Stop kidding with technology…


Using technology to find baby names is fine, but using technology terms as names is not, claims an old-timer.

AD: Hi, those people who just left - clients of yours?

BC: No, my neighbours… They are looking for a name for their baby – one that’s well-recognized and is easily pronounceable…

AD: How about Facebook?

BC: Are you're suggesting that they use Facebook to find a name for their baby?

AD: No, they could just name their baby Facebook.

BC: You're kidding...

AD: Well, a proud father in Egypt named his daughter Facebook... in honour of the revolution that took place there.

BC: What will they think of next? The Like button?

AD: Sorry, that's taken too. A baby in Israel has been named ‘Like’, because its parents were inspired by Facebook’s ‘Like’ button.

BC: Why is it that when Egypt and Facebook come together, there’s always a revolution brewing? I get the feeling that today’s generation is getting too casual when it comes to naming kids...  

AD: I don’t know about getting casual, but one can get rich by choosing the right name. A couple in Kansas won $5000 by naming their baby IUMA, or Internet Underground Music Archive, an online music site.

BC: Sounds complicated… Why can't they just use simple names like Jack, John or Richard?

AD: Even those are inspired by technology... Jack Kilby co-invented the microchip, John Sculley was the CEO of Apple from ’83 to ’93, and Richard Stallman is the American programmer who started the GNU Project...

BC: This is getting ridiculous... At this rate, there won't be a name untouched by technology.

AD: That's perhaps why you need to crowdsource it...

BC: What's that?

AD: It’s like outsourcing, but to a large number of people. For instance, you could go online and ask your friends and colleagues to come up with name options...

BC: Sometimes, I wonder if the parents are too busy to come up with a name themselves…
AD: If you are the CEO of Yahoo!, then you would have many things on your mind, I guess, besides your baby's name...

BC: Really?

AD: Marissa Mayer apparently had a nine-day maternity leave and got back to work, so you really can't blame her for leaving the naming to her employees and friends...

BC: I'll never understand this... Naming your kid can be such a memorable experience...

AD: It can be quite rewarding too... A couple in the US have named their new-born Dovahkiin, after a character in a computer game.

BC: And their reward?

AD: Free games for life! Of course, the prerequisite was that the baby should have been born on 11/11/11.

BC: I don't know what to say…

AD: How about coming up with a name that you can pass on to your neighbours?

BC: How about iPhone apps?

AD: Are you suggesting that they name their baby iPhone apps?

BC: Don’t be silly, they could use an app to come up with a name... There are so many of these apps around to help young parents find a name for their baby...

AD: I’m amazed by these parents who go through such pains to find the perfect name, but when it comes to their choice of colours for the kid...

BC: Right, baby girls have to be in pink and boys in blue...

AD: And then they grow up and swap colours, so when you mention pink to boys and blue to girls, it's music to their ears...

BC: Really?

AD: Well, as long as it's a singer named Pink and a boy band named Blue.

Thursday, October 4, 2012

Technology? It’s child’s play!


Can you trust technology when it’s in the hands of whiz kids and weirdos, wonders an old-timer.

AD: Hi, where were you?

BC: There was a technology exhibition in the neighbourhood school…

AD: You – in a tech exhibition? Hopefully, the school has taken a photo of the moment and will display it in its hall of fame…

BC: I went there because my grandnephew was participating. But it was quite interesting - they even had a separate section on robotics…

AD: I bet it must have taken you right back to your childhood, to Johnny Socko and his Flying Robot…

BC: Don’t be ridiculous, I was working when that series was aired. If you’re trying to make fun of the technology back then, don’t forget that we had movies featuring man on the moon a long time before he got there.

AD: Ok, enough of your glory days. Did you learn a thing or two about technology, at least from the kids?

BC: Stop being so condescending towards them… You’ll be surprised at the number of things that were invented by kids…

AD: Besides a million reasons for not doing their homework, you mean...

BC: Guess you’re speaking from experience. Kids have several key inventions to their credit, from crayon holders and magnetic wallpaper, to toy trucks and trampolines…

AD: Those could have been sheer accidents…

BC: How does that change things? Even adults have invented so many things quite unintentionally…

AD: You mean like trying to invent a TV, but coming up with a radio instead because the video wasn’t working?

