Archive for category thoughts

SFD @ NIT Trichy – Cloud Computing Workshop

It was Software Freedom Day Celebrations at NIT Trichy. And how better could the day have been!! For the first time, Sun Club of NIT Trichy and GLUG-T, The Linux User Group joined hands to conduct the event. We had organized a workshop on cloud computing and Linux/Opensolaris Install Festival.

The way we publicized the event requires a special mention. The hall was confirmed only on the penultimate day, and so we could not put up posters earlier. I designed a poster in a hurry and asked my friends to put them up at strategic places inside the college. And then we sent an SMS to more than 200 students – to all those who had attended our earlier workshops. I had asked the students to register by sending a reply to my number, providing their names and roll numbers, just to have an approximate idea about how many students might be attending the event. This proved to be really effective, and I received about 40 replies in the next two hours. We had a participation of more than 60 students, with participants from B. Tech, M. Tech and CA branches. The hall was nearly full. More importantly, it was full of energy and enthusiasm.

I had to do a night-out to prepare the slides and learn as much as I could about Cloud Computing. And in the end, the presentation came out well, even though most of the information was taken from various sites, videos and other sources.

We asked the students to register at the registration desk and gave them OpenSolaris CD’s, data sheets and Linux Mint CD’s. We then went ahead with discussion on Cloud Computing. I talked about various concepts related to cloud computing. Aswin also chipped in a few important points in between. We also discussed about virtualization and Project Kenai. We kept the students busy and interested by occasionally asking questions and giving away gifts to those who answered.

After the discussion, we went ahead with Linux / Opensolaris Install Fest where we provided installation advice. We also provided the participants VirtualBox installation files, for those who were interested to try out the operating systems but did not want to really install on the hard disk. Special Thanks to Jithin and his GLUG-T team for guiding the students regarding the Linux Installation. Some students had various problems with their Linux/opensolaris installations. A few of them we solved on the spot, whereas the others, we had promised to look into and inform the solutions as soon as possible.

To summarize, it was a great event, an awesome audience and a lot of take-backs for the participants and the organizers. Software Freedom Day was a great success. Looking forward to organizing more such events.

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blog number 50

This is the 50th article I am posting under SOLILOQUY. And I consider it to be a great milestone for the blogger in me. And this special article is going to be a blog about blogging, and then about Soliloquy in particular…

The formal definition considers a blog to be an ongoing chronicle of information. But today the concept of blogging has taken a different meaning. A blog has become a replica of the thoughts and emotions of the author. A beautiful imagery formed using the threads of thought that conjure up our minds and painted using the words from a common language. It showcases the character of the blogger. What Wordsworth gave as the definition of poetry can now be aptly used to define blogging – an overflow of emotions recollected in tranquillity.

Thoughts that form inside our mind always crave for an outlet. Happiness, sorrow, anger, frustration, ecstasy, joy…all these emotions look for a way to free themselves from the confines of the small but complex brain of ours. This is why we always look for someone to speak to, to share our feelings, to provide solace.

But there is one other way for the emotions to be let out – the written form. Why did the written form emerge in first place. Knowledge could have been passed on by word of mouth. Views could have been expressed by speech. But why has the world preferred the written form? Why was literature born? Shakespeare could have narrated his works to a group of people. Why pen them down?

The answer is very simple. the human memory has its limitations. It cannot retain for long and it cannot replicate  the input. Had Shakespeare’s works been transferred by word of mouth, we can be very sure that the Merchant of Venice would have been a very different story, and sonnets would have become couplets. This is exactly why most speeches are misinterpreted and most words are mistaken.

There have been many a times when we take a paper, scribble down our feelings and destroy the paper. Well, it is much better than screaming out loud. And yes, the present day blogs help most people in the same way-to let out their emotions, feelings, joy, sorrow, etc.

Most of us hate loneliness. We all long for someone to be with us, to listen to us, to share our thoughts, to care for us. We all long for such a friend in our lives. In modern times, our blogs are our friends. We spend time with our blogs. Our blogs help the world to connect to us, to know about us.

Soliloquy has been a friend of mine. I share all my thoughts with my blog. Be it my opinion about movies or music or my experiences and defining moments in my life – I share them all with my blog.

