Climbing the corporate ladder is not easy. The office corridors abound with gory tales of friends turning into colleagues, and colleagues turning fierce competitors.
Is aspiring for the hat of the head honcho, then, asking for too much? No.
Everyone longs for a better deal in life, but few are ready to pay the price. Success does not come to you. You have to go get it.
Here are the some of tips may help you
1.Do some soul searching
Once we get into the grind, few of us take time out for introspection. Get to specifics. What is it that's making you underachieve?
Is it your obsessive boyfriend/girlfriend, your own weak resolve, lack of consistency or plain old lethargy? Believe it or not, lethargy is most often the culprit. Write down why you put things off, procrastinate or limit yourself. Only then can you focus on strategies to chip away at it. Most of us spend more time planning vacations than we do planning our career.
Ask yourself some tough questions, like -
a. Do you have a flair for connecting with people?
b. Are you good at motivating people?
c. Do you crave an adrenaline rush or do you go by the book?
d. Do your personality traits match the job profile you are looking at?
2.Get organised
Successful professionals swear by the mantra of 'planning ahead' in order to soar at the workplace.
Start your day with a 'to do' list. Gather your supplies and resources for each task, set priorities and get similar tasks done together. Prioritising is important. If you have a lot on your plate, it becomes essential too. Of all the work you need to sink your teeth into, sort out what's important and urgent, what's important but not urgent, what's urgent and not important and, finally, what's neither important nor urgent but needs to get done.
3. Set time frames
Give yourself a deadline. They are necessary evils. Nothing gets done without a set time frame.
Putting in face time is criminal. It is not important how many hours you linger around at the office. What counts is how much you generate in a given time frame.
For More Tips click here
Thursday, December 29, 2005
Wednesday, December 28, 2005
Day is not far away when you will see Laptop in Every body's hand
Day is not far away when you will see Laptop in Every body's hand in India, with compaines like Xenitis Infotech have started doing it. Kolkata-based Xenitis Infotech has launched its low-cost laptop range branded ‘Xuva’. Xenitis would offer laptops in the price range of Rs 29,000-59,000 for the low-end consumers, especially students and entry professionals.
Tuesday, December 27, 2005
Top 10 downloads since over past decade
Online software distribution was still in its infancy. What a difference a near-decade makes! Since 1996, we've watched the rise of instant messaging, digital audio and the MP3 format, file sharing, spyware and antispyware, and the open-source movement, just to name a few. And we've watched as online software distribution has gone from pipe dream to reality. These 10 applications best represent the top trends in downloading over the past decade.
List Looks like -
1. ICQ
2. Winamp
3. Napster
4. Firefox
5. WinZip
6. iTunes
7. Ad-aware
8. Skype
9. RealPlayer
10.Adobe Acrobat Reader
Click Here to Learn about this Downloads
List Looks like -
1. ICQ
2. Winamp
3. Napster
4. Firefox
5. WinZip
6. iTunes
7. Ad-aware
8. Skype
9. RealPlayer
10.Adobe Acrobat Reader
Click Here to Learn about this Downloads
Saturday, December 24, 2005
Improving success rates
The success rate of new product offerings is dire. It's difficult to get an accurate figure on new product success rates because there is not one universal definition of success within and between firms. Plus, firms often don't like to talk about their failures.
What are some of factors that contribute to product "failure"?
Many recurring themes occur in the literature, such as:
* a failure to listen to the voice of the customer;
* poor up-front pre-development homework;
* unstable product definition;
* poor quality of execution of key NPD tasks;
* and poorly structured.
More here
What are some of factors that contribute to product "failure"?
Many recurring themes occur in the literature, such as:
* a failure to listen to the voice of the customer;
* poor up-front pre-development homework;
* unstable product definition;
* poor quality of execution of key NPD tasks;
* and poorly structured.
More here
Thursday, December 22, 2005
Leading Consulting Firm to Deploy SugarCRM to 9,000 Users
BDO Seidman LLP, a leading national professional services firm, standardizes on SugarCRM to help enable distributed CRM for employees and partners of BDO Seidman and its Alliance Members
SugarCRM Inc., the world's leading provider of commercial open source customer relationship management (CRM) software, today announced that BDO Seidman will offer SugarCRM to over 9,000 BDO Seidman and BDO Seidman Alliance member employees. The project, named BDO Link, will use SugarCRM to help improve opportunity and resource sharing, along with executive reporting. BDO Seidman is the U.S. member firm of BDO International, the fifth largest global accounting organization.
"SugarCRM delivers the flexibility we need to deploy a unique solution across our entire U.S. operation," said Valerie Kozikowski, Partner, BDO Seidman. "The ease-of-use of the SugarCRM application and its strong CRM capabilities means that BDO Seidman will be able to improve information sharing and deliver improved reporting capabilities across employee teams and the BDO Seidman Alliance Network."
"We are excited to work with BDO Seidman," said Lars Nordwall, Worldwide VP of Sales at SugarCRM. "For nearly 100 years, BDO Seidman has stood for excellence in professional services. SugarCRM is delighted to support their continued success."
Monday, December 19, 2005
Ten Things That Made Us FEEL GOOD this YEAR !
1. Heroes of the water tragedies
Whether it was the tsunami, the Mumbai floods, the Andhra Pradesh and Tamil Nadu flood disasters or the earthquake in Jammu and Kashmir, there were many examples of selfless acts in a particularly bad year as far as natural disasters are concerned.
There were doctors who opened their hospitals and gave free treatment to tsunami victims. College students who hitched rides on relief trucks to distribute food, water and clothes. Ordinary folk who rescued passengers on a city bus submerged in water in Mumbai. Kashmiri Pandits living in refugee camps in Delhi adopted a quake-hit village in Jammu and Kashmir -- the state from which they were forced to leave because of their religion.
These were individuals who saved lives of friends and strangers; some left whatever they are doing to go to affected areas to help -- and went a long way in strengthening people's dwindling faith in human goodness.
2. Rise of the sporting brat pack
2005 was the year of the rising stars in sport. Sania Mirza -- Tennis, Mahendra Singh Dhoni -- Cricket, Joshna Chinappa -- Squash, Shiv Kapur -- Golf and, of course, the indomitable Vijaypat Singhania, the 70-plus industrialist and maverick aviator who created a world record for his flight on a hot air balloon.
The nation went into overdrive with Sania's pursuits on the tennis court and beyond. Fanatics frowned over her short skirts and burned her effigy when she spoke about premarital sex, forcing her to retract. Others obsessed over her t-shirts and fans followed her tennis ranking, probably more closely than she herself. Sania was the sporting sensation of the year and every bit of the Sania mania was real.
Then there was Joshna, 19, the Asian junior number one in squash, who made news. Shiv, who won the Rookie of the Year and clinched the season-ending championship tour of the Volvo Masters of Asia. Dhoni, the wicket-keeper batsman, who began his career with a smashing batting average. They treated us to some great sporting action, we only hope the next year is even better.
3. The Indo-US thaw
After decades of suspicion, India and the United States began on a new path of strategic understanding in July when Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and President George W Bush met in Washington, DC.
The civilian nuclear agreement was the most significant and most debated. The American President assured Dr Singh that the transfer of civilian nuclear reactors to India would become a reality by the end of his term.
Bush referred to India as a 'responsible State with advanced nuclear technology' and said 'India should acquire the same benefits and advantages as other such States.'
The agreement faces a tough passage in the United States Congress -- for it to become law -- but it has not dampened the optimism that the visit resulted in.
With talks of Bush visiting India early in 2006, the two countries can only look forward to strengthening strategic relations. So keep all your Bush jokes in check and get ready for the hype and hoopla of the Bush visit in a couple of months time.
4. A fresh start for Bihar
Political power doesn't always grow from the barrel of a gun; the ballot will do fine, especially in a democracy.
As it did in Bihar when the 15-year reign of Lalu Prasad Yadav and his wife Rabri Devi came to a resounding end after the year's second assembly election results on November 22.
For Nitish Kumar, who wrought the unthinkable, leave alone the undoable, the result must have come as vindication.
In the February assembly election, the voters did not give Nitish Kumar's political grouping a clear mandate, which led to the Raj Bhavan in Patna becoming the focus for reported intrigue to keep him out of the chief minister's post.
For Lalu, the reversal in fortune must be doubly galling, for Nitish Kumar was a confidant who succeeded in claiming Lalu's political space as his own.
Moral of the story: Never take the voters for fools.
5. National Rural Employment Guarantee Bill
Do not dismiss this just because it sounds too 'sarkari' to your ears.
The Indian Parliament passed the National Rural Employment Guarantee Bill, 2004 on August 23, 2005 which aims at removing poverty by assuring at least 100 days' employment. The government has pegged a minimum daily wage of Rs 60.
The Bill was chiefly designed by Belgian economist Jean Dreze whose books on the Indian economy were incidentally a source of information for director Ashutosh Gowariker for his film Swades.
The scheme will cost about Rs 40,000 crores (Rs 400 billion) annually and will be paid for by the Centre, state governments and some other government schemes.
200 districts will be covered under the Bill and will include all the 600 districts in the country within five years.
The Rs 60 per day for 100 days amounts to just Rs 500 a year which is minuscule in reducing poverty, but the government's efforts in getting the bill through is a landmark one.
