Can your OS make some ice-cream for you? Well, Linux can!!

We have the OS wars raging like the Cold War down under and ready to erupt any given time. In this time, I have a question for you - Can your OS really churn out some delicious ice-cream? Most probably the answer would be in the negative. But if you happen to run Linux - the answer is YES!!

Well, a company called MooBella (what a name to Moo around with) has come up with a rather geeky invention - a Linux-powered ice cream maker which is currently undergoing demo runs in New England. This is not the size of your average PC though for home use, but a full fledged ice cream machine that reportedly churns out Fresh Dairy Ice Cream in 40 seconds and has a whooping 96 varieties. All this being 100% natural dairy stuff.

The ice cream machine sports a 15" touch screen but under the hood it is basically an off-the-shelf PC Hardware that is in use and best of all it happens to runs Redhat Linux. Well, the basic interface happens to run off Firefox too. This seems to be a cool innovation and also a great example of what Linux can do.

I am sure that in near future we will have refrigerators / TVs / ACs coming with a choice of OS like Linux / Android / Chrome / Windows. Any takers yet?

The Best In Audio Video Tools

What do you use your computer for? Long gone are the days when the computer was strictly a data processing tools. Today, the computer is an all-purpose media entertainment center. Its capabilities have gone far beyond keeping a catalog of all your movies and music – it’s even gone beyond playing all your favorite music and movies. These days, with the right tools you can splice, cut, record, edit, mix, create and publish your own media. And to accompany the new capabilities there’s a dizzying array of new software tools that can help you do everything from rip CDs to encode complete animations and videos. How do you find the best new software tools?

And you’ll find them easily. There’s no need to wade through page after page of directory structure. You can search all categories from the front page on the site, or click on a category to go directly to browsing that category. You’ll find video editors, audio editors, CD rippers, imaging software, video and audio converters, complete all-in-one packages and more. There are shareware listings, commercial listings and freeware listings – in short, just about everything you’d ever want to play with your media.

Each listing includes a capsule description and a full review as well as a side box that lists all the important details about the software – including both a staff and user rating, and the chance to enter your own rating. The categories include All-in-One, Media Players, CD Rippers, CD Burners, Converters, DVD software, Editors, ID3 Tag Editors, Mobile Phone Tools, Plugins, Radio and Broadcasting (plogcasting, anyone?), Recorders, Utilities and Voice and Text editors.

The reviews are comprehensive, listing all the capabilities of each software package and how well it performs each function. It’s a nice bonus that’s not often found on pure directories.

For software publishers, there are multiple opportunities for exposure. There’s an easy submission tool to add a free listing of you audio or video software, and many different ways to increase the exposure of your listing at very reasonable rates. You can opt for a featured listing, front page exposure, top level search results, footer text links and more.

Among the most popular software featured at audio-video-tools.com is Blaze Media Pro, the popular powerhouse all-in-one media tool that converts between all available video and audio formats .Rip, burn, convert, edit, capture, create, extract and combine files to create your own unique media.

Green Dam hits the Great Wall of China!!

For those of you who are not aware of what the Green Dam I am speaking is all about – it’s a new piece of software that was thrust upon it’s Citizens a few weeks back. It is officially called as the “Green Dam for Escorting Children" filtering software which the authorities claim to filter pron and other malicious websites from easy access to children and adults too!! The last of the official statements that was announced by the Chinese IT officials was way back on June 30th, eversince they have kept numb – you may be wondering why?

Well, the new software seems to open a Pandora box of issues including many serious security issues – than protect the users from such stuff for what it was designed in the first place. Last month there was a damning report by Prof. J. Alex Halderman and his team that seems to have nailed the Green Dam to the Great Wall.

Prof. J. Alex and his team claims to have found several serious security flaws in the software which are likely attributed to “Programming Errors”. Also, his team claims that once the Green Dam software is installed it makes the user much more vulnerable to website scripts that can easily take control of the user’s system. Also, these scripts that can target the Green Dam’s vulnerability can easily steal sensitive information off a PC, also can steal passwords, send Spam or simply turn the computer into a botnet. Also, since Green Dam is designed to process blacklist updates – it can easily allow hackers or even the software makers to install malicious code on a user’s PC during the update process.

