C++, dbaseIII+, cigarettes & Cutting chai - Down the geek memory lane

I was extremely bored and I was just going through my Facebook posts, when I saw like so many comments on one of the posts that I had written about a recent movie, I had seen on HBO. "The Pirates of the Silicon Valley" yes, it's the Steve Jobs vs Bill Gates story. Many of you might have seen it. So anyways, coming back to why this blog has got anything to do with it... I posted one of the quotes from that movie

"Someone in HP said to Steve Jobs: What on earth would ordinary people want with computers?"

I mean who on earth would ever think of saying something like that? A terribly foolish person to us in this day and age or a completely sane person of that age... Well whatever the case maybe, this post attracted all my geek buddies way back from college and all of us started discussing about our college days and computer engineering professor, a certain Mr. Chaudhary! woah... was he a professor or what.

Besides knowing zilch about C, C++ at least not enough to teach us programming, he sucked so bad at speaking English, that we wondered how on earth did he even get a job in the college. All that apart, I wondered to myself, how on earth did I get into doing what I'm doing in life now. Where did all those extremely geeky days go?? Those programming lectures, the working on C++ on Windows 95,98 consoles, the  chatting on DOS network in computer labs, designing simple but really whacky programs... Man what days we used to have.

Those hackathon sessions at friends place. Wow! Hanging out at the guy who had a computer, under the pretext of learning programming and trying out new codes, while half the night being spent in playing Mech Warrior or Prince of Persia 2D or for that matter watching soft porn...

Those were the days when college projects were ripped off from the books in library, those were the days when engineering drawing sheets were glow traced, the days when bunking college and escaping from the back door while the professor is entering from the front. What a rush!!!

Those were the days when fighting over silly things as who would write the program first or who would get to use the computer in the laboratory more. Those days when keeping a tenner inside your underwear after being caught by the TC while travelling ticket-less to college and using the same money for cigarettes and cutting chai at Durgaprasad (local chai tapri) also known as DP (not the Twitter,FB DP), those were the days when going to the local cybercafe and surfing internet for Rs. 20 was one big deal!! Mostly, chatting with girls on ICQ, Yahoo and Rediff gave us a great high...

Those were the days when we enjoyed messing around with circuit boards and LED's in EDC practicals (Electronic Devices & Circuits) yet struggling with the AND OR & NOT circuit diagrams during exams! Those were the days when college was full of termwork and assignments and completing those sitting up all night and sleeping in the last bench while listening to music on the radio worth Rs. 30 (Scan button)

Those were the days when being pushed around by the heftiest and the biggest fellow in class, especially on the first day of college, and still having the guts to stand up stupidly and trying to fight back. Later on realize that he happened to be a friend of a friend and being thankful (sigh, thank GOD, else it would have been curtains for me)

Those were the days when giving presentations and seminars on dbaseIII+, that being my favorite subject only because of the lecturer who by the way was one of the most amazing and at least to our knowledge best lectureres in the college, migh I add (She) was very intelligent too...

Such was life back in college and in fact many more things that I might have missed out on, truly if this was one of those stories that really turned out to be what we really wanted it to be... then I'd not be blogging about it but writing a code somewhere in the 'Silicon Valley' probably... Nevertheless, a tribute to those geeky days of Computer engineering, which I'm proud to have relinquished, yet feel proud about for I am what I am today and I don't regret any part of it!

Here is a simple C++ program that I explored recently on my Turbo C++ installed by inspiration. Here's taking a trip to nostalgia! A tribute to  'Let us C' by Yashwant Kanetkar :)

/* Hello.C - - Hello, World */

#include<stdio.h>

inte main ()

{

printf<"Hello World\n");

return 0;

}

This certainly calls for a reunion! :-) To the Geeky college Memories of our lives!

TravelBuddy - My India App Story

Hi folks! A few days ago @Intel_Legends & Software Legends of India announced a contest for all tech bloggers. "My India App Story"  So with that in mind I thought of posting My India App story and what better time than to post it on our Independence Day. Truly a celebration of freedom for all of us, especially travel bloggers like me. Being a geek and a traveller that I am, I thought of writing a blog on one of the topics suggested on their blogs. I thought of giving an App. Idea to all the Code gurus and geeks who would certainly find it useful to create an app and sell it on Intel’s storefront – Intel AppUp Center especially for several travelers, foreign and national who go across the country every year.

