Hamza's Blog

What I Love Most About Pakistan

2009-08-12T15:39:00.005+06:00

Now that honestly isn't a very easy question to answer. The reason isn't that its very hard to think of anything admirable about Pakistan, but rather its about choosing the best out of it.

When I saw the teabreaks's campaign regarding 14th August, in which you have to share something you love about Pakistan, I started wondering what could it be. Several thoughts crossed my mind, and I thought of making a top ten or twenty list, but guess I'll stick to one and most favorite reason in my eyes for loving Pakistan.

Before stating it, I'd like to add a small personal thing about me first that by the Grace of God, I had the opportunity to visit many developed countries since my childhood, so I'm not a kind of person who hasn't seen World, or who would be fascinated by observing something ordinary, so when I mean that this thing about Pakistan is out of the box, it means that its something that I'm proud of when I go abroad.

And that thing is none other than the Natural Green Beauty of Pakistan, its forests, rivers, mountains.. you name it. I've seen Canada, US, few European places who were renowned because of their gifts from nature, but none was even close to our Northern areas when it comes to the Natural Beauty. Our forests in the mountains of NWFP, the chill refreshing water of Lake Saif-ul-Malook, ice covered peaks of Himaliya series and K2, and I don't know what else. All I know is that when I watched the scenaries while going uphill to Nathia Gali, or saw several small villages while visiting Tarbela Dam, I observed the stuff, so beautiful, charming and attractive which I haven't witnessed in other parts of the World. I saw few tourists there too, who were surprised to see how beautiful Pakistan really is, and how opposite is the image of Pakistan in the eyes of World.

A relative of mine who used to live in Switzerland and now in Saudia Arabia visited those places. She said that a major amount of revenue that is generated by that country is in term of tourism, the government promotes it worldwide, and manages to attract several thousands of people each year who love to see the nature in its full bloom, but places like those in Pakistan were nothing in comparison, according to her. She said I'm surprised why Pakistan isn't earning much from tourism.

And yet thats a point our government should ponder about. Nepal survives because of Mount Everest only, they haven't got any other source of income, so the several other countries. Our Government has made progress in this regard though, the roads and highways from Islamabad to these places is pretty smooth, facilitated by several hotels and restaurants, but still a need of proper campaign should be felt to advertise these places. This could become a bigger part of our GDP.

I read somewhere that a German tourist said that its really surprising how Pakistan is a poor country despite of owning K2.

Whenever I visit Nathia Gali or Abottabad or Kaghan or any other areas in their vicinity, and when I look at all the massive natural beauty they have got, I really feel proud as a Pakistani, as I feel that all that stuff down there, all the greenery and blue water, I share some pride in it because I was born on this land, in that very country which has been gifted with what others don't have.

And thats all I wanted to say. I'm sharing some photos (Album 1 , 2) too which I took at those places and would love to share with the readers. Hope you'll enjoy it. :)

The Chronology of Communication

2009-07-03T13:19:00.007+06:00

First of all, thats not exactly the chronology, thats a kind of my experience, things which I have seen and observed in the last few years in terms of how we communicate, how we do some chit-chat with our loved ones who are living abroad.
Its not a very huge surprise but I thought that it would be interesting to share it here with everyone.

It all started when my Uncle moved to America in 1996, moved there permanently with his family. Since we had almost no means of communication back then, as there was no concept of calling cards, and per minute charges of calling USA from Pakistan was around $5, we barely used to call him. I even remember those days when we used to go to a PCO with a paper, on which everything was written which we had to say under a minute :) because the other minute could have produced a dent on our pocket.

So for casual talks, we used to write letters. I remember writing some too when I was nine years old. We usually got a reply from them within a month or two, and the conversation was kind of weird, to me atleast. It was like you are talking and talking to someone, and getting no response, so you never know what to say next. But that writing letter thing continued, and for a long time.

After that, my dad's office got an Internet connection, so we switched to E-Mail. E-Mail was fun, we were getting replies within a day, and it really seemed to work out. My mother used to write during those days too which were either faxed to him, or scanned and then E-Mailed by my dad. Both seemed instant and it felt like something really advance or state of art.

We also tried Voice chatting on MSN from our home. I remember buying dial-up scratch cards, up to Rs. 25/hour for a speed of 3-4 KBps with frequent disconnections from their server, but still we enjoyed it :) , as we were talking for Rs. 25 per hour only. There were a lot of issues, we had to adjust timings to come online, sometime there was a connection problem at either one of the end, a lot of echo and distortion in the voice, etc etc. But still we were glad that we could atleast hear their voices.

During that, my uncle would periodically call us on some occasion for few minutes, and because I was a kid, I was not allowed to talk with him on phone because of the limited call duration :) Only my mother and grand parents used to answer his call and for weeks they would discuss that 5-10 minute call, that he told this, he told that etc

After that, during 2002-03 , we started making calls to them, at the rate of Rs. 50-60/min. That was the special discount rate announced by PTCL on occasions like Eid, New Year, etc. We used to buy a Rs. 250 card of PTCL in those days to hardly get a 5 minute talk time, but we were happy, as the rates seemed quite reasonable.

Then Pakistan took a step further in Telecommunication and several private Call Service Providers jumped into the market. At that time, there was a company called BIG Time. They offered 15 minutes for Rs. 100, and we were like Oh my Gosh! Thats so CHEAP! And not only us, so many other friends and relatives of ours who used to make calls abroad looked extremely surprised and glad. We tried out the service, it was good but with some issues. The calling card number of the company which you were supposed to dial first to enter the card code was always busy. I remember trying it again and again (Once I counted my retries and it was 21!) and then you might get lucky and hear a recorded message. That went on and on for few months. In the mean time, several other companies jumped into the market and the best rate we got at that time was 40 mins for Rs.100. It was 2004-05 I guess.

Then PTCL, the primary Telecom service provider of Pakistan took a step further and dropped the calling rates for USA to Rs.2/min. That was a real blessing for everyone of us here. No more card scratches, or waiting, or re-dialing and stuff. Just pick up the phone, dial the number, and its ringing there, for such low rates. It felt awesome and its still on at the time of writing this post.

Few days ago, I saw an advertising of Ufone, my cellphone carrier, offering 100 minutes for 100 rupees, to make call anywhere in US and Canada. I found that exciting and gave it a shot, but it turned out that package had a 15 day expiry. It was not the best valued package around.

And today one exciting thing happened, which forced me to write this post. I taught my uncle how to use Skype on his iPhone, so that he can take advantage of free skype-to-skype calls. I have an iPhone here too with Skype in it, and we have decided that whenever we'd be willing to call him, I'll send him a SMS (which costs Rs 2 I guess) and he'll come online on Skype, using his cellphone (he has got unlimited data plan from AT & T). I'll meet him on skype too using my iPhone and WiFi Internet, and the reult? Free International mobile-to-mobile calls for unlimited duration :)

I don't what we'll do next. A HD video call, or a hologram chat like it was shown in CNN during American Elections, I don't know. But what I'm sure of, is that whatever it would be, it would be better and awesome!

Update: After reading this post, AT&T has blocked all VoIP calls generating from their customer cellphone, so no more that type of free lunch for me, lol! But still, we have got wifi, don't we? :)

Lets Support Our Cricket Team

2009-06-21T09:51:00.006+06:00

Today is one of the big and memorable day in the history of Pakistani Cricket team. Today they will be facing Sri Lanka in the final match of World Cup t20 Cricket, 2009. Both teams have earned their position into the finale, and no doubts that all players of both teams must be on their toes, practicing hard for the final match.

There are many Pakistani supporters in Pakistan or around the world, who want to support their team in the match, but somehow it doesn't seem possible to do so. They think how can you support the team when you are not even in the stadium. Well, thats not entirely true. Many sports enthusiasts have been supporting their team over Internet and now we are about to do the same by using twitter.

Those of you who are familiar with twitter don't need much explanation. Just keep tweeting your supporting comments with #PakCricket tag in your tweets. Those who don't know how to use it can get the instructions from here.

Online commentary and updates are provided by teabreak.pk and are available here. You can join this online party too to show your support.

