An exam, and disappointment

Well, I gave the paper for NIC this Sunday. And as expected, it did not go well. There are plenty of reasons for this, and following are the main excuses I have for this - 

1. The paper was setup on B.Tech subjects. I have not opened those books in 2 and a half years, so this was expected.
2. Was really bogged down with work, and so could not devote time to study.

However, the truth is that I did not open the books even when I had time to do so. Maybe I had made up my mind in that I could not go through the huge course in such a short span of time, and so I did not even try.

Any ways, since I was already expecting a real bad performance, I was not at all disappointed with my bad show. The disappointment I am talking about was in the voice of my younger sister. I told her that I had appeared in the exam, and her first question was - "So now you will come home!!" And when I told her that the paper did not go well, I could literally see her disappointment in me, inspite of her being miles away from me. I really felt sad in breaking her hopes, but then such is life.

Any ways, now I am back to the good old work schedule, deadlines, and mistakes. I am planning to host my own blog site before long, and am trying to learn the basics of CSS and refresh my knowledge of PHP. Once I feel confident enough, will be getting my own space on the internet. Watch space for more information. Till then....

This is Hashir, signing off,

Over and out

Over the weekend

Well, most you must have (correctly) guessed that this post is all about the happenings over the last weekend. Like all software engineers, I too get these two days to really chill out and get ready for the next week ahead.

However, my idea of chilling out is a bit different from that of most. So, all I do over the weekend is spend more time in front of my laptop (and you thought that after staring the computer screen for 5 days I may ask for a break!!).

Well, Saturday was uneventful - except that I caught up with a lot of old friends on gtalk, and cycled some more. The fun part started on Sunday. I was woken up by my room mate with a cup of hot, good smelling tea. He placed that on the bedpost and asked me to drink it and not fall asleep (which he knew I was about to do).

So, I somehow tried to wake my sleepy senses, and reached out for the tea cup. But since my senses had now woken yet, the cup slipped from my hands and fell on the bed. Now, the only problem is that I usually sleep with my laptop near my pillow - since checking my mails is the last thing I do before going to sleep. And, this day was no different. So, the tea spilled near my laptop.

I was fully awake in a jiffy, with the only thought in my mind was the safety of my laptop, which is a Dell machine without the Complete Care warranty. I pick up my laptop and see that the falling tea had missed it by a whisker, and heaved a sign of relief.

It was only later that I realize that the tea, though sparing my laptop, was not so kind to my mouse, and so now I have a mouse with a real stiff left key and a perfectly working right key.

But, all well that end's well... and so I swore to myself - to never put a cup of tea at my bedpost again (And you thought that I was going to let go of my Laptop huh!!)

This is Hashir, signing off

Over and out

Dedication

This post is dedicated to all posts which died in my head, whose ideas came to me when I was busy with something else, or was in no position to write it down.

I don't know how many of you have gone through this, but it is a fairly regular occurance for me. I would be in office, or strolling around, and I get a great idea about a new post. But, by the time I sit in front of my laptop to write it down, either I have forgotten all about it, or can not express it as well as I want to. So, the post gets dropped.

And then, after a few days have passed, I get the same idea - and the same thing happens :(.

This post is dedicated to all such past and future posts, which died a premature death in my head( sob!!)

This is Hashir, signing off

Over and out.

लगता नहीं है जी मेरा.......

लगता नहीं है जी मेरा उजड़े दयार में
किसकी बनी है आलमे-ना-पायदार में

बुलबुल को बाग़बां से न सय्याद से गिला
क़िस्मत में क़ैद थी लिखी फ़स्ले-बहार में

कहदो इन हसरतों से कहीं और जा बसें
इतनी जगह कहां है दिले दाग़दार में

एक शाख़े-गुल पे बैठ के बुलबुल है शादमां
कांटे बिछा दिए हैं दिले-लालज़ार में

उम्रे-दराज़ मांग के लाए थे चार दिन
दो आरज़ू में कट गए दो इंतिज़ार में

दिन ज़िंदगी के ख़त्म हुए शाम हो गई
फैला के पांव सोएंगे कुंजे मज़ार में

कितना है बदनसीब ज़फ़र दफ़्न के लिए
दो गज़ ज़मीं भी मिल न सकी कूए-यार में

The epitaph of Bahadur Shah Zafar (written by himself), the last Mughal emperor of India

WTF is this

WTF is hapening in India? As if the moral policing on Valentine's day and the attacks on Christians in Karnataka was not enough, comes another shocker from the so called "Cultural Police" when they barged into a pub in Mangalore and attack the people there, including the ladies.

