TED Talk - Jinha Lee: Reach into the computer and grab a pixel

Latest images of Uttarakhand rescue operations and diaster gallery - "Himalayan Tsunami"

 

Images Courtesy: AFP/Reuters/Yahoo News

Send an SMS, and your train ticket is booked!

Say goodbye to internet. From July onwards booking rail tickets will be as simple as sending an SMS
Any mobile user can operate this system using handsets ranging from feature phones to smartphones.

 

 

In a time most of things like banking booking air tickets, calling a cab and so on can be done through mobile phone, Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corporation (IRCTC) plans to use SMS services of mobile phones from July to make rail ticket booking easier.
According to a newspaper report quoting a senior IRCTC official, "The bookings can be made from anywhere and at any time in a secure manner without a need to log onto the internet or stand in a queue."
The report further added that any mobile user can operate this system using handsets ranging from feature phones to smartphones.

In contrast to the current procedure of booking rail tickets on mobile which are done through a web browser or app, the proposed service will enable user to book ticket through a simple SMS or a menu-based dialing service which is mostly used by the banks nowadays to offer account services to its clients.
Though not much clarity is there about how will the new ticket booking system work but as the launch date approaches IRCTC will be sharing further information of the same.
In the last couple of months IRCT has been has been adopting mobile technology in a big way to make the rail journey of passengers, right form booking a ticket to reaching destination, a smooth experience.
It all started in January 2012, when IRCT started working on revamping its mobile apps for booking tickets from smartphones ( different OS).
Following that Railways also allowed passengers to show SMS sent from IRCTC as proof of ticket instead of paper tickets while travelling to ticket examiner.

 

Source: Yahoo News via Mobile Indian

Flipkart's biggest rival, Amazon, is here

India was hardly on Jeffrey Preston "Jeff" Bezos's mind when he conceived the business in 1994. But, the founder of Amazon (it was initially incorporated as Cadabra), today a e-retailer behemoth, saw one of his early orders was from halfway across the world: India.

It has been nearly about 20 years since Bezos quit a well-paying Wall Street job to hatch Amazon, but his managers said Wednesday that is was "Day 1" for the company. The first day for the $61-billion dollar e-tailer in India.

Amazon announced June 5 that it had opened its Amazon Marketplace - technically speaking Amazon Sellers Services, where sellers can put up their goods - and third-party retailers could sell books, movies and TV shows on the platform. The marketplace makes about 40 per cent of Amazon's revenues globally and, on Wednesday, Amazon said it is starting with a modest 100 retailers in India.

The company might have entered India late because of an unfavourable regulatory environment, but the intent is clear from the first day.

"The goal for us is how do we build the largest book store in India," says Greg Greeley, Vice President of Amazon.com. "We will build Earth's biggest selection
in India."

Next in line are cameras and mobile phones, which are categories that Amazon believes are ripe for the taking. Amazon's entry in India, albeit not as a retailer but as a platform for third-party retailers, is a threat to India's bigger e-tailer. Until now Flipkart, also the largest online bookseller in India, has had a free run.

With Amazon, is its leadership position at stake?

"Yes, because it operates in the space of e-commerce, but Amazon has a much wider bouquet of offerings," says Sanchit Vir
Gogia, Founder & Group CEO, Greyhound Knowledge Group, an IT
research and advisory firm.

Amazon has three pillars it is basing its strategy on, according to Amit Agarwal, Vice President and Country Manager, Amazon India: a vast selection, low prices, and fast
delivery to customers.

Exactly the strategy that Flipkart, or for that matter, any successful online retailer, employs.

The other part of the strategy is to build a highly customer centric model. For example, the book 'The Secret of the Nagas' by Amish Tripathi, has 18 buying options, each by a different seller, on the right-hand top corner of the webpage. A buyer can come and chose the seller, and chose the best deal.

The website on the first day of launch has seven million book titles, Agarwal said, and about a million and a half books indexed.

However, not to be confused, Amazon's offering will be different from that of Flipkart. The Indian e-tailer buys books from publishers and has its own inventory. Amazon is a platform, where retailers, shop owners or publishers can sell their titles - at times with help from an Amazon warehouse and logistics managed by the Bezos
company.

