Hello all! Welcome to my blog! This blog would feature all the cool things I would think to share with the world, so you can say its a Miscellaneous Blog! haha! I hope you all enjoy reading my blog, have fun and a great day!
Do check out my first post -
http://toxifier.blogspot.com/2011/07/hello-world.html
Hey all! It's a new week I hope it goes on superb for you all! My exams start today, and they will extend to 9th of June. So I won't be here for as long as I used to be. Moreover, although I'll try to stay consisten on posting in May also just like April, I'm not sure about it. :) Enjoy two nice songs, one by Coldplay and other by Enrique Iglesias.
Paradise by Coldplay
Lyrics
When she was just a girl
She expected the world
But it flew away from her reach so
She ran away in her sleep
and dreamed of
Para-para-paradise, Para-para-paradise, Para-para-paradise
Every time she closed her eyes
When she was just a girl
She expected the world
But it flew away from her reach
and the bullets catch in her teeth
Life goes on, it gets so heavy
The wheel breaks the butterfly
Every tear a waterfall
In the night the stormy night she'll close her eyes
In the night the stormy night away she'd fly
and dreams of
Para-para-paradise
Para-para-paradise
Para-para-paradise
lalalalalalalalalalala
And so lying underneath those stormy skies
She'd say, "oh, ohohohoh I know the sun must set to rise"
This could be
Para-para-paradise
Para-para-paradise
Para-para-paradise
Oh oh oh oh oh oh-oh-oh
This could be
Para-para-paradise
Para-para-paradise
This could be
Para-para-paradise
Oh oh oh oh oh oh-oh-oh-oh
Bailamos by Enrique Iglesias
Lyrics
Esta noche bailamos
Te doy toda mi vida
Quedate conmigo
Tonight we dance
I lay my life in your hands
We take the floor
Nothing is forbidden anymore
Don't let the world in outside
Don't let a moment go by
Nothing can stop us tonight!
Bailamos! Let the rhythm take you over
Bailamos! Te quiero amor mio
Bailamos! Gonna live this night forever
Bailamos! Te quiero amor mio, te quiero!
Tonight I'm yours
We can make it happen I'm so sure
Now I'm letting go
There is something I think you should know
I won't be leaving your side
We're gonna dance through the night
I'm gonna reach for the stars
Bailamos! Let the rhythm take you over
Bailamos! Te quiero amor mio
Bailamos! Gonna live this night forever
Bailamos! Te quiero amor mio, te quiero!
(Whoa!)
Tonight we dance
(Whoa!)
Like no tomorrow
(Whoa!)
If you will stay with me
Te quiero, mi amor
Quedate conmigo
Esta noche
Quedate mi cielo
Bailamos! Let the rhythm take you over
Bailamos! Te quiero amor mio
Bailamos! Gonna live this night forever
Bailamos! Te quiero amor mio
Bailamos! Let the rhythm take you over
(Como te quiero, como te quiero)
Bailamos! Te quiero amor mio
(Como te quiero, como te quiero)
Bailamos! Gonna live this night forever
(Como te quiero, como te quiero)
Bailamos! Te quiero amor mio, te quiero
(Como te quiero, como te quiero)
Hey all! :) It's Sunday! Sunday! SUPER SUNDAY! :D How are you all doing?! :D I hope fine! ^_^ My final exams finally start tomorrow! LOL! And I'm not excited at all >.> haha! Who would be excited about stupid exams? They are no fun, although they make them to be, but they don't! huh! Anyways! The big thing is, I downloaded the latest Ubuntu, the day it was released! haha! :D And so now here is the review for you all, my friends! ^_^ Have fun reading! :D
Time for some G.K. on the latest version
Ubuntu 12.04 LTS (Precise Pangolin) is the current Ubuntu Long Term Support (LTS) release, made available on schedule on 26 April 2012. Ubuntu 12.04 is Canonical's 16th release of Ubuntu and its fourth long term support version. The name for the release was announced by Shuttleworth on 5 October 2011 and is named after the pangolin anteater. Unlike previous LTS releases that have been supported for three years for the desktop version and five years for the server version, this release will be supported for five years for both versions.
Following the Ubuntu Developer Summit in early November 2011 Canonical announced that the default download for 12.04 will be 64-bit, with 32-bit still available as a user choice. Okay! so let me make it clear to my brother - "SEE!! ALTHOUGH THEY SAY ON THEIR WEBSITE THAT 32BIT IS RECOMMENDED, THEY HAD ALREADY SAID 64 BIT IS THE BEST! >_<, I mean indicated atleast! LOL!" Other changes in this release include a much faster start up time for the Ubuntu Software Center and refinements to Unity. This release also replaced the Banshee media player with Rhythmbox and dropped the Tomboy note-taking application and the supporting Mono framework as well.
In January 2012 Shuttleworth announced that Ubuntu 12.04 would incorporate a new head-up display (HUD) feature that will allow hotkey searching for application menu items from the keyboard, without the need for using the mouse. Shuttleworth said that the HUD "will ultimately replace menus in Unity applications" but for Ubuntu 12.04 at least the menus will remain.
That was what was all said before releases. Let's come to the reality and face it Mano-a-Mano! :D
What's cool about Ubuntu 12.04?
You really don't know?! :O It's the speeeeed! It's just superb Ubuntu. I mean performance, speed all's cool! :D Worth noting! :D :D The ‘P’ in the Ubuntu 12.04 codename (“Precise Pangolin”) could just as easily stand for ‘Performance’ as it does ‘Precise’, as said by someone on the internet! LOL!
Speed, once a rod used to beat Unity with, is now arguably its greatest strength; a yardstick by which other desktop environments may start to be measured. This speed boost feeds into the entire OS feeling brand new. Ubuntu is fast, snappy and responsive. In fact this release is perhaps best representative of the “Unity” vision proposed by Canonical; everything from apps to environment feels cohesive in 12.04. Elements that were, in prior releases, half-finished or cumbersome to use now feel polished and intuitive. Quicklists, for example, were one ‘feature’ of Unity that hadn’t been exploited by many of Ubuntu’s default apps until now.
Now don't look at me saying, "unity"? :O You have seriously not read my post about Ubuntu 10.10 or 11.10, right?! >_< Duh!! Unity is the current Graphical Environment of the Ubuntu, and details, HELL! I'm not going in them again! :P
More about Ubuntu 12.04
Due to its LTS promise, the development cycle has focused more on improving the core experience and fixing bugs, as well as a fit-and-finish approach to UI elements. Ubuntu 12.04 Precise Pangolin UnityUnity’s Dash has been upgraded to give users more control:
“The schedule for an LTS is actually different from normal procedures,” explains John Lea of the Ubuntu Design team, “We apply a higher bar to new features entering, we generally focus the whole cycle along more on quality and stability. It’s really a shift in focus, and this goes into the selection of the applications. We’re looking very much at how things will be supported over the next five years, and what the best choices are that we can make given that we’ve tied ourselves into 5 years of support”
This stable approach is also being applied to the server side, explains Ubuntu Server Technical Lead, Dave Walker:
“Really it’s just been a progression to build upon what’s been in previous releases. This is our LTS release so there’s been a strong focus on stability, precision…[as well as] being conservative, but also pushing the boundaries where we can. Part of my job that has been quite tricky is balancing this aspect. We really have an amazing and enthusiastic team here, and we’ve managed to do a lot”
The latest version of Unity boasts more than just performance gains. There are new lenses, options and minor features for you to play around with – most notably of which is the new ‘App Menu’ searching tool ‘HUD’. The HUD is called by a tap of the ‘Alt’ and is able to search entire application menus of the ‘in focus’ app – as well as provide swift access to features in the ‘Status Menus’ (networking, messaging, etc). The ‘Home’ Lens that previously provided 8 giant shortcuts to applications and folders has been replaced with dynamic ‘activity overview’ – showing your most recently used apps, files, etc.