Blogging is a trend which is going to last for a really long time. And my blog will continue to be a dynamic image of mine – showing the world what exactly is going on in my life. And milestones are meant to be acheived and surpassed. Pleased with 50 and awaiting the next – 100…

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slowdown

Pragyan ‘09 – design, posters, pamphlets, brochures, invites, cards, banners, backdrops … Workshops, JavaFX, website management, registration, osum, software installation, hall arrangement, projector, screen, transport for guests, publicity, cd distribution, certificates, reports … Sun Club – formation, induction, question paper setting, evaluation, team, meetings, projects, Netbeans, Opensolaris, Java, website development, cms, svn, member certificates, workshops, Java ME, permission letters, posters, reports … Vortex – design, workshop, flash programming, logo … Music Troupe – Saarang, new songs, compose, notes, practice sessions … Academics – class notes, photocopies, CPCs, cycle tests, class tests, CAT classes, seminars, assignments … Entertainment – Movies, Serials, Boston Legal, Heroes, NFS, slumber, novels, newspapers, BusinessLine, blogging …

Oh God … I really need to slow down …

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remembering 2008

The year 2008 was an eventful year for me. This was an year which provided me with loads of opportunities and challenges. This year played a significant role in crafting the course of my life in the right direction. 

I got the chance to do an internship at IIT Madras during summer. I learnt loads under the guidance of Dr. C. Pandurangan. I studied about cryptography and advanced algorithms. Those two months helped me learn loads and improve my knowledge. 

Probably the first ever interview I had faced was the telephone interview for the post of Campus Ambassador for Sun Microsystems. After a few initial confusions, I was selected. And then I was called to Noida for a three day training programme. This trip turned out to be the one most memorable trips. The trip helped me learn loads, enjoy loads and also brought me loads of friends. It was an event which i will never forget. I am working for Sun, conducting workshops and seminars in college and also utilizing this opportunity to learn and improve. 

The next interview was for the Goldman Sachs summer internship. Almost 200 students wrote the written exam out of which 16 of us were selected for the next round. The group discussion round was the first for me. Then came the interview, which was conducted at 12:30, midnight !! I really liked the interview session, remained cool and answered the questions. I liked the smooth way in which the conversation proceeded in the room, despite it being a really odd time of the day. When they announced that I was one among the five who were selected for the summer ‘09 internship, I literally jumped in joy…

Probably the most unexpected jolt was my dad’s transfer to Thanjavur. It is really hard for anyone to bid goodbye to Chennai. We had to forgo loads of things – music concerts in sabhas, the beach, weekend dinner at hotels, meeting friends, visit to temples… The shift from the vibrant energetic and musical life of Chennai to the rather silent and boring life of Thanjavur was really difficult. 

Music suffered a great setback this year. On September 8, my Guru, Padmashri Dr. Kunnakudi Vaidyanathan passed away. It still pains me to think that he is gone. He was the master who brought out the talent in me. He provided me loads of opportunities to accompany him on the violin. I performed many concerts in 2008 along with my Guru, in Bangalore, Andhra and Tamil Nadu. In fact, I even accompanied him in his last public concert. His demise has been a great loss for me, for all his students, his family and the world of music.

The Thyagaraja Aradhana was conducted in my college. Along with the event, competitions were also orgaized for the school children. I was also made the vice President of Amruthavarshini, the Carnatic Music Club of NITT. I was also included as a member of the Music Troupe of my college. Then there was the JIPMER culturals in September where our college team won the first place in the instrumentals category in which I participated. But there is more to it. The event brought me and my childhood friend together…

My first trip to Chennai after shifting residence to Thanjavur was on December 21. I had been to Chennai for a concert at Kunnakudi Hall, Raga Research Center. December 21 and 22 were two of my happiest days. On those two days I met all my friends in Chennai, spent time with them after a really long time. I only wish I will meet them again soon. 

And the last day of 2008, today, my semester results….9.73.. much more than what i expected… 

 

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Had there been a rewind button…

Many a times we might have pondered over why God failed to create a rewind button for our lives. A peep into our own past might bring back the treasured memories from the pages of our lives. If every human is given a chance to go back to his past, make some changes and come back to the present, would life be any better?

Life is a mixture of happiness and sorrow, anger and calmness, friends and foes, good and bad. The challenge is to have the right mix of all these, with the ability to cherish the good and brave the bad. A life without challenges is not worth living. To emerge a winner, we need to adapt and evolve. We need to have a good control of everything that our life provides us. Losing confidence over ourselves just indicates that we have surrendered to our own life.

Some say that there exists a hypothetical parallel universe; a correlation between mind and matter. Is there an option for us to co-exist in a different universe? Can we modify the other life of ours so that the present life is accordingly influenced? Something like an alternate reality? Probably it might give us a different perspective of our own life? The time travel, the alternate history, the bending of space – all these might seem like a fantasy, an imagination of a mind craving for change, longing for a new past. But we are forced to accept the fact that there is only one reality – the present. The past cannot be changed, but the present will change the future. The history books are not going to be changed, neither are our memories. Our past is permanent, the present is temporary and the future is undefined.