So lets rock the twitter today with tweets supporting our cricket team. We CAN do this, and we WILL do this, Inshallah.

Best of Luck Pakistani Cricket Team. Long Live Pakistan, Long Live Cricket :)

Going to Watch Apple WWDC 2009 Live NOW!

2009-06-08T23:17:00.007+06:00

The day has finally arrived and top-notch minds of IT Industry are here under one roof of Apple, discussing and deciding the future of Computer Industry. Can't wait to see what they have got for us to announce this year.

I was searching the webosphere to get hold on some good links to get the updates of the event, here is a short list of those site which will be covering the Apple WWDC 2009 Live.

The event is about to start in half an hour... lets see if they have got some new fancy concept or gadget for us, or its just another show to exhibit their new upgraded laptops.

Microsoft hatred for Google

2009-06-01T13:12:00.003+06:00

Saw this video on facebook, and couldn't believe that there are still some professional people in the industry who don't know how to use google for their queries, or its that which Microsoft wants to point out :)

Microsoft is trying to take over the searching business by launching bing.com , don't know whether they have that kind of network architecture which google has got, but I think it would be a fun competition, and thats competition has already started on marketing grounds. Take a look at the video below.

G.I Joe International New Trailer

2009-05-01T15:32:00.007+06:00

Would you look at that? Its simply Aweeesommmeee!

Hey Wait.. Peter Petrelli Cant do that..!

2009-05-01T12:24:00.006+06:00

Just finished watching the 25th episode (season 3) of HEROES, and I think they have committed the biggest possible mistake they can do in the whole series, and thats not showing Nathan or Sylar dead, that was awesome infact. Their mistake was the part when Peter takes over the Sylar as President.

Peter is not capable to do that man, how the hell did writers and directors made that up? Peter can only absorb ability of others, when he touched Sylar, he absorbed his ability of How things Work, not his "memory" of how shape shifting works! For that, he had to kill the Sylar, open his head-up, and then search for that memory which could show him how to shape-shift. Besides that, he'll just know how things work, NOT how every ability works!

Thats the biggest mistake which I was really disappointed to see. They covered the Sylar VS Peter thing very nicely in season 1, Peter was absorbing everyone's ability and fought Sylar, but he didn't get the "things" of Sylar, Why? because he absorbed Sylar's power, not his knowledge of how power works. That was the real logic, but now they have messed it up!

Really disappointed to see that, as its one of my favorite TV shows. Lets see what happens next!

SMS Catches the Controversy

2009-04-28T19:06:00.004+06:00

I remember those days when the domain blogspot.com and youtube.com was banned by Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) due to its massive content, among which were the blasphemous pics of our beloved Prophet (P.B.U.H). The gov wanted to demonstrate to its people how concerned they are on different social and religious grounds for them. There thinking to ban the content was right, but the way of its implementation was absolutely wrong.

Same might God-forbid happen again. There's a video below, showing Rehman Malik (National Minister of Information) stating that we have to control the acts of terrorism which are spread via SMS. We should try to control it, or else we would be left with no other chance but to disable the SMS service in Pakistan.

By the phrase "Acts of Terrorism", I assume they are referring to those text messages which make fun of govt officials and spread false Information on sensitive topics, like downfall of economy, different crisis, etc.

Taking steps against terrorists and their means of terrorism is a good initiative, but I really, really wish that someone from somewhere could tell the government that its NOT the right thing which they are doing! It will only result in more frustration for Pakistani people, especially youngsters who are almost addicted with the low-price SMS packages of Pakistani Cellular Networks.

The next thing, which is a bit technical, but I would like to state it here with the hope that it might help our authorities a bit, before they make their decision, that disabling SMS because it spreads negativity, stuff against government or anything won't help in stopping it. There's always an alternative for everything! They have Internet full of this stuff, now they won't ban the whole Internet, Right? (Would they??). What they CAN do to help the situation, is to start monitoring the messages, and if any prohibited content is found in it, it should be tracked back to its origin, and that person should be sentenced for breaking the law. PTA has already defined its policies regarding the content monitoring and registration of users, before they subscribe for any mobile/landline service, which means that they'll have a proper mean to track-back the creator of the content.

That might help more than banning the whole SMS service, which holds a major portion in the revenue of cellular networks!

The thing which disgusts me most

2009-04-26T12:53:00.009+06:00

While reading News on my laptop this morning, I found out something which I always, always hate about Pakistani media, and it is the basis on which I say that our own media plays a vital role in demoralizing our people, and damage the image of Pakistan in the world, rather than help improving it!

Take a look at this:

Our local media reports at what happens in Dir, an unknown small city of Pakistan famous for nothing, that some kids brought a home-made bomb which killed 13! On the top, you can also see the similar story in CNN top story lines! I bet they don't have their correspondents in there, must have picked it from our local sources.

Could anyone explain this to me how that story was beneficial for Pakistan? What change did it bring? but the similar story revolved on several news sites on Internet, including CNN which has got billions of viewers worldwide, and that story would do nothing, but to hurt the image of Pakistan more severely!

The local media should report with more responsibility, such incidents happen everywhere in the world, but their media always cover the stories which are not in their national interest. Why can't we do the same? Why can't we be a part of improving the situation rather than be a part of disturbing it?

Such kind of stories and columns are among the reasons about the opinion of World they have about Pakistan, and WE need to control it before it gets way much out of our hand, or else someone important sitting somewhere in the World might cancel his/her business tour to Pakistan due to security threats after reading such news!

Fast and the Furious 2009

2009-04-26T12:08:00.004+06:00

I was waiting for this movie for a long time, maybe after watching Tokyo Drift or so, don't exactly remember when, but I do remember that I watched Tokyo Drift in September 2006 :) and was really excited to see Vin Diesel in the end. I thought at that moment, if this franchise would come up with a 4th part, and when Vin Diesel will be drifting the whole movie with his American Muscle, it would be simply Awesome!

So finally, the movie hit the cinema after almost 3 years of my waiting, 3 years! The reason I've been waiting for it is because I love cars, and street racing (especially illegal ones) and I always love to watch any Hollywood movie based on it, but unfortunately, they haven't been producing any quality films in this genre lately. Their best shot might be movies like torque or red line, but nothing compares to this franchise.

Fortunately, the movie was released in Pakistan too, just few days after its US release, and I was keen to watch it on a big screen here at the local cinema, but all hails to my hectic University schedule, I never got time to go to a theater, and as the time passed, I was getting more and more tempted to watch it (Some of my friends already watched it and said that they loved it, got tired and a bit angry after reading all their good comments about it on facebook), so I did what I always do, downloaded a good quality TS print, and viola... My waiting ended!

I don't like to dig the story by telling what happened, instead I prefer to comment on what I liked or hated most in the movie. The starting was good, though I saw that scene a million times as a teaser and in trailers, but still I enjoyed it (Thanks God they didn't do what Sam Riami did to Spiderman 3) then the story proceed and I was excited to see Han (don't know his real name) in the movie so early, but after that he just disappeared, no more scenes by him, and still they were close enough in the story to be termed as family, as they said in Tokyo Drift!

One thing I noticed that they brought a major change in the theme. This movie was all about "driving", not about "Racing", which is the main theme of the franchise, and let me tell you why its different!

The First part of the Fast and Furious was about Drag racing, which mostly happened in there. Drag racing, racing and more racing. That movie was about faster cars, hot chicks, and street racing. Then came the second part, what changed was the type of racing, they moved on to Sprint racing in 2 Fast 2 Furious, and to the drift racing the third part.

I was hoping something like that, or a mixture of all the previous races in this part, but they brought a major change, they converted they whole theme into 'driving for drug smuggling' instead of 'street racing' which was disappointing to see. They did the same in second part, but they had a strong story line there, I was hoping to see the same in here, but I guess I didn't!

What else surprised me in the movie, is that when they were trying to kidnap the boss of that Spanish gang, they used exotic cars for the extraction, despite they already knew that they would be traveling through a deserted, sandy land. Such cars, no matter how good they are on road, never perform in sinking sand. I'm not an expert to comment on that, but still I don't know what they were thinking.

