HarshadOak.com

Facebook Privacy Settings Are Unfair And Intentionally Complex

October 31, 2008Harshad Oak

I am not a very active Facebook user, but I am amazed at the number and frequency of alerts and updates I keep getting from friends and family. I doubt if these friends are aware that even their micro changes and activities on Facebook are being splashed on the screens of all their friends. These alerts sure are the life blood of a networking site and without them sites like Orkut and Facebook would never have been the phenomenons that they are. However shouldn’t the user have a real and simple option to go private?

Keeping your profile updates private and controlling the overall privacy of you profile and applications is relatively simple on Orkut. However Facebook seems to have intentionally made it difficult for users to manage their privacy settings.

There’s an option “Privacy Settings” that provides only partial privacy control. It controls the privacy of only the core profile and stuff and even within this there are multiple options and confusing screens thrown at the user so as to prevent the user from going private.

Applications that you install on Facebook are a major privacy headache. You have separate sections to control privacy of applications that your friends can use to access your profile and for applications that you yourself have installed. By default each new application you install starts of privacy unfriendly.

Click these links to control your Facebook privacy. Don’t forget to edit each application and set it’s privacy settings.

http://www.facebook.com/editapps.php (On this page ensure that you open and edit each application and tab provided. There’s no easy way to go private on all applications.)
http://www.facebook.com/privacy/?view=platform
http://www.facebook.com/home.php#/privacy/
http://www.facebook.com/home.php#/privacy/?view=profile
http://www.facebook.com/privacy/?view=search
http://www.facebook.com/privacy/?view=feeds
http://www.facebook.com/privacy/?view=platform#/privacy/?view=platform&tab=other

Overall, I think these are bad policies that Facebook needs to fix asap. By providing privacy settings and then making them hopelessly complex, they are trying to project that the users have total control over their privacy when in reality 99.9% of users are totally at the mercy of Facebook.

What Facebook should have is a simple, single screen settings page and one button that says “Go Private” or something like that, which will disable all updates and alerts throughout Facebook as well as all applications.

Considering that privacy is a big concern, especially in the US and the developed world; I am surprised that privacy activists haven’t protested against these Facebook policies as yet.

Tendulkar Creates Something That Would Last For Centuries

October 17, 2008Harshad Oak

Tendulkar today created something that might well last for 100s of years. No, not the record for the highest number of runs in Test cricket…

Sachin Tendulkar today gave a super quote. When asked about the severe criticism he has faced in recent times, he said “Success is about turning those stones (thrown at you) into milestones”. Though not known for his ability to provide quotable quotes, I think Sachin Tendulkar might just have given the English language a quote that would last for centuries. I did some searches and don’t see this line attributed to anyone else.

So you might well have people in say the year 2200 use the line “Success is about turning stones into milestones” and know nothing about a certain Sachin Tendulkar who coined the line in 2008.

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Finally, heartiest congratulations to Sachin, the special son of India on reaching the zenith of the sport of cricket. There are many things apart from his cricket that are admirable about the little man. Except for his apparent following of some hocus pocus god men, can’t think of anything about him that’s not admirable. He’s certainly one of the very few people in public life that Indians respect and look up to. Wishing him the very best!

Using Facebook Pages For Networking @ IndicThreads Conference On Java, Pune, India

October 7, 2008Harshad Oak

The 3rd IndicThreads.com Conference On Java Technology will be held in Pune from 25-27 Nov 2008. In previous years, the conference has been quite good at getting people from various companies, countries and cultures talking about Java. However as yet we didn’t have an online forum for delegates to connect amongst themselves and with the speakers. So we recently evaluated the various networking options available. Creating our own networking site, using Orkut, Facebook, Linkedin or a social networking site like Ning were the options we looked at. Read more →

IndicThreads Conference On Java – Version 3.0 – Pune, India

September 24, 2008Harshad Oak

The 3rd edition of the IndicThreads.com Conference On Java Technology will be held at the Hotel Sun n Sand in Pune, India from 25-27 Nov 2008. The conference is I believe the best place in India for Java learning and discussion. However as I am a speaker at the conference and my firm is the host of the conference, don’t take my word for it.