There is a cost.

To sell on the Amazon Marketplace: the seller will have to bear a monthly subscription fee of Rs 499, currently set free for a year's promotion; a transaction fee of
12 per cent of the item value (set at a promotional 5 per cent); and a closing fee of Rs 10 on every sale.

Flipkart's biggest worry won't be the business model, but the deep pockets Amazon comes with. "Flipkart is venture capital funded so how far will they go to compete
with Amazon," asks Gogia.

The Indian e-tailer, started by Sachin Bansal and Binny Bansal, has so far raised over $180 million. Sachin, the company's CEO, earlier this year said it expected to raise another round of funding before an IPO two-three years from now.

Flipkart, which had estimated revenues of around Rs 2,000 crore in 2012/13, is yet not profitable. Sachin has said in the past that his company can easily be make net profits but Flipkart is focused on growing marketshare .

Similar to Amazon's strategy, which broke even only in 2001. Still, what will be worrying for the Bansals, who launched the Flipkart version of a marketplace in April 2013, is that Amazon has deep pockets: in 2012 alone, it generated $2.25 billion of cash and invested $3.6 billion.

On Wednesday, Amazon said it was focused on the "long-term" in India and is not bothered about early profitability. "We price the offering to reach scale, not at our current cost structure," said Agarwal but did not define long term. "Until we reach that scale we won't make money on those offerings," he added, indicating his employer was focused on market share in India, like Flipkart.

In India, Amazon has been present through Junglee.com, a site that tells consumers where the best deals are available for some 20 million products. Junglee, the name of a shopping comparison and discovery company that Amazon acquired from three Indian-born founders.

Agarwal said Junglee does not charge any retailer it lists on the site and the idea was to enable discovery of best shopping options - both online and offline - in India. Amazon India, in fact, will be one of the websites that will be present on the Junglee platform. "They are complimentary vision, and not contradictory and we are investing in both," says Agarwal. "Junglee is a free service to allow sellers to advertise… not to monetise."

Amazon has already announced its intent to run to the top. Flipkart, which has monthly revenues at about the size of Amazon when it went public in 1997, will be ready for the fight, for sure.          

Source: Business Today [http://businesstoday.intoday.in/story/flipkarts-biggest-rival-amazon-makes-india-entry/1/195622.html]

TN Board Results - SSLC Examination Results - April 2013 - Released

Source: TN Results, Data Processed at Government Data Centre, Chennai

Source: TN Directorate of Government Examinations, Data Processed at Government Data Centre, Chennai

What Would We Do If the Internet Crashed?

10 amazing features on Samsung Galaxy S4 !!!

Samsung premiered its latest flagship phone, the Galaxy S4, which sports a bigger display and unconventional features such as gesture controls. It comes with 1.9 GHz quad-core processor and 1.6 GHz Octa-core processor depending on regions, supporting 3G network as well as the 4G LTE. Especially, the hexa-band LTE version can support as much as six different band sets, which means a function in most LTE coverage areas. Here's a look at some amazing features that the S4 packs:

 

The 'Smart Scroll' function would allow users to scroll the browser or emails up and down without touching the screen. It recognizes users' face looking at the screen and movement of their wrist and then scrolls the pages up or down accordingly.

 

A 'dual camera' function, which had a 13 megapixel rear camera and a 2 megapixel front camera, would allow users to select eight different ways to combine the two photos taken by both cameras.

 

The S4 can stop and start videos depending on whether someone is looking at the screen, flip between songs and photos at the wave of a hand, and record sound to run alongside snapped still pictures.

The newest features involve different options for navigation. For example, if the phone senses someone is looking at the screen, the user can tilt it forward or backwards to scroll up and down a Web page.

When a video is playing, for instance, the stream will automatically pause if the person glances away and it will restart when the eyes refocus on the screen.

The latest phone also has a sensor that lets users move their hands to the left or right to scroll between different websites they have opened or through songs or photos in an album without having to touch the phone.

The idea is to make it easier to change the song playing without having to pick up the phone while driving or to avoid putting sticky fingers on the touch-screen display while scrolling through a Web page at mealtimes.