The sluggish Banshee music player has been replaced by Rhythmbox – a change that Lucid-updaters won’t notice.This sports the integrated Ubuntu One Music Store for purchasing albums and tracks. yes, Banshee was indeed Sluggish! >_< The latest versions of office suite LibreOffice, web-browser Firefox, e-mail client Thunderbird, and Instant Messenger Empathy are all included, with the latter introducing better support for video calling. The Ubuntu One Control Panel has been revamped, and includes set-up, installation and other options all in one window. It’s not the prettiest of apps, but it is functional.
By the way, the good news for Social networking-oholics! The new and official breed of freaks:
Ubuntu 10.04 upgraders will find an alternative photo-management application installed in the form of Shotwell. It, like Ubuntu One Control Panel, is not the most elegant of apps (something users migrating from a certain fruit-named OS will note) but it does the job well. It even supports exporting of images to Flicke and Facebook. For Tweets and Facebook addicts the default “social client” (also obtusely referred to as ‘Broadcast’ in places) remains the faithful, if not overly appreciated, Gwibber.
WUBI - Windows Ubuntu Installer
Hmmm...So can there be something perfect? I mean so many cool things, there must be something that would be irritating, right?! O_O YES YES YES!! Here that comes! :D duh! >_< It's the Windows Installer. Actually, for all the earlier versions of Ubuntu it was quite easy to install them inside windows and get things done, so that in case we got trouble addressing any issues, we would uninstall it like any other Window Application and re-install it. But what if it were a full install?! RUINED!! >_< Anyways, what;s the problem with WUBI in 12.04? Well, it's indirect!
What do you mean by indirect, Dя Toxifier? Give me a chance to speak! :P Indirect because when you simply insert the disk and try to install it inside windows, you won't see any option to to that. Now don't feel like you are ruined, there is a simple way out. Simple! SIMPLE! DAMN SIMPLE!! :D All you gotta do is:
Open the Command Prompt - Don't ask me how to do it! >_< You are ready to install a whole operating system, and that too nothing else, BUT LINUX, and you don't know how to open CMD? huh!
Now the path of your CD-Drive or the drive in which you mount the .iso image. I did it in Z: Drive. So I simply typed, Z: and hit return.
Next, type in - Z:\wubi.exe --force wubi
REPLACE "Z" with the drive letter of your CD Drive or the drive in which you mount the .iso image.
Then the dialog box appears to launch the Wubi, click yes, and go ahead, INSTALL UBUNTU 12.04 inside Windows! :D
TADA!! Simple, right?! :D
ScreenShots
“Instead of going down the Windows path people are interested in moving to the Ubuntu path,” Canonical director of engineering and products Zaid Lal Hamami said. “If you can stream applications running on different platforms but dispersed on your machines there’s an entire wave of applications that can be running anywhere in cloud and can be integrated."
Ready to download?!
Aha! Fasten up your seat-belts, and !!!!!!!!!!!!! CLICK HERE(for 32-bit) or HERE(for 64 Bit)! TADA! haha! :D
Thanks a lot for reading. All comments are welcomed. Always love to know your viewpoints my readers! Have a splendid day! :) I mean, SunDay! hahaha! :D
Before I say anything about this game, I would say that Yes! They do put in immense efforts to make games realistic these days. If aliens were to be believed, then the scientific back ground of this game is just too good! Well anyways, I'm talking bout the game - Mass Effect.
In the Mass Effect universe, “mass effect” is a physics phenomenon adapted from what real life scientists call dark energy that has properties along the lines of other physics forces such as gravity and electromagnetism.
Mass Effect is a series of sci-fi action role-playing video games developed by the Canadian company BioWare and released for the Xbox 360, Microsoft Windows and, from the second installment on, also for the PlayStation 3. The first game in the trilogy centers around a player-created character named Commander Shepard and his/her mission to save the galaxy from a race of mechanical beings known as the Reapers, and its followers, including Saren Arterius. The first game sees Shepard facing Sovereign, a Reaper left as a vanguard, who plans to allow the Reaper fleet currently hibernating in extra-galactic dark space to invade the Milky Way, and destroy all sapient organic life, continuing a mysterious cycle of destruction. The second game takes place two years later, and sees Shepard battling the Collectors, an alien race abducting entire human colonies in a plan to help the Reapers return to the Milky Way. The third and final game centers on the final battle against the Reapers.
Since the beginning, the series has been a major critical success. All three games have received critical acclaim for their storyline, characters, romances, voice acting, choices, tolerance of diversity, and the depth of the galaxy. Video game website GamesRadar called Mass Effect the best new franchise of the generation, saying that the galaxy was so well-constructed that it felt like a decades-old franchise and that it represented "a high-water mark for video games as a story-telling medium."
The game is now a trilogy including Mass Effect(2007), Mass Effect 2(2010), and Mass Effect 3(2012). All the three games have received great response from the gamers and indeed the games are superb. Mass Effect 3 is the final installment of the series as said, but who knows! LOL!
I have played just Mass Effect 2. The game-play was just awesome! I mean damn amazing! :D The game is really superb in terms of storyline too. What I didn't like was after some point, the game seems getting redundant. What I mean is, it starts to seem like we are doing the same things again and again. For sometime it's fun and challenging to kill aliens, scavenge planets off the resources and build the team and upgrade the equipment, but after sometime, that resource collection and fighting same enemies becomes altogether boring. The visual effects and sound effects are just marvelous, no doubt in that, but hey! I cannot do the same thing over and over again! :/ Else the story is damn good.
A trilogy of games has been released, each continuing the game's story in chronological order. The Mass Effect series combines action role-playing game elements, with the main series games being in third-person perspective. The protagonist can use two AI-controlled squad members in battle; which usually consists of members he or she has recruited, from various places and for various reasons, and taken onto the Normandy, Shepard's starship. The player could make perspective decisions depending upon the situation. At these times, the player has multiple sets of dialogue choices with which to respond to NPCs, separated by tone. Starting from Mass Effect 2, the player can interrupt cut-scenes calmly or aggressively. The games often have various mini-games in them as well, such as drinking and dancing.
The game has got many associated things with it. What I mean is the game's got additional features like bonus rounds and making relationships with your teammates, which in some cases could be extended to, ahem, unmentionable levels! LOL!