Check out – http://Conference.IndicThreads.com and have a look at the sessions and the speakers who would be presenting at the event. Conference sessions deal with topics like Domain Driven Design, SOA, HTML5 WebSocket, Agile, Lean, Ajax, Web 2, Scripting, Java Persistence and Desktop Java amongst others. The theme for the event this year is “Architect The Future”

If you think the event is worth it, use the discounted rate currently on offer to grab a seat. I look forward to seeing you at the conference.

Lord Ganesha Causes You Telecom Internet Failure

September 15, 2008Harshad Oak

You Telecom’s internet connectivity in Pune has been pathetic for the past 4 – 5 days. I have rarely managed to connect and despite repeated complaints, nothing has been done in the matter as yet. However just now I happened to see the You Telecom website and realized that You Telecom was not to blame and it was only god’s wish that citizens of Pune do not get Internet access.

Pune Devcon Conference On .Net & Microsoft Tech

August 25, 2008Harshad Oak

The Devcon site says that at the event you can –

Explore the issues surrounding programming mobile devices, Windows application development, integrated Web solutions, Microsoft Office programming, and language enhancement and IDE productivity features. Address issues such as easier development of applications across client types and migrating applications to .NET. Learn new techniques for building a scalable and secure architecture, and designing applications for easier and more effective deployment.”

30th & 31st Aug 2008, Pune, India
http://devcon.puneusergroup.org/

Friends Of The Canal Garden, Prabhat Bhandarkar BMCC Road, Pune

August 15, 2008Harshad Oak

Over the past couple of years, the left bank canal of the River Mutha between the Prabhat, Bhandarkar and Agarkar Road has morphed from pretty much being a dump to now a beautiful garden. The area of about six acres now has lush green lawns, a jogging track and many trees. It’s like an oasis right in the heart of Pune city.

The Pune Municipal Corporation and an NGO, Hirwaee have been jointly running the project as yet. However maintaining the garden, caring for the trees, keeping it clean and free from encroachments is an ongoing challenge that requires the support of residents in the area.

Rock On Has Got It Spot On

August 2, 2008Harshad Oak

Writing this as I listen to the music of the movie ‘Rock On’. Rock On has got it Spot On. It’s Hindi rock and not another attempt at English rock. It’s not like it’s the greatest music ever but it just seems like an important landmark in the journey of rock music in India.

Indians rocking in English and essentially copying English rock stars and their mannerisms seemed very pseudo for it to ever catch on in India. I am nowhere near a music expert or even a connoisseur but it seemed pretty obvious that unless Indian musicians dropped the English language and moved to Indian languages, they were never going to become mainstream. So ‘Rock On‘ might be a big step in the direction of establishing Indian rock music.

Farhan Akhtar seems to emerge stronger by the day. He makes sensible movies and now also acts and sings. His talent is not surprising considering that he is Javed Akhtar’s son. However his emergence is heartening as hopefully he will lead the move away from the over the top mushy and slippery brand of common hindi movies.

Terror Attacks – Why Ahmedabad? Why Bangalore? Why India?

July 27, 2008Harshad Oak

Terror Attacks In Ahmedabad Bangalore Cities In India India has again seen a painful chapter of bombings. Over 20 bombs targeted the Indian cities of Bangalore and Ahmadabad and killed 10s of innocent civilians and injured 100s.

While I feel very sad and rattled by the developments, I also fail to make sense of them. I only have questions for the militants on a killing spree and also questions for myself and all Indians.

Live From London Heathrow Airport Terminal 3

May 10, 2008Harshad Oak

I am on my way back from San Francisco to Pune and have a stop over at London Heathrow. I am writing this live from the ‘Internet and Additional Seating’ area at London Heathrow Airport Terminal 3.

How Trees & Birds Grabbed Prime Land In Pune City!

May 3, 2008March 13, 2023Harshad Oak

Nature shows the way to healing the city…

Like most Indian cities, Pune has crumbled quite rapidly over the past decade and most citizens are convinced that things can only get worse. So thought I would write about a positive development in the Deccan Gymkhana area in Pune. About a project that highlights how things can change if citizens decide to ‘be the change’ and about how citizens are enjoying the benefits of returning prime city real estate to mother nature.

Royal Challengers Is Obvious Surrogate Advertising For Alcohol

April 30, 2008Harshad Oak

It’s good to know that the Health Minister has challenged the name of the Bangalore Indian Premier League (IPL) cricket team, “Royal Challengers”. It’s however sad that it takes the Health Minister of the country to speak up before the authorities looked at such an obvious and blatant form of surrogate advertising for liquor brand “Royal Challenge“.