We always want everyone around us to be happy, to be cheerful. We always try to make sure our loved ones are happy. We love to see a smile on their faces. But then, things do not always happen the way we expect them to. We might have hurt others. We might have made our loved ones cry. We might have caused pain. But, if we are given a chance to rectify our errors, we would embrace the opportunity, go back to those days and redesign our lives. But God gives us no such option. We are not given an option to forget either. The memories haunt us, remind us about our mistakes. The tears might have dried, the pain might have subsided, but the scars would remain.

God made human a ‘Creator’. We create our own life. We shape ourselves. We have moulded this world into what it is today. Every human shares the responsibility for the past, present and the future. But we were never meant to be ‘Editors’. Words spoken and actions done cannot be changed. The moments that have passed are the moments we have lost. There isn’t a second chance. Life has no trial run.

In the end, it is always chaos. Randomness exists everywhere. But there emerges a pattern – a chain of events revolving around us. We have been directing the events during different phases of our life. We have been bending them to suit our needs. But are we really in control of it? If everyone transforms the world to his own needs, there might have been millions of worlds today – A divide between every single person, a boundary for our minds, a wall around us. What we are bending is our own perception of the world. We have the power of imagination. We have the ability to dream. Our world, our imagination, and our dreams – everything is virtual. They occupy no space or volume, but are powerful enough to change our lives and our destiny.

Every piece on a chess board stands on its own. A glance at the chess board while the game is in progress will give us very little clue about the random arrangement of the pieces. But, every game has a similar start and every move is based on a strategy. Our life is like a chess game. The events happening in our present might seem to be unrelated. But the game of life depends upon every move of ours, every strategy we adopt and every step we advance. Our thoughts decide our actions. Our actions determine our fate. Our fate crafts our destiny. But we must always remember that there is never a step backward…

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anger management

Have you ever noticed how water flows ? What would happen if there is a huge stone blocking its path ? Never would it try to go through the rock. It rather would flow gently along its sides, doing no harm to the rock. This character of water must teach us something.

Bombard against anything, but not against a stone wall. It is you who would get hurt, and not the wall. Patience is a virtue. Controlling ones emotions is another. Giving vent to anger then and there will do no good. It will harm you and the people around you.

There are people in this society who would love to help you. There are people out there who might cause harm, intentionally or otherwise. There is no use in being infuriated by the actions of such people. Maybe they had a genuine reason for their actions. Or it is possible that their actions were unavoidable. Or they might not be fortunate enough to love and be loved.

There is corruption everywhere. Many minds are corrupted. Many hands are corrupted. Every time we find something wrong happening, we get furious. Our conscience forces us to attack, to fight. But sometimes, we must think whether it is worth attacking, worth showing force. The world is never going to change if it is anger that is rooted in the minds of the reformers.

The best way to attack is to do good, to spread love. To make people realize their mistakes by themselves, To make people feel ashamed by their own acts. We must help them to change their path. This is the Gandhian way of life. No one would get hurt, No one would feel bad. Everything would end on a happy note.

Angry words and angry deeds would bring us more enemies than friends. It would make us distance away from the good things in this world. It would snatch happiness away from us. It is never wrong to get angry. But one should know to control anger. Don’t let anger storm out of you every time. Don’t let it do any harm.

When there is something good that you have lost, don’t get angry. Be patient. There is something better coming towards you. Keep smiling. Spread happiness. Be like water, flow along the sides of the rock, In due course of time, the rock would get eroded by the flow of water and the path would be clear.

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moments

I did not know where I was. I looked around, but could not tell whether I was on land or in skies. I felt as if I was atop a mountain. Or maybe amidst clouds. Or maybe under the ocean, admiring the corals. But the whole surrounding was beautiful. I felt as if I was born again in a different world.

Am I the only inhabitant in this land ? I listened. Any sound? No. Birds? No. Animals? No. But wait … I realised there was someone else.. Someone whom I knew. Someone whom I like. Good. So I have company in this world.

We spoke for hours together. But neither of us opened our mouths. It was then that I realised : Eyes can speak. Eyes can convey our feelings. Love, Hatred, Anger, Happiness, Sorrow, anything.

How long has it been since we met? Seconds? Minutes? Hours? Or has someone redefined the unit of time? Or is the passage of time relative to the person whom we are spending time with? I had no idea. Neither did I think about these at that time..Why should I ?

We went for a walk… or were we flying? I could not figure out. Because I did not feel any ground. My legs were only too willing to carry me to the farthest places of this world. We walked for a long time, holding hands. We also had food together.  None of the worldly joys or sorrows were lodged in mind. I was very happy. We were very happy. This happiness will last for ever ………..