BC: I don’t know about the television, but the microwave was invented by accident when the Raytheon Corporation was experimenting with a magnetron…

AD: And what did they do to celebrate? Roast popcorn in it?

BC: They actually did, but not to celebrate. They wanted to see if it would work. And speaking of corn, cornflakes was another ingenious invention that came about by accident...

AD: Great, so what you’re saying is that one half of our inventions were by kids and the other half, by sheer accident. If that’s the case, what exactly have our famous inventors been doing, besides encashing their royalty cheques?

BC: They were perhaps busy creating and evolving the technology that you speak so highly of.

AD: Look, technology is about working smart – it’s not about bumbling your way through, as if you’re part of a Pink Panther movie.

BC: But technology is also about thinking smart – can you imagine making millions by selling virtual electronic pets that had to be looked after and fed? These pet simulated living animals in every way, from making sounds to having untrained potty habits...

AD: Sounds crazy!

BC: Yes, but they were a big hit in the 90s and could be carried around or reared at home.

AD: C’mon, this is making a mockery of technology.

BC: But technology does have a long way to go - until then, it’s pretty much a joke.

AD: I don’t get it – when exactly will you agree that technology is a lifesaver in today’s day and age?

BC: The day my car doesn’t break down when I’m rushing somewhere, or when my computer doesn’t crash and delete all my data just after I’ve painstakingly finished a project or…

AD: But that’s inevitable – haven’t you heard of Murphy’s Law?

BC: Well, until Mr. Murphy can be challenged, technology will remain a mute spectator while things continue to go wrong. And if you’re into Bollywood, you would understand why it’s called Barfi’s law. 

Thursday, September 20, 2012

Liberty, web activity, security…


Surfing the net at work has a downside – the Wi-Fi waves leave behind a lot of muck, claims a young techie.

BC: Hi, I had sent you an urgent mail regarding my travel plans. Did you see it?

AD: Sorry, new rules at work. No personal mails allowed…

BC: Surely, you could have checked it on your mobile…

AD: No, I’m not permitted to - it’s for official use only…

BC: Perhaps they’ve got a point. If you keep checking your personal mail or your Facebook account during working hours, it would definitely affect office productivity…

AD: Don’t get me started. We’ve been given Blackberries so that we can be connected to work, 24 x 7. So, if we are expected to work from home, why can’t we spend a few minutes at work on personal activities?

BC: That’s funny! A couple of years ago, you were shouting from the rooftops that your company had given you a smartphone and a laptop – you thought you had arrived in life…

AD: You’re exaggerating – the truth is, you have to take it when they give it. The least you can do is feel good about it.

BC: But how does checking mail on a phone compromise office security?

AD: If your phone gets infected and if you try to connect it to a network or transfer a file, you’ve provided an opening for an attack…

BC: See, I’ve always cautioned you about technology, but…

AD: Why blame technology for faulty workplace policies?

BC: Because in our times, chat sessions were typically around the water cooler – and they couldn’t stop us from drinking water.

AD: Well, things have changed for the better…

BC: Really? What about this sudden change at your workplace?

AD: It began with an employee opening a forward – the attachment let loose some kind of virus into the network.

BC: And…?

AD: The server crashed, a lot of files were lost and…

BC: …your company lost a lot of money.

AD: And a major client too.

BC: But I thought you guys had…

AD: Yes, firewalls, internet security, antivirus – we have the works…

BC: But are they enough to solve this problem?

AD: Why do you ask that?

BC: A nephew of mine was working in a multimedia firm where most sites were blocked. The young kids there took it as a challenge to unearth newer mail services and social networking sites on a regular basis…

AD: That’s not right. Imagine if this were to happen in a bank. An unsolicited mail that is opened or an infected USB that is plugged into a system can create unimaginable havoc…

BC: So what’s the solution?

AD: Security measures can work only when employees are careful about what they do online.

BC: But this kind of carelessness is normally displayed by junior employees – and in most cases, they have little or no access to classified information…

AD: Well, each organization uses the latest technology to turn its network into a fortress. But the minute someone like my friend at the workplace lets in a virus or worm, the walls of the ‘fortress’ end up being easily penetrated. So it really doesn’t matter who opens the door, the horse is sure to bolt…

BC: Or the Trojan horse is sure to come in...