 

The phone will also allow users to hover a finger over an email inbox or a photo gallery to get a glimpse of more details of what's in the email or which photos are in an album.

Another feature includes the option to automatically put a copy of details from a photograph of a business card into the phone's contacts database or call a number in the business card. Samsung is also promising an instant translation between 10 different languages for certain applications, as well as a separate translation application on the device

Petrol prices cut by Rs.2 a litre

Petrol prices have been cut by Rs.2 per litre effective midnight Friday, state-owned Indian Oil Corp (IOC) announced.
The prices of the fuel effective March 16 will be Rs.68.34 in Delhi, Rs.75.84 in Kolkata, Rs.75.14 in Mumbai and Rs.71.41 in Chennai.

IOC sources had Thursday indicated the likelihood of a petrol rate cut in view of falling international crude oil prices.
Since prices were last revised, international petrol prices have come down from $131 to $120 per barrel (159 litres).
Petrol price was increased by Rs.1.50 a litre Feb 16 and by a further Rs.1.40 per litre on March 2.

There will be no change in the rates of diesel.

Source: Yahoo News

16 feared killed in triple terror blasts in Hyderabad

At least 16 people have been feared killed and 45 injured in three explosions near a busy bus stop at Dilsukh Nagar on the outskirts of Hyderabad on Thursday evening.  Authorities warned that the toll is expected to rise.


The injured have been rushed to the nearby hospitals. As many as 50 people are trapped in the aftermath of the blasts.

The Intelligence Bureau and the Hyderabad police have confirmed that the blasts that occurred at Hyderabad were an act of terror.
The police have cordoned off the area and are searching for unexploded bombs, if any. It appears to be a well-planned operation and the timing was aimed to cause major destruction, said sources in the IB.
The blasts occurred at a busy market area, near a bus stop and two movie theatres, which were packed in the evening. One of the blasts destroyed a tiffin centre.
The IB confirmed that intelligence agencies had received a terror alert regarding Hyderabad.
The security agencies are clueless about which organisation may have carried out the terror strike. Officials said the terror strike could have been carried out by terrorists or anit-social elements.
A high alert has been declared across Hyderabad. Senior officials and ministers have rushed to the spot.
Vicky Nanjappa/Sheela Bhatt 


Live Updates on Here

Source: Rediff

LIVE!!!! Serial blasts rock Hyderabad, high alert declared

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Ten to fifteen people are feared dead and over 40 injured in serial blasts at Hyderabad's Dilsukh Nagar area today evening.

Local reports said the five blasts all happened at Dilsukh Nagar area, which is a crowded locality in Hyderabad. The NIA though pegged the number to have rocked Andhra Pradesh's capital at three and its officials are rushing to the site.

Police are yet to determine the nature of the explosions, which took place near theatres and a bus stand, and the entire area has been cordoned off.

High alert has been declared across Andhra Pradesh following the explosions.
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At least 18 people are feared killed and over 60 injured, some of them critically, in three serial explosions near a busy bus stop and two cinema theatres at Dilsukh Nagar in Hyderabad on Thursday evening.

Union Home minister Sushilkumar Shinde has confirmed that 11 people have been killed in the Hyderabad blasts.

Local reports said the five blasts all happened at Dilsukh Nagar area, which is a crowded locality in Hyderabad. The National Investigation Agency (NIA) though pegged the number to have rocked Andhra Pradesh's capital at three, while Hyderabad police said at least two blasts have taken place.

Police have confirmed that these blasts that ripped through the crowded area in Hyderabad are an act of terror attack.

However, there is no clarity yet on who engineered these well-coordinated and pre-planned explosions.

Authorities have also expressed the fear that the death toll is likely to increase.

The injured, meanwhile, have been rushed to Yashoda Hospital at Malakpet and to the government-run Osmania Hospital, and police have cordoned off the entire area.

Elite teams of the NIA and the National Security Guard (NSG) will be flying to Hyderabad, Home secretary R.K. Singh said in New Delhi.

He said the state police chief is reaching the blast site, which has been cordoned off.

"Our NIA team is also reaching as it has a hub there. The NIA officials are there at the site. Our IG NIA is also going from here. The post blast investigating team of NSG is also going," R.K. Singh added.

