Crowdsourcing

This new term struck me when i was browsing through one blog. Can be defined as "the unofficial (but catchy) name of an IT-enabled business trend in which companies get unpaid or low-paid amateurs to design products, create content, even tackle corporate R&D problems in their spare time.” The concept of crowdsourcing is closely linked to the idea of user-centered innovation, in that users become an integral part of the overall innovation process.
I have seen many examples of crowdsourcing coming out these days. Like the google gadget making contest where they are asking contestants to make gadgets for them and janet jackson calling people to design a cover for her new album "20 years old". This is a win-win situation for both customers and companies for companies get the innovative ideas and people utilise their spare time and win some handy prizes apart from satisfaction of contributing. But never forget to thank Internet for bringing both of them together at one platform.

Humanity is lost?

Last day witnessed yet another heinous act of few anti social elements. Seven blasts were reported in first class compartments of diffeternt trains. Over 150 people died and more than 300 are injured severely. Such acts are a shame to the face of humanity. What these innocent people had to do with any thing which can be a motive to this incident[read Pakistan supported terror for Kashmir]. Humans are the only species which sheds its own blood. If this is the use of mind we are gifted with, it better be taken back.

These incidents repeat themselves every other month. We the citizen of India are responsible for it. People have become so apathetic to these situations that they simply switch the channel after listening the news and forget about it a few hours later. Only those who have casualities in family are concerened. But why one forgets that the next day he or his family may be the victim. Every one has to be proactive about such incidents. Atleast look around your place for suspicios things.

One other and most imporant thing is the role of government. Government of India has repeadtedly shown its impotence when it comes to deal with terror. Its not enogh for few cabinet ministers to fly of to the spot immediately and come back in few hours by giving two interviews to press. GoI has to make its instance very clear about how to deal with such incidents. If each time they blame Pakistan for supporting terror then why do they forget every thing when Manmohan Singh next meets Musharraf. Government doesn't value the lives of people. They will wake up when some of them will be the victim in the incidents. The higher the rank more profuse will be the reaction. So wait until any cabinet minister is the victim of any such attack, then we may expect some stern action against the terror.

In such hopeless situations sigh of relief comes when we hear about incidents of people helping the victims. These are the people who really show that some humanity is still left in the world. Cheers for them!

Uff Orkutting

I remember the day when I started my account on Orkut. One of my friends then in BHU asked me about my account on Orkut. I asked "What is Orkut?". He was surpised by listening that. "Don't tell that you don't know about Orkut", he said. I repeated what is it really. He sent me the invitation to Orkut. That day i joined it, but was bored of seeing its lenghty profile. "No way, I am not going to fill this stupid form" and i abandoned it to rediscover it few months later. This is the incident about eight months earlier. Initially i couldn't figure out what to do at Orkut, but realized it very soon. Thanks to its excellent usability!

After eight months now I have become an Orkut buff. Found lots of lost friends of school and college. Many of them are much closer now than they actually were in school itself. Any ways its always good to meet somebody lost years ago. You get the feeling of nostaligia.

Orkut has provided a great platform for friends and acqaintances to be in contact. Its a whole lot easier to scrap somebody than the traditional way of writing e mails, that has lost its importance. 90 percent of mails I get are the forwarded ones, many mails you get twice in a week, some times from the same person :)

But after more than thousand scraps and ever increasing network of friends, I got bored of it. Apart from general "how r u" there is not much in the scraps. Gone are the days when we used to have a count on no of scraps and used to crave for more of them. May be some thing newer and more interesting comes by and Apun Ka Dil Phir Se Chakkar Kha Jaye... ;)

Nothing Special

For many days planning to write, finally doing now. Its not the matter that I am too busy, but just didn't have any thing to write about. Last few weeks were fabulous here, a lot of activities from jogging to swimming to tennis to watching movies to going gym. Also learnt breast stroke. Its easier than I previously thought. Every thing I did regularly. Its too satisfying that you are doing something.

Planned a lot for studies also, but probably I am too old for it now :) Twenty years is a pretty good time in life, almost one third of it. Many times I can not figure out why almost one third of life a person wastes in school, college and universities. There is a lot more to life than this. How much you study in life actually comes to use. Do you remember who was the first attorney general of India taught in history, probably you don't remember and if you do it does not help anything :))

But then if every one thinks like me how will the world proceed. Instead I should have a right mix of every thing in life, only then the right flavour comes :)
So will try to be more balanced....

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