What else was in the movie? The whole internet is flooding with those stories, I just wrote what I thought was missing. and oh yes, how can I forget the ending! I simply loved the ending, when Vin Diesel was convicted for 25 years in jail, I said to my self what the hell? They wouldn't me making any 5th part? but my smile couldn't get any broader when I saw Paul Walker chasing the prison van. They might also use Jason Statham for transporting him :)

That was it in my own personal review. Overall the movie is worth watching. If you love cars, wild driving and underground crime movies, you'll love it, but for the Fast and Furious franchise fans, its kind of disappointing.

I'll give it 8.2/10

Point to Ponder..!

2009-04-16T21:42:00.000+06:00

Life is boring Without Delivery Reports!

2009-04-10T21:06:00.003+05:00

Being a Ufone user for 5 Years now, I have been kind of addicted to SMS, and have always used there delivery report since the beginning of my cell phone using experience, but now it is kind of getting odd, since Ufone has stopped delivering delivery reports!

Other networks have also followed this stupid trend, and most of the cellular networks are currently not sending the delivery reports! That used to happen on several occassions, like Chand raat, festivals or New Year, but now it has been enforced permanently, which I think is not a good initiative from the company!

I found an E-Mail posted on a blog, in which the writer inquired Ufone service about the delivery report blockage. He got the following reply:

Dear Sir/Madam,
This is with accordance to your mail regarding the SMS delivery reports. We express our sincere regrets for the delayed response and for the inconvenience caused to you. In compliance to the same, we would like to clarify that in order to ensure a high quality SMS sending experience for all our valued customers, automatic SMS Delivery confirmation will not be available. However, as soon as the referred facility is resumed, we would certainly inform our valued subscribers. We are highly indebted for your cooperation in the meanwhile.
Please feel free to contact us on our 24-hour Call Center (333), mail us at P.O Box 3333, Islamabad or register your complaint by visiting our website www.ufone.com, in case you require any further assistance
Thank you for being our valued customer and we look forward to serve you in the future
Yours Sincerely,

Customer Care Operations”

National Blogger Conference is coming up!

2009-04-10T20:45:00.003+05:00

Yet again, another Pakistani Bloggers Meet up would be going to held in Karachi on April 18th, 2009, at Karachi Regent Plaza (Near Nursury) between 4~7P.M.

A great amount of Participation from all sort of bloggers is expected! I have currently applied for the invitation and looking forward to get one, lets see what happens! Hope that event would be a good one!

Regitration is currently open at the following addresses:

nationalbloggersconference.blogspot.com

Movie Recording for iPhone

2009-04-10T20:28:00.003+05:00

Looks like Apple has finally decided that 2 MP camera is not enough for making its 35% of the total smartphone users in the world HAPPY, as it was unable to record a movie! Even with the release of their new OS 3.0, there was no option in particular to record a movie with the help of phone.

Though I've been doing that for a long time with the help of jail-break application which comes with Cydia, but its always good to use something released by Manufacture. So, I guess time is about to come to remove that application, and use iPhone's own OS for capturing videos!

A screen shot which I captures from MacRumors.com is here:

Lets see how good that could be, hope it would be better than the software which I'm currently using! Can't wait to download it!

Stories u Don't know about successful people

2009-04-04T23:27:00.000+05:00

Entrepreneurship - The Road Least Taken

View more presentations from Nashadelic.

Whats New in Apple iPhone Firmware 3.0?

2009-03-18T21:38:00.002+05:00

Despite of the fact that currently, Apple proudly enjoys more than 15% market share for its iPhone in global Smartphone market, some basic features, which are generally taken for granted when it comes to Smart phones, were still missing in it. When it was first launched in year 2006, a great amount of attention was paid on its advertising, and it was said to be “atleast 5 years more advance than any phone on Earth”, but after its release, people who bought it, realized that they have actually emptied their pocket on such a phone, which can’t even forward an SMS, nor has any sort of MMS capability, and can’t even play a simple Flash video.

Despite of the fact that iPhone’s marvelous multi-touch display and attractive GUI were fairly good enough to impress anyone, some geeks and Apple fan were still not “fully satisfied” with it, due to the lack of several important features. Apple started encountering these challenges one by one and made several modification in its firmware! Release of 3.0 firmware is a part of it, in which they have “Inherently” introduced several features for iPhone. Though, there is still some room left for a lot of further important modifications, but still it was a good approach from the company. On March 17, Apple conducted a conference and introduced the World with its new firmware update, which according to Apple, contains more than 100 visible and under-the-hood tweaks! A brief list is given below:

~Cut, copy, and paste
~GPS/mapping tweaks
~In-app purchases
~Landscape mode tweaks
~MMS send and receive
~P2P networking
~Push notifications
~Systemwide search

It still lacks some basic features, like recording a video (Yup, believe it) and some other nice privileges, which definitely produce temptation for the iPhone user to jailbreak it, but looks like Apple has started paying attention on it, and might take these issues more seriously in future. Rumors has it that Apple might do something on video recording, multi tasking and better camera-image-quality on their next firmware update! Lets see how they surprise us in their next future event!

Watch the event ceremony here!

Watch the LIVE iPhone OS 3.0 Event on Internet

2009-03-17T22:22:00.002+05:00

You can go to any of the sites listed below for the latest updates on this event.

iPhone 3.0 preview event is in full swing, and people from all around are trying to catch the event’s coverage.

Several tech-blogs are covering the event live where you can get the latest updates of what is happening inside the Apple, Building 4, Town Hall. Copy/paste is a confirmed feature that will hit iPhone 3.0 firmware.

TV Shows which REALLY Sucks!

2009-03-15T22:33:00.001+05:00

I started watching TV series of US by Heroes and Prison Break (my favs), but later I thought that I should also give a try to some other popular series. I tried some, and the results are here. I thought it would be good to share on my blog :)

DollHouse: The Show was recently launched, I downloaded first two eps. After watching the first eps, it gave me that much disappointment, that I decided not to watch second ep, and deleted them both. Really, a very unhealthy and uninteresting story line, for me atleast!

KnightRider: I don't hate this show, but its not lovely either. First ep was really magnificent, and I loved it. Downloaded several other eps, but same old one-episode-mission didn't look too good. The season gain momentum after the introduction and appearance of "Karr", but that was only in one episode, and to my surprise, Kitt (The super-cool car in Knight Rider) managed to defeat that transformer type car in few seconds, with most of its function inoperable. That was... not good! Disappointing! Now I'm not watchig it anymore. I'm waiting when they'll get on some really interesting mission, where Karr, or something like that is involved too!

How I Met Your Mother: Neil Patrick Harris, You're awesome! Going up to date with this series, haven't missed an episode and I just love the Show! My favorite show in comedy genre after FRIENDS.

CSI Miami: Currently watching its 5th season and its looking good. Its good for people with interest in suspense and crime stories. I'm enjoying this show.

Dexter: Tried it, and then dumped it! Not my type.

Lost: I'll start watching it from first season and then will let you know. Haven't started it yet, but the rumor has it that its doing great on TV!

24: Really good... Every season has got 24 episodes, and each episode represents one hour of the day. The activity within each hour is in each episodes, which makes it a kind of long, thrilling movie. Worth Watching.

The IT Crowd: Its a British show I guess, and isn't that good. Comedy is not upto the mark, nor acting by the team. Just an average comedy show.

Grey's Anatomy: Good for people who like some serious drama stories, its really good, emotional and romantic, and revolves around the story of a Hospital's Doctors and Patients. It has got a good story line, acting and other qualities, which makes it worth-watching.

Scurbs: I wonder how Scurbs got in my mind after writing Grey's Anatomy? :) The thing is that they both revolve around Hospital life, but this one takes it in a Hilarious way, it has got some good jokes and comedy actions, and I love watching it. Its really good!

Supernatural: I'm not much into vampires and devils, so I don't watch stuff like this. If you like such things, do give it a try!

Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles: First of all, let me say this: I really really hate it, when in the starting, I hear the voice of Sarah saying "A Computer programed to destroy the World". Damn it man, who on Earth would program anything like that? Why even machines would do that? are they planning to camp on moon or something while they will enjoy the destruction of Earth? I don't know. The series is just OK, because the story line is not same as of the orignal Terminator series, there are some differences. No mood to watch it anymore!

Fringe: The duration of its first episode of first season was 80 minutes, and I wasted my 80 minutes watching it! it sucks! really really sucks!! In the starting it was looking really great, but gradually the whole movie became a big stupid thing for me. So unreal and unclear storyline which failed to develop my interest in it.

Thats pretty much it! Don't remember any other show which I have watched lately! Hopefully it would be helpful to some extent for someone who wants to get the best out of the TV series crowd! Enjoy watching :)

Pakistan, an international migraine: Albright

2009-03-15T22:18:00.005+05:00

Washington: Counting many elements, including terrorism and nuclear weapons, in Pakistan as causes of international worries, a former top US official has described the South Asian country as an "international migraine".
"...my own sense is Pakistan has everything that gives you an international migraine. It has nuclear weapons, it has terrorism, extremists, corruption, very poor and it's in a location that's really, really important to us. And now with this issue with India. So, I think that the current president and the current secretary of state, who's on her way to India right now, have a very big job ahead of them," said former Secretary of State Madeleine Albright.
"And I also do think that the next president and the secretary of state are going to have to pay a great deal of attention to that combination of issues, Pakistan, India and Afghanistan, that all fit together. That's very important to the United States," she added.
In the wake of current tension between India and Pakistan following the Mumbai Terror attacks, Albright said that Pakistan President Asif Ali Zardari was trying very hard to deal with the issue.
"...there's an agreement that the Pakistanis understand what the issue is. I think that if we have clear evidence and intelligence that is one part of this. And that is the Achilles' heel of everything, which is whether you have actual intelligence.
"...I think that he is their president and he is working very hard to try to get control over what is a very difficult place," she added.
Responding to a query on a remark made by President-elect Barack Obama, at his press conference in Chicago, in the wake of last week's terror attacks in Mumbai, the ex-official also endorsed the stand of the incoming US president.
"I think that what President-elect Obama said about the fact that every country, under the United Nations, has the right to defend itself, that is absolutely true. But it's also true that they are investigating everything right now and that it is not appropriate for those of us that are not in the Government to comment on this," Albright said on CNN's Situation Room programme.
"I think that sovereign nations obviously have a right to protect themselves. Beyond that, I don't want to comment on the specific situation that has taken place in South Asia right now," Obama had said when asked if India had the same right as he claimed his administration had in going after terror targets inside Pakistan with or without the permission of the government in Islamabad.

Its strange to know that the nation who is the among the key inventors of WMD for so-called self-defense, and responsible for the brutal killing (or should I say genocide) of several countries and NATION, considers Pakistan as an International migraine. Ma'm, I believe that if we Pakistanis are the migraine, then US is nothing less than a widespread lethal cancer, that has already consumed lives, economy and natural resources of several countries, and has LITERALLY made the lives of Millions of people Miserable.

Even more, US is proud of these facts and figures, and stands by it proudly, while a poor Country like Pakistan is held responsible for all the mess created by US army in Afghanistan, a really BIG mess, disguised as terrorism.

Calling Pakistan by these names won't solve any issues. If you want to deal with the terrorists, deal with them peacefully. By forcing war on region, you'll breed more terrorists than you will kill, and mind it that you simply can't wipe out an entire nation. Someone will always be left with a grieved heart and bomb around their waist to take the revenge, which you may later call a fundamentalist terrorist or a Islamic Suicide Bomber.

I think I got carried away a little bit and said some harsh things :) but its kind of natural, since no one likes to listen to such stuff about their country! Lets just hope that we see a better peaceful world in the near future, where no nation is engaged in war for what-so-ever reason!

Source: Indian Express

The New Generation of Cell Phones: Enabling Your Sixth-Sense

2009-03-11T23:47:00.004+05:00

This concept, which is demonstrated in this video, was considered to be purely fictionous, I've heard rumours about it that it was invented first by some Japanese company (they did it through glasses) but here, they're using projection. What is it? Check out this really cool video:

My Book Reading Experience on iPhone 3G

2009-03-08T02:22:00.000+05:00

Internet is flooded with news and reviews of kindle software from Amazon, which allows you to download and read books on the go with "convenience". At first, I used to think that nothing can place the feeling of reading and touching a physical book, turning its pages, moving across it, etc etc (also I was convinced that its easy on eyes too), but when I tried Stanza on my iPhone, I was amazed how much I was enjoying reading my book.

If you haven't heard of stanze, then allow me to introduce you to it. Its a program just like Kindle, but a lot better than it. Reasons? Its FREE. Not only the app, some books are legally free, rest can be downloaded from Internet (all major titles are easily available, you just have to google it) in pdf and other supported format for FREE.

All you have to do is download the desktop version of Stanza on your computer and its iPhone app on your iPhone. Then you have to connect your computer with iPhone via Wi-Fi (preferrably, see installation manual for details) and you can easily select any pdf you want to read on your iPhone. Within few seconds, the book will be converted to some other format which will be readable by Stanza.

The disadvantage are that while converting a PDF, the words get a bit crippled, means they don't appear in an orderly manner, rather they look scrambled and dissorted. Paragraphs are gone, no header, no footer, no page number. Just words, words and words. Sounds like not-going-to-read, but still with all these drawbacks, my reading experience was awesome. I really enjoyed reading on my iPhone and found it a lot better reading experience than reading on my laptop. Stanza also states that those books which are purchased from their store will not face such punctuation problems, as their format will be converted in a better way to preserve the orignal format.

So if you are interested in turning your iPhone into a library, Stanza is a good option available for FREE. Just download more and more books and enjoy!

The Politicians' Dilemma

2009-03-04T22:43:00.004+05:00

The Internet news sites, social news networks, blogs and so many news-feed sites are flooded with the news of SriLankan Cricket event and people from everywhere are accusing Pakistanis agencies for this misfortunate event, but the govt officials and reporters are sitting almost idle and doing absolutely nothing to defend their position. That makes them the culprit, even if they are not. Why is no one out there to tell CNN or other media that security was there, thats why they survived, were not kidnapped as planned, or else the terroirsts were not out there to show their shooting skills in front of the world... Why no political leader of ours stood in front of media to explain the situation clearly from Pakistani prespective? Was it really really their fault? are they hiding something? or are they shy enough to admit the involvment of Indian agencies behind all this? Whatever the reason is, they are really screwing it up for no reason, and no one is loving that, inside or outside of Pakistan.

The Pak authorities must answer all the questions and accusations from media, only feeling sorry or saying it won't help. Those who were responsible for their safety should be subjected to a strict audit to find out the truth and that should be revealed open on media, whether anyone likes it or not.

I feel sorry for SriLankan Team...

2009-03-04T22:24:00.004+05:00

I was in university when this news struck me that the van carrying SriLankan Cricketers was attacked, and the players are seriously injured. At that time, I was checking my mid-term exam copy in classroom but after listening this from my friend, I rushed into the computer lab to see what was really going on, and I was much much relieved to see that there was no casualties, and everyone was in a comparatively safe position.

How did this happen and who benefited from it? Thats a way long, endless discussion which I don't want to get into, but the main point is that whatever happened was really really bad. I didn't expect this to happen anywhere in Pakistan, I can even expect the president to get shot by someone somewhere, but not this. Why? because the terrorists in Pakistan are bothered only with situation in Pak-Afghan border, or some religious or political activities, normal peoples and events are generally not the target. I was not surprised to hear this on the local media that Indian agency RAW was believed to be involved behind this. Reason might be to avenge the Mumbai tragedy, or to destabilize the already-poor image of Pakistan even more. My believe on the involvement of India on this incident is based on the reports that I've seen on TV, which says that the shooters were no ordinary people, they were trained, heavily armed people who knew exactly what to do. The intelligence agencies said that they were trying to kidnap the van, but resistance from security forces didn't let that happen (6 policemen died, and 16 were injured during that incident).