So, all these seemed to have nailed the Chinese very ambitious Green Dam project – also the program is available only for the PC version, so users of Mac, Linux and other OS’s are spared. Coupled with all this – it is one big flop!!

Airport staff not to have Pant Pockets : Nepal experiments a novel way to curb Bribery

Most developing countries are plagued with one common problem “BRIBERY”. Wherever you go and whatever you do – you’ll need to shell out some bribe to get your work done. It gets more rampant in countries that have a less stable economy. Though India and China boast of stable economy but they beg to differ on the issue of Bribe.

Atleast in country’s like India and Sri Lanka I find some good government officials. Airports are the most famous of all locations where bribing is very rampant. Tourists and travellers are always in a hurry and that’s when the Bribery Virus strikes. When you fly back into the country your luggage is subject to just so many gizzmo’s and the end result of all that is you end up paying more bribe. There are many officials who would directly ask you for the Moolah (a local dialect for cash). But Nepal seems to have found a very intuitive method to curb on bribery at Airports – Ban all Airport staff from having trousers with Pockets!!

Though it may sound crazy to hear at first, but I am sure it will deter the officials from exhorting bribe to some extend. What will the officer do with the bribe he collects? Sans pockets he can’t store the booty anywhere.

Kathmandu's Tribhuvan International Airport has now officially banned pants with pockets for all its employees. Nepal is a tiny mountain state surrounded by India and China. The economy relies mainly on tourism but due to the recent turmoils and the fall of the monarchy – it is finding very hard to come back on it’s knees. Surely the officials don’t want to deter the prospective tourists due to the bribe hungry airport officials. Let’s see how this shapes out to be – hope it becomes a success for other airports to follow too.

How useful are online courses really? Is it worth paying?

Nowadays, there are a lot of online courses on subjects not just related to IT but also hobbies and pass-time topics. Recently, one of our blog reader took up a online ccna training and he sent me a review of how the course was and how it really helped in his career. That's when I got a clear picture of how Online courses really work and how useful they tend to be at most times.

But an online course depends on what kind of training you are looking for. Courses on Game hunting or car driving can't be taught online - so signing up for one online would mean a disaster. Once, you have zeroed in on the course - you'll have to determine the price you are going to pay as you can compare the price to an offline one(if available) and also if it were going to be cheaper.

You could also head over to amazon.com or barnes and noble website and search in the subject your asking about and there should be atleast one "how to do book" - you can look and consider if it would be possible for you to learn from the book itself.

And last but not the least, it all depends on how motivated you are. Think back to the last time you were in school or had to do something important, are how quick you where to do it or do u tend to put things off for a while or till the last possible minute(sometimes that's what I do). If its the latter of the two, I definitely don't recommend online training especially if its in a class format because sooner or later you'll fall behind and it could be a waste.

How to create a very successful CBT (Computer Based Training)

Today I'll touch upon the topic of how to create a very successful CBT (Computer Based Training) program. Usually a computer based training will include the aspects of teaching a target audience of designers, developers, trainers too, and architects in a Software industry who need to know about a specific software application.

Even before you start off with a CBT plan - the most important thing is to know the content, that is to know what is needed to be known first. Content is definitely the King. Secondly, you will need to be organizing the content into managable bits of information that a learner can digest.

Thirdly, you would need to be understanding the relationship between these two pieces(bits of information + learner) and the CBT software you are going to use to deliver and test the content. Fourthly you would need to look at utilizing one of a variety of methods within the CBT framework (e.g. some video, some text, some sound). Nowadays, everyone thinks in terms of Universal Design for Learning (UDL). A bit of creativity is also a wonderful thing to bring to the equation.

Easy tips to Working smarter and Not harder

The old saying goes as "Working smarter is not necessarily harder". Today I'll tell you all the secrets on how you can master the concept which will easily make your entire working life that much more easier.

These are very simple yet practical techniques that you can employ to save steps and tedium from almost any task. So, here we go - and keep this a secret too (Just kidding - please share this with your friends and well-wishers as always).