This time it is seen as a genuine effort to tackle poverty.
6. The law finally catches up with Abu Salem
In much the same way he left India -- on the quiet -- gangster Abu Salem and his companion, starlet Monika Bedi, returned to the country on November 11, bundled in on an early morning flight from Portugal where the couple had been living and from where they were extradited.
For the Central Bureau of Investigation, which fought a long and protracted battle to bring Salem back to the country to face charges of conspiracy in the March 12, 1993 Mumbai serial blasts -- and to spill the beans on former mentor Dawood Ibrahim, the main accused in the case -- Salem was the biggest catch so far.
What was significant about the extradition was it came about without a formal treaty with Portugal.
The Indian government sought his return under the United Nations Convention on Suppression of Terrorism of 2000, to which India and Portugal are signatories. The Portuguese courts finally cleared the extradition, but only after India provided an undertaking that Salem would not be given the death penalty -- something the court in Mumbai, which is trying the blasts case, is reportedly not too happy about.
7. The invasion of the skies
Kingfisher Airlines, Spice Jet, Go Air and who knows how many more are to follow.
Years after being straddled with just a handful of domestic airlines to choose from, India saw three new airlines enter the skies this year alone.
With competitive fares, attractive deals and a new service culture, passengers found themselves flocking to ticketing counters as lower fares made air travel more affordable for the Indian traveller.
Kingfisher, which began operations in May, already flies to around 13 destinations, Spice Jet to 11. Both airlines will begin foreign operations in the next couple of years. Go Air, the latest off the runway, currently has fares as low as Rs 999.
So, Go, Spice up your travel and become the King of good flying times
8. The return of Vikram Seth
One of India's best loved writers was back home for a month to promote his latest book, Two Lives. This very personal book hold the fascinating story of Seth's maternal uncle, Shanti and his German wife, Henny.
Seth did a whirlwind promotional tour, reading passages over glasses of white wine to an enthusiastic audience that included governors, parliamentarians, diplomats and actor Aamir Khan.
In the part memoir, part biography, part history, Seth tells the story of his dentist uncle and his wife whose lives hold a wealth of experiences spread over three continents.
'What is important for a writer is when a reader is gripped by a book and delays his dinner to read a few more pages,' the writer had said during a reading in Kolkata.
Two Lives easily fits that bill. If you haven't read it yet, make it your first read for the New Year.
9. 60 years after World War II
War veterans from around the world with leaders from 56 countries gathered in Moscow in May to mark the end of the Second World War, which cost 55 million lives.
Two Indians, Commander V S P Mudaliar (retired) and Major General Bikram Singh Kanwar (retired), participated in the ceremony. Both men fought World War II as part of the British army and navy.
In India, on Remembrance Day, a small group of ex-servicemen assembled in Mumbai's Afghan Church to remember the dead. India is believed to have raised the largest volunteer army -- 2.5 million strong -- in the war.
Prime Minister Manmohan Singh attended the memorial event in Moscow's Red Square in May. The paegent was a fitting commemoration of a war that changed the world.
Photograph: Jewella C Miranda
10. Now it is India!
In three months alone, international information technology majors and Non-Resident Indians have announced investment plans of around $10 billion in India.
Global technology giants Microsoft, Intel, Cisco and AMD have committed to investing $6.85 billion in India.
Big names like Hyundai, LG, Nokia, Samsung, Suzuki, Ford, Fiat have built or are building global-scale manufacturing hubs in India to serve other markets.
The world is sitting up and taking note of a confident India's rocketting economy, technological prowess, exceptional talent pool, enormous market, rising disposable incomes, and most significantly the immense promise it holds for the future.
It is creating world-class businesses in knowledge-based industries like software, IT enabled-services, and pharmaceuticals. It is on the threshold of becoming an economic powerhouse.
And the world wants to be a part of this success story.
Multinational companies are eagerly investing in India's information technology and manufacturing sectors, while foreign investors are pouring mega dollars into the nation's booming stock markets.
And this is just the beginning…
SOURCE- rediff.com
Whether it was the tsunami, the Mumbai floods, the Andhra Pradesh and Tamil Nadu flood disasters or the earthquake in Jammu and Kashmir, there were many examples of selfless acts in a particularly bad year as far as natural disasters are concerned.
There were doctors who opened their hospitals and gave free treatment to tsunami victims. College students who hitched rides on relief trucks to distribute food, water and clothes. Ordinary folk who rescued passengers on a city bus submerged in water in Mumbai. Kashmiri Pandits living in refugee camps in Delhi adopted a quake-hit village in Jammu and Kashmir -- the state from which they were forced to leave because of their religion.
These were individuals who saved lives of friends and strangers; some left whatever they are doing to go to affected areas to help -- and went a long way in strengthening people's dwindling faith in human goodness.
2. Rise of the sporting brat pack
2005 was the year of the rising stars in sport. Sania Mirza -- Tennis, Mahendra Singh Dhoni -- Cricket, Joshna Chinappa -- Squash, Shiv Kapur -- Golf and, of course, the indomitable Vijaypat Singhania, the 70-plus industrialist and maverick aviator who created a world record for his flight on a hot air balloon.
The nation went into overdrive with Sania's pursuits on the tennis court and beyond. Fanatics frowned over her short skirts and burned her effigy when she spoke about premarital sex, forcing her to retract. Others obsessed over her t-shirts and fans followed her tennis ranking, probably more closely than she herself. Sania was the sporting sensation of the year and every bit of the Sania mania was real.
Then there was Joshna, 19, the Asian junior number one in squash, who made news. Shiv, who won the Rookie of the Year and clinched the season-ending championship tour of the Volvo Masters of Asia. Dhoni, the wicket-keeper batsman, who began his career with a smashing batting average. They treated us to some great sporting action, we only hope the next year is even better.
3. The Indo-US thaw
After decades of suspicion, India and the United States began on a new path of strategic understanding in July when Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and President George W Bush met in Washington, DC.
The civilian nuclear agreement was the most significant and most debated. The American President assured Dr Singh that the transfer of civilian nuclear reactors to India would become a reality by the end of his term.
Bush referred to India as a 'responsible State with advanced nuclear technology' and said 'India should acquire the same benefits and advantages as other such States.'
The agreement faces a tough passage in the United States Congress -- for it to become law -- but it has not dampened the optimism that the visit resulted in.
With talks of Bush visiting India early in 2006, the two countries can only look forward to strengthening strategic relations. So keep all your Bush jokes in check and get ready for the hype and hoopla of the Bush visit in a couple of months time.
4. A fresh start for Bihar
Political power doesn't always grow from the barrel of a gun; the ballot will do fine, especially in a democracy.
As it did in Bihar when the 15-year reign of Lalu Prasad Yadav and his wife Rabri Devi came to a resounding end after the year's second assembly election results on November 22.
For Nitish Kumar, who wrought the unthinkable, leave alone the undoable, the result must have come as vindication.
In the February assembly election, the voters did not give Nitish Kumar's political grouping a clear mandate, which led to the Raj Bhavan in Patna becoming the focus for reported intrigue to keep him out of the chief minister's post.
For Lalu, the reversal in fortune must be doubly galling, for Nitish Kumar was a confidant who succeeded in claiming Lalu's political space as his own.
Moral of the story: Never take the voters for fools.
5. National Rural Employment Guarantee Bill
Do not dismiss this just because it sounds too 'sarkari' to your ears.
The Indian Parliament passed the National Rural Employment Guarantee Bill, 2004 on August 23, 2005 which aims at removing poverty by assuring at least 100 days' employment. The government has pegged a minimum daily wage of Rs 60.
The Bill was chiefly designed by Belgian economist Jean Dreze whose books on the Indian economy were incidentally a source of information for director Ashutosh Gowariker for his film Swades.
The scheme will cost about Rs 40,000 crores (Rs 400 billion) annually and will be paid for by the Centre, state governments and some other government schemes.
200 districts will be covered under the Bill and will include all the 600 districts in the country within five years.
The Rs 60 per day for 100 days amounts to just Rs 500 a year which is minuscule in reducing poverty, but the government's efforts in getting the bill through is a landmark one.
This time it is seen as a genuine effort to tackle poverty.
6. The law finally catches up with Abu Salem
In much the same way he left India -- on the quiet -- gangster Abu Salem and his companion, starlet Monika Bedi, returned to the country on November 11, bundled in on an early morning flight from Portugal where the couple had been living and from where they were extradited.
For the Central Bureau of Investigation, which fought a long and protracted battle to bring Salem back to the country to face charges of conspiracy in the March 12, 1993 Mumbai serial blasts -- and to spill the beans on former mentor Dawood Ibrahim, the main accused in the case -- Salem was the biggest catch so far.
What was significant about the extradition was it came about without a formal treaty with Portugal.
The Indian government sought his return under the United Nations Convention on Suppression of Terrorism of 2000, to which India and Portugal are signatories. The Portuguese courts finally cleared the extradition, but only after India provided an undertaking that Salem would not be given the death penalty -- something the court in Mumbai, which is trying the blasts case, is reportedly not too happy about.
7. The invasion of the skies
Kingfisher Airlines, Spice Jet, Go Air and who knows how many more are to follow.