What happened was really really bad, but still I'm happy that no one died in the tragedy and the injuries they have received are recoverable. I feel sorry from the depth of my heart for SriLankan Cricketers, and other peoples who were injured in this unfortunate event, and I hope and pray that they recover from it very soon.

Younas Khan Hits a Triple Century, but...

2009-02-25T22:29:00.003+05:00

When I heard the news that he is playing on 300 not out, I couldn't wait for the game to start again on next day. Before that, I wasn't even bothered with what was happening in the match, because I feel that I have lost a great amount of interest in Test Cricket, since the twenty20 has came into play. Though both are interesting in their own way, but still... It feels long and boring..! (To me atleast)

The day started, and I was on my way back to home from University, and I was frequently checking Cricinfo on my mobile for updates, and something which I anticipated happened. He was OUT. I had a feeling of that, that he'll be gone early but I thought that maybe he'll make it to 350 atleast, but he didn't. But still, he has become the third Pakistani to score a triple century, after Hanif Mohammad and Inzamam.

Lets see who gets to break the record of Brain Lara in future. Its been years and he's still unbeaten. Reasons? Might be possible that there isn't too much Test Cricket going around in the world, or most of the players like to play in twenty20 style, which is suitable for players who have low patience with bat. or its really difficult to make 400.

I'm sure when Lara will play on the flat pitches of South-Asia, he'll break his own record ;) Lets see what happens in the future Cricket World!

Aim in Life

2009-02-21T02:05:00.001+05:00

TO CLIMB EVERY MOUNTAIN, FORD EVERY STREAM, FOLLOW EVERY RAINBOW ...TO WANDER THROUGH FORESTS, TO WALK THROUGH ROLLING GREEN DOWNS, TO RUN ALONG RIPPLING STREAMS...TO PONDER THE ETERNAL MYSTERY OF BIRDS IN THE SKY, BEES IN THE SUN, AND THE FLOWERS ON A GREEN HILLSIDE ... TO SHINE WHEN IT’S DARKEST ... TO BRING CHANGES INTO A WORLD RESENTING CHANGE ... TO THE STRENGTH NOT TO FOLLOW THE CROWD ...TO LEAVE A TRAIL BEHIND FOR OTHERS TO FOLLOW ...

Have you tried Digsby?

2009-02-16T23:41:00.003+05:00

Finally someone has created a mesh which is worth using. You might have used several different applications with these type of functionality, but this one is really good. Its called digsby, Its free, easy-to-use and supports Facebook, twitter, mySpace, GMail, linkedIn, MSN and gTalk Messengers etc etc, all in one place.

So If you're looking for a complete integration of your Online social networking sites, E-Mails and Messengers in one place, give this tool a try. I'm using it these days and it appears Error-free up till now. Lets see when they'll launch a newer version of it with more improvements.

My First Bite on Apple

2009-02-16T22:37:00.003+05:00

Yup, finally I have got my hands on the gadget which I always dreamed of having, my one of the most favorite gadget available in market, and thats nothing else than iPhone 3G.

Though I'm not a big fan of Apple, due to some potential limitations you have to face on a Macintosh (like limited softwares, games and their high price) but I love their iPods and iPhones, because I think thats one of the top-notch quality products available in market today. They provide only ONE thing which is worth buying, and thats is 'quality'. I have tried several other products, mainly from chinese market, but none proved to be as good as the white Apple.

I got my phone on Feb 13, 2009. Its locked and in jail, so I'm trying hard to undo all that stuff. I've tried every available method to unlock my phone but couldn't. Jailbreaking was a piece of cake, but unlocking your iPhone 3G in Pakistan ain't that easy. The reason might be the fact that I'm using a Power SIM by UFONE, which is not supported by Pwnage and ZiPhone tools. The only method which I'm left with is to buy a rebel SIM from Karachi, which will cost me almost Rs. 1200. Thats the only available solution to unlock your iPhone 3G in Pakistan, as far as I know.

I will keep this blog updated and will let you guys know about whats currently happening with the phone, and about different apps and games I'm trying on it. So keep reading :)

Send Free SMS Across Pakistan from Facebook

2009-02-08T19:46:00.003+05:00

Yup... you heard right. Now you can type a message on facebook, and send it via SMS to your friend's mobile by using this application. Its easy, fast and free.

The application will also help you to update your status via SMS. People with anti-twitter habit usually log-in to their facebook account using GPRS or EDGE to update their status on the go, which is relatively expensive. The unexpensive solution of this, is that SMS application of Facebook.

All you have to do is type your message [status <message>], and then send it to a mobile number mentioned in the application. Its that easy, and will cost only few paisas depending on the SMS package of your carrier.

The Oscar Nominees

2009-01-26T11:22:00.005+05:00

I Watched Gran Torino

2009-01-26T11:04:00.008+05:00

You know those kind of movies which touches your heart from deep down inside, but there is really nothing much to tell that what that movie was all about? or something which you like, but have got no particular reason about why you liked it? That movie is one one of them. It has got no fancy story or motion effects, nor any hi-fi actors (except Clint Eastwood, offcourse) but when the movie reaches its end... Damn! I just loved how it ends (I'm not going to mention it here to spoil the story). Really a simple and beautiful movie, and the funny thing is that I can't explain what I liked in that movie!

Here's the review of IGN:

Multiple Academy Award winner Clint Eastwood stars in the drama Gran Torino, marking his first film role since his Oscar-winning film Million Dollar Baby. Eastwood stars as an iron-willed and inflexible Korean War veteran, living in a changing world, who is forced by his immigrant neighbors to confront his own long-held prejudices. Retired auto worker Walt Kowalski fills his days with home repair, beer, and monthly trips to the barber. Though his late wife's final wish was for him to take confession, for Walt--an embittered veteran of the Korean War who keeps his M-1 rifle cleaned and ready--there's nothing to confess. And no one he trusts enough to confess to other than his dog, Daisy. The people he once called his neighbors have all moved or passed away, replaced by the Hmong immigrants he despises. Resentful of virtually everything he sees--the drooping eaves, overgrown lawns and the foreign faces surrounding him; the aimless gangs of Hmong, Latino and African American teenagers who all think the neighborhood belongs to them; the callow strangers his children have grown up to be--Walt is just waiting out the rest of his life. Until the night someone tries to steal his Gran Torino. Still gleaming as it did the day Walt himself helped roll it off the assembly line decades ago, the Gran Torino brings his shy teenaged neighbor Thao (Bee Vang) into his life when Hmong gang-bangers pressure the boy into trying to steal it. But Walt stands in the way of both the heist and the gang, making him the reluctant hero of the neighborhood--especially to Thao's mother and older sister, Sue (Ahney Her), who insist that Thao work for Walt as a way to make amends. Though he initially wants nothing to do with these people, Walt eventually gives in and puts the boy to work fixing up the neighborhood, setting into motion an unlikely friendship that will change both their lives. Through Thao and his family's unrelenting kindness, Walt eventually comes to understand certain truths about the people next door. And about himself. These people--provincial refugees from a cruel past--have more in common with Walt than he has with his own family, and reveal to him parts of his soul that have been walled off since the war...like the Gran Torino preserved in the shadows of his garage.

I recommend this movie to everyone who has got taste for some serious, good-story-line movies!

One More Browser

2009-01-23T23:59:00.004+05:00

Yup, one more browser has made its way in the market. As there are tons and tons of Internet browsers already available in the market, only few are famous, like Chrome and Firefox. But here I'm writing something about a browser which has not levelled in popularity like Firefox, but the thing which differentiates it from others is that it was developed by a 19-yead old Pakistani geek, living in Karachi! Though Blake Ross was only 13 when he started working for Netscape, but still poeple like them are hard to find, and I'm really glad that the World has found one in Pakistan!