Talking about the characters, I would talk only about the main character, Commander Shepard. The player can choose whether he or she wants to play using a male Shepard or a female Shepard. The storyline remains same, although the difference comes in the fact with whom and what type of relationships would exist, if you go in to that part making the game become an actual roleplay one, rather than just sticking to playing the game as Rampage.
The game shows Shepard to be a person who is perhaps the best in the universe! Exaggeration, right?! LOL! To quote directly from the internet about Commander Shepard:
"Lieutenant Commander Shepard is the human protagonist of Mass Effect, Mass Effect 2, and Mass Effect 3, whose gender, appearance, skills and pre-service history are all customizable and have an impact on the story. Shepard's first name is also customizable, but is never stated in-game. The default pre-made Shepard is a male Soldier named John, with the Earthborn/Sole Survivor profile. Shepard was born on April 11, 2154, is a graduate of the Systems Alliance N7 special forces program (service no. 5923-AC-2826), and is initially assigned to the SSV Normandy as Executive Officer. Shepard later becomes the first human to join the Spectres, an elite special task force for the Citadel Council. The male Shepard is voiced by Mark Meer, and the female Shepard is voiced by Jennifer Hale."
Wow! They tell about him/her as if he/she exists! LOL!! Birth date and graduation and all! hahaha! :D They really take all this seriously! Haha! :D
Anyways, I would like to mention the names of certain characters that are there in all the 3 releases of the game:
LIST OF CHARACTERS IN ALL THREE INSTALLMENTS!
Commander Shepard
Jeff "Joker" Moreau
David Anderson
Liara T'Soni
Ashley Williams
Kaidan Alenko
Garrus Vakarian / Archangel
Tali'Zorah vas Normandy/nar Rayya
Urdnot Wrex
Ambassador Donnel Udina
Admiral Steven Hackett
Councilor Tevos
Councilor Valern
Councilor Sparatus
Conrad Verner
Dr. Karin Chakwas
Khalisah Bint Sinan al-Jilani
The games received a superb review by all the players throughout the world. Mass Effect 1 got a score of around 92%, Mass Effect 2 got a rating of 8/10 and Mass Effect 3 actually got a rating of 10/10 and 9/10!
The main Trilogy
Mass Effect (2007)
: The first game in the series was originally created as an exclusive title for the Xbox 360 but was later ported to Microsoft Windows by Demiurge Studios. The game focuses on the protagonist, Commander Shepard, and his/her quest to stop the rogue 'Spectre' Saren Arterius from leading an army of Geth to conquer the galaxy. During pursuit of Saren, Shepard learns of a far greater threat in the form of the Reapers. Saren has been mentally enslaved by the Reaper 'Sovereign', a vanguard sent into Citadel Space to initiate the purge of all advanced sentient life in the galaxy, a cycle repeated by the Reapers every 50,000 years. Mass Effect was received with critical acclaim by many industry reviewers, and has garnered a large fan-following.
Mass Effect 2 (2010):
The second main game in the series was released on January 26, 2010 in North America and January 29 in Europe. A great deal of secrecy surrounded the game prior to launch, with few details emerging other than Casey Hudson, Project Director for BioWare, stating that "players should keep their save files, because decisions made by the player in the first game will continue to have influences on their character in the sequel." The game takes place two years after the events of Mass Effect. Human colonies are being attacked, their colonists disappearing without a trace. The game's protagonist, Commander Shepard, is forced into an uneasy alliance with the pro-Human paramilitary organization, Cerberus, in an effort to discover the cause. Evidence emerges pointing to the 'Collectors', an advanced, enigmatic race of insect-like humanoids. Adding to the threat is the revelation that the Collectors are working for the Reapers. Shepard sets out on a "suicide mission" to stop the Collectors, accompanied by a hand-picked team of soldiers, assassins, mercenaries, and specialists. Mass Effect 2 has received overwhelming critical praise since its release, for its characters, storyline, voice acting, and refined combat and gameplay with many critics calling it a major improvement over the original and an easy Game of the Year contender despite its January release. At Gamescom 2010, it was announced that a PlayStation 3 version would be available in January 2011. Although PlayStation 3 owners will be able to play the second installment, Microsoft still has publishing rights to the first.
Mass Effect 3 (2012):
The third and final installment in the Mass Effect trilogy, the game was released on March 6, 2012. Casey Hudson commented that Mass Effect 3 "will be easier to develop because we don't have to worry about continuity into the next one." However, decisions will still be imported from the two previous titles to Mass Effect 3, as to keep continuity within the series. In the final chapter of the trilogy, the Reapers have returned in force, and have begun their purge of the galaxy, attacking the human home world of Earth. During this attack Commander Shepard is on Earth and forced to flee. After fleeing Earth Commander Shepard must race against time to rally the advanced races of the galaxy to make one final stand, not only to save Earth, but also to break a cycle that has continued for millions of years. Casey Hudson stated in an interview at the Consumer Electronics Show that Mass Effect 3 would complete the story arc of Commander Shepard, and would pull in over 1,000 variables from Mass Effect and Mass Effect 2 to shape how players experience the final chapter. The first official trailer was unveiled on December 11, 2010 during the Spike TV Video Game Awards show.
Original Reviews by Original Reviewers for Mass Effect 1!
"One of the best role-playing games in recent memory... Makes you feel like the badass warrior you were meant to be... The refined PC version is your best choice for experiencing this excellent game."
- GameSpot: 9/10 | Editors’ Choice
"Raises the bar for the role-playing genre... Mass Effect's greatest strength is the quality of the narrative… Mass Effect takes interactive entertainment to new heights and is wholeheartedly recommended."
- GameSpy: 5/5 | Editors’ Choice
OFFICIAL TRAILER OF THE GAME!
As Commander Shepard, you lead an elite squad on a heroic, action-packed adventure throughout the galaxy. Discover the imminent danger from an ancient threat and battle the traitorous Saren and his deadly army to save civilization. The fate of all life depends on your actions!
Hey all my dear readers! How are you all doing?! :D I hope well! :) :)
I just found a bunch of Mini Cannon Videos that I wanted to share with you all! :) These videos are just fantastic! Just look at this mini wonder that is extremely amazing to watch. Just too cool! :D
Be sure to watch all the three! ^_^
Video #1
Video #2
Video #3
So the weekend starts?! :D Any plans people? Have a fun-filled weekend! :) Thanks for watching! :D Good day! ^_^
Hey all my dear readers! I hope you all are doing just fabulous! :) Welcome to my blog on this Intellectual Thursday. There was certain something on my mind since Monday, and I really wish to share it with all of you.
The topic is about politics and people's reactions. I just want to give my personal viewpoint about what's happening around the world. Is it always the politicians who are wrong? Are they always right and thinking for the people? Let me take a chance to speak what I think in this regard.
Recently, there has been much discussion about the upcoming major change in the Indian Government, the President is to be elected soon by the members of Rajya Sabha, the upper house of the Indian Parliament. Whenever any matter related to politics gets into the news, people are directly hit by the leaders of the various political parties, since India is a Democracy, about the ongoing issues in the society, the opposition showing their disgust about the ruling party and the ruling party asking for people's cooperation making all sorts of promises, they mean or not! Another important issue was the declaration of the Budget for this year, that is declared every April.
