Anish - Inside / Outside

Well this is about me - my name is Anish - Anish Jacob - and I have been wanting to blog for a long time - well actually about a year now - and here it is.... Its about me and whats happening now - on the inside and on the outside.

Tuesday, February 08, 2005

No " Wardrobe Malfunctions " this year !

The evening saw more than 15,000 Tonnes of potato chips vanish from the surface of the earth !

But more than that everyone seems to be relieved that this years Super Bowl has passed without setting off any booby traps !

Some interesting statistics about the Super Bowl from an IANS article that appeared in the Economic Times today:

  • Sunday witnessed over 7 million Super Bowl parties across the US of A

  • Attended by more than 140 million americans

  • The match itself was attended by more than 80,000 fans

  • Who paid between $500 - $600 per ticket

  • This year advertisers paid and average $2.4 million for a 30s TV ad-slot

  • That's $80,000 a second or more than Rs. 36 lakhs per second !


The full article below:
New York, Feb 7 (IANS) Some 140 million Americans partied around their television sets munching chips and drinking beer watching the National Football League's (NFL) 39th Super Bowl - one of US' most popular shows.

Over seven million Super Bowl parties were reportedly hosted Sunday evening with the popularity of the holiday sometimes even surpassing Christmas in the US.

For those who love football, the clash between the champions New England Patriots and the Philadelphia Eagles was an irresistible draw in itself. And for those who did not care about the game, the attraction was cleverly crafted commercials.

The game itself took place in Jacksonville, Florida, but was seen around the country on homes, cruise ships, bars, clubs, hotel lobbies, brothels and even the White House.

One of the biggest attractions of the show was former Beatle Paul McCartney's live performance at half time. It was in marked contrast to last year's halftime fiasco where singer Justine Timberlake ripped off fellow pop star Janet Jackson's bustier exposing a breast.

The incident, described as a "wardrobe malfunction", brought the culture police and the Federal Communications Commission down heavily on the risqué stunt that went too far. Both Jackson and Timberlake strenuously explained that the bustier was not supposed to come off fully.

Some 80,000 people gathered at the stadium paying between $500 to $600 although given the popularity of the game tickets would have gone at a premium.

In keeping with peculiarities of American sports, although called football the game hardly, if at all, involves any kicking. Players looking like futuristic warriors, dressed up in figure hugging lycra uniforms, run at each other carrying the ball in their hands. The American football is often more about physical prowess than skill.

Apart from the game, food is the centrepiece of Super Bowl Sunday with Americans consuming more food than on any other day with the exception of Thanksgiving. According to one estimate nearly 15,000 tonnes of chips were consumed. There was no immediate estimate of how much beer was consumed but it could run into millions of bottles.

Broadcast by Fox Network, Super Bowl is one of the most expensive shows to advertise on with an average advertiser paying an average of $2.4 million for a 30-second spot. Almost invariably companies produce exclusive TV commercials for the game's broadcast. Companies spend millions of dollars often working around the year to produce that 30-second spot exclusively for this day.

Commercials get discussed and dissected next day on television networks.Meanwhile, the Dec 26 tsunami devastation had its echo on the game with the appearance of former presidents George H.W. Bush and Bill Clinton, both appointed by President George W. Bush to raise money for the victims.

"I think we're doing some good. The American people have given hundreds of millions of dollars," Clinton said.

Clinton and Bush are both scheduled to travel to the affected areas soon to see how the relief efforts are going. So far half a billion dollars has been raised by the people in America.

By Mayank Chhaya, Indo-Asian News Service

Editorial on Open Source in The Economic Times

India is faced with the problem of low personal computer (PC) penetration and the widespread use of pirated software. There are limits to lowering hardware and software prices.

India could perhaps do much better with an Application Service Provider (ASP) type model for even everyday computing. Imagine, a neighbourhood could be equipped with basic, low-cost boxes that access, for a small fee, a central server on which reside various kinds of ordinary-use software for word processing, spreadsheet functions, etc.

In such a scenario, a user should be able to log into the central machine and use the appropriate application software to do the required job.

This can happen either through the utilisation of a broadband connection, which is expected to become ubiquitous soon, or perhaps even local or wide area networks.

The advantages of this model can be immense. For one, users would not have to keep investing in more and more powerful machines every couple of years: all upgradation in computing power will need to be done by the service provider and the cost, spread over a large number of people.