First I'll explain the simple Steps To Follow:

1. Assess everything that needs to be done. Before you plunge in headfirst, remember that enthusiasm needs to be tempered with actual and sound wisdom. Look over every aspect of the job at hand, and allow yourself ample "pondering time" so that you can be sure that every detail is accomplished on time, and accurately.
   
   
2. Make an outline. Whether it's in your head or on paper or on your laptop.Y o u should have a checklist in mind, and follow it to the letter, and in order - you don't want to repeat steps, duplicate the efforts of others, or make mistakes. Also, you definitely don't want to forget anything. Am i not right?
   
   
3. Consider the materials you'll need for the task. Don't take shortcuts, when possible, on the quality of your materials. Cheap materials are harder to work with, because they aren't as sturdy or nice. Because they're harder to work with, they take longer to bend to your will. Remember that working smart means thinking about these things - in most jobs, the materials aren't where the majority of the costs are. It's the labor - the time needed to complete the job - that costs the company more money. Using inexpensive materials where they are easily installed makes sense. Trying to save a few bucks but spending an extra hour or two because those cheap things didn't install properly doesn't make any sense at all.
   
   
4. Follow your plan and don't deviate from it - unless you really must. Once you've assessed the job and come up with a plan, it's usually best to stick with the plan. However, things come up: a part doesn't fit, or it turns out it's not the best item for the job, someone gets sick, all sorts of emergencies can throw a wrench into your plan. Be prepared to think on your feet, and be resourceful. Nimble thinking is essential to working smart, especially when something goes wrong. Following a plan slavishly, in spite of new information, developments, or problems is just plain dumb. But also be flexible and change if you need to.
   
   
5. Delegate to the right people at the right times. This is a very big mistake we usually make. Do make sure your team is well-ordered. If one person is faster, put him or her on the part of your task that will take longest. If one person is more skilled and accurate, put him or her on the part of the task that is most critical.
   
   
6. Work parallel'ly - this results in faster time-lines. This means that there may be four or five, for example, components to your job. Let's say you are a design and display company creating a display for a county fair. Your client wants a combination of signs, banners, flyers, and brochures, along with a booth design. You set your best designer in motion to design the copy and look of things, but meanwhile, you assign someone to procure what essential supplies you will need. So far, you could be having one of your people contact printers to get pricing for the number of flyers and/or brochures your client wants, and another to take an inventory of what sign and banner materials you already have on hand - vinyl or paint colors, banner sizes, pre-cut blanks. This way, once the client meeting is complete and you have a good idea of what is going into the installation, you can match it to your inventory and see if there are things on hand that you can use to get started, while someone else goes and gets the things you still need.
   
   
7. Keep your clients under control by communicating properly. This is something that I learnt at my current organization and it works wonders -trust me. Many times, it's hard to work smart because your clients will insist that their job is a big rush. Instead of scrambling to get that job done, make sure your clients understand in the initial meeting what your normal turnaround time for their job would be. If you know you will need two weeks, don't let the client squeeze you into one week unless that client is willing to pay extra for the rush. Most businesses have more than one client, yet many clients forget that their job is not the only one you're working on.
   
   
8. Always stick to your policies. If you charge extra to rush a job, don't deviate from that, ever. It's unfair to apply policies to some customers and not others. When one client comes in and is very pushy, feeling entitled to your undivided attention immediately, often, you can simply say something like, "Sure, we can rush the job for you, but I need to let you know that it will cost extra - probably as much as 50% more than the original quote, for the rush." It's amazing how quickly this type of client stands down, saying, "Oh, forget that - it's not that big a rush. We can wait." Just let them know that you are willing to rush their jobs, but by doing so, you must move other customers who were "in line" before them out of the way - causing you to run those jobs behind. Plus, you need different workers to complete different jobs, and rushing requires you to pay them overtime, rather than allowing more time to complete the job during regular hours. This is smart - it lets your clients know that you really know your stuff, plus it relieves your schedule or makes you more money.
   
   
9. Always give one to three choices - never more. Handing a swatch book to a client and saying, "Tell me which colors you are interested in" is deadly. Too many choices will cause horrible delays as the customer peruses ALL possibilities, and later tends to second-guess every decision, wanting to see it now "In green?" . Instead, say things like, "Do you like this blue or this green better?" Lots of the jobs you do will instantly suggest certain tools, colors, approaches, materials, etc.
   