Is this what our culture has taught us. Don't these guys know that it is cowardly to hit women, and that India being a democracy - every one has a right to do what he or she wants, as long as it is within the law. And, this action did in no way abode with the law.

The Bajrang Dal and the Ram Sena were quick to claim responsibility of this shameful attack. Infact, a spokesman of the latter elaborated on the reason of the attack - which was that these girls were hindus, and were with muslim men. So, does this mean that now hindus and muslims can not even mix together. Should I be afraid to talk to my friends just because they are hundus, or should they stop socializing with me just because I am a muslim?

When will these people realize that it is this stupid, idiotic, and demeaning thought of theirs that is affecting the unity of our country, and helping our neighbours spread discord and enimity among the youth of India.

I sincerely hope that the guilty are bought to book, and this investigation does not end the way the investigation to Godhra riots ended.

My thoughts and prayers go with the victims of this barbaric attack

This is Hashir, signing off (with tears of anger and frustation in his eyes)

Over and out

P.S. This video has been taken from youtube.com

Thanks IndiBloggers

A quick update. IndiBloggers have accepted my blog in their listing. 

Most probably those guys liked the fact that I had pasted almost all of their badges to my blog, or may be they were sympathitic of the huge effort that I would have to do to remove these badges from my blog, and so they have approved my request :D

This means that all Indian bloggers who are registered with IndiBloggers can see my blog in the listing and may even visit it. 

This may result in some new friendships being forged, friendships which hopefully will last a lifetime and will spill out from the virtual world to the real world.

For all those Satyamites out there who are aware of our corporate blog site, which unfortunately non-satyamites can not see, won't it be nice if others could also view and comment on our posts?

I know that there is always the issue of corporate governance and policies, but there is no harm in wishful thinking and day dreaming, is there? so, let me dream

This is Hashir, dreaming off(oops, signing off)

Over and out

Update on changes... and some doodles

for the (privileged) few of you who are following this blog, here are the updates and changes i have done in the layout - 

i was planning to change the theme of my blog. but i did not like the change, so it seems that i am stuck with this layout for the time being. (Waise how would it be if i create my own layout. lets see!!)

Added a whole lot of logos from IndiBlogger. i have also registered my blog there - hope they accept it. (waise i believe that it will be accepted - after all the main criteria is that the blogger should be of Indian origin - which i know i am ;))

I actually planned to add just one or two of the IndiBlogger logos - but i could identify with a lot of them, so i added all of them. hope it is not looking bad. please do give in your comments (another feeble ploy to increase hits and get some comments)

I also added all three pics of SPCH(Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Blogs) - as i liked all of them. lets see when they update their collection.

I added a hit counter from easycounter.com to track the number of hits on my blog - hope it gives me inflated statistics ;)

At last, at the bottom of the page, I added "member of IndiBlogger" logo - again in the hope that they will accept my membership request

Apart from these updates on the changes in the layout, i just wanted to write something because i am feeling down at the moment. the reason being that i am stuck with an issue at work - and can not resolve it till i receive some clarifications from the users. and the good users that they are - they are not responding to my mails. and, as the delivery date comes nearer - the same users will shout at us :(

i am also surprised at the attitude of the leaders when it comes to dealing with the clients. agreed that they are the only reason why we have work - but this does not mean that we should not correct them when they are wrong.

there have been cases where the client has changed the BRD after the development is over, and then raised a defect against our defect. i understand that we can fix it pronto - but we should bring to their notice that the said case is not a defect in the development - on the contrary it is due to an incorrect and incomplete BRD. but no... no one has the guts to say so. and now, when the client is saying that they will not pay for the rework efforts, we are forced to look into the old defects and find such cases. such waste of time and effort.

baki at the work front the news, as you all know, is less grim than last week... now we have a few companies interested in merger or acquisition.... lets see what happens in the future.... hope everything falls into place soon enough

this is Hashir, signing off....

