What alphabet do you hate?

Do you have any special alphabet that you hate and you want to disable that in your keyboard? It's easy to do. Of course, you must be using Fedora. All you need to do is the following.

1. Log in as super user.
2. Open the file /etc/inputrc. You will see the following two lines.

#do not bell on tab-completion
#set bell-style none

3. Uncomment the first line and put the specific alphabet at the starting of that line.
4. Save the file and restart your machine.
5. Now, try typing that letter.

We, at our office, have found this accidentally. All this happened because one of my colleague wants to disable those annoying system beeps. To do that, one has to uncomment the second line in the above file. Accidentally, she has uncommented the first line too, and the letter 'd' stopped working on her keyboard. Our system administrator had a tough time to figure it out, but yours truly has cracked it using his instincts ;-)

Man woman make love ;-)

Wait a minute... this post is nowhere related to man, or woman, or for that matter, love making! A while ago, when we met for a short discussion, one of my colleague told about these funny commands in linux!

1. man woman
result: No manual entry for woman

2. make love
result: *** No rule to make target `love'. Stop.

yes, that made our day ;-)

random words from my blog

I tried wordle.net to create this one. Just for fun!

Up... up... and above - Photographic weekends #21

Captured this one at Colva beach, Goa. Though its momentary, how good it feels when we are flying in the air!

Mission 'amla fruits'

Today, while we were having post-lunch walk. We saw one amla tree and we want to pluck some, but there was no route to climb up the tree. I asked for permission from the house (tree) owners. Mario has planned for this pyramid. Sivaram and myself have formed the base. Suvarna has taken the photos. All of us have relished them while continuing our post-lunch walk. Had fun!

hOLi है!

This was made with collective effort of our team members on the day of HOLI. Thanks to all of them for getting their hands colorfully dirty to materialize my crazy thought!

Ghostly me - Photographic weekends #19

I was experimenting with the shutter speed settings... so is this ghostly photo with 3 seconds of exposure.

PS: I haven't clicked anything interesting lately. So is this funny thing ;-)

Rubiks cube family... expanding!

I have been friends with this wonderful puzzle game since mid 1999. During those days this simple fact, that it can be rotated in all 3 directions without breaking, has made me so fascinated towards this game. I remember how desperately I've played with this on the very first day. It took almost a month for me to completely solve this. Huh, what a joy that I've felt when I've completely solved this. Mathematically, the total permutations of a solvable (3×3×3) original cube is given by: or 43 quintillion, in short. Highly unimaginable to list all those configurations by hand. The facts and figures of this game are always interesting. When I read that there are people who can solve this game just in 7.08 seconds I couldn't believe it. There is an extensive mathematical research that has taken place on how to solve Rubik's cube. It was found that any random configuration of the cube can be solved in just 26 steps. You can read the article here, quite mathlicated though! Well... that's just the tip an iceberg.

One fine day, when I was browsing for information on Rubik's cube, I came to know that there are 4X4X4 and 5X5X5 versions are available with fully functional models. Recently I have seen videos of 7X7X7 and 9X9X9 version of the game in fully functional form. What an amazing design. Just try to imagine its internal design. You'll surely come out with an expression of wow.

No... that's not all of it. There are softwares available to play the game online. If you are too bored and have already solved the smaller versions like say 9X9X9 manually, you can play the higher versions virtually. I was dumbstruck to see the videos of how people have solved up to 100X100X100. Checkout here to see how 20X20X20 is solved.

No... that's not all of it yet! There is a whole family of twisty games which come in various shapes (see the video of dodecahedron here, and read about Pyraminx here), sizes and complexities. I feel like buying all of those and try solving one by one! Huh, too high an ambition for an amateur like me!

Bottom line is... we humans, though very lazy, though very arrogant, though very egoistic and blah blah blah, are blessed with this powerful brute force. I guess, that's what is making us understand this mother nature step by step. If nature is not this beautiful and complicated, all our research efforts, and life in general, will lack motivation.

Life can be funny!

I did some crazy thing a week ago. We are around 100+ heads in our office and there are only 4 urinals available. Because of the air-condition or just the natural urge, people do visit these so frequently. Lately, I got so frustrated with the way they spill it there. I don't know how many companies do the job of pasting instructions of how to use western toilets, but somehow I felt that there is a need to instruct about how to use urinals properly. I got this idea of putting up a funny-poster somewhere, and pasted the following poster.