Secondly, since the terminal for users would be almost completely stripped down, it would cost immensely less than even a basic desktop does today, bringing computers within the reach of even lower income groups.

Thirdly, since the application software will, for all practical purposes, be only borrowed by the user, the cost of purchasing individual licensed software will disappear for the user, along with piracy.

Now, of course the issue is to make this technologically possible at a low cost. Use of open source software is one option. Brazil is a fantastic example of the kind of use open source software can be put to. Also, this will help communities to build localised content and interfaces that communicate with people in local languages.

But laws, policies and rules that limit broadband penetration, particularly in its low-cost, wireless form, will have to go.

This is the editorial that appeared in today's Economic Times.

Every time I drive around Chennai and see the PCOs ( not STD / ISD booths but shops offering local-calls for Rs. 1 ! ) spread all around the place - I remember the time when there was couple of years wait to get a landline ! the scene is the same in Bangalore - the one rupee coin boxes are everywhere. I have seen boxes so well placed - people could make calls from the road, sitting on their bikes !

IMHO there is no reason why the future visualized by the editorial above cannot be come a reality. If coin boxes can make low cost calls accessible to all, then why can't thin clients accessing servers on an ASP model make desktop applications available to all ?

Supreme Interventions

The Supreme Court needs to get involved to make sure that no cellphones are used in jails and that telemarketers don't bug us. Sigh !

If you are constantly troubled by unsolicited marketing calls trying to sell you a credit card or a loan without collateral, you may have some cause to cheer.

The Supreme Court on Monday issued notices to the Centre and all cellular operators and multinational banks, on a public interest litigation, seeking a law to ban uncalled for calls. Cellular operators are also in support of a total ban on marketing calls and want a legislation on it.

Marketing firms are increasingly using subscribers data and calling them to sell their products. More than 70% of such calls made are for selling credit cards. Currently, there is no legislation that protects the privacy of telephone subscribers.

A bench comprising Justice N Santosh Hegde and Justice SB Sinha issued a notice to as many as 11 respondents on the PIL, which termed this as an invasion of privacy and a violation of the right to live a peaceful life.

Those to whom notices were issued are the Union government, law and justice ministry, MTNL, cellular operators (Hutch, Reliance, Idea, Bharti) and multinational banks like Citibank, HSBC, Standard Chartered, HDFC and ICICI.

Unwanted calls have become a menace and subscribers have to face a lot of trouble. We would fully cooperate with all the authorities to keep a check on such calls, TV Ramachandran of the Cellular Operators Association of India (COAI) told ET.

- An article from the Economic Times.

I usually try to be nice to all sales people - tele or otherwise - since I myself am a salesperson. But last week I got pissed off too with a persistent telemarketer.

She called me a began in a soft and gentle manner: " Good Afternoon, my name is abc, calling from xyz club, am I speaking to Mr. Anish ? " Since I can smell these things coming, I said you have the right person but sorry I wasn't interested ( in a club membership ). When she persisted, I disconnected as I was right in the middle of something at that moment - there was no point trying to be nice and offering a logical explanation anymore. She called me back immediately from the same number and I disconnected the call - when she called me a third time I picked it up, only because for a moment I thought, I could have made a wrong assumption and it might be the receptionist of the club trying to connect me someone who works there - it might be a business call !

So, I picked up the call and she says " Sir, are you not interested in a free dinner ....? " I didn't say a word but disconnected !

I could have easily repeated the words of Manfred the Mamoth directed towards Sid the Sloth, in Ice Age:
" Don't you have anyone else to annoy ? Friends... Family ? Poisonous Reptiles, may be ? "

Monday, February 07, 2005

Ideas that survived - Images that endure !

In the run-up to the budget The Economic Times has been publishing a special series titled " Feel The Power - 15 Years of reforms ". Today's article by Manu Joseph was titled " Reform and others: Ideas that survived ". Its a good piece of writing - I enjoyed it, it was so much unlike the ET style - more like the articles printed on glossy newsprint, not like the ones that usually appear on this pinkish verity of paper.

This is are the opening paragraphs ( please note the strong words ):

The Pope said it before us, but that's alright - The Earth goes around the Sun. And as it does unceasingly, without a seeming purpose like an art film character, life spans are made.