Years after being straddled with just a handful of domestic airlines to choose from, India saw three new airlines enter the skies this year alone.
With competitive fares, attractive deals and a new service culture, passengers found themselves flocking to ticketing counters as lower fares made air travel more affordable for the Indian traveller.
Kingfisher, which began operations in May, already flies to around 13 destinations, Spice Jet to 11. Both airlines will begin foreign operations in the next couple of years. Go Air, the latest off the runway, currently has fares as low as Rs 999.
So, Go, Spice up your travel and become the King of good flying times
8. The return of Vikram Seth
One of India's best loved writers was back home for a month to promote his latest book, Two Lives. This very personal book hold the fascinating story of Seth's maternal uncle, Shanti and his German wife, Henny.
Seth did a whirlwind promotional tour, reading passages over glasses of white wine to an enthusiastic audience that included governors, parliamentarians, diplomats and actor Aamir Khan.
In the part memoir, part biography, part history, Seth tells the story of his dentist uncle and his wife whose lives hold a wealth of experiences spread over three continents.
'What is important for a writer is when a reader is gripped by a book and delays his dinner to read a few more pages,' the writer had said during a reading in Kolkata.
Two Lives easily fits that bill. If you haven't read it yet, make it your first read for the New Year.
9. 60 years after World War II
War veterans from around the world with leaders from 56 countries gathered in Moscow in May to mark the end of the Second World War, which cost 55 million lives.
Two Indians, Commander V S P Mudaliar (retired) and Major General Bikram Singh Kanwar (retired), participated in the ceremony. Both men fought World War II as part of the British army and navy.
In India, on Remembrance Day, a small group of ex-servicemen assembled in Mumbai's Afghan Church to remember the dead. India is believed to have raised the largest volunteer army -- 2.5 million strong -- in the war.
Prime Minister Manmohan Singh attended the memorial event in Moscow's Red Square in May. The paegent was a fitting commemoration of a war that changed the world.
Photograph: Jewella C Miranda
10. Now it is India!
In three months alone, international information technology majors and Non-Resident Indians have announced investment plans of around $10 billion in India.
Global technology giants Microsoft, Intel, Cisco and AMD have committed to investing $6.85 billion in India.
Big names like Hyundai, LG, Nokia, Samsung, Suzuki, Ford, Fiat have built or are building global-scale manufacturing hubs in India to serve other markets.
The world is sitting up and taking note of a confident India's rocketting economy, technological prowess, exceptional talent pool, enormous market, rising disposable incomes, and most significantly the immense promise it holds for the future.
It is creating world-class businesses in knowledge-based industries like software, IT enabled-services, and pharmaceuticals. It is on the threshold of becoming an economic powerhouse.
And the world wants to be a part of this success story.
Multinational companies are eagerly investing in India's information technology and manufacturing sectors, while foreign investors are pouring mega dollars into the nation's booming stock markets.
And this is just the beginning…
SOURCE- rediff.com
Are BPOs safe for women?
Pratibha Srikanth Murthy, an employee of the business process outsourcing arm of Hewlett Packard in Bangalore, was raped and murdered by the driver of the company-commissioned cab she was travelling in on her way to work in the wee hours of Tuesday.
This has sent shivers down the spine of BPO workers, their kin, and the Indian IT industry.
Women account for about 40 per cent of the 350,000 call centres employees in India. IT sector bodies, politicians and the police have now urged companies to offer better security to BPO workers.
Should women work night shifts? Or do you feel the Bangalore murder is just a one-off incident of crime?
Do you think women employees in call centres are given adequate security? What can be done to ensure better safety of BPO workers?
This has sent shivers down the spine of BPO workers, their kin, and the Indian IT industry.
Women account for about 40 per cent of the 350,000 call centres employees in India. IT sector bodies, politicians and the police have now urged companies to offer better security to BPO workers.
Should women work night shifts? Or do you feel the Bangalore murder is just a one-off incident of crime?
Do you think women employees in call centres are given adequate security? What can be done to ensure better safety of BPO workers?
Thursday, December 08, 2005
Open your borders and let the customer in
Here is a short introductory piece on customer integration and co-creation, written recently for Conspectus magazine.
Tuesday, December 06, 2005
Friday, November 25, 2005
Google Click-to-Call
1. What's the phone icon on Google search results? How does it work?
We're testing a new product that gives you a free and fast way to speak directly to the advertiser you found on a Google search results page – over the phone.
Here's how it works: When you click the phone icon, you can enter your phone number. Once you click 'Connect For Free,' Google calls the number you provided. When you pick up, you hear ringing on the other end as Google connects you to the other party.
We won't share your telephone number with anyone, including the advertiser. When you're connected with the advertiser, your number is blocked so the advertiser can't see it. In addition, we'll delete the number from our servers after a short period of time.
2. Am I charged to connect to an advertiser?
No. Google foots the bill for all calls - local and long-distance. However, if we call a mobile phone number, you may incur airtime fees depending on the mobile phone plan. Check your mobile phone provider for details.
3. Is this just a way for Google to track me?
No. We take your privacy very seriously. Google does not share your telephone number with anyone (without your consent), including the advertiser. When you're connected with the advertiser, your number is blocked. The advertiser can't see your phone number.
In addition, we retain your information (including your phone number, date, time, and call length) only temporarily. It will be deleted from our servers after a period reasonably necessary to operate, audit, and evaluate the service.
4. Whose caller ID do I see when connected?
The advertiser's number appears on your caller ID when Google connects you. This way, you can save the merchant's number for future call-backs.
We're testing a new product that gives you a free and fast way to speak directly to the advertiser you found on a Google search results page – over the phone.
Here's how it works: When you click the phone icon, you can enter your phone number. Once you click 'Connect For Free,' Google calls the number you provided. When you pick up, you hear ringing on the other end as Google connects you to the other party.
We won't share your telephone number with anyone, including the advertiser. When you're connected with the advertiser, your number is blocked so the advertiser can't see it. In addition, we'll delete the number from our servers after a short period of time.
2. Am I charged to connect to an advertiser?
No. Google foots the bill for all calls - local and long-distance. However, if we call a mobile phone number, you may incur airtime fees depending on the mobile phone plan. Check your mobile phone provider for details.
3. Is this just a way for Google to track me?
No. We take your privacy very seriously. Google does not share your telephone number with anyone (without your consent), including the advertiser. When you're connected with the advertiser, your number is blocked. The advertiser can't see your phone number.
In addition, we retain your information (including your phone number, date, time, and call length) only temporarily. It will be deleted from our servers after a period reasonably necessary to operate, audit, and evaluate the service.
4. Whose caller ID do I see when connected?
The advertiser's number appears on your caller ID when Google connects you. This way, you can save the merchant's number for future call-backs.
The idea of open source ... & India
Open source software has two properties :
(a) the ``source code'' (the programs themselves) is freely distributed, and
(b) it is generally illegal to convert this into a proprietary version. While the rules of the game require that the program itself should be distributed at zero cost, traditional commercial contracts govern consulting, customisation and support.
Open source and economic growth in India.
From an economist's perspective, what can we say about the impact upon India's economy of open source software? Hardware and software are capital goods. When the price of software drops to zero, it means that information technology is available at a lower cost. This improves the speed at which India's economy can grow.
If IT implementations (today) in India primarily rely on stolen software, then the appeal of free software as a device for cost--reduction is limited. However, most larger companies are increasingly unwilling to take the risk of using pirated software
(a) the ``source code'' (the programs themselves) is freely distributed, and
(b) it is generally illegal to convert this into a proprietary version. While the rules of the game require that the program itself should be distributed at zero cost, traditional commercial contracts govern consulting, customisation and support.
Open source and economic growth in India.
From an economist's perspective, what can we say about the impact upon India's economy of open source software? Hardware and software are capital goods. When the price of software drops to zero, it means that information technology is available at a lower cost. This improves the speed at which India's economy can grow.
If IT implementations (today) in India primarily rely on stolen software, then the appeal of free software as a device for cost--reduction is limited. However, most larger companies are increasingly unwilling to take the risk of using pirated software
Wednesday, November 23, 2005
Ready - Set - 4.0!
Sugar Suite 4.0 marks the seventh major release by SugarCRM. Sugar Suite's fast innovation development rate is driven by the SugarCRM community of 3,000 developers and 10,000 members, which provides product direction, testing, translations, and modules to Sugar Suite 4.0.
Sugar Suite 4.0 enhances and extends functionality across sales, marketing, service, collaboration, reporting and administration. See what SugarCRM's community and customers deem valuable for today's business tools.
We invite you to experience and test the new functionality to see how it will positively affect your business. As a SugarCRM community member, we look to you for insights about the functionality and the direction that Sugar Suite should follow to improve your business needs. This is the earliest we've made a new release available for public review prior to General Availability.
Wednesday, November 09, 2005
Yahoo Think Tank explores the limits of online creativity
Yahoo Australia is sponsoring a two-week experiment in online creativity called the Yahoo! Think Tank. Rotating teams of creative people from ad agencies in Australia and New Zealand are living and working in a "transparent," fully-functioning creative studio, complete with a desk, PC and whiteboards. Six webcams enable people from around the world to watch these creatives at work, 24/7. It's quite interactive: You can submit creative briefs (concepts you'd like them to brainstorm on) via an online form and submit messages to be displayed on a plasma screen in their "think tank." You can also view a gallery of previously submitted briefs and the ideas the teams came up with. The Yahoo! Think Tank will be operational through November 17th.