I've traveled across 26 cities in India so far. And most of the times I have to rely on google maps, google, irctc app, tips from people on twitter, facebook etc. That means I have to check in / sign in or keep opening different websites at a time on my mobile or on my netbook. I always keep wondering what if? What if there was something which could help me anywhere I go on my mobile and I don't have to sign in to different websites, different accounts to remember or for that matter keep looking / hunting for information in different places on the web. What do you say? So my fellow travellers, bloggers and most importantly our 'Code Gurus' & Software Legends of India... I am proud to announce my App idea - "TravelBuddy" This one is especially for Smart phones although getting an integrated netbook version would be awesome too.

Travel Buddy is an app which will allow integration of all that is required for a traveler in one specific application. So, okay now that I've traveled so much let me list down the things that a traveler usually would required especially if he's travelling across India.

1. Magnetic Compass: - Just incase you go on a hiking trip in some mountains and end up getting lost somewhere :P                                     

2. Google Maps / Ovi Maps: - A very important feature especially if you are travelling alone. Now ovi maps are great especially if you rent a car, drive on your own or have a bike ride as well as it comes with a voice support guidance and will auto re-route your maps especially if you take a wrong route. Just follow it down to the tee.                                                                                                                      

3. PhotoGuide: - Imagine if you have a photo guidebook at the touch of your finger especially with different locations just popping out and giving you tit-bits / trivia about the place. (Who would need audio guidebooks at various monuments?) You can plan out your locations accordingly, that too well in advance.

4. Travel Hub: - This one is especially for all the social media junkies. Very recently, a phone company has introduced something of this sort in one of their phones as well. But this one would be with an added feature which will just like foursquare give comments on a different place especially if anyone has been there. So this would have Facebook, Twitter, Foursquare on it. It would be integrated within this particular app itself. Whenever you check in on foursquare or you update a status on foursquare to go out on your facebook and twitter, immediately you'll get to see comments by other travellers who have been there. Not just on Foursquare but on facebook and twitter.

5. FoodBuddy:- Instead of going to Burrp.com everytime you want to check out a place to eat in a particular town / city, there should be an inbuilt feature within this app which will prompt you to check out restarurants, lodging and boarding places etc. All you need to do is click on the various venues available and there... you have information at the click of a button.

6. Ticketeer:- IRCTC already has it's a Java based app where you can do almost everything that you can do on the website, except maybe book a ticket directly. So this app should have inbuilt feature or tie up with IRCTC / Cleartrip etc to allow bookings to be done directly via the mobile phone.

7. BuddyLookUp:- This feature is super cool especially if you have all your friends across the country and friends of friends who you probably don't know. In case you need help on directions or anything for that matter this is the feature to use. As soon as you check in to a city, the app will give you suggestions of who are the friends and the second network i.e. friends of friends who live here. This way, incase you need any help, you can contact them through your friends.

8. FotoUP:- Twitpic, facebook upload through email is passe. If you are a hardcore traveller, just use this feature and upload a pic on all the platforms simultaneously with your tips for other travellers as well.

9. TravelCalculator:- A very handy tool to calculate your expenses. You can keep a track of your expenses on this, plan your budget. For foreign travellers, currency exchange rate can be available. Calculate the distance you have travelled so far. All calculations in one feature.

10. eNtertainer:- Last but not least, this is a must for all the travellers. After exhausting trips usually we leave the final day for chilling out or enjoying some places where we can have a relaxed time maybe a pub, movie hall, bowling alley or any place that will suit our entertainment needs. So this feature will have those different categories of entertainment listed and accordingly you can choose your activity and get location of the place to hang out.

So this was my entry to this contest. I hope you enjoyed reading the post. Either ways would really appreciate your comments and feedback. The more number of comments I have more will be my chances to win the contest!! :-) Either ways, would appreciate your views. Before I finish a few important things you guys should know, so here it goes especially if you are a 'Software Developer'

Check out the Intel® Atom™ Developer Program, if you are looking for an opportunity to build and monetize your applications. You can sell through Intel’s storefront – Intel AppUp Center. Intel has also set up a Million Dollar Development Fund to support developers who are looking at building innovative apps. For more details check out http://appdeveloper.intel.com/fund

Disclaimer: This blog post is an entry to Intel’s contest – My India App Story

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