What's happrning?

Again, I had to go wihtout internet for some days.

This morning,at around 10.30, I phoned the helpdesk. The reply was--'The broadband is ok now and has been so for the last 3/4 days'.

What should I do, I asked.

The voice at the other end advised me to bring the router to them so that they could reconfigure it. I asked-- 'Is it really necessary to do so?'.

The reply-- 'Sure'.

But I was determined the reconfiguration by myself. As I was preparing to start it, I forgot the password and I searched the BSNL-provided CD. It took me some 10m minutes in combing the CD through my collection.

When I returned to desk, I found the broadband already ok.

Enjoying myself

I made a grand promise to myself that I should be in bed by 10.30 at the latest.

Now, it's nearing midnight and I'm happily typing away!

In a sense, I'm enjoying myself surfing the web and watching videos.

When I read of emergence of video sites, I always ask myself--How will people find time to watch videos?

I always think that music is ok because it is great to do routine chores while listening to it.

For the last two nights I have been roaming the video sites.

When I'm in home made or amateur porn, I feel that it's the porn as we understand it. I feel like having a harmless peek into bedrooms of a different culture!

Does it enrich you?

It's a big question.

Factoring in past lessons!

The Chief Minister told the State Assembly that the State could not collect revenues from electricity users because of the intermittent power cuts now plaguing the State.

It's a good start. He is proving to be a realist.

If anybody wishes to get some revenues from any venture he should put in place some modicum of service first. He should first make some investments. That's in the domain of common sense.

It's good for us when the Chief Executive of the State shows willingness to be guided by common sense.

So, what's the bottleneck preventing us getting regular supply. The Chief Minister himself admitted that it is the capacity of the grid. Even if someone offers us enough power for free, we have no capacity to bring it here. We can bring in only about 60 MW.

The Chief Minister told us he is targeting for 400 MW grid upgrade.

Why should we have such a terrible grid?

In my mind, it's handiwork of contractor-officer-minister nexus.

The most likely scenario is that when they built the 120 MW grid, they actually put in place the equipments meant for 60 MW one. Then, everybody concerned--the conttractors, the controlling officers and the ministers--got their cuts. This is pure loot.

When the Chief Minsiter says they are upgrading to 400 MW grid we might get a 200 MW one! We are factoring in our past lessons!!

DIALTONE!

For many days to come, I got to look for the finer prints of the often-neglected news items in the inner pages of the morning papers. Any pale hints of a budding trends? I'm after trends building up. So many forces are competing to shape this society according to their own agendas. We cannot afford to miss any upcoming trend!

I was in this mode this morning when I saw news item telling us that digging up sewage in Yaiskul area again maulded some phone cables. But it only said that only the neighbouring areas would be affected. I didn't give any particular thought to it.

But when I tried to go online at around 11 in the morning, I found my phone dead. Then I remembered the news item and asked myself--This time, how many weeks of dead phone?

In the afternoon, I was actually planning for phone-less days for the following days. I felt tired of going after the phone guys. Actually, I made plans for going for wireless EDGE connectivity.

When dusk set in, we were confronted with yet another power cut.

I was sitting in the dark and pondering over many issues!

There, slowly, a feeling engulfed me--Oh! how exciting would be the coming phone-less days!! Breathlessly, I started making plans afresh!!!

But, as an afterthought, I reached out and lifted the handset from the cradle and put it over my ear--DIALTONE!

Was that my fault?

It turned out that I should set the Windows to 'automatically detect an IP address' for the LAN of the BSNL's DSL to work!

I've been using a specified IP address for my computer and a specified DNS server for almost a year now. Suddenly, they did not work.

Why?

This morning I had a long talk with the helpdesk of dataone Imphal. They obliquely hinted that my computer might have a specified IP address. Did that specified IP address have a footprint on their server?

Anyway, I reset the windows setting and now, it's working.

Come to think of this--I lost nearly 10 days for merely screwing a Windows setting!

But, I'm still asking--Was that my fault?