!@#”Hey Karthik, wake up. Time to get ready and go to college” .. my mom shouted. Was it all a dream? I looked around. My bedroom. No clouds, no corals… Hmmm… those few moments, will I ever get them back? Or was it meant to be a dream ? The walk together, the long hours(or short seconds ??) of talk, were all these meant to be a dream?? Those few moments are etched in my heart. Will we ever get to meet again in this real world? I am wondering…..

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the paradox of life

The paradox of our time in history:

The result of separateness is taller buildings and shorter tempers.
There are wider freeways but narrower viewpoints.
More is spent, but less is noticed;
Some drink too much, smoke too much, spend too recklessly, laugh too little, drive too fast, get too angry, stay up too late, get up too tired, read too little, watch TV too much, and seldom pray. We have multiplied our possessions and have superficial values.
We talk too much but seldom feel love, we deny our experience but accept it less. We believe this is a part of us.

We’ve learned how to make a living but have lost the fruit of life.
We measure life in years instead of life in life.
A man can travel into space but can still have trouble crossing street to meet a new neighbour.

Some have been to outer space, whilst being unaware that inner space is.
We have all done things and assigned value to them, we judge in terms of value.
The soul has been covered up by the illusion.
We’ve conquered the atom, but do not realised we are the atom.

We write more but can’t see why we understand less.
We plan more but miss the point.
We’ve learned to rush, but we never make it.
More computers are built and more people are buying them,
We communicate less and less but the supply is still meeting the demand.

These are the days of two incomes but more divorce, fancier houses but broken homes.
These are time of fast foods and slow digestion, big men and small characters, steep profits and shallow relationships and judgements that hold them together.

These are the days of instant gratification, disposable values, ambiguous moral conditions, sexual suppression, progression, pills that do everything.
It is a time when there is much in the show room window and nothing in the stock room.
A time when technology can bring an e-mail across the globe in seconds and a time where we take life for granted.

But you can change all this by remembering a few things:

Be able to say “I love you” to yourself as this is a powerful thing. Love is actually a default emotion.
To deny this is a lie, the construct of mind covers it up.
A kiss and an embrace will mend hurt when it comes from deep inside of you.

Remember to express yourself freely in the moment, to live as every moment is the first. Many feel they need to confront life, but life already is, life is as we speak.
Western culture seldom confronts death until it has arrived.
See it today, and life will shine though.
No matter who you think you are or what you think has mattered;
Give time to express, give time to speak, and give less time to that which separates and stops you.

If we suddenly think of time through thought, then we have lost what really matters.
We will experience a feeling, no matter how much we think or understand, that is relentless and unforgiving.
This feeling will always be whilst separateness exists.
We lose all that matters in this place.
Buildings are reduced to buildings, people are reduced to objects and the light of life is covered by clouds, a disposable means to an end.

Start living
Peace.

( ripped off a mail )

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the pursuit of happiness

There has been a question that has long intrigued me … What is happiness and where can I find happiness ? One might define happiness as a life without worries and hardships. But is there such a life ? Who in this world does not have worries ? Life loses its essence if there are no challenges in it. Life would be dull.

How do you feel when you are happy ? You feel like smiling ? You wish to scream with joy ? You feel like speaking about it to someone ? And you call all this happiness ? No.

What is happiness ? Leading a luxurious life, worrying every moment whether we might lose the luxury ? Or living a contented life ? Do you feel happy when you spend time with friends at huge malls or cinema ? Or are you happy when you play cricket with neighbourhood boys ? Are you happy when you do well in exams ? Are you happy when you are praised ? Do these give you true happiness ? No. These are just feigning happiness.

So now, where does the road to happiness end ?

I feel that happiness is derived from happiness. You feel happy when you make others feel happy. You feel happy when you see a smile in the face of the person in front of you. Happiness is the feeling that you have played a small part in helping the other person feel less burdened with worries. And helping people without expecting anything in return will automatically give you happiness in return.

Give the most you can to people who are around you. Live a life for yourself and for others.

Now what to give others ? Money or food or anything else that occupies volume can be given, but they aren’t the ones that give you happiness. Give the person something which no one else can give him/her. Give them YOUR affection. Share the sorrows of friends. Share their pain. Share their joy. Share their feelings. Be a part of them. They will surely be a part of your life for ever. What else is happiness… ?

Sometimes words can heal the wounds of the heart. Sometimes your eyes can heal them. Sometimes your touch. And sometimes your presence close by alone is sufficient. Sometimes your prayers will work wonders.

We all pray God that everyone must be happy. But being happy is in our hands. Live a life of affection and love. Be happy. Keep others happy. Happiness is a gift from God. And happiness is the best gift you can give anyone….

“Happiness cannot be traveled to, owned, earned, worn or consumed. Happiness is the spiritual experience of living every minute with love, grace and gratitude…”

-Denis Waitley

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