   
10. Never willingly trap yourself into accepting a bad job. You know when a job is going to be great. You also know when you get that "uh-oh" feeling that something is not right. A client or boss who pressures you into areas where you are not comfortable, either because it is an unreasonable expectation or because it's outside your scope needs to be aware immediately of your discomfort with the job as proposed. Make any misgivings clear instantly, and in front of others, if possible. If you are self-employed, declining a job like this is much smarter, even though it's so hard to let that money go when you depend on every job for your livelihood. Still, a client who doesn't pay because you didn't adhere to every jot and tittle of his demands (and some are just breathtakingly demanding) is not a good customer in the end, and if you work for hours and end up not being paid all or part of what you worked for - especially when you were sweating bullets over it the whole time - is not smart. And it's the hardest work you'll ever do.
    
    
11. Always work as hard and as efficiently as possible, and finish each job as quickly as you can. Hit every job with everything you've got. Getting it done quickly and efficiently - while you have the time - is much smarter than looking at the schedule and telling yourself you have three more days to get it done, and then going to a long lunch or off to play tennis or whatever. You don't know what will happen tomorrow - you might come down with the flu. Figuring that you will need only one day to complete that job if nothing goes wrong and then sitting on it just because you can is dumb. If you end up getting sick, you might not even be well enough to finish on time, let alone early. Running out the clock on jobs when you don't absolutely need to can force a rush at the finish line, or worse, deprives you of opportunities you might not have otherwise.
    
    
12. Recognize the point of 'diminishing returns.' The above steps do not imply that you should work yourself to the point of exhaustion. You need to protect your health and the integrity of your job. Working yourself to a frazzle constantly makes you prone to mistakes. When you're so tired that you realize it's taking you twice or three times longer to do a job than normal, you need to call it a day. Rest at least a few hours, and come back fresher, so that you can be strong at the end of the job. Learn how to power nap(maybe I'll write another article on this sometime later).
    
    
13. Always Finish strong. It's sooooo important! Being dead tired and sluggish at the finish line is not smart - it's foolish. Be sure that you are well rested at deadline time. On the day a client is expected to pick up his or her job, go over it with a fine-toothed comb - and this means checking the finished product against the original instructions, making sure they match up. Check it for accuracy and detail, make any adjustments, corrections or touch-ups well ahead of the time the client will arrive. Making sure every last detail has been checked and re-verified will make you confident and calm when your client comes to pick up the job. You can present it proudly, knowing that everything has been done to ensure the client will be happy with the finished product. Your confidence spills over to the client, which also makes it easier to ask for that final payment - when you see the client smiling and appreciative of the work you've done for him or her. This works for any project you have to do in life.
    

Here are also some cool Tips to get you there really..

• When you can work, do. Don't slack or allow time to run out so that you're rushing at the end to meet a deadline.
• When you're sick, stay home and rest until you are well. You make too many mistakes when you're ill or tired to call that "working smart."
• Learn to make your money work for you. Working a lot and spending every penny you make is NOT working smart!
  

And here are some general Warnings that you must Adhere to

I mentioned above that you should avoid taking a bad job. By that, it's meant that you know that it's a sort of thing you aren't good at, or that is not part of the usual services you offer, or that it's something you don't know much about. Instead of trying to boss your way through it, tell the truth. And if you get an "uh-oh" feeling from the client, don't take the job. If you have a sense right away that this client is not on the same page with you, either you must take steps immediately to get them there, or you must not take the job. This doesn't suggest that a difficult client is a bad client - often, a difficult client isn't really so difficult at all, once s/he knows you and trusts you to do the good job s/he requires. But one who constantly grinds for discounts, tries to get you to cut corners to save money, or changes scope of job or deadlines in the middle of everything, this is someone who will work your last nerve. You must ask yourself if the money you make on these jobs is worth the time, effort and tears. * There is one other situation you should take caution with, and that is allowing the customer to make changes mid-stream, causing you to go out of pocket much more than you originally planned. A little tweak is one thing. A big change should stop everything while you re-think - and re-bid. The client should be made aware instantly that it's not "just a little change", and that making changes in mid-job could cost significantly more. Don't allow yourself to be suckered into making "just a little adjustment" more than one time during a job. Some clients have this down to a science, asking for "small changes" several times when you're already heavily into the project. Many huge problems and disagreements (usually resulting in you not getting paid as you should have, had you bid the job this way originally) start with "small changes."