This time the budget imposed yet another hike in the current taxes making the imports more costlier, thereby making things such as Watches, Cars, Computers, etc. expensive. Hike in fuel prices is something we all are getting familiar with so much that it seems to be just another everyday issue now. But in turn what we neglect are the rise in prices of our basic needs, food and milk.
People are crying out loud, "Properties rates are unjust! They are so high, we cannot afford a home!" When most of the people interested in buying property are the ones who already have a home and are just saving another property as if for their children, grand-children or maybe their own retirement. People are unable to settle their budgets for their current house and they are crying for another home! WOW! duh! >_<
In my opinion people are being falsely led, (or rather misled is the more correct term, right?), by the so called leaders. They are focusing our attention on price hikes of everything except food, our basic need! All right, here the blame on the politicians gets over. Now let's talk about we are doing as public! Is it satisfactory? I HIGHLY DISAGREE!
Let me quote my facebook status of this Monday, "People! People! People! Why always blame government when you are not setting right priorities for yourselves?! Asking for cheaper loans, maybe they wanna take a loan to buy a loaf of bread..Asking for cheaper cars, maybe they gonna eat the cars when the food's prices would be sky-rocketing...Fighting against hike in fuel prices, perhaps they gonna drink petrol instead of milk in near future...Asking for everything to go cheap EXCEPT WHAT YOU BASICALLY NEED - FOOD! You guys want a second home when you are unable to manage budget of your single house, crying out loud - "Properties rates are unjust!>_<" (LOL!!) Wow! And then, you cry that the government is out of their minds..I guess it's the case both ways, idiots!! >_<"
What do you think? Am I not talking the right thing? Because I personally think that I AM TOTALLY CORRECT! It is our right to ask for a good and stable economic condition of the country from our government, to ask for a country where the poor and rich both can afford their standard lives, there is no one who has to die of starvation. That means if the things are not fine, we have the right to fight with our government! But when we set wrong priorities, we end up giving a chance to our government to easily win over us. We are asking for the loans to get cheaper. For what do we need loans? The things that are out of the reach of our current financial condition, but we need them. For example, a nice car may not be affordable to everyone. But tell me would a cheaper loan mean that in case the price of food goes too high, since we are running behind other things to go cheap, would we be asking for a loan just to buy a loaf of bread or a bottle of milk? We are asking that the cars are getting costlier how would a common man afford a car in this situation when car is becoming a necessity, not a luxury. But if you don't have food to eat, how would you get strength to drive? What would you do then? Eat the car? or eat away it's seats?! O_O We are crying out loud that petrol is so costly! Are we interested in drinking petrol? or we need milk for our teas, and coffees? Just think about what I'm saying!
Our priorities are not set right. We are fighting for things that even if not present doesn't necessarily mean a tough survival. We are rather neglecting things that if not present would make the survival impossible, leave alone the question of tough, or easy!
Now what you think? Who should we blame? The government, which was elected by us only, for not being able to make things cheap? The politicians, who are able to speak in public because we let them to, for misleading us? Or ourselves for not paying attention, being sheepish and foolish? The answer is all quite clear. If our priorities would be correctly set, atleast we won't be the ones to be blamed for our own conditions. I hope my article does sparks a light in the heads of the people who keep on blaming government for every little thing without thinking whether they did anything to uplift their condition or not. Let me say one more thing, most of the people don't vote even when they have the right to. THESE PEOPLE HAVE NO RIGHT TO SAY ANYTHING! >_< When you have a right to elect the government, you must exercise it and see who is the best leader for you. For when you are not fulfilling your duty you have no right to speak either! >_<
I'm not trying to safeguard the government, I personally hate it too! All I want to say is when you won't ask for the right things, you won't be able to get the right things.
Pardon me if I went wrong anywhere. Thank you for reading. Good Day! :) Your comments are welcomed. I know this is something you all want to talk about. But maybe my blog is so unknown that I don't get much commenting! But still maybe some of you might find it worth the discussion!
Hey all! :) How are you doing? I hope my new post finds all my dear readers in a great state of health! :)
It's Wednesday, The Random Wednesday! :D And today I wanted to talk about Nobel Prize. Before which let me ask, do you find any changes in my blog? NO?! O_O LOL! I removed 3 adzones to clear make a more stable content-to-ads ratio, I hope it looks better now. Even I thought that my blog seemed a bit odd with all those ads, more of an adzone only! Anyways, I wanted to do that myself before someone asked me and the process got accelerated! haha! :D Alright! Alright, I'm getting back to the topic, hush!
Let's first check what the internet says about it?
A simple definition, erm sort of
So our Wikipedia said to me that, "Nobel Prize is a set of annual international awards bestowed in a number of categories by Scandinavian committees in recognition of cultural and scientific advances. The will of the Swedish chemist Alfred Nobel, the inventor of dynamite, established the prizes in 1895. The prizes in Physics, Chemistry, Physiology or Medicine, Literature, and Peace were first awarded in 1901." Now don't look at me at using that phrase, "Scandinavian Committee". Well it is group of individuals responsible for selecting the annual winners of the Nobel Prize. Cool! Are you sure they are unbiased, I sometimes doubt! :/
Alfred Nobel
The Man Behind the Nobel Prize
Since 1901, the Nobel Prize has been honoring men and women from all corners of the globe for outstanding achievements in physics, chemistry, medicine, literature, and for work in peace. The foundations for the prize were laid in 1895 when Alfred Nobel wrote his last will, leaving much of his wealth to the establishment of the Nobel Prize. Alfred Nobel, a scientist, inventor, entrepreneur, author and pacifist. Alfred Nobel (1833-1896) was born in Stockholm, Sweden, on October 21, 1833. His family was descended from Olof Rudbeck, the best-known technical genius in Sweden in the 17th century, an era in which Sweden was a great power in northern Europe. Nobel was fluent in several languages, and wrote poetry and drama. Nobel was also very interested in social and peace-related issues, and held views that were considered radical during his time. On November 27, 1895, Alfred Nobel signed his last will in Paris. When it was opened and read after his death, the will caused a lot of controversy both in Sweden and internationally, as Nobel had left much of his wealth for the establishment of a prize! His family opposed the establishment of the Nobel Prize, and the prize awarders he named refused to do what he had requested in his will. It was five years before the first Nobel Prize could be awarded in 1901.
You may check out more about Alfred Nobel, on the "official website of Nobel Prize". An article about him is written in just an amazing manner. The article is divided into various subsections, you can browse through which from the left-side widget on the website. Check it out over here.
More about the Nobel Prize
The Peace Prize is awarded in Oslo, Norway, while the other prizes are awarded in Stockholm, Sweden. The Nobel Prize is widely regarded as the most prestigious award available in the fields of literature, medicine, physics, chemistry, peace and economics.
The Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences awards the Nobel Prize in Physics, the Nobel Prize in Chemistry, and the Nobel Memorial Prize in Economic Sciences. The Nobel Assembly at Karolinska Institutet(A renowned medical university of Sweden) awards the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine. The Swedish Academy grants the Nobel Prize in Literature. The Nobel Peace Prize is not awarded by a Swedish organisation but by the Norwegian Nobel Committee.
Each recipient, or laureate, receives a gold medal, a diploma, and a sum of money which depends on the Nobel Foundation's income that year. In 2011, each prize was worth SEK 10 million (US$1.46 million or you may say, €1.16 million). The prize is not awarded posthumously; however, if a person is awarded a prize and dies before receiving it, the prize may still be presented. A prize may not be shared among more than three people. The average number of laureates per prize has increased substantially over the 20th century.
Each medal features an image of Alfred Nobel in left profile on the obverse. The medals for physics, chemistry, physiology or medicine, and literature have identical obverses, showing the image of Alfred Nobel and the years of his birth and death. Nobel's portrait also appears on the obverse of the Peace Prize medal and the medal for the Economics Prize, but with a slightly different design. For instance, the laureate's name is engraved on the rim of the Economics medal. The image on the reverse of a medal varies according to the institution awarding the prize. The reverse sides of the medals for chemistry and physics share the same design. I think we shouldn't talk about the details of the gold, etc. content, Man! It get's tempting then! haha! :D
The best part I came to know about Nobel Prize was that yes, the winners do get a prize money. I mean with all the work they id which was worthy of a Nobel prize, shouldn't just leave their economic conditions poor if some excellent mind is not economically strong!
There aren't any Nobel Prize for Mathematics?
Now one thing for which I felt really bad was that there ain't any Nobel Prize for Mathematics, when in essence there is nothing better than Mathematics in the whole world! I know I have been someone who never liked mathematics, but hey! I don't hate it completely. There are some parts of it, especially the discrete mathematics(Probability, Combinatorial, Set Theory, etc.) that are deeply loved by me. When I know that yes, there have been great great great Mathematicians around the world without whom Physic's Inventions would have been lacking the precision and of course theoretical explanations, how could you rule out such a subject out the most prestigious award list? Mathematics has the answer of everything! I mean from Astrology, to astronomy, from drawing, art, literature, to Computers, just everything has Mathematics, and ruling it out of such an prestigious honor is really something that hurts! :/
There are some rather idiotic claims about why there ain't any Mathematics Nobel Prize. One such is that Alfred Nobel's wife was having an affair with a mathematician. OMG! HE WAS NEVER MARRIED! LOL! How could they make such an idiotic reason! duh! Other similar do exist, but well just forget about them. A more concrete one is that it wasn't mentioned in his will, then why the hell did they accept the Swedish Bank's donation and made another prize "The Sveriges Riksbank Prize in Economic Sciences in Memory of Alfred Nobel" to be a part of Nobel Prize lists? And what about the Computer Scientists? They say mathematics wasn't something Nobel was interested in that's why he didn't state it in his will, but well! if there were computers I'm dead sure he would have been interested in them! I found an extremely amazing comment by some Internet user. Let me quote it for you all:
"When Nobel Prizes are dished out each fall, the most accomplished professionals in computing, telecom and IT have usually been left out in the cold. That's because there is no Nobel Prize for these fields, and it's unlikely there will be one any time soon. According to the Nobel Foundation: 'The Nobel Prizes, as designated in the Will of Alfred Nobel, are in physics, chemistry, physiology or medicine, literature and peace. Only once has a prize been added — a Memorial Prize — The Sveriges Riksbank Prize in Economic Sciences in Memory of Alfred Nobel, donated by Sweden's central bank to celebrate its tercentenary in 1968. The Nobel Foundation's Board of Directors later decided to keep the original five prizes intact and not to permit new additions.' So, if IBM, Google, Apple or some other deep-pocketed tech company wanted to make a big donation along the lines of what Sweden's central bank did in 1968, maybe it could sway the Nobel Foundation to add a prize. But it most likely wouldn't be officially called a Nobel Prize."
According to me the person is correct! There must be, but well, we cannot call them official Nobel Prize then all because Alfred Nobel himself never made it an official one :/
A list of notable people who won Nobel Prizes
Let me quote the list issued by Telegraph as the 10 most important winners of Nobel Prize:
Marie Curie - First woman to win a Nobel Prize in 1903 when she was recognised, along with her husband Pierre and Antoine Henri Becquerel, with the Physics award for their research into radiation. She later became the first person to receive two Nobel Prizes when she was given the Chemistry Prize in 1911 for her discovery of radium and polonium, and her further research into radium.
Martin Luther King Jr. - Won the Peace Prize in 1964, at the age of 35, for his work to end racial discrimination through non-violent means.
Albert Einstein - Arguably the world's most famous scientist, Einstein was given the Nobel Prize for Physics in 1921 for his services to physics, especially his discovery of the law of the photoelectric effect.
Francis Crick, James Watson and Maurice Wilkins - These three scientists were awarded the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine in 1962 for their discovery of the "double helix" structure of DNA nine years earlier. The award was deemed controversial because of the death of Rosalind Franklin, a collaborator with Wilkins, four years earlier. Nobel foundation rules, which state the prizes cannot be given posthumously, meant her work was not recognised. That's sad! :/
Jean-Paul Sartre - The French existentialist philosopher, writer and literary critic was the first person to turn down a Nobel Prize in 1964 when he declined the Prize for Literature. Sartre is still recorded as the winner by the Nobel federation for his influential work which was "filled with the spirit of freedom and the quest for truth".
Sir Alexander Fleming - Sir Alexander shared the 1945 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine with Ernst Chain and Sir Howard Florey for the discovery of penicillin and its curative effect on infectious diseases. The Scot made his discovery accidentally when he returned to his untidy laboratory from a holiday to discover a fungus had developed that destroyed the bacteria immediately surrounding it. Wow! it was an accidental discovery that led him to the Nobel Prize! Lucky, eh?! :D
Hermann Muller - The American won the same prize as Fleming a year later, in 1946, for his discovery of the mutating effects of X-ray radiation.
Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn - The Russian novelist and dissident, who spent time in a Soviet labour camp after writing letters that criticised the communist regime, received the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1970. His most famous novels, The Gulag Archipelago and One Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovich, for which he received the award, exposed the brutality of the Soviet Union's forced labour camps.
The International Committee of the Red Cross - The highest number of Nobel Prize wins goes to the International Committee of the Red Cross with three separate Nobel Peace Prizes. In 1917 and 1944 the organisation was recognised for its work during the First and Second World Wars, and it was named as a winner again in 1963, along with the League of Red Cross Societies, to mark its 100th anniversary.
Sir Clive Granger - The Welsh economist won the 2003 Nobel Memorial Prize in Economic Sciences for his methods of analysing economic statistics, which revolutionised the way economists interpret financial data. His prize was shared with Robert Engle III, for his research in a similar area.