Your reluctant choiceless birth, the first unsteady steps, melancholic infactuations, the shocking disappointments of mating, the deceptions of true love, humiliations of a salaried life and finally your inevitable, and probably, unsung death, would all transpire within about eighty revolutions of the Earth around the Sun, if you are a non-smoker.

Once you did not exist. Briefly you, somehow, did. One day you will not. But some men and ideas are fiercely eternal. They are remembered by incumbent generations as anniversaries, centenaries and other round figures of the Earth's motion. This is a story of such men and such ideas that have survived the fatal swings of periodic revolutions.


I couldn't but notice a parallel with another piece written a few centuries ago:

These are the words of the Teacher, King David's son, who ruled in Jerusalem. "Everything is meaningless," says the Teacher, "utterly meaningless!"

What do people get for all their hard work? Generations come and go, but nothing really changes. The sun rises and sets and hurries around to rise again. The wind blows south and north, here and there, twisting back and forth, getting nowhere.

The rivers run into the sea, but the sea is never full. Then the water returns again to the rivers and flows again to the sea.

Everything is so weary and tiresome! No matter how much we see, we are never satisfied. No matter how much we hear, we are not content. History merely repeats itself. It has all been done before. Nothing under the sun is truly new.

I devoted myself to search for understanding and to explore by wisdom everything being done in the world. I soon discovered that God has dealt a tragic existence to the human race. (Ecc 1:1-9, 13 NLT)


Manu goes on to say " But some men and ideas are fiercely eternal. " But this is what Solomon had to say " We don't remember what happened in those former times. And in future generations, no one will remember what we are doing now. (Ecc 1:11 NLT)

Readers especially Smokers beware - you have less than 80 years to goof around, according to Manu. According to Solomon: Man's fate is like that of the animals; the same fate awaits them both: As one dies, so dies the other. All have the same breath; man has no advantage over the animal. Everything is meaningless. (Ecc 3:19 NLT)

But in the last section of his Solomon hands out some hope, more of a warning cum instruction while concluding:

Don't let the excitement of youth cause you to forget your Creator. Honor him in your youth before you grow old and no longer enjoy living.

It will be too late then to remember him, when the light of the sun and moon and stars is dim to your old eyes, and there is no silver lining left among the clouds.

Your limbs will tremble with age, and your strong legs will grow weak. Your teeth will be too few to do their work, and you will be blind, too. And when your teeth are gone, keep your lips tightly closed when you eat!

Even the chirping of birds will wake you up. But you yourself will be deaf and tuneless, with a quavering voice. You will be afraid of heights and of falling, white-haired and withered, dragging along without any sexual desire. You will be standing at death's door. And as you near your everlasting home, the mourners will walk along the streets.

Yes, remember your Creator now while you are young, before the silver cord of life snaps and the golden bowl is broken. Don't wait until the water jar is smashed at the spring and the pulley is broken at the well.

For then the dust will return to the earth, and the spirit will return to God who gave it. (Ecc 12:1-7 NLT)


And incidentally this hope is incomparable to the 15 glorious years of reforms many have meaninglessly endured. God save India !

Charles Assisi lets out his Place2Stay

In " The Last Word " Charles Assisi, the editor of Chip writes that a Russian couple will be staying with him for 2 days in the near future. They got (hyper)linked through Place2Stay a site that connects travellers and people who will ( potentially ) host them for free.

This could have become a big media event had it happened in the Mikhail Gorbachev + Rajiv Gandhi era.

Charles, way2go boss ! And all the best to you and your wife. Say Hi to your Russian guests on behalf of your readers - and pls let us know how things went, like you've said in your column.

My 1st Flickr Photo Set


Most of the photos that have been posted till now in this blog were taken in 2003, the 1st year of my son. I have now set up a new Flickr Photo Set which has a selection of my favorite pics of Ray taken within 12 months of his birth. I am hoping to post more recent pics of Ray here from now on. See the set here ! Posted by Hello

That Maid A Good Reading !

According to Bachi Karkaria " Marriages are maid in heaven "

I don't like the " Times of India ", awright I've said it - and I have disliked it for a long time now and I am not the only one. The recent severely biased coverage of the Festival of Blessings has only reenforced my opinion. I have a few friends - who have already switched or are in the process of switching over to Vijay Times.