Hope this article enlightened you - I spent quite a lot of time on this and look forward for your thoughts too.

A new and revolutionary MP3 player from Samsung - truly geeky!!

A brand new range of Samsung K3 MP3 Player have been launched. They allow you to listen to quality music, see the beautiful photos, listen to FM radio, also has an alarm. It also has a 1.8"touch screen with optional detachable speaker.

But the most geeky part of it happens to be the headphone. Just look at the images below to get a taste of what it is like - truly amazing!!

Click on Image to Enlarge

So would you go for these peeping toms?

Google in the last 10 years - An Insight

I came across some amazing information on the eve of Google's 10th Birthday. I was casually flipping through NewYork Times and came across this information.

Google had applied for incorporation as a business 10 years ago which is according to a time line supplied by Google. The application was accepted on 7th September - which was a Sunday.

In that decade, Google has very quickly emerged as the most successful business on the Web, and many expect it to dominate the next era of computing as thoroughly as Microsoft dominated the era of personal computers.

Here's a quick snapshot of Google by the numbers along with some comparisons to Microsoft. The sources of the data are the companies annual reports, Yahoo Finance and comScore.

Google's age: 10
Microsoft's age: 33

Google's revenue in the last 4 quarters: $19.6 billion
Microsoft's revenue in the last 4 quarters: $60.4 billion

Microsoft's revenue at age 10: $140 million
($279 million in today’s dollars)

Google's revenue per hour in the last 4 quarters: $2.2 million
Microsoft's revenue per hour in the last 4 quarters: $6.9 million

Google's net income in the last 4 quarters: $4.85 billion
Microsoft's net income in the last 4 quarters: $17.6 billion

Google employees, as of June 30th: 19,604
Microsoft employees, as of May 31st: 89,809

Google's revenue per employee: $1 million
Microsoft's revenue per employee: $672,000

Market value of Google: $142 billion
Market value of Microsoft: $241 billion

Number of tech companies with a market value larger than Google's: 3 (Microsoft, I.B.M. and Apple, in that order)

Worldwide searches on Google in July: 48.7 billion
Worldwide searches on Microsoft in July: 2.3 billion

Worldwide searches per hour on Google in July: 65 million
Worldwide searches per hour on Microsoft in July: 3.1 million

Isn't this an eye-opener?

Process of selecting a Software Bridegroom :: Interesting Read

I got the below article in the form of an e-mail forward from one of my colleague. It just intrigued me as to how true can such a subtle mail really be. So read on and let me know your views too.

This is a conversation about the process of selecting a software bridegroom....

Vidhya: hey! what is the matter you have called up all of a sudden?

Nithya: do u remember that my parents gave my horoscope, to search for a suitable match, to many people? So many horoscopes of the groom has come.. in that 4-5 seems to match.. I don’t know which one to select, I am confused because of it.

Vidhya: what is the confusion about?

Nithya: horoscopes of many software engineers have come. It seems now a days, the software guys are wanting to marry girls in the other field. That’s I why I don’t know whom I must select among this. You are a software engineer so please give me some suggestion .

Vidhya: not a problem at all. So tell me the position that each one holds.

Nithya: first is a manager.

Vidhya: manager?? Then he will show cast himself that he is busy always. But he will not do anything properly. He will get u 1 kg of rice and ask you to prepare for the whole locality say -a village. He will get you mutton and ask you to prepare chicken 65. Even if you protest telling you can’t make it, he’ll not accept. He will tell you to work hard day and night to prepare it. He will also tell he’ll provide you with the night cab. Even if you ask how can I prepare chicken 65 out of it by sitting day and night he will not accept.

Nithya: ohh..so dangerous he is!! Then I must escape. Next is a test engineer.