AD: Right!

BC: The horse could well bolt, but it looks like office security is finding itself stuck between two walls…

AD: I don’t understand…

BC: A firewall on one side and Facebook’s wall on the other – I’m not surprised that office security is nowhere to be seen. 

Thursday, September 6, 2012

Clicks like a mouse, sticks like a gecko…


Who would have thought that a lizard would trigger a revolution in the tech world?

AD: Hi, back from your walk?

BC: Yes! The cool breeze, the sunrise, the sight of the frothy waves - it’s probably why poets are so much in love with nature…

AD: Well, even the tech world has constantly sought inspiration from nature.

BC: How? By making computers hibernate?

AD: Very funny! You must have noticed the Catseye road reflectors during your early morning walks… They were inspired by the way the cat’s eyes reflect light in absolute darkness...

BC: I bet the mouse was one such inspiration too. Once you get one into your room, there’s no getting rid of it…

AD: You’re the only person in the world who can look at an airplane flying overhead and think of bird dropping.

BC: C’mon, I was just referring to the current generation’s obsession with technology…

AD: I don’t think that’s a new fad – it has existed from the time man stuck a pair of wings on himself and tried to fly… Besides, look at your shoes. The Velcro…

BC: I’ve read about how George de Mestral was intrigued by the way seeds with burrs latched on to his trousers. He then designed a texture that would replicate it.

AD: It’s not just plants – even the gecko has impressed scientists...

BC: Apparently geckos don’t blink – could that result in flicker-free monitors?

AD: Why don’t you try adjusting your screen refresh rate to minimise flicker? On the subject of geckos, I was referring to their incredible climbing abilities…

BC: Imagine how eerie it would be to watch a laptop climb on to the table by itself…

AD: Don’t be ridiculous, I was talking about robots that can climb any surface. Another big development has been a special kind of tape that works without any adhesive, and yet sticks…

BC: So it wouldn’t leave any marks on paper or on walls…

AD: That’s right, and scientists have even demonstrated its adhesive strength by suspending humans and objects from it.

BC: No humans please, the last thing the world needs is a Geckoman franchise, courtesy Hollywood.

AD: Too late – Spiderman has an archenemy known as Lizard who has gecko-like climbing skills too.

BC: Pardon the pun, but why can’t we just stick to Sellotape or Scotch Tape?

AD: This new product can make a huge difference across different fields… It can replace sutures in surgeries to bind the area operated upon. It could also be used as a medicine patch – just stick it on the body to dispatch medicine to a specific part.

BC: If it can replace vaccine injections, the man who makes it happen would be a hero to every kid because he would have achieved what even Superman couldn’t – take the pain out of childhood.

AD: Absolutely! The industrial segment is equally excited because now, anti-skid will take on a new meaning. Suddenly, driving on roads caked with ice will no longer be a challenge…

BC: What about industrial adhesives? It could spell relief for workers – they wouldn’t have to spend desperate evenings trying to get industrial glue off their hands…

AD: It could also be used to improve safety devices for workers who work in high altitudes…

BC: Perhaps we should request the International Olympics Committee to use it on their medals…

AD: What for?

BC: After each Olympic event, we hear about how a medal went out of our grasp - maybe gecko tape could fix that…

Thursday, August 23, 2012

What’s your address?


Forget hardware and software upgrades, it’s time for the internet to be upgraded, claims a technophile.

AD: If the internet could run out of addresses, do you think it could happen to our neighbourhood as well?

BC: What do you mean?

AD: I’m talking about IP addresses – Internet Protocol addresses. You must have seen numbers arranged in four sets, like 192.168.1.1, for instance. Each number can vary between 0 and 255.

BC: So that’s how you get so many combinations…

AD: Absolutely. 2^32, to be precise, which leaves you with 4.3 billion addresses.

BC: That’s a lot! And we managed to use up all that?

AD: Well, the current protocol that we are following - IPv4 or Internet Protocol version 4 - was created in the ‘70s. At that time, 4.3 billion did seem like a staggering number…

BC: So what are we doing about it now?