Monday, November 07, 2005
Yahoo, Google to launch new wireless services
Yahoo Inc. (YHOO.O: Quote, Profile, Research) and Google Inc. (GOOG.O: Quote, Profile, Research) are set to roll out new wireless services, taking advantage of advanced networks and cellphones to provide features similar to those available on computers, the Wall Street Journal reported on Monday.
Yahoo soon will introduce a cellphone it will sell through a partnership with SBC Communications (SBC.N: Quote, Profile, Research) , according to SBC executives. The phone will take Yahoo a step closer to linking music, photos and email with consumers' existing online accounts, address books and preferences, the paper said.
Yahoo soon will introduce a cellphone it will sell through a partnership with SBC Communications (SBC.N: Quote, Profile, Research) , according to SBC executives. The phone will take Yahoo a step closer to linking music, photos and email with consumers' existing online accounts, address books and preferences, the paper said.
Saturday, November 05, 2005
IT links CRM, analytical tools to keep customers
Companies are increasingly looking to tie traditional CRM systems to analytical tools to retain and boost the value of customers, according to users at SAS Institute Inc.'s BetterManagement Live Worldwide Business Conference 2005 here this week.
Aegon Direct Marketing Services Inc., the Baltimore-based direct marketing arm of Aegon USA Inc., this week began a year-long rollout of SAS CRM and analytical tools that will replace four legacy CRM systems that run marketing campaigns at four locations.
Aegon Direct Marketing Services Inc., the Baltimore-based direct marketing arm of Aegon USA Inc., this week began a year-long rollout of SAS CRM and analytical tools that will replace four legacy CRM systems that run marketing campaigns at four locations.
Can Open Source Outdo the IPod?
Consumer electronics manufacturer Neuros Audio is tapping the open-source community to convert its upcoming portable media player from iPod road kill into a contender.
This could be a stroke of genius. Open-source Linux has taken on Microsoft's dominant Windows operating system, and Mozilla has challenged the ubiquitous Internet Explorer web browser. In the same way, open source would seem suited to breaking Apple Computer's digital music stranglehold. Open-source geeks might not represent the typical consumer, demographics-wise. But hackers don't like to waste time with a clumsy user interface.
This could be a stroke of genius. Open-source Linux has taken on Microsoft's dominant Windows operating system, and Mozilla has challenged the ubiquitous Internet Explorer web browser. In the same way, open source would seem suited to breaking Apple Computer's digital music stranglehold. Open-source geeks might not represent the typical consumer, demographics-wise. But hackers don't like to waste time with a clumsy user interface.
Friday, November 04, 2005
Blogging claims another victim...
Blogging claims another victim, and bloggers here call for self-restraint
Indra Nooyi, Neil French, the 'Dog-shit-girl' from Korea. If there's one thing they have in common, it'd be their dislike for irresponsible blogging. Advertising legend Neil French, the latest to have fallen victim to a bloggers' witch hunt, calls it 'death by blog'. Controversies over blogging are not new closer home too.
In two recent cases, bloggers here burnt their fingers — one, in which the case that they were espousing turned out to be fake, and the second one in which bloggers have been slapped with legal notices for having 'tarnished the reputation' of an institute.
In the second case, the blogger who started it ended up quitting his job because he felt the company had come under pressure.
...
More Here
Indra Nooyi, Neil French, the 'Dog-shit-girl' from Korea. If there's one thing they have in common, it'd be their dislike for irresponsible blogging. Advertising legend Neil French, the latest to have fallen victim to a bloggers' witch hunt, calls it 'death by blog'. Controversies over blogging are not new closer home too.
In two recent cases, bloggers here burnt their fingers — one, in which the case that they were espousing turned out to be fake, and the second one in which bloggers have been slapped with legal notices for having 'tarnished the reputation' of an institute.
In the second case, the blogger who started it ended up quitting his job because he felt the company had come under pressure.
...
More Here
Thursday, October 27, 2005
What is creativity?
Creativity is defined as the tendency to generate or recognize ideas, alternatives, or possibilities that may be useful in solving problems, communicating with others, and entertaining ourselves and other.
Three reasons why people are motivated to be creative:
1. Need for novel, varied, and complex stimulation
2. Need to communicate ideas and values
3. Need to solve problems
So now the question comes what you need/require to be creative or how to be creative?
In order to be creative
you need to be able to view things in new ways or from a different perspective.
you need to be able to generate new possibilities or new alternatives.
you need the ability to generate alternatives
you need to see things uniquely
you need to have more fundamental qualities of thinking, such as
Three reasons why people are motivated to be creative:
1. Need for novel, varied, and complex stimulation
2. Need to communicate ideas and values
3. Need to solve problems
So now the question comes what you need/require to be creative or how to be creative?
In order to be creative
you need to be able to view things in new ways or from a different perspective.
you need to be able to generate new possibilities or new alternatives.
you need the ability to generate alternatives
you need to see things uniquely
you need to have more fundamental qualities of thinking, such as
- flexibility
tolerance of ambiguity
and the enjoyment of things heretofore unknown.
Monday, October 24, 2005
Low-Cost, Open Source CRM
Open source may finally be arriving on the CRM scene. While still a minority in the market, a growing number of companies are choosing to provide CRM software free of up-front expense. As companies like Red Hat have demonstrated, free software can work for customers and make money. "The idea is that enough of CRM capabilities are becoming commoditized, so why not give those functions away for free and make money off services, such as customization, support, documentation, and upgrades. And i have been associated with one of the company called Apptility Software's in India. The company try to provide low-cost innovative solutions to small and medium enterprises by leveraging our expertise in open source and social computing technologies with an emphasis on measurable cost savings and revenue enhancements
Friday, October 21, 2005
Yahoo! has announced its entry into podcasting
Yahoo! has announced its entry into podcasting with the beta release of Yahoo! Podcasts. The new Yahoo! Podcasts service enables consumers to easily find,
listen to, rate and review online audio programs.
The entire development of the product took place at Yahoo!'s Bangalore Software Development Centre. “The development of Yahoo! Podcasts from our Bangalore centre brings new market innovations from India for the global market,” said Dr. Prasad Ram, chief technology officer, Yahoo! R&D, India. “Audio Search technology developed at Yahoo! Bangalore is the most sophisticated vertical search product to-date,” he added.
More Here
listen to, rate and review online audio programs.
The entire development of the product took place at Yahoo!'s Bangalore Software Development Centre. “The development of Yahoo! Podcasts from our Bangalore centre brings new market innovations from India for the global market,” said Dr. Prasad Ram, chief technology officer, Yahoo! R&D, India. “Audio Search technology developed at Yahoo! Bangalore is the most sophisticated vertical search product to-date,” he added.
More Here
Wednesday, October 19, 2005
Blog Spammers Take Aim at Google
Google Inc.'s free BlogSpot service has become a happy hunting ground for spammers cashing in on the easy integration of AdSense advertisements into the 'push-button' publishing tool.
Over the past few days, the situation has spiraled out of control, prompting outrage from bloggers and third-party blog search providers and an acknowledgement from Google that there's a "tricky problem" to be solved.
An automated spam blog (splog) attack over the weekend was first flagged by Lockergnome's Chris Pirillo, who accused Google of hosting a "crapfarm" of fake blogs.
Or better we call it SplogSpot.
Over the past few days, the situation has spiraled out of control, prompting outrage from bloggers and third-party blog search providers and an acknowledgement from Google that there's a "tricky problem" to be solved.
An automated spam blog (splog) attack over the weekend was first flagged by Lockergnome's Chris Pirillo, who accused Google of hosting a "crapfarm" of fake blogs.
Or better we call it SplogSpot.
Tuesday, October 18, 2005
Indian President expressed concern about a free mapping program from Google
Indian President A.P.J. Abdul Kalam expressed concern Saturday about a free mapping program from Google, warning it could help terrorists by providing satellite photos of potential targets.
Google Earth, launched in June this year, allows users to access overlapping satellite photos. Although not all areas are highly detailed, some images are very high resolution, and some show sensitive locations in various countries.
The Google site contains clear aerial photos of India's parliament building, the president's house and surrounding government offices in New Delhi. There are also some clear shots of Indian defense establishments.
Something very much concerning from security point of view?
More Here
Google Earth, launched in June this year, allows users to access overlapping satellite photos. Although not all areas are highly detailed, some images are very high resolution, and some show sensitive locations in various countries.
The Google site contains clear aerial photos of India's parliament building, the president's house and surrounding government offices in New Delhi. There are also some clear shots of Indian defense establishments.
Something very much concerning from security point of view?
More Here
Saturday, October 15, 2005
E-mail Management
# E-mails are company documents.
# E-mails are not private; they belong to Microsoft
# Always think about how your e-mail reflects on you and Microsoft.
# E-mails you create can become public.
# Never use e-mail to make inappropriate comments about people or situations.
# While writing e-mails
* Be very concise.
* Don’t exaggerate points.
* Use appropriate language for business communication.