Everybody was coming and asking the admin-person about who has pasted that. Huh, I think people are not ready to stop spilling. Instead they are insecure about their manhood. Read more about this insecurity here. Yesterday, one of my colleagues has drawn a cartoon depicting the situation. I am posting it here, just for fun!
Have a fun-filled Friday!

trip to jog falls...

We made yet another weekend trip... this time, a bit longer!!! my future wife, Kalyani, along with her group of friends, has planned this trip... jog-falls is located in north Karnataka... it is said to be the largest water falls in the country... nearby places to be visited are...

Honnavara: a beach cum water-falls location... the beach here is extremely beautiful, and untouched... you can play from morning to evening without any disturbance!

Murudeshwar: located near a beach... famous for its largest Shiva statue in the country...

Here are some of the snapshots, taken during the trip...

Jog-falls... though not in their full flow!!!

Backwaters near Murudeshwar...

Shiva statue, located in Murudeshwar...

PS: special thanks to Pavan, who has taken the initiative for this trip, and planned with utmost care!!!

yet another weekend trip!!!

To beat the monotony, our CRL roadies have hit the roads to make yet another trip... this time, the location is Lohagad fort, which is located around 55km from Pune... the ride was quite memorable, and the trek was enjoyable!!! few of the snapshots taken there!

first monsoon trip...

After two months of soaring temperatures, monsoon has finally hit... cool winds, humid air, beautiful clouds, refreshing rain... and so are joyful thoughts... we've hit the roads again on our bikes, covering more than 180km one side to reach Harihareshwar, a beach cum hill spot... the ride was excellent... roads were not so good, though... but, the risky bike ride for such a long distance, and on ghat roads with excellent scenic beauty was something worth experimenting! I am uploading few good views taken amidst the journey...

happy monsoon season!

ad-sense! #1

i came upon this beautiful and nicely done ad yesterday... i felt that this ad has succeeded in making an impression!

100 bucks to save an hour...

After owning a two-wheeler, I was thinking about how to deal with a traffic police if he tries to stop me and do all nonsense. I have managed to get a learner's license before buying my two-wheeler. Though I am a decently good rider, I am a little skeptical about my managerial skills on road, particularly at the signal points. Whenever there is a traffic police, I used to avoid eye contact with him and try to look more experienced and careless about his existence. Of course, I found this to be useful, because whenever he picked up some random victims, I was not there among them. Finally, I had my first encounter last weekend. It all happened due to my fat-friend who has wrongly instructed me to take a right turn at Sancheti Hospital junction. I found nobody taking right turn at that junction, so paused for a while before coming to a decision. Meanwhile, the traffic constable, having an eye on me, waved me his hand. Having wrongly interpreting that hand signal, I took a right turn. That made the fish directly fall in the net.

C1=constable1, C2=constable2, G=our good old author.
Let me put the conversation in English for convenience.

constable(C): ^%*^(_)(_)*^#^$%&((*)(&^^*%*&^*(_) (he is speaking something in Marathi)
G: Hindi or English please.
C1: No right turn here... park your vehicle aside.
G: (puzzled***) But, I didn't take right turn. You only motioned me to come this way!!!
C1: Show me the lisence.
G: I have recently given my driving test. I am expecting it soon. Here is the receipt.
C1: (taken the receipt, confirming his earning from me) Yeah, this will do.
G: Hey, come on... I didn't take turn on my own, you misdirected me.
C1: Do you think I am mentally retarded to direct you wrongly. Come, and talk to our inspector.
G: Uff... **parks the vehicle aside and headed towards C2**
C2: What's your name?
G: That's written on the license receipt!!!
C2: that's smart. Don't you know right turn is not allowed here.
G: I know, but your constable only misdirected me to here.
C2: Is he mental to do so?
G: You should be knowing this!
C2: Do you have PUC certificate?
G: Here it is!!!
C2: When did you take this?
G: that's written on the certificate!!! I don't have time. tell me how much you want. I will pay and go!!!
C2: This PUC is expired. You have to pay 800 rupees as fine for this.
G: I know that PUC's validity is for six months. and, it is only 5 months old.
C2: No, now it is seventh month after your PUC is issued.
G: *gurrrrrr* Come on, months and their count don't change for your convenience.
C2: *pretends to be counting his fingers* no, already seventh month is running.
G: *Let me show you, idiot* Here is the list of months names in order. Now, agree that my PUC is still valid.
C2: What's your name?
G: *fuming* this is second time you are asking me this question!!!
C2: Look mister, fine for wrong turn is 600 rupees.
G: That's smart. I know, I didn't commit a mistake. Tell me how much you want now?
C2: 200.
G: No, 100..
C2: OK, let me accept this for now.
G: Can I take right turn now???
C2: You can do anything now...
G: *I wish I have the power to slap you once*

Cursing my fat-friend for wrong directions and scolding myself for blindly following constable's hand-signals, I left the place (obviously, in the wrong direction). Still, I feel that I've managed it pretty well. Because, I was on my way to HSBC bank for paying credit card bill, failing which I will be charged at least 500 rupees as interest!!!