Here are the requirements of the browsers:

-10 megabytes (MB) of hard disk drive (HDD)

-128 of random access memory (RAM)

-Net Framework 2 (Compulsory)

-Windows Operating System

Salient features of Xtravo are tab browsing, short cuts, fast browsing, Integrated RSS feeds and Integrated DOM introspection. its advanced pop up blocker, provides its users with safe and secure browsing. However, The individuality of this explorer is not only restricted to loading heavy websites within 10 seconds, but the special features for web designers: Document Reader, which allows one to review the websites coding and Image Grabber, which permits saving multiple pictures at the same time. Also, the improved ftp uploader through which webpages can be uploaded by simply typing:ftp.yourdomain.com.

I can't wait to see how it would look like when the final version is out. Good work Imran Sheik.. keep it up and best of luck for the future.

Steve Jobs...

2009-01-23T23:30:00.003+05:00

Big names in IT Industries, like Apple and Microsoft are not dependent much on any particular person, but when comes in mind the name of Steve Jobs for Apple... I always wonder that how Apple will survive this massive loss, If something bad happens to him. I'm personally a BIG fan of him, regarding how he started his career and played his role in growing Apple. Also the times when Microsoft was blooming with their multi-platform Operating system, but they didn't give up the ride, and are still continuing there business successfully. Steve Jobs courage and patience was the main point for their success.

I pray from the depth of my heart for his health and life, and hope to see him again in the next product-launching ceremony of Apple in his jeans ;)

Terrorists killed by Israel

2009-01-07T20:45:00.003+05:00

I wonder how large those children were a security threat to Israel..!

So much bloodshed of innocent people, and not a single person to condemn!

I bet when the survivors of this war would grow up and will find out that their siblings were killed by Israeli solider, they'll be angry till death and will convert into suicide bombers to avenge the death of their beloved one (since they won't have provision of fighter jets like Israel has, but they'll be willing to do anything to fight back), and once they'll do suicide bombing in any area, the western media would portray them as Islamic extremists and terrorist, not even mentioning or bothered with the fact about the pain the had been suffering before! Thats the real irony!

Source: http://portail.islamboutique.fr/gaza2008/

The MacBook Wheeler

2009-01-07T12:45:00.002+05:00

Here's the new concept of Apple in revolutionizing laptops; guess what it is? Its replacing the keyboard of a laptop with an iPod classic wheel! Look it here:

More over, notice the price tag, $10k for a 40GB!

I wonder how good this laptop can be for anyone, I mean without keyboard, just imagine how much time you'll be wasting in scrolling to the letter you want to type. Instead, if they would have introduced another touch screen instead of roller which could display touch-keyboard, the iTouch like, and changes itself accordingly with the contents of the screen, it might have proven more helpful!

I don't know what good it is, how you'll be able to do some gaming or use application key-board shortcuts with the help of that wheel, and moreover If you're a coder, then this thing is definitely NOT for you! Just imagine writing your code as shown in the above clip! To get that job done, you'll sure need a lot of practice. I wonder if Apple is going to ship its laptop with a typing tutor :)

The Digital Warfront

2009-01-01T16:27:00.005+05:00

I see so many people, on and off the Internet, Pakistanis and non-Pakis, who are condemning whats happening around. Whats happening in Palestine by Israel and what previously happened in Mumbai blasts.

When the event of Mumbai happened, I noticed a sudden wave of hatred from Indian people. At first, I thought that its natural, there leaders are as usual blaming Pakistan for their loss and of course they will be pretty much pissed off at us, but what happened afterwards is that Indian media went with full force against Pakistan and published stories regarding the terrorists and their relation with Pakistan in such depth that even Indian Minstries didn't know (I learned that from an Indian journalist blog). The result? Fire of hatred spread more and more and now I observe that in popular social networks and websites, Indians are spreading the word against Pakistan. Whether its facebook, digg, twitter, youtube, journalism websites or blogs, I see a stiff and sorry to say a very bitter reaction from Indians towards Pakistanis.

Still it's a mystery to find out the real people behind the blasts. No one knows for sure, and even after 2 months have passed, Indian ministry still hasn't provided any proof to Pakistan for further investigation, nor they are allowing Pakistani agencies to probe the matter further with Indians, but what they have done uptill now is giving a 10 year old list of wanted-person to Pakistan, which Pakistan had refused to handover in past, and plus continuous threats by their numerous top leaders about bombarding Pakistan, which itself is the proof that it was a staged show from Indian government for some personal & political benifit (considering that Indian election will be held in March 2009), Pakistan was dragged in between just to clear their own mess.

Whoever was behind those scenes, or whatever their purpose was, I don't care about it, since its India's own personal matter, I don't need to be bothered about it, but what I'm bothered about is the bad image of Pakistan on Internet citizens, which has been successfully posted by Indians in the past, and now more swiftly after these attacks. The sad part is that as more Indians are online than Pakistanis, they are creating an environment against Pakistan and are getting people, which are not from subcontinent, in their favor. I saw most of them in the favor of India, and the reason being that either they know a little, or nothing about Pakistan. The general perception of Pakistan is about a country, which is filled with Islamic extremists and terrorists, which is a great threat to the whole world, and Indians are successfully using it.

Now what we need, we Pakistani people who are online, we need to diminish that image, blur it, as much as possible. Show them that we aren't what they think we are. We can, and we must show them that we too are not only against terrorism but we also condemn it, and express our gratitude towards the countries who have been hit by it. We are not responsible for spreading it. This is what we should do, what we should atleast try, or else there will be no one left in the world to even weep on our grave.

In this world, the new 21st century world, wars are not always fought on ground and battlefields. Things have changed, strategies have been changed. Now there is another battlefield in terms of media, print and electronic. Whoever win this field, gets hold of the war, because in that way you convince the world that what you did was right. If Indians win this, they'll surely attack Pakistan someday and there will be no one to condemn, as everyone will look at this war from Indian perspective and completely justified, there will be no one to question Indian government, but instead they might be helping them. Why this could be happening in near future? Because they are convincing people around the world that they are right, Pakistan is wrong and as its a threat to global security, it needs to be destroyed. So if we don't try to stop it, don't take any action against it, don't reply it accordingly, then no wonder how good our military performs in front of the world, all the good-will of general people will be towards India, and they'll see Pakistan as nemesis.

So the bottom line is, that we can help Pakistan and do a favor to our motherland by winning this war. We don't need to be a expert for this or sacrifice anything, just do a simple thing that wherever you find such sites, blogs or sort of stuff, always report it or REPLY whatever bullshit they are saying. We MUST reply on their own place, to show the world that whatever they're saying ain't right!

Even Israel, everyone knows what she's upto these days, is using twitter and youtube to justify its position on war. Look at this CNN article. This is a small example which defines the importance of this digital warfront!

So buddies, we are on our own, and no one's will be taking our side until we halp ourselves. So whatever we need to do, we need to do it on our own, and its better that we start now!

Meta tags Generator

2008-12-24T16:01:00.003+05:00

If you have little or no knowledge about Search Engine Optimization, and quickly want to learn and apply some techniques that would put your website or blog on a higher ranking, then this website is for you.

It will give you a simple form to fill out, fields will be related with the stuff on your website or what your site is about. Once its completed, it will generate the meta tags for you, just copy/paste it in your web's code and you're done!

Here's the link

Facebook or Twitter

2008-12-24T13:29:00.004+05:00

What I'm comparing here isn't the whole Facebook with Twitter, but its Status update feature and Twitter. When I first saw the demo video of twitter, and learned how to use it, I found it interesting in the first place, but since I'm not that type of person who wants to share every detail of routine stuff, so I stopped using it. Instead, I use Facebook feature ("What are you doing right now"). This is a feature which I find really interesting and for me, it has completely replaced my need for twitter, since I have 100+ friends there, who can view my current activities and the best part is, I don't have to go to any other website just to update my current status.

But how actually both of them are competing with each other over Internet. Here's an Interesting piece of information I got from a site:

Twitter has between 4 and 5 million users, 30 percent of whom are not yet engaged.

70 percent of Twitter users signed up in 2008.

The average number of Twitter followers is 70; the average number of people someone is following is 69.

Thats shows that Twitter is still in development state, and it needs a lot more time to compete against any other social network. Here's its comparison with Facebook in terms of Unique visitors:

So it means that it is clearly lagging behind facebook and has far less visitors, less visitors means less chances of being more social and meeting new people. Though in 2008, Twitter has shown the growth rate of 600% but still, its not good enough to compete.