AD: The shift is on, from IPv4 to IPv6, or Internet Protocol version 6.

BC: How’s IPv6 different?

AD: It has four digit hexadecimal numbers, arranged in sets of eight…

BC: I guess that means more options…

AD: Right! It works out to 2^128 – or 340 undecillion – addresses.

BC: 340 undecided what?

AD: Undecillion - that's 340 followed by 36 zeroes.

BC: That's huge! We'll take forever to exhaust that.

AD: Consider this – of the 4.3 billion addresses, we’ve used up the last billion in just six years, between 2006 and now. It just goes on to show the proliferation of internet devices and the number of users…

BC: I thought IP addresses referred to websites only.

AD: No, each computer and internet-enabled device are also assigned an IP address. And with millions of smartphones, tablets and other gadgets that have come into use in recent times…

BC: So does that signify the end of IPv4?

AD: No, just when everyone thought it was the end of the world, a new policy has been set in place which allows transfers of IPv4 addresses from regions where they are still available…

BC: …to regions where they’ve already been exhausted.

AD: Right, the beneficiaries mostly being from the Asia Pacific region, because they were the first to run out of IPv4 addresses…

BC: And who’s the donor? You said that the world was running out of IPv4 addresses…

AD: IPv4 addresses are distributed in blocks to regions, from where they are further distributed to service providers. So, while the blocks of addresses have been exhausted, some regions still have unused addresses. The African region for instance, has IP addresses to last them almost till the end of this decade.

BC: So while some are migrating to IPv6, the rest are buying up IPv4 addresses from wherever they are available...

AD: I guess everyone will eventually move to IPv6, but the transfer of IPv4 addresses is to help companies during the transition period.

BC: So what’s the progress made?

AD: June 8, 2011 saw the World IPv6 Day, a day when several leading companies like Cisco, Facebook, Google, Juniper Networks, Microsoft and Yahoo participated in a test run of their IPv6 websites for 24 hours.

BC: How did it go?

AD: It had a lot of support from the big names. And June 6, 2012 was the World IPv6 Launch, when IPv6 was permanently enabled globally.

BC: How about India? Are we inclined towards this new development?

AD: Not really. Reports indicate that India is still playing catch up...

BC: Well, we’ve always valued cricket more than technology...

AD: What’s the connection?

BC: After five seasons of IPL, looks like our support is more for IPL 6 than IPv6. 

Thursday, August 9, 2012

Staying in focus


The old-fashioned ‘film roll’ camera? Or the new-age digital one? The argument continues...

AD: Hi, whose photo album is that? Looks pretty old…

BC: My Dad’s college photos – they were shot over 70 years ago…. Look at the texture, the clarity...

AD: Yes, but who shoots on film these days? It’s a digital world today…

BC: Perhaps, but try getting this quality, especially in black & white...

AD: I know what you’re arriving at, but a digital camera…

BC: …is suffering from an identity crisis ever since it got hitched to one end of a mobile phone.

AD: Digital cameras are so convenient – there’s no fear of running out of film in the middle of a vacation…

BC: You could still run out of batteries and memory space, with your digital camera…

AD: With rechargeable batteries and infinite storage space? Never! A digital camera is so handy, especially when you want to click a candid moment, like your kid doing something really zany. Back in your days, you would have to dig out your camera, check if it is loaded, adjust the focus manually, switch on flash if necessary, wait for the go-ahead green signal... You’re ready, but the moment has passed.  

BC: We’ve raised kids without digital cameras – and our memories are still as fresh…

AD: What about the costs? When you’re visiting new places, it’s such a relief to get trigger-happy because you can click as many snaps as you want with a digital camera… You don’t have to be weighed down by factors like cost of film and the number of shots left. Wouldn’t it be tragic to be in two minds whether or not to click another snap because you wish to save the roll for the rest of the trip?

BC: What’s the point in shooting a thousand snaps? You upload some of them online - and that’s probably the last time you see them yourself.

AD: It would be nice to look back one day...

BC: You fill a 500 GB hard disk with snaps and hope to go back to them someday? That’s like filing away all the newspapers during your working years so that you can read them in leisure once you retire…

AD: Well, you can store thousands of digital images in an area that’s the size of your thumb nail.  Imagine storing even a fraction of that as prints…

BC: But how will you find a particular snap when you have millions?