Over and out

Ramblings of an Indian muslim

I am a Muslim…. And an Indian. As a Muslim, I have certain duties. As an Indian, I have certain responsibilities. Being an Indian, I am angered when someone attacks my country. Being a Muslim, I am pained when people condemn all Muslims just because the attackers claimed to be Muslims.

I feel that this religional divide is more deep rooted than we think. Maybe that is why my Sanskrit teacher praised me when I topped in her paper, saying that I mastered the language inspite of it not being my language. I have met people who are surprised that in an Indo-Pak cricket match, I always support India. I have interacted with people who say that it is strange for me to abuse Pakistan….

What pains me the most is when educated, well to do people harbour such prejudices against Indians of my faith. Just because I am a Muslim does not mean that I am not Indian, or that I do not love my country. But still, even after 60 years of my fellow brethren proving their loyalities, we are asked to do so time and again by raking up issues which are painful. The Babri masjid act, the genocide of Muslims in Godhra, the vande matram controversy and many other actions ask us to prove our loyalities…… but don’t these people realize that they are just dividing the country – specially at a time when there is a need for us to stand united.

On top of all this, we have people who regard Narender Modi as the prime minister in waiting – maybe his economic policies are good – but what about his role in the Gujarat riots and selective killing of Muslims? Are we not citizens of this country? What proof is needed for the majority to realize that we are also Indians, we too are elated when India triumphs, we also weep when something bad happens in India……

I have also met people who think that Muslims do nothing other than plan terrorist attacks and disrupt peace. After the Delhi bomb blasts and subsequent killing of the terrorists by the Delhi police, one of the parents had disowned his son for attacking his country. This act was very brave – and should be recognized. And the comment I hear is – he did this because of social pressure. I mean, come-on guys - give me a break and please give the old man his due – but no. no matter what we do – we are still branded terrorists.

If so, what about the bajrang dal activists who instigated communal violence in Southern India and killed scores of Christians – do their actions make 80% of our population terrorists. Or the Maoist and ULFA make others who follow their religion terrorists?

What about those who refuse tenants just because they are muslims, or make fun of my religion without knowing about it.....I can go on and on….. just wanted to pent out my feelings after hearing some comments by my team member…..

This is an Indian, and a Muslim, signing off

Over and out

** I do not want to offend anybody - just had to clear my mind and write my take on the "All muslims support terrorists and/or Pakistan" impression

Shame on the insensitive media

Here I am, sitting in front of my laptop screen and trying to analysing the happenings of the last few days and how they are going to affect the lives of people working in Satyam in particular and in the Indian IT outsourcing industry in particular.

The first thing that comes to mind when I think of the past few days is the insensitive and unprofessional manner in which Indian media has handled the scam done by founder of Satyam computer service limited. By now, you must have guessed that I too am a Software engineer working in Satyam.

Maybe the scam was big, and the media needed to get sound bytes and to get the mind of Indians from the Mumbai terror attacks. But this does not mean that they have the right to spread baseless rumours without thinking about the affect they might have on the families of those who are staying away from home. Me and my colleagues were hounded with calls from concerned friends and relatives trying to confirm news about “No salary for two months”, “Satyam being locked”, and “Satyam fires 15000 associates on bench”. We had a hard time explaining them that all these are baseless rumours and nothing else, and all we want at this critical juncture of our professional life is to be left alone so that we can concentrate on the bigger task on hand, which is to do our job to the best of our abilities.