A list of 2011 Nobel Prize Winners
The Nobel Prize in Physics - Saul Perlmutter, Brian P. Schmidt and Adam G. Riess "for the discovery of the accelerating expansion of the Universe through observations of distant supernovae"
The Nobel Prize in Chemistry - Dan Shechtman "for the discovery of quasicrystals"
The Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine - Bruce A. Beutler and Jules A. Hoffmann "for their discoveries concerning the activation of innate immunity"
The Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine - Ralph M. Steinman "for his discovery of the dendritic cell and its role in adaptive immunity"
The Nobel Prize in Literature - Tomas Tranströmer "because, through his condensed, translucent images, he gives us fresh access to reality"
The Nobel Peace Prize - Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, Leymah Gbowee and Tawakkol Karman "for their non-violent struggle for the safety of women and for women’s rights to full participation in peace-building work"
The Prize in Economic Sciences - Thomas J. Sargent and Christopher A. Sims "for their empirical research on cause and effect in the macroeconomy"
The most amazing thing I came across was that Nobel Prize has an official Website! O_O I was like, WHAT?! O_O Check here. If I talk more about this website first, let me tell you all it's worth a visit! I mean it's just too good. They have got an educational page on the website which is filled with information that could make anyone spellbound! Just superb it is. Do check out the website! :)
Thanks for reading the article. I hope I wrote it nicely! :D All your comments and suggestions are welcomed always! :) Thanks for your time and attention. Good Day friends! :)
It's Tech Tuesday and I have a real discussion out here about the security issues related to the internet advertisements. I guess this could catch your interest!
Let's first talk in brief about Spyware. Spyware is a type of malware (malicious software) installed on computers that collects information about users without their knowledge. The presence of spyware is typically hidden from the user and can be difficult to detect. Spyware is often secretly installed on a user's personal computer without their knowledge. However, some spyware such as keyloggers may be installed by the owner of a shared, corporate, or public computer on purpose in order to intentionally monitor users.
Sometimes, spyware is included along with genuine software, and may come from an official software vendor. In an attempt to increase the understanding of spyware, a more formal classification of its included software types is provided by the term privacy-invasive software. In response to the emergence of spyware, a small industry has sprung up dealing in anti-spyware software. Running anti-spyware software has become a widely recognized element of computer security practices for computers, especially those running Microsoft Windows. A number of jurisdictions have passed anti-spyware laws, which usually target any software that is surreptitiously installed to control a user's computer.
Adware, or advertising-supported software, is any software package which automatically renders advertisements. These advertisements can be in the form of a pop-up. They may also be in the user interface of the software or on a screen presented to the user during the installation process. The object of the Adware is to generate revenue for its author. Adware, by itself, is harmless; however, some adware may come with integrated spyware such as keyloggers and other privacy-invasive software.
You can, in simple terms, take a spyware to be a "spying software" being used by anyone to collect information about the stuff you got on your PC, or how are you using it and for what purpose. You all must have seen those advertisements that say you to download some 'zwinky toolbar' or 'cartoonise yourself'? Alas! my blog too shows such advertisements at time. Can we simply blame the advertising websites we joined in all such cases? The answer is NO.
Although there are some great advertising websites that catch the publishers' interest all because they promise high returns. But some such websites can be dangerous to all. I mean, your users and yourself too. How could it be dangerous to you? Well, such advertisements are considered potential threats. To be clear ZWINKY TOOLBAR IS A MALWARE! NEVER DOWNLOAD IT! Since your website or blog show such advertisements, it sometimes lead to be being permanently banned by search engines as your website becomes a potential threat, else in any case the reputation of your website dies.
As I said, this doesn't mean that we have to stop showing advertisements on our blogs or websites. Most of the visitors on small time blogs like that of mine never care to click any ads, but if a small income is generated without seeing in how much time, would it be harmful till the time it is legitimate? Of course not! I have been blogging since many years. I was out of the blogging world for a year in between, but then, I was back again with my this blog that I started last year.
In the meantime I discovered how to blog safely. There are so many risks associated with blogging, mostly for the users and some for the bloggers too. The biggest being these spyware that spread through the advertisements. So when I chose advertisers this time for myself, I paid attention to what all should I be keeping in mind. I did a lot of research by searching endlessly on various search engines to find some "good and safer" alternatives to google adsense since google rejected my application for adsense, reason - UNKNOWN! Huh! Anyways, let me share them with you all first, and then we will talk about the unsafe ones.
The safer and good alternatives I found were:
Similar to these banner advertising, Text advertising like Infolinks is quite safe. but! I said QUITE SAFE ONLY! To be honest both bidvertiser and Smowtion sometimes show undesirable and risky advertisements on my blog.
Many spyware programs display advertisements. Some programs simply display pop-up ads on a regular basis; for instance, one every several minutes, or one when the user opens a new browser window. Others display ads in response to the user visiting specific sites. Spyware operators present this feature as desirable to advertisers, who may buy ad placement in pop-ups displayed when the user visits a particular site. It is also one of the purposes for which spyware programs gather information on user behavior.
Many users complain about irritating or offensive advertisements as well. As with many banner ads, spyware advertisements often use animation or flickering banners, which can be visually distracting and annoying to users. Pop-up ads for pornography often display indiscriminately. Links to these sites may be added to the browser window, history or search function. When children are the users, this could possibly violate anti-pornography laws in some jurisdictions.
A number of spyware programs break the boundaries of illegality; variations of “Zlob.Trojan” and “Trojan-Downloader.Win32.INService” have been known to show undesirable child pornography, key gens, cracks and illegal software pop-up ads, which violate child pornography and copyright laws.
A further issue in the case of some spyware programs concerns the replacement of banner ads on viewed web sites. Spyware that acts as a web proxy or a Browser Helper Object can replace references to a site's own advertisements (which fund the site) with advertisements that instead fund the spyware operator. This cuts into the margins of advertising-funded Web sites.
Some websites I found to be completely unsafe to be used because of the type of advertisements they display, not because of payouts are:
Blue Advertise - In a review I found on the internet, I read a user saying - "Finally, I decided to stop using blueadvertise.com services because many negative effects for me as a publisher and of course will harmful visitors and readers of my blog. Luckily, my blog is not blocked by the search engines because the potential to harm Internet users. Now I became more cautious and selective when using any advertising company to monetize my blog." I guess that's enough of an evidence.
xtendmedia - Similar to review about BlueAdvertise, I got the review of xtendmedia. Just irritative advertisements, and some people complained about not receiving their payments!
crossadmedia - To be honest, I couldn't really find much about this website. Although whatever I found suggested it to be a bad advertising website.
Anyways, not talking much about advertising websites now, let us focus back on spyware. If I directly quote from another article on the interent, a list of few websties listed as "most dangerous ones by Norton":
A few spyware vendors, notably 180 Solutions, have written what the New York Times has dubbed "stealware", and what spyware researcher Ben Edelman terms affiliate fraud, a form of click fraud. Stealware diverts the payment of affiliate marketing revenues from the legitimate affiliate to the spyware vendor.
While one may not realize they have installed spyware, there are some signs that it exists on your computer. If you notice any changes to your Web browser that you did not make such as extra toolbars or different homepage settings, as well as changes to your security settings and favorites list, you could have spyware running on your system. Other signs of a spyware infection include pop-up ads which aren't related to a Web site you're viewing; usually spyware advertisements are adult content in nature and are not displayed in the same fashion as legitimate ads you would normally see on your favorite Web sites. You may also see advertisements when you're not browsing the Web. Clicking hyperlinks which do not work (or take you somewhere you didn't expect), a sluggish system, or your system taking longer to load the Windows desktop are all signs that your computer may be infected with spyware.