* Don’t disparage others in anyway.
* Don’t offer legal interpretations.
# Be careful when selecting to whom the e-mail will be distributed or forwarded.
# The bottom line is:treat all e-mail as professional communications.They're not personal; they're business documents.
# While there are plenty of instances where being creative in our jobs is a good thing, when it comes to e-mail, it’s in everyone’s best interest to follow the business rules.
Source- Shachi
# E-mails are not private; they belong to Microsoft
# Always think about how your e-mail reflects on you and Microsoft.
# E-mails you create can become public.
# Never use e-mail to make inappropriate comments about people or situations.
# While writing e-mails
* Be very concise.
* Don’t exaggerate points.
* Use appropriate language for business communication.
* Don’t disparage others in anyway.
* Don’t offer legal interpretations.
# Be careful when selecting to whom the e-mail will be distributed or forwarded.
# The bottom line is:treat all e-mail as professional communications.They're not personal; they're business documents.
# While there are plenty of instances where being creative in our jobs is a good thing, when it comes to e-mail, it’s in everyone’s best interest to follow the business rules.
Source- Shachi
Open source boom
A little factoid that many may not be aware of is that despite our massive IT balance of trade deficit, this country is the place to be when it comes to open source development. Believe it or not, Australia has more open source developers per head of capita than anywhere else.
Open source development projects with esoteric sounding names such as
Samba,
Mambo,
Squid,
Lams and Moodle,
plus better-known projects such as Apache,
OpenOffice.org,
Gnome,
KDE,
and MySQL,
have Australian developers in prominent roles.
More here
Open source development projects with esoteric sounding names such as
Samba,
Mambo,
Squid,
Lams and Moodle,
plus better-known projects such as Apache,
OpenOffice.org,
Gnome,
KDE,
and MySQL,
have Australian developers in prominent roles.
More here
Friday, October 14, 2005
Gone are those days
Gone are the days when you had to plan to buy a PC, now all you need is to do is buy a PC first and plan...never! And the best part is, in these PCs quality is not compromised, rather to some extent it is made better at this price.
HCL has launched a PC at Rs. 9,990.
The AMDX 86 1.6 Ghz PC,
Is powered with a 128MB RAM,
A 40GB Hard Drive,
A 52X CD ROM, and
A 15-inch colour monitor.
The PC comes with Linux Operating System, but if you want, add Rs. 1,240 and get a new-launched Windows XP Starter Edition.
HCL has launched a PC at Rs. 9,990.
The AMDX 86 1.6 Ghz PC,
Is powered with a 128MB RAM,
A 40GB Hard Drive,
A 52X CD ROM, and
A 15-inch colour monitor.
The PC comes with Linux Operating System, but if you want, add Rs. 1,240 and get a new-launched Windows XP Starter Edition.
Tuesday, October 11, 2005
Corporate Business Communication
Hope this will help for those who are aiming for Business Roles.
* Listen, Enhance Active Listening and be Self Questioning.
* Do not be Blindsighted by Negativity or Coloured by Bias about anything.
* Never do Feature Comparison of Business Applications.
* Understand Business Needs and Their Concerns rather than proving.
* Understand before you trying to be Understood.
* Don't Fight the problem, Study it.
* Body Language leads the way and will Reflect in Communication.
* Always Listen to Understand rather than Listening to Reply.
* Uncover Hidden concerns and do not exhibit Selling skills everytime.
* Do not foster Risk Enhancement but foster Risk Management.
* Do not beg, plead or show desperation anytime. It will be Parent-Child communication and not an Adult- Adult communication. Have silent Confidence and gain silent Confidence from others.No one will have confidence in you when you don't have confidence in yourself.
Source- Microsoft
* Listen, Enhance Active Listening and be Self Questioning.
* Do not be Blindsighted by Negativity or Coloured by Bias about anything.
* Never do Feature Comparison of Business Applications.
* Understand Business Needs and Their Concerns rather than proving.
* Understand before you trying to be Understood.
* Don't Fight the problem, Study it.
* Body Language leads the way and will Reflect in Communication.
* Always Listen to Understand rather than Listening to Reply.
* Uncover Hidden concerns and do not exhibit Selling skills everytime.
* Do not foster Risk Enhancement but foster Risk Management.
* Do not beg, plead or show desperation anytime. It will be Parent-Child communication and not an Adult- Adult communication. Have silent Confidence and gain silent Confidence from others.No one will have confidence in you when you don't have confidence in yourself.
Source- Microsoft
Wednesday, October 05, 2005
Open-Source Success Roiling Software Field
You probably paid too much for the software you're using — not to mention the software company you've invested in.
That's the growing consensus of analysts watching the rise of open-source software, built on the notion that software should be free for everyone to use, tweak and develop further.
For every multimillion-dollar software program being sold, there's a good chance that at least one free alternative can do the same thing, at a fraction of the cost.
If that's good news for tech buyers, it's downright chilling for tech investors.Few open-source programs claim to be as complex or full featured as their commercial counterparts. But for many customers, they're more than adequate.
That's the growing consensus of analysts watching the rise of open-source software, built on the notion that software should be free for everyone to use, tweak and develop further.
For every multimillion-dollar software program being sold, there's a good chance that at least one free alternative can do the same thing, at a fraction of the cost.
If that's good news for tech buyers, it's downright chilling for tech investors.Few open-source programs claim to be as complex or full featured as their commercial counterparts. But for many customers, they're more than adequate.
Open Source: Now It's an Ecosystem
This software movement is branching into not just mainstream business applications but also the associated services. And VCs are eager to help.
Eighteen months ago John Roberts, Clint Oram, and Jacob Taylor decided to quit their jobs at Epiphany, a maker of customer-relationship software. The trio wanted to target the same market, but write a new application developed using open-source code. It took them only three months to create the program and just another month to close their first round of funding. Little more than a year later, their company, SugarCRM, has given away more than 325,000 copies of its software, and raised a second round of capital, for a total of $7.75 million.
Friday, September 23, 2005
Mozilla Under Fire is that so ?
As allegations of malicious code and heightened insecurity swirl around, Mozilla has updated its Firefox Web browser in what is being termed, "a security and stability release."
Mozilla today released version 1.07 of Firefox, which includes numerous security fixes. Security firm Secunia has rated at least one as "extremely critical."
CAN-2005-2968 titled "Firefox Command Line URL Shell Command Injection" is also known as Mozilla Bugzilla Bug 307185 "URLs passed on the command line are parsed by the shell (bash).
More Here
Tuesday, September 20, 2005
Google Search
Google just introduced Blog Search in beta September 14, 2005.This new search function allows for you to search the internet for Blogs,Podcasts and RSS feeds. You simply type in your keywords and it will show you results that have come from these sources.
The results they display are not showing any preferences to Blogs that are published on Blogger. Actually Google Blog Search is not just looking at Blogs.They are looking for any RSS feed which might be from a Blog, Podcast , or any othe type of XML feed.
Tuesday, September 13, 2005
Novell Selects SugarCRM’s Sugar Suite for New Market Start Program
SugarCRM Inc. today announced its selection as one of the first open source application partners for Novell's® Market Start program, designed to make the low cost and easy back-office integration benefits of open source and open standards-based enterprise applications easily accessible to small and mid-sized businesses. SugarCRM's Sugar Suite is the first customer relationship management (CRM) software to be selected for the program, reflecting the application's status as the market's most successful commercial open source enterprise platform
Wednesday, September 07, 2005
Creative Tools & Techniques
you can only help him to find it within himself"
The creative process is an ongoing exercise. Everything you do that is not habit is creative.The educational system is poor at teaching children how to retain their inherent creative talents. So much emphasis is should be put on, cultivating the imagination.
Some useful techniques to enhance the creative process are listed below now you have choose among them which increases creative potential among you.
1.PUZZLES ENHANCE CREATIVITY
2.THE POWER OF IMAGINATION
3.CREATIVE DREAMING
4.CREATIVE FOCUS
5.INNER CREATIVITY
Tuesday, August 30, 2005
What a Creativity
Image Says "Danik Jagran Has More Readers then the Top Seven English News Papers Put Together"
Monday, August 29, 2005
Difference between creative and uncreative is -
Often the only difference between creative and uncreative people is self-perception. Creative people see themselves as creative and give themselves the freedom to create. Uncreative people do not think about creativity and do not give themselves the opportunity to create anything new.
Other important attitude-shift is to view problems as opportunities for improvement.Whenever you solve a problem, you have a better product or service to offer afterwards.
Other important attitude-shift is to view problems as opportunities for improvement.Whenever you solve a problem, you have a better product or service to offer afterwards.
Thursday, August 25, 2005
How do I know if I am, or could be, creative?
Every living, breathing human being has the potential to be creative. Each of us is a unique individual capable of creating...it comes with the human territory. We are, simply, quite a creative species.
All people can be creative but those who are recognized as being creative have an awareness that others don't. Creative people seem to be able to tune in more to their thought patterns and glean great ideas. People who do not use their creative potential don't know how to do this or aren't even aware it is possible. More Here
All people can be creative but those who are recognized as being creative have an awareness that others don't. Creative people seem to be able to tune in more to their thought patterns and glean great ideas. People who do not use their creative potential don't know how to do this or aren't even aware it is possible. More Here
Monday, August 22, 2005
Methods to enchance inner Creativity
but all of us can do small things in a great way."