The two teams will fly at 9.30 p.m. in a Border Security Force plane, he added.

The blasts occurred near two theatres in Dilsukhnagar, a busy commercial area, about 15 km from the heart of the city

Eye witnesses said they heard two loud explosions within a couple of minutes. Police suspect one of the bombs may have been kept in a motorcycle and the other in a tiffin box.

The first blast occurred around 7 p.m. near a tiffin centre opposite Venkatadri theatre and the second near Konark theatre. Both the theatres are about 500 meters from each other.

All the major cities in the country have been put on high alert.

Senior police officials and ministers have rushed to the spot.

Some reports also say that an unexploded bomb too was found by the cops, although this has not been confirmed yet.

Police sources said that the bombs were placed at heavily crowded areas to cause maximum damage.

Earlier reports had said that these were gas cylinder blasts, but that has been ruled out.

Chief Minister N. Kiran Kumar Reddy, Home Minister Sabita Indra Reddy, Director General of Police V. Dinesh Reddy and others visited the scene. The blasts sent panic in the area, close to Hyderabad-Vijayawada highway.

YSR Congress party, in a statement, expressed shock and deep anguish over the bomb blasts. "YSRCP president Smt Vijayamma expressed shock and deep anguish over the bomb blasts in Diluskh Nagar. She mourned the death of innocent people who died in the explosion and conveyed her heartfelt condolences to the families of the blast victims," said the statement.

Six top-paying freelance jobs.. Creative Matters!!

Whether you're just looking to earn some extra income on the side or you want to freelance full-time, there are freelance opportunities that can at least match full-time employment, if not earn you even more. Of course, most freelancers won't earn their full potential right out of the gate. A freelancer has to line up clients and find work, but there are some paths that can lead to more income, faster.

Writing

There are freelance writers who manage to pull in more than six figures every year. It takes plenty of work, but the upside to writing is that you don't need any special equipment to get started. There are plenty of sites that list freelance writing gigs that can help you land your first client today. You don't even need to be Hemingway to land these projects, you just need to be able to write clearly and avoid grammar mistakes. 

Translation

If you're fluent in a second language, translation can provide an excellent opportunity for freelancing. There are some variables in how much a freelance translator can earn that can make a major difference. However, a freelancer who is certified by the American Translators Association can earn an average of $72,000 a year, while someone without that certification will average $53,000 a year. There can also be some variation depending on just what languages you can translate. There's just more demand for Spanish translators than for Malayalam.

Photography

A freelance photographer who specializes in wedding photography can easily start his or her pricing at $2,000 for a few hours of shooting, plus some editing time and go up from there. Different photography specializations come with different price tags, but wedding photography and portraiture generally bring in the most income. Of course, a lot of photography equipment can come with equally high price tags, but you can start out small and then scale up. 

Social Media

Social media may not even have existed a few years ago, but today's knowledge of how social media works can result in a healthy income for a freelancer. While newcomers to the field may charge around $15 per hour, experienced social media experts with a proven track record can charge up to $250 per hour. It takes more than just experience to reach those higher pay grades though. You'll need to focus on high-paying industries that don't handle social media in-house. 

Mobile Development

While web designers and developers, in general, can make a lot of money freelancing, mobile developers, in particular, can earn a lot. Some corporate clients will pay more than $100,000 to have a single app developed. Because building the best mobile apps can take hundreds of hours to build, you will earn the fees you charge.

Search Engine Optimization

There are a few absolutely top-of-the-line SEO specialists who charge $1,000 per hour. It's more common for high-end freelancers in this field to charge between $300 and $500 per hour, which is still very good. People new to the field can still close in on $50 per hour very quickly, provided that they can pick up the skills necessary to do the work. Since, at entry-level, you'll generally be following some set steps to make sites more search engine-friendly, that isn't hard. 

The Bottom Line 

If you've got creative skills, you can start freelancing immediately. Illustrators, videographers, designers, artists, musicians and other creative professionals can all find regular, well-paying gigs with a little work. However, if you can focus in on these areas of work, you can work up to earning more than you would by working a day job. It's just a matter of finding the right fit.

Source: Yahoo Finance

Happy New Year 2013!!!!