But, I don't fall in any of the above categories though. For one, " The Distorted Times of India " greets me only on Saturday and Sunday mornings ! The rest of the week I help the cause of the group, by loyally subscribing to The Economic Times. Although there is no real alternative for ET - I my opinion the paper is good and serves its purpose. While reading the paper on Sundays most of my time is spent on page 8 " All That Matters " ( columnists, editorials ) and I usually never miss Bachi's column.

I think what she says is absolutely right. My wife and myself have faced enough and more of maids who for a start are not punctual, on most of the days they decide to show-up. On one occasion after switching ( includes no-shows ) a couple of maids within a few weeks, my wife actually decided to stay home and take care of Ray rather than continue with her work. Recently we had a maid who used to stay at home - more often than not, my wife and I would discuss if she being around is a help or an impediment. She left for her Christmas vacations with a promise to return - but didn't, and we are perfectly okey with that !

Thursday, February 03, 2005

Hey, check this out...

This is how you can reach me :-)



Get yours at Neohacks

Is there a blog in your future ?

I think this article by Rebecca Blood gives a balanced view about why people blog or why anyone may want to blog. Based on good reasoning she even tries to predict if a new blogger will be inclined continue blogging in the future. Small article worth a blogsee...

Tuesday, February 01, 2005

Hi, This is Jose again... ( awgad not again, this is embarrassing ) [ Wedding: Part 2 ]

The phone rang again, that's an unrecognizable number, and the caller introduces himself again to me as Jose.

He goes on to speak about his bride who was in the first year when we were in Joseph's. Now it was evident that Mysterious Joe and myself also shared a Joseph's connection. BUT, the problem was that I was in 2 " Joseph's " in my life. St. Joseph's College and St. Joseph's College of Business Administration.

So we chat for a some time - work, where we stay etc. etc. ( and all the while I am still guessing ), when he throws in the big-one.

Caller: Do you remember where we met last time?
Me: Ahmmm.... Not really ( for that I should be sure who you are right ? )
Caller: In front of the college ! ( which one bugger ?)
Me: Aha... mmmm ( lost for words )
Caller: We met just after you finished class one day
Me: I see, Okey ( and, go on give me some more clues )
Caller: Around the time I was about to leave to the Gulf... for my new job

And I am thinking: Mysterious Joe is some one knows me and Kenny well, we share a college connection AND he has gone to the Gulf ! And there is NOBODY I know who fits that description.

He tells me that he is calling from his mobile and that he hopes to see me for his wedding tomorrow. So now I have his number, since both of us are pressed for time we decide to speak later...

Incidentally he also tells me that he once unsuccessfully tried to mail me ! He had found my Hotmail address - on a Webpage. And I was thinking, now that's me alright, but I had stopped using that id more than 4 and a 1/2 years back - so he must have browsed a really old page of mine, still stuck to the web somewhere.

To be continued in " Wedding:Part 3 "

Hello Anish, This is Jose here ! ( who ? ), Jose da.... [ Wedding: Part 1 ]

I was downloading some study material for my wife yesterday when I got a call on my mobile. The voice on the other side introduced himself as Jose.

Now, there are only 2 Joses I recall top-of-mind. One Jose, my cousin, but more of a friend - who had just returned to the Gulf a few days back - he is not the kind who calls like that. The other is Jose who works for Campus Crusade - now I had met-up with him too a few days back - was it him? This Jose conducts a Bible Study at his place every week - however Celesty and myself have never been regular attendants. So in my opinion he had given up on the holy idea that we will ever attend the study in the near future. However, he always calls me when there is a Potluck or a Barbeque and I manage to make it !! LOL. So, was another Potluck cooking next week?

Unfortunately the caller was dead certain that I understood who he was, and hence made no further attempts in clarifying who he was !

The caller went on to say he is getting married tomorrow, ( that's Tomorrow ) and invited me to drop in etc... I said fine, although I had no clue about who was getting married ( both the Joses I know were already married and have a couple kids to prove it ! ). And I was thinking to myself who is this guy so excited to speak to me and insists that I drop in. Adding to the confusion was the fact that he was calling from Kenny's phone, now who is this Jose who also knows Kenny, one thing was clear he was from my church circle of friends. He hung up and told me he will call later that day !

Since I was really busy, and had other worries at the moment, like hoping the throughput I am getting at the Cybercafe will not drop, I decided to ponder upon who this Mysterious Joe was later that evening....

To be continued in " Wedding: Part 2 "