There are many ways to reach this inner creative potential. First we need to put the ego to rest temporarily. Creative insight always feels like a momentary gap has been opened and a burst of light has surfaced.
*Self-Awareness: The practice of self-awareness runs through all the great religious and philosophical disciplines.This is a non-judgmental form of watching one's daily actions and thoughts in the present moment in a detached frame of mind.
* Soft-Focus: This is an excellent way to stop the thinking process in an immediate and busy environment.When you create a soft-focus the ego is temporarily set aside and the subconscious mind where inner creativity abounds can come to the surface.
* Light-Heartedness: This is an excellent frame of mind to keep the personality ego from getting a rigid hold on the psyche and stifling creative thought.Humor embellishes the absurd and unusual, and this is where creativity springs from.
Saturday, August 20, 2005
Few More Ways to Think about Creativity if U..
CAN OVERCOME THESE FAILURES
1. Failure to ask questions.
Taking things for granted can kill creativity.
2. Failure to record ideas.
You never know which ideas will help you tomorrow, so keep them all: in a notebook, on scraps of paper in a folder –- whatever method works.
3. Failure to revisit ideas.
Review your notes for past projects.
4. Failure to express ideas.
Articulate your thoughts to others (or to yourself when you’re alone).
5. Failure to think in new ways.
Get out of the box by doing something new: Instead of making a list of pros and cons.
6. Failure to wish for more.
Learn the value of wishful thinking.
7. Failure to try being creative.
Avoid the trap of thinking you aren’t a creative person.
8. Failure to keep trying.
So keep trying until you get the success.
1. Failure to ask questions.
Taking things for granted can kill creativity.
2. Failure to record ideas.
You never know which ideas will help you tomorrow, so keep them all: in a notebook, on scraps of paper in a folder –- whatever method works.
3. Failure to revisit ideas.
Review your notes for past projects.
4. Failure to express ideas.
Articulate your thoughts to others (or to yourself when you’re alone).
5. Failure to think in new ways.
Get out of the box by doing something new: Instead of making a list of pros and cons.
6. Failure to wish for more.
Learn the value of wishful thinking.
7. Failure to try being creative.
Avoid the trap of thinking you aren’t a creative person.
8. Failure to keep trying.
So keep trying until you get the success.
Friday, August 19, 2005
SugarCRM Expands Open Source Package
SugarCRM has added to its suite of commercial open source customer relationship management (CRM) products with the release of Sugar Enterprise Edition.
Priced at $499 per user, per year, Sugar Enterprise Edition also includes technical support. Key features include support for the Oracle 9i database, an offline client, advanced reporting, and a "Module Loader" for plug-and-play installation of third-party extensions.
Last month, SugarCRM marked the one-year anniversary of its launch by noting several milestones. SugarCRM said there have been more than 260,000 downloads of its Sugar Open Source Edition and 250 paying customers for its professional edition.
Also, some 575 open source developers are contributing new code and enhancements to the system, and nearly 9,500 participants are active in multiple forums sponsored by the company.
Why to create an innovation strategy?
As we all know that an organization is likely to spend too much money and time attempting to create new products and services that may not succeed. Worse, the new products or services generated may not align well with organizational strategic objectives. Thus the time and energy invested in the innovative process ends up wasted.And results in Costs rise.
The best way to prevent this from happening is to develop an innovation strategy.
An effective innovation strategy can help you to move beyond trying to extend old products to old markets, it can help you to create new markets and news uses for old products, create new products altogether, create new categories and even have a possible industry shifting breakthrough.
The best way to prevent this from happening is to develop an innovation strategy.
An effective innovation strategy can help you to move beyond trying to extend old products to old markets, it can help you to create new markets and news uses for old products, create new products altogether, create new categories and even have a possible industry shifting breakthrough.
Tuesday, August 16, 2005
Creative Problem Solving
Creativity that is already inside of you and the good news is that it can be done by anyone with any type of problem.All you have to do is follow these basic creative problem solving steps:
1. Visualize ultimate success.
2. Be still and know that the answer is within you.
3. Be patient.
4. Create a positive environment.
5. Take time away.
6. Engage others in the creative process.
7. Meditate.
1. Visualize ultimate success.
2. Be still and know that the answer is within you.
3. Be patient.
4. Create a positive environment.
5. Take time away.
6. Engage others in the creative process.
7. Meditate.
Friday, August 12, 2005
Simple steps to learn to be more Creative !
1. Be conscious of your nose
If you are thinking of nose in the middle of your face then you are wrong! ,‘conscious’ means to be aware of what’s going on around you, of being 'in the moment' and also being aware of the passage of time
2. Keep a writing pad to record your thoughts/ideas - no matter how stupid they seem at the time.
3. Think Visually (visual thinking)
The more views you have - the more perspectives
The more Perspectives - the more probabilities
The more Probabilities - the more potential solutions
The more Solutions - the more opportunities
The more Opportunities - the more BENEFITS!
4. Brainstorm Ideas
Use brainstorming to get as many ideas or alternatives as possible. The more you have to work on the better the outcome, aim for a minimum of 30.
5.Find multiple solutions or alternatives
6. Involve as many people as you can
Many hands make light work.
7. Make thinking effectively a habit
More Over here
If you are thinking of nose in the middle of your face then you are wrong! ,‘conscious’ means to be aware of what’s going on around you, of being 'in the moment' and also being aware of the passage of time
2. Keep a writing pad to record your thoughts/ideas - no matter how stupid they seem at the time.
3. Think Visually (visual thinking)
The more views you have - the more perspectives
The more Perspectives - the more probabilities
The more Probabilities - the more potential solutions
The more Solutions - the more opportunities
The more Opportunities - the more BENEFITS!
4. Brainstorm Ideas
Use brainstorming to get as many ideas or alternatives as possible. The more you have to work on the better the outcome, aim for a minimum of 30.
5.Find multiple solutions or alternatives
6. Involve as many people as you can
Many hands make light work.
7. Make thinking effectively a habit
More Over here
Thursday, August 11, 2005
Something GOOD ABOUT Creativity
Something GOOD ABOUT Creativity
Creativity just happens. No one can predict or control who will be creative, what the next creative act will be, or when it will happen. The best thing your company can do is to prepare for creativity to happen.
You do not need to go out and hire creative people. Your present employees are very capable of being creative.
You do not need to hire expensive consultants to teach your employees how to be creative.
Creativity does not depend on age, length of employment, or the type of work the employee performs.
Creative acts come in all sorts of sizes and shapes. A creative act can be simple as well as complex.
You do not need to pay people more money to be creative; in fact, it may make them less creative if you do.
More over here
Creativity just happens. No one can predict or control who will be creative, what the next creative act will be, or when it will happen. The best thing your company can do is to prepare for creativity to happen.
You do not need to go out and hire creative people. Your present employees are very capable of being creative.
You do not need to hire expensive consultants to teach your employees how to be creative.
Creativity does not depend on age, length of employment, or the type of work the employee performs.
Creative acts come in all sorts of sizes and shapes. A creative act can be simple as well as complex.
You do not need to pay people more money to be creative; in fact, it may make them less creative if you do.
More over here
Tuesday, August 09, 2005
How the shuttle returns to Earth
To return to Earth the space shuttle must make a series of complicated manouevres to align itself into the correct position to achieve a safe descent.
How the shuttle returns to Earth
1. The shuttle flies upside down in orbit to control its heating.
2. To re-enter the atmosphere, the shuttle is turned tail first to the direction of travel, and fires its engines to slow its speed.
3. The orbiter is then flipped the right way up and enters the top layer of the atmosphere at about a 40-degree angle from horizontal with its wings level.
4. The orientation keeps its black thermal tiles facing the majority of the heat - as high 1,650C (3,000F) on the leading edges of the wings and nose.
5. As its speed drops, the shuttle starts to fly more like an aircraft, using its rudder and wing flaps for control. It banks sharply to slow its speed still further
6. The shuttle falls from a height of more than 360km at speeds that top Mach 30, and at an angle of 19 degrees, far steeper than that of a commercial aircraft. The spacecraft comes to a dead stop half a world a way from where it began the descent.
Now, cellphones at Rs 1,000
In a development that may lead to mobile handsets being sold for as little as Rs 1,000, Texas Instruments on Monday launched the world's first single chip solution for cellular phones.
"The operations of a mobile phone, which were performed by several chips, have been packed in a single chip, allowing GSM and GPRS phone manufacturers to cut production costs by up to 30 per cent,"Texas Instruments team in Bangalore has developed this technology.
"The operations of a mobile phone, which were performed by several chips, have been packed in a single chip, allowing GSM and GPRS phone manufacturers to cut production costs by up to 30 per cent,"Texas Instruments team in Bangalore has developed this technology.
Friday, August 05, 2005
Mind-boggling Figures
The figures are mind-boggling. There are over 4 mn websites that offer pornography. That is 12 per cent of the total sites in the www domain. Daily request for porn touch 68 mn globally and the online porn industry is worth $57 bn.