PS: Moral of the story, when you are caught by traffic constable, don't hesitate to bargain as quickly as possible. Because, the climax of this kinda story will almost always leads to paying bribe to this guy!! May god bless our country!!!

yummy yummy...

after five long months of boring food outside, we have finally started cooking on our own... it's not boring after all... in fact, it is quite interesting to experiment on whatever knowledge we have... so far the culinary experimentation is going fine... and I am so very happy that I am proving myself to be a good cook (an important habit that one has to have to become a good husband in future)... here I am with my favorite dish 'upma', in a mouth-watering quality, prepared by me last night!!! what else is needed for a good dinner? of course, a good company!!! anybody wants to taste this? you should come to our house ;-)

this is how one can kill time (of others)!!!

nimoi thai, kal blaz surm dianz!!! plai triu kloptambas lalab?? moshi kalai surmi vebli grai dol... wina kolpi mentdz indei :-) u kibr tiy, thal sum grani slay? nil kolpi thai triu kloptambas vebli.

anybody knows what this means? even I don't know... on one of those boring occasions, I got this idea through aprilslady and thought that I should give it a try... I have typed whatever I feel like... but, I have taken care to include punctuation marks here and there to deceive people... Out of 16 people I sent this mail, eight people have replied... in different ways!!!

Surya: baboi .......... entidhi emi ardham kaledhu :D (Oy my god... what is this? I didn't understand anything!!!) ha hha, it seems he didn't understand that this is a joke...

Girish: what is this? what happened? he is always too bothered about my mental health :-(

Deepika: eee baasha enti babu?????? (what's this language dude?) that's typical Deepika's response!!!

Arun: Hai Gopal, I tried to crack this but not at all useful. First thru Google translater and then second after rearranging... What is this first anyway?? Tell me some hint to crack this... that's how IISc scientists try to solve everything under the earth, no matter whether the solution exists or not!!!

Uday: entidi?? (what is this?) looks like he is annoyed with this confusing message!!!

Sivaram: this is too good!!! Siva always takes any new thing with a positive attitude!!!

Deepa: didnt understand anything :( tell me which language Deepa is too keen in learning foreign languages these days... looks like my experiment has aroused some enthusiasm in her!!!

Aarthi: helo.. what language is this?something wrong with u!! huh, yet another person who is suspecting my mental health!!!

I think the rest of the people might have thought it was one of those junk mails they receive every day... or they are too busy to give it a try... or they are too scared to ask for what it really means :-)

weekend masti...

hill with flowers...

koyna river...

during boat shire in koyna river...

view from the ghat roads...

now... this is called beauty of nature!!!

Once I got my first kiss, life at Pune became more comfortable and enjoyable... my long lasted dream of roaming on a bike and going for long rides has come true... recently, we had two trips... on the first weekend, we have visited Balaji temple located in Narayanpur around 45km from Pune... early morning ride on Pune-Bangalore highway was too good... leaving aside whether one believes in god or not, the place is worth watching... moreover, unlike many other temples, this one is being maintained very clean... an exact replica of Tirupati Balaji temple... all corners of the temple are being maintained with so much of care... they are cleaning the area with vacuum cleaner... not using any haarathi or kumkum to maintain the cleanliness... unlike other temples, you can get a free laddu for free here... security is tight and the place is extremely pollution-free and clean... if anybody is planning to get married in a temple and also want the place to be clean and noise-free, i guess this is the right place!!!

the following weekend, we risked with a long ride on bikes... we have travelled around 400km in two days... visited places like Panchgani, Mahabaleshwar, Tapola etc... if one starts early in the morning from Pune, the ride on those misty roads will be awsome... going through the tunnel of around 1.5km span will leave one with a feeling like travelling in a video game... the highway is four laned, and two-lanes sometimes... after travelling around 60km from Pune, there will be a ghat road, which is a single line two-way road, which spans around 20 plus km, offering you spectacular view of the surround greenery... once the ghat is road is over and the road is straight, there will be a right turn which leads to Panchgani... the road, though not comparable to highway, is good enough for a comfortable ride... once Wai is crossed, ghat road starts again...

