Will Cuil save us from Google?

If you’ve been reading through my last few posts, you might have noticed my anti-google ideas and efforts to stay away from it. I’ve been hoping to find an alternative to Google all along, and am happy to atleast see a prospective replacement for the same.

It seems like an team of ex-google employees have decided to take on the web giant – Google itself. Cuil – pronounced as ‘cool’ is what they have managed to come up with.

Already, I could find people on the web moaning about the way Cuil handles search results. The layout, the search quality etc.

I’m not sure about the quality, as I’m yet to really put Cuil to use, but the searches I’ve done so far have left me quite unhappy. That aside, as far as the format of the search results go, I must say I’m really happy. For the first time, some web company has taken the effort to do something that differs from the usual Googlish looking results page(though I still hate the routine usage of blue for titles and green for the links). Search results have been scattered ( in a good way) all about the page, with some description of websites to go along with it. This, I think is a useful feature.

Anyways, I just added Cuil to Firefox using a link on their website’s footer. A few days of proper usage and testing will decide the fate of this hopefull challenge to Google.

I'm bored.. finally.

Its been literally months since someone has heard this from my mouth. Ever since I started living alone in a room in the US, I stopped getting bored, coz I literally had no time in between all chores, and I had made quiet a few friends by the end of the semester.

Now, I’m in India. Initially, I explored many known and unknown places in Hyderabad, and also had lots and lots of fun. Now, I feel I’ve nothing better to do than to laze around all day with the computer, watch TV, go to the Gym, eat, and sleep. Once in a while I do watch a freaking movie. And thats all. In all these days in Hyderabad, I’ve not made a single new friend, neither have I done something new.There is nothing I do here that I cannot do in the US.

Today, for the first time in mo-o-o-nths I’d say I’m bored. If you have any suggestions to get me out of this boredom, please feel free to comment.

Countdown restarts

Yep. I had started the countdown at 56 days to go back home. Now I have exactly 28 days to go back to the US. I had thought of doing a lot more than what I actually have. I explored tons of unexplored place at Hyderabad, and have watched so many movies I just lost count. (Btw, I’m watching one tomorrow and one the day after). I made a trip to Warangal to refresh old memories. I’m also planning to make a trip to Ramagundam – the place I spent most of my childhood and teenage years. Sometimes I feel like I’d never been to the US, and was in India all the while. But, when I think of the Aug11th deadline, my heart skips a beat or two. I feel sad, and nervous whenever I’m reminded of the fact that this is only a trip. Then I realise that the trip to the US has done me a lot of good, and has gained me a lot of experience and there is more to come when I go back. I hope to come back to India as a polished, well-experienced, and confident man.

If possible, I’d like to sneak a trip or two to places (anywhere in India) I’ve never been to. Alone. It’d be a nice adventure.

Meanwhile, I still have a few things pending, the first of which is to search for a nice topic for my Graduate project, so I can start working on it as quickly as possible. Then come shoes, ties, clothes, non-perishable food items and more.

Each day spent is one more day lost in this trip to India, and I want to make the most of it. I wish to back to the US with pleasant memories of this age-old country.

Cya!

Webhosting from RedWeb.in

If you have noticed the tag line, then you might be wondering what its all about. RedWeb is my brand name for the services I’m soon going to launch.

In another three days, I’m going to launch “Red” Webhosting. The confirmed launch date is the 20th of June. The website is currently under construction, and lots of minute details are being paid attention to. As a sneak peek, we let you know that the website is going to be very ‘red’. There are gonna be all shades of Red , dark red, blood red, etc.  Nothing that’ll blow your mind off, but something that’ll definitely catch your eye.

More services and ideas are in the pipeline, but right now, I’m looking forward to consolidating myself in the webhosting industry before spreading my wings to other territories.

Check the website out : RedWeb

India's own search engine – Guruji

Google has been irritating me a lot, esp. after receiving no help from it when my GMail was hacked. I’ve decided to slowly take google off my internet diet.
Then came this thought : China has a search engine of its own : Baidu. How would it be if India started its own? Instead of relying on monopolists, we could rely on ourselves.

A few days later, my friend visited me. When he accessed Internet, he used the website – www.guruji.com . I never knew it existed. I was excited to know somebody had already come up with an idea similar to mine.

Guruji is a wonderful search engine, currently only catering to Indian websites, and content. Guruji also features Movie Timings – a blessing for Indians.

There also is a plugin to add Guruji to Firefox’s search engine list here.

Wonderful days are in store for India. Meanwhile, RedWeb.in is soon launching extremely affordable webhosting in the next few days.

Hyderabad's Traffic- Major suggestions

This is a letter I wrote to the editor of Deccan Chronicle (India). It was printed on Page2, albeit after lots of modifications to the original.

Here is the original :

It is a known fact that Hyderabad’s traffic is a nightmare. But I’d like to add that its the traffic police’s grave negligence all these years that has led to this pathetic situation. Traffic police of Hyderabad, or any other place for that matter, has little or no control over people/vehicles. I notice this esp. since I just returned from the US where drivers are frightened at the very sight of a traffic cop. They have fear of penalty, and the fear of being jailed, and their license being suspended.