Magical Men Of 21st Century India

April 22, 2008November 23, 2022Harshad Oak

“The Key Selling Point Of The GodMen Is Their Talk About Things That Make No Sense”

Right from childhood, stories that had their foundation in magic and ‘chamatkars’ always appealed to me. I must have watched 10s of combinations of stories like – Ramu’s son is ill and no doctor is able to cure him; Ramu goes to a godman who whips up a magical powder; Ramu applies the powder on his son’s forehead and the kid is magically cured. As a child, I remember being in awe of the godman and thinking, “Wow! This man is amazing!”. Friends readily contributed their own stories of how the godman was indeed magical.

Experts talk RIA, Agile, Project Irritants, Late Hours, Future of Java …

April 16, 2008Harshad Oak

Check out this discussion about emerging trends in software development that I recently conducted on IndicThreads.com.

>> The IndicThreads Software Technology & Emerging Trends Conversation 2008

Project managers & architects from Cognizant, Infosys, i-flex & Persistent discuss the changing nature of enterprise applications as well as the impact of RIA and SOA. They share their thoughts on Agile, project execution models, project irritants, late hours work culture, the future of Java and also give their take on the quality of software education.

A must read for anyone in the software development business. You are sure to get meaningful insights into the software development scene today, particularly in the Indian software industry.

Reverse Migration – Get Me Out Of The Big City

April 8, 2008November 23, 2022Harshad Oak

On our way back from a beautiful village on the Konkan coast, me and my wife got talking about why Indians are abandoning the vast countryside and moving to ever so cramped and inhospitable cities. We have long toyed with the idea of moving out of the city but never have actually done much in the matter. So we decided to list the things in the city that mattered to us. We rated them on a scale of 1 to 10 and found that only a few made it over 5. Basic amenities like electricity and water got a 10 on 10, while business amenities like banking, transportation and Internet connectivity got an 8. Schools, hospitals and security got 7. Social life and recreation facilities got a 6. Surprisingly the hotels, restaurants, multiplexes and shopping malls that take up so much of our attention in the city barely made it on our charts.

The Stupidify Spell Has Been Cast. Can Brains Fight Back?

March 25, 2008Harshad Oak

A commonly used spell in the Harry Potter books is “Stupefy”. When a wizard says the incantation, a jet of red light flies out of the tip of the magic wand and if it hits the target, the recipient gets stunned and knocked out of his senses. I am unsure of the date and time when it happened but sometime early in this century, I am sure that not “Stupefy” but a “Stupidify” spell was fired through TV screens across India. The spell dulled the senses of all who were hit and since then all those stupidified have been running on minimal grey cell usage. One of the obvious effects of the Stupidify spell is a complete failure at keeping ones brains switched on while in front of a TV screen. I believe that even I am regularly under the influence of the spell. So in this brief interval when I do not feel all that stupidified, I am writing to let the world know of this sinister spell.

Grails Web Application Development Using Oracle JDeveloper IDE

March 21, 2008Harshad Oak

Check out my new article on OTN about building a Grails web application using the Oracle JDeveloper IDE.

Excerpt-
Following the Ruby on Rails (RoR) wave, most software developers have considered, if not tried out, either ROR or some other framework that promises to deliver ROR features. The Grails framework also rode the Rails wave to popularity but is now shaping into a powerful framework in its own right. Grails uses the Groovy
programming language; Groovy syntax is similar to Java’s, but it also adopts some concepts from other languages. Like Java, Groovy generates bytecodes and runs on the Java platform, so it has the power of Java but also adds a few niceties and simplifications.

In this article you will get an introduction to developing Grails applications using Oracle JDeveloper as your IDE. You will also get an overview of Groovy concepts as you go about developing your Grails application.