I always prefer to update my status on facebook, rather than twitter as I'll be able to know more stuff from my one friend on FB, which will not be available on twitter. For example, if I get a tweet that some friend of mine just returned from a party or event, I'd love to see the pics of the event, but that is only possible through FB, not twitter.

There's an option for twitter on facebook. Its facebook application of twitter, which can be found here. Once you add it in you FB, it will allow you to update your facebook status via tweeter, which is really good. That means, you write something on twitter, it automatically updates itself in facebook in status feed, so you get a chance to tell your non-twitter buddies which are on facebook about what you're doing without taking care of each site.

So its a big website populated world out there. Its upto you what you want to go for. Make a wise choice :)

When the World's Economy Crashes

2008-12-21T22:03:00.007+05:00

What's been the affect of World's Economic crisis on major companies with big names? Want a big picture of that? Here it is...

Batman meets Superman.. lol

2008-12-21T21:51:00.002+05:00

One of my friends, Asad watched this video and recommended it to me. I watched it and found it simply amazing. You'll enjoy it if you have watched the Dark Knight already... So here it is. Enjoy!

Eagle Eye Review

2008-12-19T11:55:00.004+05:00

The movie was good, quite thrilling but predictable, and very enjoyable. It was I think a mixture of I Robot and Die Hard 4. Almost same theme of story line and actions which appear highly unreal to a person like me :) , but still I enjoyed the movie as a Fantasy story.

I liked the starting part. The movie started, showing some Pakistani kids of tribal region. From that spot, Pentagon received an intel about an in-demand person which was suspected to be there. Just on the suspect that it MIGHT be him (probably was 51%), they blew off nearly 30-35 people, most of them with families (they looked like grown-up guys in there 30s).

Thats a bitter reality happening in the world, and I sort of liked and disliked the way it was presented in movie. Disliked it in the sense that again, things like terrorist and Pakistan were shown in combination, and liked it in the way that they tried to show how brutal the way of US is with other countries, and more on that, they don't even call it terrorism. I guess according to the new definition, killing people is not a terrorism, until its done by US :).

To add more on this, let me tell you that US has launched several low-level air strikes on the tribal regions of Pakistan, have killed several hundred innocent people including primary school children and women, but no one, including UN and other nations, including our government had the guts to say anything. Anyways, thats a different side of story, what I meant by all this that the thing they portrayed was very real. US army does kill people like this.

Shia Labeouf was awesome. The way he acts is soooo awesome and looks very very real. I saw the guy in transformers too, and he was great. Once again he has proven himself here.

If you liked I robot and die hard 4, I recommend you to watch this movie, and if you're a geek, then please don't take it seriously, because you'd know that stuff like that doesn't happen in the real world.

I'd give this movie 8/10.

I Didn't Like How Heroes' Season 3 Ended

2008-12-17T01:21:00.003+05:00

I mean they were going with a perfect story line, Arthur had absorbed too many abilities, heroes were split in group, one was trying to give abilities to the world, while other was trying to prevent that from happening. That was a perfect combination, arthur managed to get the catalyst and leave hiro powerless back in time... and suddenly they changed everything. It looked like they wanted to end that season by any means, when they could have easily strecthed the story to atleast 8-9 more episodes.

I was disappointed to see the guy like Arthur with immesne power dying with a bullet shot. Thats just so unreal, so unacceptable. There should have been a fight... A BIG fight as arthur vs anti-pinehearts group... and in the result of that fight they could have shown Arhur dead but they didn't... one bullet shot form powerless Petrelli and bang... the almighty Arthur is dead. Though that Haitian and Sylar helped a lot but still, that was no way for a man like Arthur to die like that. (I'm sure he'll be up and running in the fourth season :) ).

And I also didn't like the way they used Sylar (God this episode makes me hate Heroes so much). I think he is sufering from multiple personality disorder :) I mean seriously, in one episode he is killing everyone to quench his hunger, and in another one he is saving the world. Have they people ran out of villans? or is there just one bad boy left in the whole world?

They could have done several more things before ending this story like this. Like a group of marines in action for something bad which good people had to stop and eventually they'd get a chance to set foot in pinehearts, or sylar or anyone killing someone important to make a twist in the story, or something like that.

But still, that was a lot better season than 1 and 2, especially 2. Lets wait for the february to get hand on season 4, Fugitives.

The Stupidity of Indian Minstry & Agencies

2008-12-13T19:01:00.003+05:00

These days, there's a silent Media War going on between Pakistan and India, which started just after the Mumbai attacks. On the first day of attack, deep in my heart I knew that the first thing India would do is to blame Pakistan for that, and our so-called democratic government will not be able to handle the situation as required. Unfortunately, I found myself right after few days. :(

Indian media started a bombardment of blames on Pakistan, regarding every issue. I really really appreciate the Pakistani media, all news channels and papers, which rose to the moment and faced it boldly. Some renowned journalist of Pakistan also performed some research work and showed it on air to defend their country. Here's an example below:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HMBtOTOcHvo

As the issue is still unsettled, I have something more to share. An interesting story!

I couldn't find any related article on Internet but I heard it on TV. They said that India handed over list of wanted people to Pakistan, which consisted of 40 names. Some of them were marked "high profiled" by India and were considered to be directly involved in the attacks.

Among those high profiled, they talked about 2 people. Now here's the interesting part, one was locked up in Saudia Arabia for 3 years, and one died two years ago in Pakistan :) Indian ministry says that these two people were involved in direct planning of the blast... :D

What more can I say on this. Its an endless discussion, but the bright side for Pakistanis is that even the current leadership is not strong enough, we have got some strong media with educated people to watch our back. Lets hope that this tension ends soon between the two countries, and they both do something to feed their starving nation instead of buying weapons for war.

The Next Revolution in Mobile Industry

2008-12-11T21:56:00.002+05:00

The mobile market seems to be developing by leaps and bounds across the globe, especially in the developing countries, where the use of mobile phones was not very common. New mobile markets like Pakistan, India, Brazil etc etc contributed widely to the growth of this sector. But still today, more than 70% mobile phone users worldwide do not make the most out of their phone. The main reasons behind this are awareness and lack of resources. A large majority makes its basic use only, i.e. Calling, while some others enjoy the benefits, like MP3 player, camera etc etc. Truth is that very few people in developing countries know much about mobile Internet. This scenario is not similar in European and Western countries, and the main reason for this is that majority of the people living there use mobile phones which can also be called mini-computers or well-equipped hand-held devices. They have everything, from text messaging to online streaming video access, but such privileges are not available to majority in the third world countries. The real reason behind this might be termed as 'awareness', but that's not always true, since there are people who want to have all these facilities on their palm, but since they can't afford such phones, they end-up using a low-end phone. If some of them manage to buy a feature-rich phone, they have to pay for expensive software to make the most out of it.
Now whats the future of such people? How to make technology so cheap that everyone, from a company's peon to CEO can have access to it? How to bridge this inevitable digital divide?
The answer of these questions are the indication of a BIG mobile revolution awaiting for us. How? Lets see.
Currently, we have iPhone and Nokia mobiles, which are considered top notch from every aspect. Other companies including BlackBerry and several others are not considered as good as them, especially the hot-baked iPhone with its apps. The normal prices of these high-end phones start above US$350, which could go upto $700 or more (You can buy a good laptop in that price with dual processors).
People living in third world countries have an average monthly income of $400-$900 (I'm talking about average) and its very obvious that they can't afford such phones, its applications and their carrier packages, so they don't buy it. They don't buy it, so they also don't come to
know about the potential which lies in it, or how it can help them. So, to make technology available to everyone, Chinese mobile phones are a very very good solution.
Chinese mobiles can be considered as a blessing for those who have low budget for their phones. Within US$90, you get a phone that has a web-browser using EDGE, 2.0MP Camera, games, Touch-Screen (3.5 inch), bluetooth, FM Radio and countless apps.
Sounds good, isn't it? But what about the software? We have everything we need in Hardware with the blessing of Chinese technology but we definitely need a good OS and some worthy application to spice up the mobile experience. The software that come with the phone or are supported are not worth using, and most of the time they end-up crashing the whole system.
This is the place where Android could kick in. Yes, Android. T-Mobile is currently selling Android phones for hundreds of dollar, the major advantage you get from this is that all applications, including its operating system is not only free, but far powerful then Leopard 10, which iPhones uses. So, if the Android gets compatible with the $90 Chinese phone, consider the possibilities that could happen. People across the globe, rich or poor, with or without resources, would be able to get their hands on a $90 (or less) phone with web-browsing, camera, bluetooth, touch-screen, Android open source platform, document editing and I don't know what else.
All these massive helpful tools, wrapped up in a small touch-screen mobile with a price tag of $90 will create a big dent on Nokia, apple and other vendors, but our huge digital divide, between the developed and developing nations, or rich and poor people will be shrinked by a large means. All we need is someone, who could provide communication between the Chinese mobile manufactures and Android developers, and If that someone is Google itself, then believe me that iPhone would be doomed with all its apps.
So, the equation of future is,
Chinese phones + Android = Powerful, but Cheap Phones for Everyone!!
Digital Divide Bridged!