Vidhya: he is more dangerous than the other person. Whatever you do he will correctly tell only the fault in it. Even if you try to surprise him with 10 variety of food, he will tell the item which does not have salt in it. If you ask him “will you not at least tell that it is good”, he will reply back saying it is your duty to make it good so why must I tell that. He is sooo good …

Nithya: then a NO to him also. Next is the performance test engineer.

Vidhya: he is another specimen.. even if everything is good, he will ask why did it take this much time. If you take 10 minutes to make a coffee, he will question you asking why you have taken 10 min for a coffee which can be done within 5 min. Even if you say that he is talking about the instant coffee while you have made the filter coffee, he will not accept. The same will be with all the work you do. You must not think about this person if you want to do make up in your life !!!

Nithya: then! you mean to say that we should not marry software guys??

Vidhya: who said like that?? In software there is one more group. They are called the developers group. How much ever you hit them they will bear.

Nithya: then tell about them.

Vidhya: you don’t have to do anything. They will do everything themselves. If we sit back and just boost them it is enough. But the problem with them is- they will say “I know it” whatever you ask them.
Even that is ok. They will bear how much ever you hit them but the condition is you must keep saying “you are too good” after hitting them every time.

Nithya: this is superb. Then we must search for this kind of a groom..

Windows Vista with SP1 can run 108 Apps simultaneously - Hits back at Mac OS X

This video shows Microsoft Windows Vista with Service Pack 1 running 108 applications at only 30% processor usage. This was in response for this pic of Mac OS X Leopard running 150 applications which surfaced this weekend.

[Click to Enlarge]

His specs are nothing but just a bit on the higher side :)

He was running a stock Intel Core 2 Quad Q6600 with 4GB of RAM. Which counted 108 apps total and had most applications from Photoshop, Visual studio 2008, Office professional 2007, Safari, and Media Center all the way down to that rescource hog, Minesweeper - simply superb!!

The Complete Keyboard :: Call it the All-in-One PC

I always prefer using light weight keyboard, but if a keyboard be equiped a full PC may that be over weight, I would still like to use that. Just check this out and tell me what do you feel about this really cool innovation!!

Simply place it on your desktop, plug in a monitor and you are done - my gosh!

This new generation All-in-One PC in a keyboard not only takes up far less desktop space, but also puts an Intel® Core™ 2 Quad CPU with all its features and performance at your fingertips. The new ZPC-GX31™ is a true innovation packing so much power, performance and compatibility inside a normal size keyboard. With features such as Dual Display capabilities, 4GB of DDR2/667MHz RAM, 1Gb LAN and DVI interface you now have a complete personal computer that takes up no more space than a typical keyboard.

• Cybernet All-in-One PC keyboard

Can you read this?

Can you read this in the first attempt????



Not possible to read anything? then follow the guidelines given below















Close your eyes almost 90% so that you can actually read it :)

Isn't it really superb!!!!

TATA Nano is here finally - The 1lakh car

Finally this is what the Tata Rs 1-lakh car looks like!

The Tata's Rs 1-lakh (Less than $2500) car is here! And it is named as Nano! (nothing to do with Nano technology I suppose).

Ratan Tata, the Tata Group chairman on Thursday unveiled the Tata Nano at the 9th Auto Expo in New Delhi.

Here are more details about Nano straight from the horse's mouth.

Ratan Tata, while unveiling the Nano, said: "The car will meet all current safety norms and all emission criteria. The pollution it will cause will be lower than 2-wheelers."

The car, he said, is smaller than a Maruti 800, but has 21 per cent more volume or space inside than the 800. He said that the dealer price of the car will be Rs 1 lakh, plus value-added tax (VAT) plus transport charges.

The car will have a 624-cc petrol engine generating 33 bhp of power. It will sport a 30-litre fuel tank and 4-speed manual gearshift. One of Nano's three versions will come with air conditioning, but will have no power steering. It will have front disk and rear drum brakes. The company claims mileage of 23 km per litre.

The car's dashboard features just a speedometer, fuel gauge, and oil light. The car does not have reclining seats or radio. The shock absorbers are basic.

Nano, the world's cheapest car, costs almost half of the cheapest car currently available anywhere in the world.

''Since, a promise is a promise the standard dealer version will cost Rs 1 lakh,'' said Tata Sons chairman Ratan Tata.