With the onset of spyware comes a plethora of anti-spyware software packages to rid your system of these unwanted and malicious programs. Anti-spyware software works by identifying any spyware installed on your system and removing it. Since spyware is installed like any other application on your system it will leave traces of itself in the system registry and in other places on your computer. Anti-spyware software will look for evidence of these files and delete them if found.
It is important to remember that not all companies who claim their software contains adware are really offering adware. There is always a chance that adware is spyware in disguise so to speak, and that programs with embedded spyware may not state its existence at all. Always stay on the side of caution and be sure to research privacy policies and licensing agreements that come with freeware. You should also become familiar with Internet lists of companies reported to be using spyware. Much like a firewall or anti-virus program, anti-spyware software is crucial to maintain optimal protection and security on your computer and network.
Why is a Spyware bad?
Spyware displays annoying popup advertisements. The spwyare software connects to the Internet without you knowing, downloading advertisements in the background. These ads appear on your screen according to directions sent by the advertisers and by the people that make the adware software. You have no control over when or whether these ads appear. They can sometimes appear even if your web browser is closed and you are not even connected to the Internet!
Spyware violates your privacy by collecting information about your browsing habits. In order to target their advertisements, spyware programs generally collect information about the web pages you visit. This information is sent to companies with whom you have no direct business relationship.
Spyware makes your computer insecure. Most spyware programs have the ability to upgrade themselves automatically. That means new features can be installed without your consent. By allowing spyware to be installed on your computer, you are allowing the software vendor to change their software to do whatever they want. They could even look at your personal files and transmit data about you which you did not expressly provide.
Spyware slows down your computer. Like any other program, spyware programs require computer processing power and hard drive space. In some cases, computers infected with multiple spyware programs slow down to the point that they are barely usable for Internet applications.
Spyware cannot be easily removed. Spyware makers don’t want you to remove their software, so they purposely make it very difficult to do so. Even after you remove the original program which contained the spyware, the spyware software often stays behind, running in the background. In some cases, you can’t remove it directly because it isn’t listed in the “Add/Remove Programs” control panel.
What is the solution?
There could be many. Be a bit sure about what are you clicking on the internet. What I mean is don't let yourself fall to those nice looking advertisements which could be deadly traps. Certain people use adult-advertising on their website as such ads readily catch people's interest. But to be very specific, "the users who browse porn are at the biggest risks of getting attacked by viruses, hackers and malware!". Most of the porn websites are made because they know that these are the websites which are gonna attract most of the users and they can be easily trapped with bots at service! You can find numerous articles on the internet about porn and spyware, viruses and all sort of malware being linked. I will think about it if I would post about it too soon. Let's see. This was one of the most basic one to avoid indulging in clicks that can lead you to problematic websites, caution can always lead to safety! and it would work with a failure rate of less than 1% if you can control yourself from clicking such advertisements or links! Another is installing Anti-spyware programs and firewalls.
To be very precise, these days Advertisements have become the actual hubs and vectors of spreading spyware. So be cautious when you are using internet! :)
Your comments are always welcomed as they help me improve me content. Please give me any valuable suggestion. Thanks for reading. Have a great day up ahead! :)
Hey all! It's a new week I hope it goes on superb for you all! :) Enjoy two nice songs by Avril Lavigne, who had been "an-almost-crush" for my best friend! LOL!
Girlfriend
Lyrics:
Hey, hey, you, you, I don't like your girlfriend
No way, no way, I think you need a new one
Hey, hey, you, you, I could be your girlfriend
Hey, hey, you, you, I know that you like me
No way, no way, you know it's not a secret
Hey, hey, you, you, I want to be your girlfriend
You're so fine, I want you mine, you're so delicious
I think about you all the time, you're so addictive
Don't you know what I can do to make you feel alright?
Alright, alright, alright
Don't pretend, I think you know I'm precious
And so yeah, I'm a hey, hey princess
I can tell you like me too and you know I'm right
I'm right, I'm right, I'm right
She's like so whatever
You could do so much better
I think we should get together now
And that's what everybody?s talking about
Hey, hey, you, you, I don't like your girlfriend
No way, no way, I think you need a new one
Hey, hey, you, you, I could be your girlfriend
Hey, hey, you, you, I know that you like me
No way, no way, you know it?s not a secret
Hey, hey, you, you, I want to be your girlfriend
I can see the way, I see the way you look at me
And even when you look away I know you think of me
I know you talk about me all the time again and again
And again and again and again
So come over here and tell me what I wanna hear
Better yet, make your girlfriend disappear
I don't wanna hear you say her name ever again
And again and again and again
?Cause she's like so whatever
And she could do so much better
I think we should get together now
And that's what everybody's talking about
Hey, hey, you, you, I don't like your girlfriend
No way, no way, I think you need a new one
Hey, hey, you, you, I could be your girlfriend
Hey, hey, you, you, I know that you like me
No way, no way, you know it's not a secret
Hey, hey, you, you, I want to be your girlfriend
Oh, in a second you'll be wrapped around my finger
Woo, 'cause I can, cause I can do it better
There's no other, so when's it gonna sink in?
Hey, she's so stupid, just what were you thinking?
In a second you'll be wrapped around my finger
'Cause I can, ?cause I can do it better
There's no other, so when's it gonna sink in?
She's so stupid, just what were you thinking?
Hey, hey, you, you, I don't like your girlfriend
No way, no way, I think you need a new one
Hey, hey, you, you, I could be your girlfriend
No way, no way
Hey, hey, I know that you like me
No way, no way, you know it's not a secret
Hey, hey, I want to be your girlfriend
No way, no way, no way, no way
When You're Gone
Lyrics:
I always needed time on my own
I never thought I'd need you there when I cry
And the days feel like years when I'm alone
And the bed where you lie is made up on your side
When you walk away I count the steps that you take
Do you see how much I need you right now?
When you're gone
The pieces of my heart are missing you
When you're gone
The face I came to know is missing too
When you're gone
The words I need to hear to always get me through
The day and make it okay
I miss you
I've never felt this way before
Everything that I do reminds me of you
And the clothes you left, they lie on the floor
And they smell just like you, I love the things that you do
When you walk away I count the steps that you take
Do you see how much I need you right now?
When you're gone
The pieces of my heart are missing you
And when you're gone
The face I came to know is missing too
And when you're gone
The words I need to hear to always get me through
The day and make it okay
I miss you
We were made for each other
Out here forever
I know we were, yeah
And all I ever wanted was for you to know
Everything I'd do, I'd give my heart and soul
I can hardly breathe I need to feel you here with me, yeah
When you're gone
The pieces of my heart are missing you
And when you're gone
The face I came to know is missing too
And when you're gone
All the words I need to hear will always get me through
The day and make it okay
I miss you
I was willing to talk about this topic since sometime, and finally! I thought today to be the fine day to talk about it.