Vioceless Phone Call is now Possible

2008-12-11T21:51:00.000+05:00

Curious about what is that? I was too when I first heard about this and I thought that they have by mistake written in voiceless, it would be something like Phone-less or device-less type of call, but when I saw its video on youtube (which has been posted below), I was amazed to see the wonder they have done.

So what is that basically? It consist of a collar you have to wear on your neck, and have to "say" the words you want to say on phone, but this time you won't be using your mouth for that, you'll be using your brain for this, like you are trying to revise or memorize something. The collar you'll be wearing will catch the neurological signals (I think thats what they called it) emerging from you brain and it will translate them into actual spoken words in your voice and transmit it over phone. So as a result, you'll be able to speak or buzz out loud on phone, even when you are not really saying anything!

They say that this device is best for retarded people who can't speak, and for those who want to talk privately in crowded places. Sounds cool, doesn't it? You're talking to phone in front of the whole world and saying all you want to say but only the other person on phone could hear it. That sounds like a future of privacy.

Another great thing which could be possible is that if they provide a small transmitter and receiver with the collar, two or more people would be able to communicate without any need of a cellphone. Thats not mentioned in the video but that would be simply great if it happens, and I'm sure it will!

Searching Wikipedia with Style

2008-12-11T21:46:00.000+05:00

Whether its my assignment, homework, some sort of university project or the material for the preparation of my next exam, Wikipedia always proved a heaven for me. All the stuff I ever needed for my prep was always available there, stuff which I can rely on.

Before Wikipedia, I used Encarta and Britanica, but both of them were no match for this Encyclopedia giant, because its contributors were public, instead of a particular company, so obviously it became popular and still hasn't stop expanding.

The only thing which I don't like about wikipedia is its website layout. Its not upto the mark, its user-friendly though but from no where it looks like a 21st century website. Website's color, organization, management, everything is not good as the content it offers. They could have made it a lot better, but they haven't.

Fortunately, some people figured out that problem and created a solution for it. The solution resulted in a eye-catching website, running wikipedia's rich database on its back-end, and giving a smooth, new user experience which lacks on orignal wiki site. The website's URL is powerset.com, and its definitely worth visiting.

The site offers interactive user interface, with real easy and simple navigation, thats the kind of feature you always search when you're visiting a content rich website, plus I like their color combination which really gives this site a beautiful look. So, next time you type wikipedia.com, try out powerset.com instead to improve your wiki experience.

Is Google Chrome better than Firefox?

2008-12-11T21:43:00.000+05:00

So here it is, a new shiny, slim and blue color browser by Google, known as Google Chrome, and my first blog post through this browser :)

When first I saw videos on youtube about this browser, Its developers said that the main aspect we have focused in its development is security and its layout, according to them they have utilized each and every pixel available, thats true for sure because right now, I see no menu bar (File, edit tools, help etc etc) nor I see any status bar below which tells the user how much page has been loaded, but while using the browser, I never missed these features which I have been using for years in IE and Firefox. I wonder why those guys didn't think about it before google!

The another great feature, which I'm sure is by the virtue of google's new browser platform is that all tabs are independent of each other. Know what that means? It means that if you've opened multiple tabs and if any one or more of them crashes due to some reasons, then the whole browser won't go down, like in firefox you had to close the whole browser and then restore the session again.

All you have to do in chrome, if such things happen is to right-click on top bar, choose the task manager and end the task of troublesome tab, just like the windows task manager, and that particular tab will be closed, without disturbing any other tabs. Smart, isn't it?

Google Chrome's booting time is insanely fast, much faster than firefox, in my laptop, firefox takes upto 20 second approx to start, while chrome takes only 4-5 seconds. Might be possible that this is becaue my firefox is loaded with tons of extensions and plugins, and this browser isn't, but anyway its bootup time is really fast. BTW, I didn't have to install flash player to watch youtube from it, It was already there!

All and all, this browser looks and feels great, but the only advantage I'm "really" getting by using this browser is max space on my screen for viewing webpages, but thats not the enough reason for quitting on firefox, there are no themes or addons available at the current moment, nor they have given any particular support for their online apps like docs, map, youtube etc etc which I use heavily when I'm online, so until they come up with more stuff then only under-the-hood developments, I'm not giving up on firefox! What about you? :)

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JGmO7Oximw8&hl=en&fs=1]

iPhone, gPhone, Whats Next?

2008-12-11T21:40:00.001+05:00

The long awaited iPhone 3G recently hit the market and with the 3G and GPS capability, it has definitely become the centre of attraction for mobile and gadgets lovers, however there have been some issues with it, like expensive data plan rates, poor reception and several others.

Recently, there's been buzz about the all new gPhone, a mobile phone Operating System engineered by Google Inc, which promises improved graphics, security and user experience. Its SDK kit is already out, yet it doesn't have so many applications or features, but it surely has the potential to become a powerful mobile platform.

So what the user should do? Run towards store and spend money again on buying the expensive phone when its out? Most people wouldn't like that because they have recently invested on their iPhone, as it was promised to be the best phone ever made, but in the world of Electronics, the stuff becomes outdated, the moment it leaves the store. So what should we really opt for? If you are thinking of buying a perfect phone, I think I have found one for you :)

Meet the Nokia N810 WiMax Editon. The phone has it all, GPS, VoIP, Wi-Fi, WiMax, Webcam, expandable memory and a powerful OS (Not any Symbian Version, but a linux OS for tablet PCs). All this is available for around $400 (Unlocked Phone's Price)

What gives it edge over all other phones is WiMax. You can have several softwares, tons of them on any phone which surely will fullfill some requiremnts or yours, but what they all collectively lack is Connectivity Speed. 3G is not even close to WiMax, when it comes to Internet browsing and Online surfing, leave 2G services aside of this. More bandwidth means more speed, faster work and performance, an option for smoother video conferencing and a lot more. As long as softwares are concerned, I'm sure that its OS is a fruitful ground to play on.

Though it lacks the standard carrier option, It might give you an advantage of avoiding expensive data plans, and you can rather buy cheap Internet and make calls from anywhere via VoIP for free or low rates.

So, here's your new big piece of technology for low price. Don't get caught in the hype of iPhone and gPhone, make sensible decisons.

Here's a youtube video, demonstrating the usage of phone.

About Me

2008-12-09T19:02:00.000+05:00

I'm an Undergraduate Telecommunication Engineer living in Karachi (Pak) with deep Interest in IT related fields, especially Networking, Wireless Carrier Technologies, Gadgets and several other related stuff. When I'm online, I usually surf Internet related to my Interest and try to explore more suff related to my field.

When net is off, I like to watch Hollywood movies, play games, read several books and magazines, hangout with friends etc etc.

I use this blog to share my own ideas, thoughts and views on random stuff, whatever it maybe which I find online and offline. Hope you'll enjoy it.