After a holiday

I mean after a holiday 'enjoyed' by BSNL!

From last Sunday, we were kept completely shut out from internet. I only got the connection only half an hour back.

I cannot find any word to express my feelings.

It's just a pure coincidence.

When I said in my last post that it would be better if they start the curfew from 7 in the night, I had just mentioned the '7' out of nowhere. There was no particular reason to mention it. It just sounded right.

But, when I was shopping at around 4.30, I heard the lady vegetable vendors talking among themselves that the curfew had been relaxed upto 7 in the night.

7 IN THE NIGHT? JUST LIKE I HAD MENTIONED IN MY LAST POST IN MY MY BLOG?

It turned to be exactly like that. The curfew had started from 7 pm today!

Let's say there is 'minimal' chance of the particular post of my blog having been read by the power that be in Manipur. Even if they had read the post there would be no reason to please an unknown blogger.

So, I would repeat myself: It's just a pure coincidence.

We know Govt is a necessay evil. Now we're blessed with 'minimal' Govt!

Anybody who believes in the virtue of lesser government should visit Imphal right now.

For several weeks now, we've not been able to detect even a pale image of a footprint of the reigning government. One of it's high ranking officer along with with his two subordinates were murdered while they were on their duties.

NSCN(I-M), which is a rebel group outlawed by the federal government in Delhi owned up the killings.

Now, the provincial government in Imphal and the federal government in New Delhi are hiding behind the same rebel group.

See how the rebel group grandly announced how they gave themselves another 15 days to complete the investigation of the triple murders.

Today, another non-government organization, JAC(joint Action Committee) spearheading the agitation for the booking of the murderers implicitly accepted the 15 days 'extension'. In between them both the provincial and the federal governments are keeping mum.

The JAC in announcing a series of 'tepid' program of agitation like poster campaign, cycle rallies etc implied that they would wait for another 15 days.

For the laymen like us, we can only hope that in the next 10 days or so,there might be further curfew relaxation. I'm already feeling suffocated by shutting myself up in my house by 5 pm everyday.

Why don't they start the curfew at around 7 in the night?

Can we expect it?

Here is the mostly likely specs of a netbook:

7-10 inch screen
Atom processor
1 GB of RAM
5-7 hrs of battery life
inbuilt 3G with wi-fi and bluetooth

Now, there would be swivel screen.

All these would be coming to us within a price range of below Rs 30,000/-. I think it's an attractive package.

But when swivel screen comes, the netbook can also be used as tablet. When in tablet mode, the inbuilt webcam would face outwards.

In such a scenario, one question comes to me: Would it be possible to use the webcam as video camera?

We won't be asking for hi-def vid. We allwould be satisfied with a resolution as 'crappy' as YouTube's!

With an inbuilt 3G and the device meant mostly for 'on the go' mode, it would be extremely attractive if we can capture video clips to be shared online.

Then,it's reasonable to expect a netbook with a webcam that has a lens mount.

Wow, with a lens mount, the little machine would be really versatile!

A new experience

When I went out at around 4 in the evening, there was something unusual in the air. Everybody in the street seemed already hurrying to their homes.

When I walked back along the Paona Bazar Road after my shopping, it was nearly 15 minutes to 5 pm. But almost the shops were seen closed--shop owners shuttered down their stores well before the curfew time.

It's a new experience for me.

Before and after.

Before I got enlightened(my last post), I was zeroing in to Smasung's NC 10!

NC10 is Samsung's newest offering in netbook category. What's most attractive to me is its battery life. Third party testing actually returned more than 7 hrs of active brawsing the web. That's excellent.

My sceme was to use it as a backup to my desktop. As soon as there is a power cut, I would start up the netbook and continue working. As the power connection resumes, I would again return to my desktop.

That's survival scheme for a place so plagued with power blackouts.

Now, I've the option of going for a 'VIP'power line(my last post). I can wait at least for some months for buying a netbook. In some months, netbook with swivel screens would be coming out in the market. All of them promise 5-7 hrs of battery life. Swivel screen means they can be used as a tablet also.