Apart from these calls from friends and family who had no way of knowing what is happening inside, what irritated me most was some of my fellow associates pinging me and asking me about my future plans. Well, let me answer all their queries in the only way I know – which is point blank and 100% truth – that I am sticking here. I am not being emotional or loyal, I too am concerned and worried about the financial mess I may land up in if I have no job (which actually is inshallah not going to happen), but I really believe that now is the time to work for the company not just in monitory terms by earning moolah from the client, but by being useful in our own small ways…. And for all those who are running away or are planning to run away – all I can say is that my organization does not need cowards like them. It is in times of difficulty that the true character of a man emerges – and I am really sorry to note that many of those whom I held in high regard have fallen from my esteem. I can do nothing, but atleast I am warned!

I am touched by the support that most of my friends and family has shown towards me. They have told me not to worry about anything – and are only concerned that I do not get tense because of what has happened.

Having said all this, I really believe that it is time that Media is taught about ethics and morals. How would they feel if their job was in the firing line, and their parents and family were far away with nothing but the idiot box to tell them what is happening? I think they should stop for a moment and think on these lines. I am really impressed by The Times of India, which atleast has the guts and the thoughtfulness to retract any wrong info they published, and to mention the rumours that are being spread by some insensitive channels and papers looking for a scoop. For the rest of the media, I just have one sentence to say – SHAME ON YOU GUYS!

I will keep updating this space with the latest happenings in Satyam and my thoughts on their affects on our lives.

This is a proud Satyamite, signing off…..

Over and out

The Conscience of a Hacker

==Phrack Inc.==

Volume One, Issue 7, Phile 3 of 10

 

=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=

The following was written shortly after my arrest...

\/\The Conscience of a Hacker/\/

by

+++The Mentor+++

Written on January 8, 1986

=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=

     Another one got caught today, it's all over the papers. "Teenager Arrested in Computer Crime Scandal", "Hacker Arrested after Bank Tampering"...

     Damn kids. They're all alike.

     But did you, in your three-piece psychology and 1950's technobrain, ever take a look behind the eyes of the hacker? Did you ever wonder what made him tick, what forces shaped him, what may have molded him?

     I am a hacker, enter my world...

     Mine is a world that begins with school... I'm smarter than most of the other kids, this crap they teach us bores me...

     I'm in junior high or high school. I've listened to teachers explain for the fifteenth time how to reduce a fraction. I understand it. "No, Ms. Smith, I didn't show my work. I did it in my head..."

     Damn kid. Probably copied it. They're all alike.

     I made a discovery today. I found a computer. Wait a second, this is cool. It does what I want it to. If it makes a mistake, it's because I screwed it up. Not because it doesn't like me...

        Or feels threatened by me...

        Or thinks I'm a smart ass...

        Or doesn't like teaching and shouldn't be here...

     Damn kid.  All he does is play games.  They're all alike.

     Damn underachiever.  They're all alike.

     And then it happened... a door opened to a world... rushing through the phone line like heroin through an addict's veins, an electronic pulse is sent out, a refuge from the day-to-day incompetencies is sought... a board is found.

     "This is it... this is where I belong..."

     I know everyone here... even if I've never met them, never talked to them, may never hear from them again... I know you all...

     Damn kid.  Tying up the phone line again.  They're all alike...

     You bet your ass we're all alike... we've been spoon-fed baby food at school when we hungered for steak... the bits of meat that you did let slip through were pre-chewed and tasteless. We've been dominated by sadists, or ignored by the apathetic. The few that had something to teach found us willing pupils, but those few are like drops of water in the desert.

     This is our world now... the world of the electron and the switch, the beauty of the baud. We make use of a service already existing without paying for what could be dirt-cheap if it wasn't run by profiteering gluttons, and you call us criminals. We explore... and you call us criminals. We seek after knowledge... and you call us criminals. We exist without skin color, without nationality, without religious bias... and you call us criminals.

     You build atomic bombs, you wage wars, you murder, cheat, and lie to us and try to make us believe it's for our own good, yet we're the criminals.

     Yes, I am a criminal. My crime is that of curiosity. My crime is that of judging people by what they say and think, not what they look like. My crime is that of outsmarting you, something that you will never forgive me for.

    I am a hacker, and this is my manifesto. You may stop this individual, but you can't stop us all... after all, we're all alike.

+++The Mentor+++