A few things I believe in...

I got an e-mail today with the attachment given below. It had some of the things that I strongly believed in.

One of them is that you always need to hold on to your values and do what you think is right. No matter how bad the situation is, and you have nothing to lose and everything to gain by selling out, don't do it! Even though you won't gain anything by doing the right thing, the plus point is that you don't have to deal with whatever repurcussions that come along with doing the wrong thing.

Another point is to always be aware that there are others in the world you have WAY bigger problems than us. Whenever I get really down or frustrated or unhappy, sometimes I remind myself of people who are living with AIDS or the little children in Africa who are starving for days. At least I'm not going through all of that! But there are times when nothing seems bigger than my problems!!! :)

The main things in life for me are:

• A house to live in a safe neighbourhood
• Good friends and family
• An interesting job with a reasonable salary

I guess I'm lucky to be blessed with the above, but you can never predict the future. There was a period of time in my life which was sheer hell. One day in Feb 2005 I lost everything I had taken for granted. I had to go through it for around 8-9 months, after which I regained everything I lost. The very first day was unbelievable, I never believed it possible to feel so miserable; cried till I was numb. But as time passed I grew used to it, and it didn't seem so bad. Human nature is such that you can get used to anything given enough time. That first day, I received an e-mail in office with a poem that inspired me so much! It went along the lines of no matter how bad it seems now, to cling on to the belief that it'll get better, and that nothing remains the same. Good times will come, you only need to survive the bad times. I dreamt last night that I was back at that awful time, or that it had happened again. I'm still getting over the nightmare, I guess! :)

Harry Potter Book 7 ending all over the Internet!!!

A hacker has allegedly broken into the computers of the publisher of the Harry Potter series and has obtained a digital copy of the 7th and final book. A summary of the ending can be found all over the Internet.

Unfortunately, I couldn't stop myself and visited the site and had a look. I would like to believe that it's all rubbish because if it is true, I am very disappointed. I expected a better ending. The good thing is that the plot is not given. Only who dies and who kills them.

If you want to have a look as well, click here. This will link to a news article which contains the link to the spoilers. Let's hope it's all a publicity stunt and not the true ending!

Loses vs. Looses

Here's one of my pet peeves. I can't stand it when people use the word "looses" for "loses". For people who can't figure out the difference:

• Loose - Baggy, slack, unrestricted, flowing, roomy, voluminous, ample
• Lose - misplace, be unable to find, mislay, drop, fail, suffer defeat, shake off, evade, free yourself, be bereaved.

The word "lose" has many many meanings as opposed to "loose" which has only one basic meaning.

People; please be aware of this very very common spelling mistake. I've come across so many instances of this mistake in so many posts!

Sorry, to sound like a real snob, but as I mentioned earlier, it's one of my pet peeves! :)

p.s. I may be wrong, but I don't think the word "looses" exists anyway!

Google vs. Microsoft

Looks like Microsoft is about to be sued again, or more likely protested against. This time it's Google who has opposed the software giant.

Google is claiming that the desktop search which is included in Windows Operating Systems and now Vista, competes with a free program distributed by Google. "So what?" you may ask. What's the big deal? The problem with this is that when Microsoft decides to couple programs such as desktop search programs and Internet Explorer, it greatly reduces the market for other software vendors such as Mozilla or Netscape who create independent programs. When you think about it, if you have Internet Explorer coupled with your operating system, would you really download Mozilla or Netscape? IT savvy people might, but the general public would not.

I remember doing an assignment about Microsoft and whether it was a Monopoly, an Oligopoly or in a free market. During the research, I went through all the law suits that Microsoft has been involved in. After you go through all the details, you end up really disliking Microsoft.

However, there are always 2 sides to a story. After all, this is a very competitive market! So many programs and so many vendors. Microsoft is just doing business and other companies should just deal with it! Recently I saw a news report in which Microsoft's CEO, Steve Ballmer, was talking about how they watched in amazement (and I guess disappointment!) Google rake in profits after improving their search engine and web mail. Hey, they aren't complaining, they're trying to improve their products, that's all.

At the end of the day, I can't really decide whether Microsoft is trying to become a monopoly. There are reasons for saying so, as well as reasons for not believing it. The conclusion that I came to during my research was also "I can't decide" (which by the way, my supervisor was not happy with!). At the end of the day, you try to be objective. I don't believe that Microsoft is trying to stamp out the competition by unfair methods. They're just trying to make more profit. But I also believe that they will try to cut other programs and vendors wherever possible. After all, that's competition!

Further details about Google's complaint is given here.

Disappointment

Disappointment can be a shattering thing

We do to ourselves

We set up

To be let down

Expecting from another

Content can not come from outside

It’s beauty is within

Deep, and earned, it is one’s own

Absolute

When the heart lives to give

- Suzie Palmer