If waiting for some months promises an addition of an attractive feature, it's worth the wait.

Connection--'VIP' way!

One of my friends was so mad by the incessant power cuts that he went to the substation of the grid feeding his locality. He had in his mind a very loud complaint to the officials present there.

There, the assistant engineer in duty invited him to his office and even, offered tea and talked him down for more than 2 hours! That's right, more than 2 hours.

The gist of the lecture is that the power is availbale but the problem is the non-payment of bills by the consumers.

His advice to my friend--call a meeting of whatever the number of household with whom my friend has good personal relation and tell them that power is avialble if they are ready to pay up regularly. If they are convinced the officials of the deptt will make an official visit and make an assesment of the power requirements of the households. Based on the assesment they will install a brand new instalment and connect it with a 'VIP' line so that the they would get un-interrupted power supply.

The only catch is that the officials won't go to the individual household for collecting payment but instead they would come to my friend. My friend is needed to make a legally-binding undertaking to give payment on a monthly basis. According to the capacity to the transformer they would fix the monthly amount to be paid regardless of the electricity usage--ostensibly, they are not thinking of metering the electricity usage!

I'm enlightened! I've always thought that 'VIP' connections across the street by my house are all the products of clever rule-bending!!

Now, it's clear that 'VIP'line has got official sanction.

In the changed scenario, I'm seriously considering getting a 'VIP' coneection myself.

Fresh disturbances?

It seems that there were some fresh disturbances here. Police men were more stricker in enforcing the curfew this evening. They also started enfrcing the curfew well before 6 pm, which is the time when the curfew starts.

I heard hush consersations in the streets about some fresh disturbances.

I have got no reliable news so far.

3G in the most unlikely place!

3G descended into the 'unlikeliest' place--Uttarkhand!

Actually, I'm looking forward for the news of its launch in Chennai.

But, is EV-DO 3G?

If the answer is yes, the service is already available in Imphal. Of course, the provider is BSNL.

It seems there is a lot of controversy around EV-DO vs 3G. I presume it's because EV-DO is CDMA based while 3G is GSM based, right?

But I've just read that when providers are trying to upgrade their their network to 4G to combat the impending onslaught of WIMAX, they are finding that the technology converges. The new protocol called LTE(long term eveolution) is breaking the barrier between CDMA and GSM. It's reported that there is only some finer points to be thrashed out. I should not forget to mention that the scene is in the US.

But is it good for the consumers, like us?

Let there be private functions

I went to a 'Na-hutpa' function.

I always avoid such functions. But this time, I cannot do so because it's the function of my aunty's grand daughter.

I spent the whole morning preparing to go to the function. I reached there by around 11 am. There are so many rituals. When we finished having the meal as the last stage of the ritual it was around 1pm.

Around 100 persons attended the whole proceedings.

Besides the energy wasted on arranging for a function to be attended by 100 persons, there is also the sheer of time for all the concerned.

Why can't have a private function inviting only the close relatives--say,a round 20-30 people?

My point is should some people want to have the public function, as it is functioning it's ok--but if some people like to have a private function, it should have the sanction of the society.

We should break apart this tyranny of having to go for public function for every member of the society.

It's tyranny.

The message from the dirty war mongers

This morning's papers carried the gunning down of a Bihari barber at Uripok. If my guess is right, the place is quite near the house murdered driver of the murdered SDO.

This evening the hawkers selling eveningers were shouting in the streets--'Another Bihari shot death'.

I had not the mood to buy the paper and read it.

But the message is quite--Biharis working in Imphal are also got killed by the Meeteis; so, if some Meeteis who go to Ukhrul for works got killed by the Tangkhuls there, Meeteis should keep quite, just the like the Biharis of Bihar.

They are essentially saying--Pocket the comsensation amounts and accept the job offers for kith and kin and keep quite.

Some people are sending messages trivialising people's lives.

This is hellish.