He informed that the car is 8 per cent smaller bumper to bumper, than the Maruti800 but at the same time 21 per cent larger in its interiors and can sit up to four people.

Let wait for it to be available for a test ride and also await Hamara Bajaj's competitor.

Does Harry really die in Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows? A complete Book Review

Does Harry die Really in the latest J.K. Rowling's Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows? I was just amused to know that people are placing bets on whether Harry lives or dies. Now that's really hilarious.

Well, the Deathly Hallows are Harry's invisibility cloak which has been passed down from generation to generation, a stone that brings back the dead which is hidden in the snitch Harry first caught in his mouth left to him by Dumbledore in his will and the elder wand hidden in Dumbledore's tomb, which is taken by Voldemort.

R.A.B. is actually Sirius' brother Regulus in spite from what Voldemort did to him. After he died in the cave he left the task to Kreacher to destroy the locket but Kreacher was unable to even open it.

The horcruxes are the locket stolen by Kreacher then by Mundugus then stolen by Umbridge then taken by Harry. Destroyed by Ron with the Gryfindor sword.

The Hufflepuff goblet hidden in Bellatrix Lestrange's vault in Gringotts. Destroyed by Hermoine with a Basilisk fang.

The Diadem of Ravenclaw hiddden in the room of requirement next to where Harry hid the Half-blood Prince potion book. Destroyed by Crabbe's cursed fire spell.

Nangini, Voldemort's snake. Destroyed by Neville with the Grryfindor sword.

And finally Harry's scar. Destroyed with Voldemort's killing curse.

Snape was actually working with Dumbledore the whole time, Dumbledore himslef planned his own death, the curse on his hand was growing more and more every day. Snape was truly repenting sending Voldemort after Harry's mom, he was in love with her, his patronus was even a doe, just like Lily Potter, Harry's mother.

Here's who really dies.

• Muggle studies teacher Burbage killed be Voldemort.
• Hedwig killed by a Death Eater.
• Mad-eye killed by a Death Eater.
• Tonk's father killed by Death Eaters.
• The minister of magic Scrimgeour killed by Voldemort and Death Eaters.
• Wormtail killed by his own silver hand.
• Dobby killed by Bellatrix LeStrange.
• Crabbe by his own 'cursed fire' spell.
• Fred killed by a Death Eater at the final battle at Hogwarts.
• Lupin (not specified, killed at the final battle).
• Tonks (side by side with her husband Lupin).
• Snape killed by Voldemort.
• Colin Crevey by Death Eaters at the final battle.
• Bellatrix Lestrange killed by Mrs. Weasley.
• Harry dies/goes into dream state?? then revives/awakes
• Voldemort killed by who else; Harry.
• And about 50 students at Hogwarts names not specified.
• And Ron or Hermione DO NOT die.

Death by Pages:

• Burbage dies on pg. 12
• Hedwig dies on pg. 56
• Mad-Eye dies on pg. 78
• Scrimgeour dies on pg. 159
• Wormtail dies on pg. 471
• Dobby dies on pg. 476
• Snape dies on pg. 658
• Fred Weasley dies on pg. 637
• Harry gets ****** up by Voldemort on pg. 704
• Comes back to life on pg. 724
• Nagini gets beheaded by Neville Longbottom on page 733.
• Tonks, Lupin, and Colin Creevy have their deaths confirmed on pg. 743

19 YEARS AFTER THE EVENTS IN THE BOOK

• Ron has married Hermione, their two children are named Rose and Hugo.
• Harry has married Ginny, their three children are named Lily, James, and Albus Severus.
• Draco Malfoy has a son named Scorpius.

The FINAL LINE OF THE BOOK is:
"The scar had not pained Harry for nineteen years. All was well."

Hope you enjoyed it as much as I did!!

The Actual Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Ending :: De Mystified

After I posted yesterday on "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows :: E-Book Freely available Online Now" - I am shell shocked at the response it has driven. Well, it just goes to prove the kind of fan following J.K. Rowling's Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows is set to unleash.

Well, now that the entire book has been leaked - So the ending too has been purpotetly leaked. The ending clearly describes in great detail as to who dies at the end.

It seems that the final nine pages of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows takes place 19 years in the future - which is simply amazing.