AD: It’s a lot easier to sort and index digital images - software like Picasa can do the organizing for you. Prints, on the other hand, will require some sort of a catalog or album.

BC: I’ll stick to my old Nikon, thank you. It’s a mechanical camera and doesn’t even need batteries…

AD: What about ease of use? Digital cameras are a lot simpler – anyone can handle one. Manual cameras require some level of orientation…

BC: I’ve always maintained that technology’s dumbing down everything around us…

AD: Think of the positives - having a digital camera can be pretty useful. There have been so many wrongdoings and incidents that have been reported by the media in recent times because a passerby could shoot the incident with his mobile phone camera…

BC: It’s also sad to note that technology is coming in the way of being humane.

AD: What do you mean?

BC: There was a time when, in the case of an accident or molestation, our first instinct was to rush and help. Today, people seem to be more particular about clicking pictures and posting them online... 

Thursday, July 26, 2012

Banking on technology


What’s common to the words branch, phone, internet and mobile? The suffix ‘banking’, claims a tech buff.

AD: Hi, I can’t believe that you’re sitting with a mobile and a laptop... Is there a tech revolution approaching?  

BC: My auditor wanted an old bank statement of mine, so I was trying phone banking.

AD: And?

BC: The automated menu asked me to enter my ATM or debit card number, but I had neither - I had opened this account a long time ago… I went around in circles for a few minutes until they hung up on me.

AD: What about net banking?

BC: I tried that too. Apparently, I needed a user name and password…

AD: You could generate one…

BC: I tried doing that with my credit card, but apparently accountholders had to use their ATM or debit card…  After several attempts, I was directed back to phone banking to generate my password. So much for technology…

AD: Back in your days, you would have had to wait for the bank to open, to access old records...

BC: That seemed simpler. Now, I need a credit card or debit card, a mobile phone, a laptop, an internet connection, my personal identification number or electronic banking identity number – or maybe both, I’m not sure... And all this just to access my bank account. The only ID proofs missing are my ration card, passport and driving license – and of course, my horoscope and the counterfoil of the tickets to last night’s Batman movie.

AD: Stop being sarcastic…

BC: I remember the days when the bank meant your friendly neighbourhood branch. Every transaction was a big event, passbooks were the size of passports and bank employees were your neighbourhood friends…

AD: You forgot to mention irate tellers, long queues, longer lunch hours, metal tokens…

BC: But today you have t-pins, m-pins, i-pins, passwords, user ids and so much more. How does one remember all that?

AD: You can continue to crib, but analysts refer to mobile banking as the most path-breaking banking innovation of the century…

BC: So what you’re implying is that short of spewing money through the mouthpiece, the mobile phone can take care of all your banking needs.

AD: Actually, it almost does that too… Just as credit cards eliminated the need to carry money, mobile banking is edging out credit cards and debit cards from our wallet - with features like Hal-Cash and Airtel money.

BC: So what’s next? Banking through Facebook?

AD: That's already here. Banks like First National Bank in South Africa and ICICI back home have made this possible. Customers have to link their mobile banking app to their Facebook account and can transact from the social networking site.

BC: The bank’s open six hours a day, but your Facebook account’s open 24 hours a day, right?

AD: Absolutely – and since the Citi never sleeps either, Citibank also has launched a Facebook app for reward points in its loyalty programme.

BC: So after phone banking, net banking and mobile banking, we now have social banking?

AD: Right!

BC: Well, as long as they don’t write my loan outstandings on my wall…

AD: Seriously speaking, hasn’t technology made banking more convenient?

BC: On the contrary, it has only added to my worries…

AD: How is that?

BC: So far, my only concern was that I didn’t have enough money in my account. Now, with all the phishing and security breaches in banks, I also have to worry about someone else taking away what little there is…

Thursday, July 12, 2012

Kindle your curiosity, the eBook way


“Thanks to technology, you may run out of time, but you’ll never run out of books,” claims a geek.

BC: Hi, heard that you’ve bought a book on Steve Jobs - can I borrow it?

AD: I don’t know. You’ll need a reader...

BC: Don’t be silly, I can read it myself.