A recent Times of India report mentioned that in India the porn industry is likely to touch $1 bn. In Delhi’s Palika Bazaar alone there are 1,000 buyers of pornographic material and daily revenue from sales are anywhere between Rs 60,000 and Rs 1 lakh.
A recent Times of India report mentioned that in India the porn industry is likely to touch $1 bn. In Delhi’s Palika Bazaar alone there are 1,000 buyers of pornographic material and daily revenue from sales are anywhere between Rs 60,000 and Rs 1 lakh.
Wednesday, August 03, 2005
Tuesday, August 02, 2005
Yahoo,Inc. has signed a deal ,ABC News and CNN.com
Yahoo,Inc. has signed a deal to use video news from ABC News and CNN.com on its news site, CNN.com will offer daily video clips and ABC will offer on-demand video content,
Monday, July 25, 2005
Now, Google gets a map for the moon
Google has come up with an interesting way to honor the first manned moon landing, which took place 36 years ago on July 20, 1969. The company has added some NASA imagery to its Maps interface, which enables the users to surf the exact spot where man first landed on Moon.
Google Moon is basically an extension of Google Maps and Google Earth and uses NASA imagery to surf Moon’s surface. You can also check out the exact spots where Apollo astronauts landed.
It can be accessed by clicking on the temporary moon logo on the Google homepage or by visiting http://moon.google.com . The map allows the user to zoom in and out, but you might be in for a surprise if you zoom in too close.
Google Moon is basically an extension of Google Maps and Google Earth and uses NASA imagery to surf Moon’s surface. You can also check out the exact spots where Apollo astronauts landed.
It can be accessed by clicking on the temporary moon logo on the Google homepage or by visiting http://moon.google.com . The map allows the user to zoom in and out, but you might be in for a surprise if you zoom in too close.
Thursday, July 21, 2005
Sources of new ideas for Entrepreneurs
Entrepreneurs frequently use the following sources of ideas:
1. Consumers– the potential consumer should be the final focal point of ideas for the entrepreneurs. The attention to inputs from potential consumers can take the form of informally monitoring potential ideas or needs or formally arranging for consumers to have an opportunity to express their concerns. Care needs to be taken to ensure that the new idea or the needs represents a large enough market to support a new venture.
2. Existing Companies– with the help of an established formal methods potential entrepreneurs and intrapreneurs can evaluate competitive products & services on the market which may result in new and more market appealing products and services.
3. Distribution channels– members of the distribution channels are familiar with the needs of the market and hence can prove to be excellent sources of new ideas. Not only do the channel members help in finding out unmet or partially met demands leading to new products and services, they also help in marketing the offerings so developed.
4. Government– it can be a source of new product ideas in two ways firstly, the patent office files contain numerous product possibilities that can assist entrepreneurs in obtaining specific product information, and secondly, response to government regulations can come in the form of new product ideas.
5. Research & development– Entrepreneur’s own R&D is the largest source of new idea. A formal and well-equipped research and development department enables the entrepreneur to conceive and develop successful new product ideas.
1. Consumers– the potential consumer should be the final focal point of ideas for the entrepreneurs. The attention to inputs from potential consumers can take the form of informally monitoring potential ideas or needs or formally arranging for consumers to have an opportunity to express their concerns. Care needs to be taken to ensure that the new idea or the needs represents a large enough market to support a new venture.
2. Existing Companies– with the help of an established formal methods potential entrepreneurs and intrapreneurs can evaluate competitive products & services on the market which may result in new and more market appealing products and services.
3. Distribution channels– members of the distribution channels are familiar with the needs of the market and hence can prove to be excellent sources of new ideas. Not only do the channel members help in finding out unmet or partially met demands leading to new products and services, they also help in marketing the offerings so developed.
4. Government– it can be a source of new product ideas in two ways firstly, the patent office files contain numerous product possibilities that can assist entrepreneurs in obtaining specific product information, and secondly, response to government regulations can come in the form of new product ideas.
5. Research & development– Entrepreneur’s own R&D is the largest source of new idea. A formal and well-equipped research and development department enables the entrepreneur to conceive and develop successful new product ideas.
Tuesday, July 19, 2005
Methods of generating new ideas for entrepreneurs
The following are some of the key methods to help generate end test new ideas:
1. Focus Groups – these are the groups of individuals providing information in a structural format. A moderator leads a group of people through an open, in-depth discussion rather than simply asking questions to solicit participant response. Such groups form comments in open-end in-depth discussions for a new product area that can result in market success. In addition to generating new ideas, the focus group is an excellent source for initially screening ideas and concept.
2. Brainstorming – it is a group method for obtaining new ideas and solutions. It is based on the fact that people can be stimulated to greater creativity by meeting with others and participating in organized group experiences. The characteristics of this method are keeping criticism away; free wheeling of idea, high quantity of ideas, combinations and improvements of ideas. Such type of session should be fun with no scope for domination and inhibition. Brainstorming has a greater probability of success when the effort focuses on specific product or market area.
3. Problem inventory analysis– it is a method for obtaining new ideas and solutions by focusing on problems. This analysis uses individuals in a manner that is analogous to focus groups to generate new product areas. However, instead of generating new ideas, the consumers are provided with list of problems and then asked to have discussion over it and it ultimately results in an entirely new product idea.
1. Focus Groups – these are the groups of individuals providing information in a structural format. A moderator leads a group of people through an open, in-depth discussion rather than simply asking questions to solicit participant response. Such groups form comments in open-end in-depth discussions for a new product area that can result in market success. In addition to generating new ideas, the focus group is an excellent source for initially screening ideas and concept.
2. Brainstorming – it is a group method for obtaining new ideas and solutions. It is based on the fact that people can be stimulated to greater creativity by meeting with others and participating in organized group experiences. The characteristics of this method are keeping criticism away; free wheeling of idea, high quantity of ideas, combinations and improvements of ideas. Such type of session should be fun with no scope for domination and inhibition. Brainstorming has a greater probability of success when the effort focuses on specific product or market area.
3. Problem inventory analysis– it is a method for obtaining new ideas and solutions by focusing on problems. This analysis uses individuals in a manner that is analogous to focus groups to generate new product areas. However, instead of generating new ideas, the consumers are provided with list of problems and then asked to have discussion over it and it ultimately results in an entirely new product idea.
Monday, July 18, 2005
Guess the google
Have you seen the cool "Guess the Google" game that Grant Robinson has created? It picks a keyword at random, searches Google's huge repository of images gathered from the web, and places them in a grid of 20 images. You then have 20 seconds to guess what the keyword or theme of these images is. It's quite challenging and addictive!
Friday, July 15, 2005
Cultivating the habit of innovation
To most of us, innovation is a process executed at "special" times when we need to break new ground. Ironically, at those times, we're usually too rusty to be innovative. Why should we save our best efforts for rare occasions?
Awareness
The first trait integral to the habit of innovation is awareness-of yourself and external circumstances.
Curiosity
Curiosity flows seamlessly from awareness. Once you open yourself to the nuances of life, it's hard not to find things that fascinate you and to begin wondering why.
To be curious, you must give yourself the freedom to risk and make mistakes.
Focus
Awareness and curiosity expand your options, but once you move toward a solution, you need to focus-to go beneath the surface and give full attention to what you're doing.
Initiative
Awareness awakens us to what's going on, curiosity lets us gather ideas, and focus lets us nurture particular ideas. But the innovative spirit without action is like the proverbial tree falling in the forest with no one to hear it. Initiative to act gives purpose and momentum to the habit of innovation.
Putting It Together: The Habit of Innovation
Thursday, July 14, 2005
Yahoo to carry live space shuttle feeds from NASA
Internet media company Yahoo Inc. will provide live Web video streams of the return of the U.S. space agency's shuttle, the first mission since the 2003 Columbia disaster, NASA said on Tuesday.
Yahoo will make official online video from the 12-day Discovery shuttle space mission available in Microsoft Corp. Windows Media format to millions of Internet users at http://www.nasa.gov/ and on Yahoo's own site.
Yahoo (YHOO.O: Quote, Profile, Research) also will promote video from the space mission, slated to launch on July 13, throughout its heavily-trafficked network of sites.
NASA said the agreements enable it to provide Internet access to the feeds at no additional cost to taxpayers.
NASA shuttles have been grounded since Columbia disintegrated over Texas on Feb. 1, 2003. All seven crew members died.
Wednesday, July 13, 2005
India is now 10th largest economy
India is now amongst the top ten economies in the world.According to the World Bank gross domestic product rankings for the year 2004, India stands the tenth largest economy in the world with a GDP of $691.876 billion.The table below gives the rankings for the top 20 economies in the world.The rest of the rankings can be had at the World Bank Web site for the GDP figures:
http://www.worldbank.org/data/quickreference/quickref.html
http://www.worldbank.org/data/quickreference/quickref.html
Total GDP 2004 | ||
Rank | Country | ($ billion) |
1 | United States | 11,667.515 |
2 | Japan | 4,623.398 |
3 | Germany | 2,714.418 |
4 | United Kingdom | 2,140.898 |
5 | France | 2,002.582 |
6 | Italy | 1,672.302 |
7 | China | 1,649.329 |
8 | Spain | 991.442 |
9 | Canada | 979.764 |
10 | India | 691.876 |
11 | South Korea | 679.674 |
12 | Mexico | 676.497 |
13 | Australia | 631.256 |
14 | Brazil | 604.855 |
15 | Russia | 582.395 |
16 | Netherlands | 577.260 |
17 | Switzerland | 359.465 |
18 | Belgium | 349.830 |
19 | Sweden | 346.404 |
20 | Turkey | 301.950 |
Source: World Bank, July 2005
Taiwan is not included in the World Bank statistics. Rankings include only those economies with confirmed GDP estimates.