Things that must not be missed there...

Parachute gliding!!! they charge 1500 bucks per person, but the feeling of flying with wings is worth more than what they charge... once, gliding starts, the floating feeling is really awsome... one can comfortably call their loved ones from the sky... it is a different experience altogether!!!

Table land... finding a flat land on a hill top, that too at an altitude of more than a kilometer is rare... this table land, located at Panchgani spans more than 3-4 square kilometers... one can see the beauty of the nearby river and greenery from there... no matter how sunny is the day, you won't get sweatting or thirsty... the cool breeze will relax us like anything!!!

Tapola... again, one has to travel around 25km from Mahabaleshwar on ghat roads to reach this place... the ghat road is almost completely traffic-free... the ride is too comfortable and thrilling... one should not miss the freshly made tea by the local grandpa... on the way, there is a point called "siva darshan", from where the river can be viewed in the best angle!!! the road reaches an end at the boating point... the 45 minutes boat shire in the koina river is worth trying... one should not miss the sunset view from any of those ghat road turnings... instead of going for hotels in the Mahabaleshwar, we have chosen to stay in Puja farm house, located in the middle of Tapola and Mahabaleshwar... the night stay is too cool... there is nothing but cool breeze, silence, moonlight, and those melodies by nightingales!!! one cannot escape those memories of loved ones if it so happened that they come here without them!!! perfect location for a honeymoon ;-)
Pratapgarh fort... around 22km from Mahabaleshwar... this place, where shivaji used to rule long ago, is worth visiting... butter milk served here should not be missed... there will be lot of spring water streams on the ghat road way to this place from Mahabaleshwar... it will be interesting to see the strongly built fort and their architectural marvel in those good old days!!! there are places where you can have fun of trying horse riding!!!
if one has the energy to ride on bikes for two days continuously, and has a heart to feel the beauty of nature, this trip is worth making... October to May is the right time to make this trip... Now, I have started liking Pune life... not because Pune is good, but being the places around Pune are good!!! All you need to enjoy life here are, good pay, bunch of friends, bikes and a little bit of enthusiasm!!!

life can be funny...

the other day, some X was talking to me... this is to know how wild guesses could be...

X: sooooo, you are miste...r Krissshnaa???
G: no, I am Gopal...
X: oh... I thought you must be Krishna... sooooo, you have finissshed your doo..ctorate???
G: no, I did my masters...
X: oooh... masters innnnn compu..ter science???
G: no, masters in chemical engineering...
X: oooh... ok ok... sooooo, yoooou did your masters from IITB???
G: no, I did from IISc...
X: soooo... you went to masters after sommmmmme work experience???
G: no, I went directly after my undergrad...
X: soooo... you must be from UP... right???
G: no, I am from AP...
X: ooooh... i thought you are from UP... sooo, where in AP???
G: Kakinada
X: Kakinada??? it is near Hyderabad... right???
G: nooooo... it is near Visakhapatnam...
X: ooooh... Visakhapatnam is in AP???
G: hmmm... one of the beautiful cities of the state!!!
X: ok Gopal.... if you have any doubts, you can come to me for clarifications...
G: sure... i will come to you anytime if i have doubts...
X: no... not any time, but sometimes!!!

ufff... there ends the conversation ;-)

boring...

BoRinG bOrInG BOriNg boRInG BoRiNg bORinG BOrRInG boRInG BoRiNg bOrInG BOrInG boRInG BoRiNg bORinG bOrInG BOriNg boRInG BoRiNg boRInG BoRiNg BoRinG bORinG BOrRInG boRInG BoRiNg bOrInG bOrInG BOriNg boRInG BoRiNg bORinG BOrRInG boRInG BoRiNg BOriNg boRInG boRInG BoRiNg BOriNg boRInG BoRiNg bORinG BOrRInG boRInG BoRiNg bOrInG bOrInG...

expressions!!!

hmmm... looks beautiful!

this one is really nice!!!

amazing!!!

oops!

baap re!!!

pchhh...

there comes another one!!!

PS: These are the expressions given by the author during one of those bird-watching hours at the tea-board of our institute. Thanks to the photographer Krishna.