So what are we talking here about is Online Shopping Websites. I would be particular to those trading in India, since I have always been in my own country, so I have experience with those catering to India only. I hope it still finds readers, LOL! :D
So the first one on the list is: eBay
I guess that one is popular amongst most of you, even if you are not an Indian, right? So let's talk about eBay now. eBay is an American multinational internet consumer-to-consumer corporation that manages eBay.com, an online auction and shopping website in which people and businesses buy and sell a broad variety of goods and services worldwide. Founded in 1995, eBay is one of the notable success stories of the dot-com bubble; it is now a multi-billion dollar business with operations localized in over thirty countries. eBay expanded from its original "set-time" auction format to include "Buy It Now" standard shopping; shopping by UPC, ISBN, or other kind of SKU (via Half.com); online classified advertisements (via Kijiji or eBay Classifieds); online event ticket trading (via StubHub); online money transfers (via PayPal) and other services.
What my personal experience says about eBay - Since at eBay we buy directly from a seller and not eBay, we cannot be sure of the product. Actually, eBay can be considered as an online shopping mall where there are lots of stores with different owners. In such a case the liability of the products sold is not of eBay, it is rather that of the seller. Thus, one has to be a bit cautious while buying at eBay.
Tips from my side: Most of the products don't have that Cash-on-Delivery option available. That means, you have to pay for most of the goods online. So make sure you do it from your own PC that has firewall and anti-spyware installed and working! Apart from that, make sure that the reputation of the seller, from whom you buy any stuff, is good enough(preferably 99%)
So in all I would give a 4 star(out of 5) rating to eBay.
Next on my list is: Flipkart
Flipkart is an Indian e-commerce company headquartered in Bangalore, Karnataka. It was started by two IIT graduates, Sachin Bansal and Binny Bansal, in the year 2007. They were working in Amazon.com previously. Earlier, Flipkart mainly dealt with books but now, it has expanded to electronic goods and a variety of other products.
In October and November 2011, Flipkart acquired the websites Mime360.com and Chakpak.com. Later, in February 2012, the company revealed its new Flyte Digital Music Store. Flyte, a legal music download service in the vein of iTunes and Amazon.com, will offer DRM-free MP3 downloads. Flyte offers browse by language options where users can download international as well as regional songs. Flipkart has listed the music based on its genre on the new music store and has given a lot of variety. Users can shop for tracks from various albums starting at INR6 on the store. A purchased song can only be downloaded maximum 4 times on an internet enabled device.
What my personal experience says about Flipkart: My personal experience with Flipkart was not good to be honest! Actually, I ordered a RAM and a Hard Disk Drive for my PC. After I ordered, 3 days later, both the products went "out of stock". I wasn't worried because I had already placed my order. 6 days after I placed my order, I received a call from Flipkart reporting that there would be a delay in delivery of the products I requested. I said, it's okay, I understand. 9 days after I placed my order(I had still not received my goods), I called them. They told me there would be an additional delay of at-most 1 day before the goods get delivered to me. Then I saw that the things I ordered, were again in-stock, and were priced lower than before! I was highly agitated, but took no action on that. 3 more days later, I still didn't receive anything and sent them an e-mail telling them that the products now cost lower than earlier, so they should charge me less since it has been long delay in delivery, else I shall cancel the order. Seconds later I got an e-mail telling me my order was cancelled! So my personal experience with the website is BAD, WORSE, WORST!! >_< Though my friends say it's a good website, and I don't find a reason to believe them any-longer! Moreover, in a couple of months the prices of most goods which were earlier cheaper on flipkart in comparison to others, are now higher than other websites!
So in all I would give a 2 star(out of 5) rating to Flipkart, based on my personal experience, which may change in future but I'm not sure all because how readily they cancelled my order, it was actually offensive! >_<
Next on my list: Letsbuy
2012: Letsbuy.com, India's second largest e-retailer in electronics. Flipkart has bought the company for an estimated US$ 25 million. Letsbuy is acquired by flipkart is the only reason why I have no longer much trust in it. What can I do? Flipkart itself gave me such a worse customer experience that I am forced to be not be trusting most of it anymore! Anyways, I bought a USB Hub using letsbuy. To be honest the things went on fine all because I wasn't in an urgent need of the hub. Else, they took so long in delivering the hub that I nearly gave up the hope of receiving it! Similar to what happened with Flipkart, happened with letsbuy order too. But as I said, it wasn't urgent so I let it take the time it wanted.
So in all I would give a 2.8 star(out of 5) rating to Letsbuy.
Next on my list: Homeshop18
HomeShop18 is the online & on-air retail marketing and distribution venture of Network 18 Group that was launched as India’s first 24 hour Home Shopping TV channel on 9 April 2008. It is part of the Network 18 Group. The company operates homeshop18.com, an e-commerce platform in India. The television network can be seen on cable, satellite, and some terrestrial channels in India. HomeShop18 acquired CoinJoos.com, an online books, movies and music retailer in August, 2011 for an undisclosed amount.
HomeShop18 has partnered with major brand owners such as Reebok, Nokia, LG, Motorola, Philips, Kaya, and Godrej. G S Home Shopping of Korea, the third largest home shopping company in the world, has a 15% stake in the company. Network 18 has the controlling stake of 51%.
Homeshop18 is one website that earned my trust with it's nice service. Apart from eBay, if there is one website I don't hesitate in buying with is Homeshop18. I ordered books from that website, and I was delivered in no time! Moreover, I could easily find coupons of this website on the internet that was the best part! hahaha! That means, easy discounts on already nice prices! :D The range of products available on HomeShop18 is awesome, they have got almost everything! :D
So in all I would give a 4 star(out of 5) rating to Homeshop18.
Last on my list for the day: Myntra
Myntra.com is another emerging online fashion store in India. But my personal experience would suggest this site has a poor customer service! The collection of goods though, is quite nice! I ordered a sling-bag from the website when they delivered me a duffel bag. I wasn't much agitated since a mistake can occur anywhere. I asked for a return and refund. The return occurred after I called and e-mailed them repeatedly for many many times! See a bad customer service! >_< And then I wasn't refunded my money(IT WAS THEIR MISTAKE! >_<) Rather I was forced to buy something else from their site. When I looked for the bag I originally ordered, it was nowhere to be found! I had to buy something else in order to get something out of the money I already paid! In all my experience with the website was bad, but when I ordered again, I was sent the right thing in perfect condition. So I don't have any hard-feelings for the website, and thus in future I may look at it again to buy something, but I'm not sure about it.
So in all I would give a 3 star(out of 5) rating to Myntra. The rating may improve or aggravate depending on how is their future service!
I won't be comparing anymore for today, may someday later. My opinions about 3 of the websties are not very good. Though I hope they may improve in future, but well! I'm not sure all because their first impression is so bad that I'm reluctant to go for another purchase! Anyways, I gotta go. A short post, right? Well! It's Sunday and exams are on my head. I have to study also and enjoy my Sunday too! haha! So good day all my friends, have fun. Your comments and suggestions are always welcomed! :)