Kolkata! India's new IT hub
* Wipro, which set up a sprawling 17 acre campus in Kolkata's Salt lake in November 2004, is now planning to get another 50 acre plot in Rajarhat, the proposed IT hub in east Kolkata.
* Tata Consultancy Services is also eyeing similar space in the park.
* That is not all. Major IT companies such as Satyam Computers, ITC Infotech, HSBC Electronic Data Processing India (HDPI), ICICI OneSource and Gecis will set up their centres in the city shortly.
*
Even the existing companies like IBM, Cognizant Technology Solutions (CTS) and SkyTECH Solutions are on an expansion drive. In fact the state IT department promises to spring some more surprises in the next one year.
Does it means that Bangalore is loosing its CHARM !
Tuesday, July 12, 2005
Interesting facts about Interesting people...
Hitler loved animals, and was quite merciful towards them. History's most feared man was also a strict vegetarian.
Pictured here in his judo gear, Putin was originally turned down by his judo instructors. The teachers didn't think that 14-year-old Vladimir was tall enough.But young Vladimir didn't lose hope. Today, Russian President Putin has a black belt in judo!
Late Yasser Arafat, leader of the Palestine Liberation Organisation, was deeply interested in politics, so much so that it took him seven years to graduate!
Not without a sense of humour, Yasser is known to have guests wait so he can watch his favourite television show, Tom & Jerry!
At age four, the Dalai Lama was named the Supreme head of Tibet!
Having authored over 500 books, his primary hobby still remains collecting and repairing watches!
India to outsource maths coaching to U.S.
The latest business to be outsourced to India in the US is maths coaching.Into the breach steps a handful of Indian companies such as Career Launcher India Ltd, which provide maths tutoring through two US online tutoring companies and directly to students," the article informed.
Software developed by Career Launcher, says the article, allows teachers and students to talk to each other during the live session. They can even see each other through a Web camera.
The report noted that two things have led to this unique outsourcing: One, US students are doing badly in maths. American 15-year-olds ranked 24th among 29 industrialized countries in a study of maths skills released last year by the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD).
Software developed by Career Launcher, says the article, allows teachers and students to talk to each other during the live session. They can even see each other through a Web camera.
The report noted that two things have led to this unique outsourcing: One, US students are doing badly in maths. American 15-year-olds ranked 24th among 29 industrialized countries in a study of maths skills released last year by the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD).
Monday, July 11, 2005
Ratio of women in IT industry rising steadily
Its not just in Western countries that IT industry has employed more women. The trend is changing in India too. The proportion of women in the Indian IT services workforce is rising steadily, and may touch 30 percent this year compared to 24 percent in 2004.
"We are definitely seeing an increase in the ratio of women in the Indian software services industry. In 2004, the proportion of male versus female workers in IT services was 76:24, while in contrast, in the BPO industry, the ratio stood at 31:69. Based on our interaction with various IT companies, we estimate the ratio this year would stand at about 70:30 in IT software services," Kiran Karnik, President of Nasscom, said.
This is quite interesting as increasing number of women in such a segment indicates that more women are entering professional streams such as engineering, B. Tech and M C A.
"We are definitely seeing an increase in the ratio of women in the Indian software services industry. In 2004, the proportion of male versus female workers in IT services was 76:24, while in contrast, in the BPO industry, the ratio stood at 31:69. Based on our interaction with various IT companies, we estimate the ratio this year would stand at about 70:30 in IT software services," Kiran Karnik, President of Nasscom, said.
This is quite interesting as increasing number of women in such a segment indicates that more women are entering professional streams such as engineering, B. Tech and M C A.
Friday, July 08, 2005
Yahoo offers text msg mobile Web search
Yahoo Inc is rolling out a service that lets users in the United States tap the Internet media giant's Web search using text messaging, matching a service now offered by rival Google Inc.
Yahoo also said that it was expanding its Yahoo Search on Mobile, which was previously available only on advanced phones such as the Treo. Now, the service yields a full Web search on virtually any phone with a color screen.
The latest mobile search move by Yahoo comes as Web search firms are looking to boost business by providing services to users while they're on the go and away from their personal computers.
Both the SMS Web search and the Yahoo Search on Mobile services use shortcuts that take less time for users to input their queries.
For example
A user would send a text message to shortcode 92466, which spells Yahoo on a telephone keypad, with the text "pizza 94104" to retrieve a list of pizza restaurants near that Zip code.
Thursday, July 07, 2005
What not to say in your proposals
Instead of being afraid of saying something wrong that causes you to lose the whole proposal, you should be more concerned with saying a bunch of little things that dilute your message. This happens far more often. Maybe it's because people take a while to get warmed up before they start writing anything decent. Many of the examples below are things that people often write out of habit to help them get started. You can write a better proposal just by breaking these habits.
It's not about you. Your proposal should be about your customer. Instead of saying:
* When you were founded
* Who the founder was
* How much you have grown
* How long you have been in business
* How big you are
* How many employees you have
* How many cleared staff you have
* How many locations you have
* What your mission is
* About your other customers
* Where you are located
* We're ISO certified
* We're certified in...
Say how your size, age, location, or other qualification will benefit the customer. Make it about them and not about you.
Miscellaneous Don'ts
* Don't tell the customer what their needs are. If you feel the need to document the requirement, do it in the form of a statement about what you are going to do to fulfill the requirement.
* Don't summarize requirement. You can show your understanding by stating what you will do to fulfill the client's needs. When you summarize the requirement, it's redundant with the RFP and runs the risk of being patronizing or just plain wrong. When you say what you are going to do and how the customer will benefit, they will recognize it as something they need (or at least something close).
* Don't use passive voice. It's a grammar thing. If you don't know what it is, look it up. It's important.
Google to back broadband venture
Google Inc., Goldman Sachs Group Inc and Hearst Corp are investing about $100 million in Current Communications Group, a start-up that offers high-speed Internet connections over electricity lines, The Wall Street Journal reported on Thursday.
Tuesday, July 05, 2005
Which Indian IT company is the best? Can you guess!
Think scale. That's the caption on Infosys' annual report. Tata Consultancy Services and Wipro would agree. All three have been growing relentlessly, cashing in on the outsourcing wave. TCS, which has been around for two decades, leads in revenues.
However, it will take a combination of a robust business model, savvy marketing skills and the ability to read the market to scale new heights. Which one has what it will take to succeed from here on?
So here is the Performance bar. Will help you to find the Answer.
However, it will take a combination of a robust business model, savvy marketing skills and the ability to read the market to scale new heights. Which one has what it will take to succeed from here on?
So here is the Performance bar. Will help you to find the Answer.
Internet may not remain free, fear US technophiles
A pair of Supreme Court rulings this week is stoking fears that the internet is becoming an ever-more centralised platform for entrenched corporate interests, the antithesis of the digital commons envisioned by technophiles and civil libertarians.
But others predict that innovation will actually be encouraged by the rulings, since they create a framework of sorts for how to build businesses in the digital age.
The American Civil Liberties Union argues that the rulings portend a worst-case scenario in which oligopolistic broadband giants control websites, e-mail and internet telephone services. That could turn the internet into the opposite of what it is today: an inexpensive forum for public expression easily accessible to independent voices, from bloggers to unaffiliated political candidates.
But others predict that innovation will actually be encouraged by the rulings, since they create a framework of sorts for how to build businesses in the digital age.
The American Civil Liberties Union argues that the rulings portend a worst-case scenario in which oligopolistic broadband giants control websites, e-mail and internet telephone services. That could turn the internet into the opposite of what it is today: an inexpensive forum for public expression easily accessible to independent voices, from bloggers to unaffiliated political candidates.
Monday, July 04, 2005
Open source industry group offers free server software to Australian schools
Open Source Victoria (OSV), an industry cluster of more than 60 open source and free software providers, has responded to a group of IT teachers who want a simple way to test and deploy Linux servers in schools with a free server software CD.
OSV has developed a free product called LiveLAMP, which is a bootable CD that turns a spare computer into a Linux development server for students to practice and publish programming exercises in over a dozen languages with hundreds of development tools.
Friday, July 01, 2005
Sun distances itself from Linux
Sun Microsystems is scaling back its desktop Linux plans, the company said at JavaOne this week.
The decision means that Sun's Java Desktop System (JDS) will in future be marketed less as a Linux platform and more for Solaris and Sun Ray installations aimed at developers, said John Loiacono, Sun's executive vice-president of software, at the San Francisco trade show.
JDS was initially based on Suse Linux, now part of Novell. Sun first introduced a Solaris version of JDS in October 2004. "You can see what we introduced last week as the first step in expanding the platform support for JDS and extending that user interface to Sun products," said Susan Jefferies, product line manager with Sun's User Software Group, at the time. "We're definitely merging to single user interfaces across the product line."
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