AD: No, it’s an eBook, so you’ll need an eBook reader.

BC: So we will now have a PC at home, a laptop for official use, a tablet for portable convenience – and to play Angry Birds, a smartphone to stay in touch and an eBook reader to read…

AD: Well, you can also read on your smartphone, tablet or laptop...

BC: How can you read a whole book on a mobile? I find it difficult even to read messages...

AD: There are apps like the Nokia eBook reader app, available on Nokia Lumia devices, to make your life easy.

BC: But reading at nights...

AD: The Nokia Lumia offers you a night mode that makes it convenient to read after dark. Barnes & Noble has also launched Nook Simple Touch with Glowlight, an eBook reader with an option for night reading.

BC: I still don’t get it - how can you prefer an eBook over a good, old-fashioned book?

AD: There are quite a few advantages. You can download and save thousands of books, so your eBook reader is like your own portable mini-library. Some eBook readers have a text-to-speech software option, so you can have the book read out to you. Some of them also play music…

BC: What do you say about a generation that picks up a book to listen to music? But if eBooks are available online, won’t people just download them for free instead of paying for them?

AD: Though the hardware manufacturers and publishers are trying to implement DRM – Digital Rights Management - the problem is that in the digital era, the more you try to restrict or protect usage of something, the more it gets pirated.

BC: That’s probably why DRM should stand for Don’t Restrict Mindlessly…

AD: That’ll be the day…

BC: Since the eBook reader and a tablet look so similar, why can’t there be a device that can perform both roles?

AD: That’s what Amazon has attempted with its Kindle Fire…

BC: Now I know why I worry about kids messing around with tablets… They’re playing with fire.

AD: Look, kids seem to prefer gizmos to books – they are completely into online games on mobile phones or on computers… So, if this is the only way to get them to read, why not?

BC: So it’s all about using technology to beat technology…

AD: Technology is also winning the race against the conventional print medium. According to a recent study, eBook production in the UK has left conventional hardback books behind in 2011.

BC: I think they should stop worrying so much about their Queen and instead pray that God save the hardback…

AD: Incidentally, one of UK’s most famous bookstores - The Travel Bookshop - made popular by the movie Notting Hill, has shut shop because of poor business.

BC: That’s sad…

AD: For book lovers?

BC: No, for the producers who are contemplating a sequel. They obviously can’t have Hugh Grant selling eBook readers in a store…

AD: And what if they did?

BC: Julia Roberts would hardly frequent the place to browse through eBook readers. She’d rather order one online, wouldn’t she?

Thursday, June 28, 2012

The power of PowerPoint


‘If you have nothing to say, use PowerPoint’ is the current presentation mantra, claims an old-timer.

BC: Hi, heard that your technology partner had come over to make a presentation…

AD: It was terrible. The machine hung, and then the presentation developed an error. After a few slides, the audio went kaput and finally, the embedded video in the slides didn’t play.

BC: Ah, the art of using technology to make your presentation more effective…

AD: But why blame all of technology for a faulty laptop and a system error?

BC: Because things went wrong even during my times when we used carousels and slideshows… Why are you smiling?

AD: Today is the age of hardware, software and Tupperware. Back then, I guess it was the era of carousels and casseroles.

BC: I remember an instance when a presentation was being made to a client. All of a sudden the carousel acquired a life of its own and began to spin and jump rather violently… Soon slides began popping out of the carousel with rapid clicking noises – it was like a popcorn machine. The Vice President set his team to stand at strategic points around the projector to catch the slides as they flew out.

AD: Now I know how positions like silly point, slip and extra cover originated in cricket...

BC: The point is, technology has always been unreliable.

AD: These days, technology has evolved to remote presentations – webinars…

BC: I don’t think that’s a bad idea - at least the audience can walk away without you noticing it.

AD: Not if you’re Steve Jobs. You can not only learn presentation skills from him, but also pick up pointers on how to handle technology glitches…

BC: Wow, HE had to contend with bad apples as well?

AD: Well, anyone can have a bad day with technology. When Bill Gates launched Windows XP, it crashed for the whole world to see.

BC: Glad to know that Bill Gates, Steve Jobs and your technology partner have something in common.