Well, I won't spoil the millions of fans by telling the ending right away. But do check out one of the comments in my last article which even gives you a briefing of the page numbers of the deaths. Or you can read the ending online at this mail archive.

Scholastic Sues P2P Torrent sites for the "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows " Leak

Scholastic - The publisher of R.K. Rowling's much awaited and secretly guarded last book - Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows has sued many of the P2P Torrent sites in a last ditch attempt to plug the increasing amount of online leaks ahead of this Friday's release. I did report on the leak of the latest Harry Potter book yesterday - Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows :: E-Book Freely available Online Now.

Scholastic has also sued DeepDiscount.com, which had apparently already mailed out almost 1200 copies of the book before the release. You can read more on this recent development at the following Los Angeles Times article.

J.K. Rowling, author of the book, begged on her personal site. The message reads as follows "I'd like to ask everyone who considers themselves a Potter fan to help preserve the secrecy of the plot for all those who are looking forward to reading the book at the same time on publication day. In a very short time, you will know EVERYTHING!".

So will the Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows leak be plugged? I guess not - but it surely has made a small impact on JK's Bank balance.

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows :: E-Book Freely available Online Now

The much awaited HP series "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows" has already hit the internet almost 4 days before it's scheduled release. Looks like the high amount of security that was posted to guard all the printing facilities and the storage sites was of No use.

Well, the entire book (784 pages to be precise) are all available online for Free download in the form of Photos (very messy) as well as a few sites offering pdf formats.

The sites are offering Torrent downloads and the few that offered direct download of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows on Rapidshare and Megaupload have been blocked in No time - Just shows how serious the publishers and JK Rowling are with this release.

I wouldn't put up the links of the sites were the book is available for Free download due to Copyright and Privacy Infringement Issues. But I can give you the exact phrase that you need to put in google to reach the torrent files. "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows filetype:torrent" << Use the phrase inside the quotes to catch the fish!!

I am NO fan of Harry Potter - So I will wait for reviews from you guys on how the so called Last series is. Do drop in your comments below.

How to Install Games easily in LG Chocolate / KG800 Mobile Phones?

Well, today my pal came up with a strange question regarding his cool looking LG Chocolate [KG 800] - which I must admit looks very good. His query was How to install new games into the LG Chocolate.

So I found a way to get the cool Java Games into the LG Chocolate via the USB. Here is the procedure.

First you will need to enable Java content on your local LG Content Bank Installation. This how you can enable the same.
Goto C:/Program Files/LG GSM/LgContentsBank
Open the file config.ini in Notepad
Change EXIST_JAVA=N to EXIST_JAVA=Y

Then you have to create a folder called Java under C:/Program Files/LG GSM/LgContentsBank/Contents

Copy your jar and jad game files to this folder.

If it is a jad file then you must edit the jad file and add this line:
MIDletX-LG-Contents: KG800

No need to change anything for jar files.

Now use the Lg Contents Bank Application, select the Java icon, your games should be listed now, upload and enjoy.

You can find FREE Games and Applications for your LG Chocolate at these sites:

• http://www.myw800.lasyk.net [The pixel resolution is the same as LG[320 X 240], so I tried downloading them and it works great.]
• http://www.getjar.com/software [Most of them are trial apps/games, but you can find quite a few that are free]

As for me I am still using my good old Sony Ericsson K700i - still like it :)

Online Learning - Demystified

You may be wondering what to expect from a web-based class or an online learning course. This article is to demystify some of the misconceptions of Online Learning and how you can make effective use of the same. Online classes are not all that different from regular classes. You'll have an instructor and classmates, and will interact with them during the semester. You'll have homework and participate in class activities. In some ways, the experience will seem very familiar to you.

Still, online classes are different from regular classes in some important ways. You don't have to drive to campus and fight for a parking space, because you won't be meeting in a classroom at a regular time and place. Communication with your instructor and other students will take place online, not in person. Without an instructor reminding you what is due in class each week, you'll have more responsibility for your own learning. You will need basic computing skills and convenient access to the Internet.

The skills you need most to be a successful online learner are the same ones you use in any class: preparation, organization and self-discipline. The difference is in how you apply them.