Posts filed under 'General'
I have ushered myself in a self proclaimed new era of entertainment. I have finally shifted to
TATA-Sky, the
DTH (Direct-to-home) service provider from yesterday and I am glad I have taken that decision. In fact I had been waiting eagerly for
TATA-Sky to launch their services from last year and finally decided to take the plunge when they introduced the ZEE channels on their platform some two weeks ago. Check out the channels currently offered over
here .
The experience of getting the Digicomp™ wasn’t worthwhile and the engineers came 2 days prior to the scheduled appointment day. Nevertheless the excitement of getting to say goodbye to the cablewallah was more than I would’ve imagined. To say the least, things had come to a level where nothing else mattered to the cable guy then the monthly fees despite serving poor picture quality channels and doing nothing about it. Moreover, he would dislike the logical questioning about the substandard services offered and would not hesitate to mouth dirty words. Being totally an interactive medium, I now feel in control of the channels I want to watch and in the language that I prefer (Discovery in Hindi is a preposterous idea). Not to mention the various camera angles that I get to select while watching a cricket match. Currently I am enjoying my viewing experience on TATA-Sky and wish them all the best for the future.
Technorati Tags: TATA-Sky, Direct-to-home, Satellite TV
October 11th, 2006
It all began when
YouTube offered free video upload and streaming through Flash. One could now subscribe to RSS feeds and also embed the video on their blog or website. The contest for capturing this exciting space (and thus the imagination of the user) had now begun in earnest. Just recently, Yahoo announced it’s arrival on the scene by taking over the online video sharing website called
JumpCut.
Microsoft also is ready with it’s reply to YouTube and its ilk. The video upload & streaming project is codenamed “Warhol” but is finally going to be known as Soapbox, although features do not seem to be much different from YouTube’s. Only time can tell if Soapbox succeeds in its endeavour or melts with time.
Technorati Tags: Microsoft, YouTube, Yahoo, video streaming, soapbox
October 5th, 2006
I would search for her as a kid, after waking up early morning but she would be gone for the office and then I would get to see her only in the evenings. The hectic schedule apart, she would come home and serve hot meals for the entire family and there was no respite from that chore even on holidays. In other words, she was a 24/7 working business model even before the BPOs came into existence. A dedicated ‘project manager’ of my time, she balanced her office, her domestic errands and our school work so brilliantly that the results were there for the rest of the world to see. Without any doubt, she is the most respected woman in the society for bringing up a cultured family by imbibing good thoughts and standing up bravely to the challenges thrown at her by life.
The day has finally dawned when she will be hassled by the endless rush hour of Mumbai locals for one last time. For after 30+ years of the daily grind and nurturing her family no less like a God, my momma will be retiring from active service, this day.
September 28th, 2006
Steve Jobs announced new advancements in the iPod family earlier this month. To being with, download of Hollywood movie titles for the iPod via the iTunes Store. I just checked it and I was surprised to find some top titles over there. All time rocking studios including Miramax and Disney have pledged support for this service and already one can the results at the store. The a whole new range of colours for the
iPod Nano and the new sleek design for the new
iPod Shuffle.
Another exciting news to share is the availability of iTunes 7. First up I think it’s a great improvement over it’s predecessor on user experience especially the grouping of lists. Secondly, iPod software can now be updated from within iTunes - no sooner had I logged in, it prompted me to download 1.2 firmware for the iPod (more about it later). This has resulted in smaller downloads (6mb average) as compared to the 40-44mb iPod updater file which one needed to download and install to update the device. Quite Kewl one must say!! Apple is trying to encompass iPod functionality within iTunes so users don’t need to leave the interface. Least of all, Apple has announced iPod games which are also available for download via the iTunes Store. The games include titles like Zumas, Tetris (old favorite), Pacman (aw, c’mon), Bejewelled, amongst others.The games are priced at around $5 (around Rs. 240). Hmm..need to get hold of some titles now.
Now about the 5th Generation iPod updater 1.2 firmware which I mentioned a while back. Jobs promised a slew of features with this update including softer jog dial scrolling, 60% more brightness than previously, FREE album art download and updating (WooT), “Gapless playback” which allows for a continuity of melody between songs (hey, I thought crossfading already did that?!!) a longer battery life (upto 75% more, whoa!) and most importantly a new feature which allows a user to search through his device for music & songs, alphabetically - a boon for someone like me whose got around 4 GB stuff (show-off). To begin with, I faced some issues installing the updater on iTunes 7 coz later the damn thing wouldn’t stop updating my device. I then had to frustratingly remove the thing, uninstall-reinstall my iTunes 7 and everything went off nicely. As I read on the Apple forums later, some chaps are facing serious conflicts with iTunes 7; some even had their iPods wiped out completely of virtually everything. I for one was fortunate to see my collection intact, except for the videos which the program probably ate and destroyed.
After groping around for answers I realized that the search feature would be made available in the newer 80GB iPods and iPod Nanos ( 2nd Gen of 5th Gen iPods–what?!!!) which will be available in stores from late 2006. This in turn means that my iPod (which is around 4 months old) can’t have the features in spite of the software update. Least to say I am much disappointed by this policy of Apple and I hope they change it. Oh god..Arrghh!
September 14th, 2006
I am just back from a 2 day enjoyable marketing workshop which was aimed at introducing the various departments, spread across the nation. It gave me a good opportunity to know the team members closely and their roles and responsibilities in the commune. The workshop was organised in the pleasant surroundings of the Retreat Hotel at Madh Island near Mumbai.
I presented my thoughts on the application of the TCS brand on the website. I particularly stressed upon the fact that a brand has to co-exist with the user needs and expectations on a channel like the website. I also spoke briefly about the challenges faced by this medium and the constraints faced vis-a-vis say printing collateral (the function of both being to impart information). The mental model of the user has to be respected in all forms and information dissemination has to be the prime criteria for building a website. My points and opinions were taken quite well by the august gathering which included our Global Head of Marketing, the Head of Internal Branding and the VP of Transformation and Change.
Coincidentally our marketing head was celebrating his birthday today. We did not miss the opportunity to barge into his room in the middle of the night. We were around 30 of us! The rest of the evening was spent by the pool, singing and mimicking and just having a gala time.
September 8th, 2006
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