First, Motorists should be penalised and threatened of driving license cancellation if they don’t have their current address on their licenses. This ensures that violators don’t escape punishment. Second, I suggest having traffic cops with on motorbikes capable of very high speeds, and fitted with radars, deployed at various points of the city. These cops should be able to catch traffic violators, and issue a ticket/challan that need not be paid at the time of being ticketed. This would avoid some corruption. Motorists should be issued warnings, and fined upon second violation. Motorists who do not stop for these cops should be frighteningly chased and arrested so that it becomes a major deterrent for all future violators.

Violation doesn’t just mean jumping of signals or not wearing a helmet or use of a mobile. Violation must include all terms like speeding over limit – speeding at 55kmph at a 50kmph zone must attract a violation, rash driving, drunken driving, crossing the line to drive on the other side of the road (as it happens on major flyovers), not stopping for pedestrians at pedestrian crossings etc. In other words, a basic traffic sense must be instilled not through education, but by brutal penalties, and creation of fear. Fear, I noticed is the only form of bringing discipline into any mankind.

It would also largely help if all our driver licenses were in the form of IDs that could be swiped to retrieve all information about the driver and his/her past driving history.

Widening of roads, though essential, is not the only solution to all traffic woes. Proper sidewalks must be built, so motorists don’t climb these when roads fill up. Roads must have clear lane markings, and yellow markings to distinguish two sides of the road. At every junction lanes must be earmarked for traffic turning or going straight. For ex- people from the leftmost lane mustn’t turn right. Every road – major or minor must have clearly indicated speed limits. Existing speed limits must be revised to reflect realistic traffic speed limits. Traffic signals at all junctions, major or minor must work at all times of the day. Signs and signboards must be put up at all roads and streets indicating the current road, and directions to other places.

These suggestions, I know, require lot of changes to our ancient traffic laws, and also require major effort and co-ordination among the government, police, GHMC, and the traffic police. These measures could be initially started with the city roads, then later implemented on highways, and other cities and towns of the state.

Inflation, Infrastructure, etc.

News channels and papers are full of news regarding the rather high inflation currently prevailing in India. Clearly, 8.24% is a little too much for India’s common men to handle.
True, that the government can do very little about the rising fuel costs and the steeply rising number of vehicles on the road. The government seems to lesser hopes of curbing inflation, especially after the recent hike in petrol and diesel prices. Fuel is heavily subsidized. Subsidization is paid using the tax-payers money. This means that the burden of high fuel prices hits us someway or the other.

India’s economy seems to be on a slow-down. Suddenly India Inc. seems to be shying away from the optimistic attitude shown at the markets last year. The Sensex has been steadily losing points, while the rupee has been weakening at a rather quick pace.

Various parties conducted bandhs, strikes and rasta rokos all over the nation, in protest of the fuel-price hike. Such mindless acts by politicians not only disrupt normal life for the common man, but also make it difficult for them. Also, if a city like Hyderabad is under a bandh, businesses lose millions of rupees each day, and the government loses lakhs to crores of rupees in taxes and other revenues. Acts like these are clearly done only to gain political mileage. But, any sensible person would only be aggravated by such inconveniences. It was rather ironic, when a ruling party initiated a strike in its own state.

On the other hand, are our age-old, creaking, fuel-guzzling roadways and highways ‘connecting’ various parts of the country. Some of the so called national and state highways are being ‘upgraded’ to four lanes ! Thats wonderful – you might exclaim. But thats barely  enough to carry vehicle population that has been growing faster than the movement of papers for road-projects from one govt. office to another. Many of the National Highway Projects initiated by various governments are yet to be implemented. Moreover, with such vehicular growth, today’s highways quickly become tomorrow’s clog-ways.

Fast urban connectivity ensures faster movement of man to and from commercial districts. This helps develop suburban areas, and towns surrounding cities.
Speedy rural connectivity helps quick transfer of farmer’s produce to industry and markets. But this is still a dream in modern-India. Many rural roads non-exist, and where they do, they are mere 1 to 1-1/2 lanes wide; roads barely enough for two trucks to pass comfortably. Then we have cows and buffaloes, tractors, cyclists and many more reasons for traffic to slow down. Fresh fruits and vegetables can start spoiling fast, and each minute lost to traffic is loads of stock lost on countless trucks all over the nation.

What has infrastructure got to do with inflation? – you might wonder.  Let me explain. If 10kgs of a vegetable get spoilt on a truck during transit due to traffic delay, it means  end-consumers have 10kgs less to eat. When there is more demand for a product than there is supply, prices are bound to increase.

And why did I use the term fuel-guzzling infrastructure? Each minute wasted in non-moving, or slow traffic is thousands of liters of fuel lost all over the nation. More fuel means more import, which means more subsidy, which means crores of monetary loss for the nation. In turn – more burden on the tax-payer.

Railways are no better when it comes to handling goods. Existing rail-networks are congested enough for passenger traffic. Indian railways is having a tough time handling the extra-load of carrying goods along the existing lines. The recent proposal by Shri. Laloo Prasad Yadav of laying a third rail-line, though immensely useful, might just be a little too late.

What this country now needs is a network of super-highways, elevated at populated places to avoid congestion and bottlenecks, with atleast 4-6 lanes criss-crossing India’s vast expanses, connecting important cities and towns, and high-capacity, well maintained roadways connecting rural India to its markets. Projects like these, would no doubt need investments of thousands of crores of rupees, which definitely means more burden on the already heavily burdened middle-class. But, I’m sure people would be more than happy to help turn India into a truly Modern-day India.