AD: Once, Steve Jobs’ remote failed and he couldn’t move to the next slide.

BC: He must have been rather iRate…

AD: The story is that he simply stopped the presentation and told the audience an anecdote that involved him and his friend Steve Wozniak, from his college days…

BC: Only Steve Jobs can get away with it.

AD: Maybe you could try using Keynote, the Apple presentation software that he used….

BC: I’ll stick to my slide shows, thanks. But podcasts, webcasts, webinars – suddenly presentations sound so complicated…

AD: There’s new technology like Prezi, a cloud-based tool that makes online presentations a breeze…

BC: But how does one demystify these new-age presentations?

AD: Simple, with apps like Pro Presenter that offers assistance when you present from your iPad. Tools like Animoto help you create great presentation videos, bringing together images, video, text and animation. And you can share them online using sites like Slide Boom and Slide Share.

BC: All these options must be making the older lot go nuts.

AD: That reminds me of a phrase coined in the memory of those who went nuts sitting through hours of mindless slides overflowing with data - death by PowerPoint.

BC: Now you know why those little dark circles in each slide are called bullets…

AD: In fact, the hatred for PowerPoint is so intense that in Switzerland, there is a political party called the Anti PowerPoint Party that discourages the use of any presentation software…

BC: Perhaps it’s their way of getting the corporate world to see merit in loudspeakers, banners and slogans…

Thursday, June 14, 2012

Technology, in an instant…


‘Technology’s iffy.’ ‘No, it does things in a jiffy.’ Presenting both sides of the argument...

AD: Hi, how’s your new laptop doing?

BC: Good, but it takes the same time to boot up as my old laptop…

AD: Ah, technology is in the dock again…

BC: You recall the original IBM PC that was launched in the early 80s? It used to take a minute or so to switch on, for DOS to boot up and for me to open Wordstar.

AD: So?

BC: The 8088 processor has evolved to an i7 Processor, the measly 256 kb memory replaced by 2GB RAM and the 10 MB hard disk by a 500GB HDD. Swap DOS with Windows and Wordstar with MS Word – but it still takes the same time…

AD: Are you trying to...

BC: What I'm saying is that for all the talk about technology, nothing much has changed. Operating systems and applications are getting bigger and more complex, and require more hard disk space and RAM capacity to operate. So, while machines are becoming more powerful, the time taken to start up remains the same...

AD: Look, machines that are shut down go into a cold state. Getting them back to working condition takes a few seconds, but that's getting shorter all the time...

BC: How is that?

AD: Scientists are toying with bacteria - Magnetospirillum magneticum - that eats iron and gets magnetized. These living magnets are being used to create high speed hard disks which could speed up your computer.

BC: Doesn’t that strike you as ironical? You protect your machine from virus and then add some bacteria to it…

AD: Forget what strikes me, but it might be of interest to you to note that computers have been struck by a thunderbolt...

BC: The only thunderbolt worth being struck by is the one that struck Michael Corleone in the Godfather...

AD: This one is even better. Thunderbolt is an input-output technology, and the result of a joint collaboration between Apple and Intel. True to its name, it makes computers lightning fast.

BC: But the operating system…

AD: Even operating systems are evolving to stop people like you from cribbing... Windows 8, when used in test conditions with a solid state disk, has been reported to enable system boot up in just a couple of seconds...

BC: Sounds impressive, but what about those who don't have solid state disks?

AD: Well, one option would be to use the hibernate feature in Windows. You can power the system off and go back to your previous session the instant you turn it on. It’s similar to the resume function in Macs.

BC: Everything has to be instant in today’s world, right?

AD: It’s a demand-supply thing. Technology has even made alcohol available in the form of mouth spray for an instant high. Apparently, the effect is very temporary...

BC: I always knew that the highs of technology could never be permanent…

AD: But technology's on a mission to speed up things - there's so much to be done and so little time to do it in. Do you know that we sleep almost a couple of hours lesser than the generation a century ago did?

BC: At this rate, I foresee a future where computers have a sleep mode, but humans don't...

AD: I give up - aren’t you happy that technology makes the world go faster?

BC: I get slightly out of breath when people say that technology runs our world. I would be happier if, for a change, it could just walk alongside us for a while…