Visit – http://www.oracle.com/technology/pub/articles/oak-grails.html

Land Of The Young, Rich & Healthy – Welcome To Youngistan

March 8, 2008November 23, 2022Harshad Oak

A new Pepsi ad has coined the phrase ‘Youngistan’ by combining Young & Hindustan. The actor in the ad claims to be an alien from the planet Youngistan. However is Youngistan really a planet in outer space or is India and Youngistan one and the same? I say this as I can’t help but note that India is being totally customized for the young, rich and the healthy. I certainly don’t have anything against the Youngistanization of society. The young definitely should enjoy the prosperity and the growing disposable incomes of new India, but not by steadily ignoring other segments of society.
Read more →

The Case Of The Missing Paisa

February 25, 2008Harshad Oak

I get into arguments at billing counters so frequently these days that I wonder if it has subconsciously become one of my favourite pastimes. I have a fairly wide range of causes for these disputes. However the most common cause is that of the cashier gobbling my hard earned paise. The amusing and strange part of the story is that I seem to be losing these arguments with alarming regularity.

The events normally go something like this – I buy goods worth Rs. 99.25 and the cashier announces Rs. 100 as the payable amount. I ask him why he could not even show the courtesy to tell me that he was charging 75 paise extra. The reply is “Ok, Pay 99”. I tell him that it is not about the 75 paise but about business ethics. I next complain to the store manager who barely listens to me before ordering his staff “Take one rupee less from Sir!”

First Java Champion In India!

February 14, 2008Harshad Oak

Java Champion Award Logo Pleased to announce that I have been chosen as the first “Java Champion” in India. Java today is a mature technology that is being taught and used throughout the software world. However it is still evolving and venturing into new domains and uses. This is an exciting time to be working on Java and the ‘Java Champion’ selection makes it that much more fun. It is also great motivation for us at Rightrix Solutions to continue our Java work through Rightrix Research, IndicThreads.com and the IndicThreads.com Conference On Java Technology.

Us vs Them – The Mantra Of Politics

February 9, 2008November 23, 2022Harshad Oak

After extensive research at Oak Labs, we believe we have discovered the secret of success in politics. It revolves around the simple concept of “Us vs Them”. The key to getting a mass following, winning elections and being a popular leader lies in the ability of the politician to clearly define an “Us vs Them” pattern.So throughout history and in all walks of life, the successful politician always has a clear understanding of who ‘Us’ is and who ‘Them’ are. It is the ability of the politician to convey this understanding that decides how successful he or she is. Here are some examples of Us vs Them. Rulers vs Natives, White vs Black, Democracy vs Dictators, Indian Cricket vs Aussie Cricket, Locals vs Migrants, Secular vs Communal, Believers in a Faith vs Non-believers, Underdeveloped vs Developed Countries and so on.

Indian Sport of Spitting On The Streets Needs To Get Its Due Recognition

January 27, 2008November 23, 2022Harshad Oak

“World Spitathon Champs”

Indians might have the strongest lungs on the planet. Not because of any genetic reasons but because of the exercise that they make their lungs undergo by firing spit missiles every couple of minutes. Across the country we have great exponents of this art, hard at work on every street. While walking, driving, through cars, buses and every other vehicle you will find spit missiles fired with great dexterity and regularity. Although the best performances come from tobacco consumers, even those who are not, often put in scintillating performances.

A Car For Every Indian – Questions Posed By The Tata Nano

January 12, 2008Harshad Oak

“Citizens cannot be denied the comfort they deserve, innovators the recognition“

A couple of days back, the Tata’s launched the much hyped 1 lakh car, the Nano. The car is believed to be the cheapest in the world and is expected to revolutionize travel in India. The car looks good and also seems to come with a decent set of features. Considering that hardly any Indian companies consider research and innovation a priority, the Nano is a significant achievement for the Tatas.

Where’s the real Pune? Where’s the city centre?

December 30, 2007Harshad Oak

With cities like Mumbai where an overwhelming majority of citizens travel south for work but stay up north, it’s quite obvious where the city centre is. However it’s intriguing how city centre means different things to different people in Pune. A friend was recently telling me how his company located in Kalyani Nagar refuses to give bus transport to employees stating that the company was located in the city and so bus transport need not be provided. Considering that he stays in Kothrud and believes that the old city and the Deccan area is the real Pune, he found the company’s suggestion that Kalyani Nagar was ‘in’ the city quite ludicrous.

The Share Market Bull Run Infection

December 20, 2007Harshad Oak

Every few days, newspaper frontpages announce the Sensex’s march past another milestone, 10000, 15000, 20000 and so on. You have photos of brokers jumping for joy and quotes from experts. Business channel hosts are all smiles and it feels like it’s already Diwali. Media portrays the event as a big win for India.

Why the markets surge when nothing seems to have changed or why they crash suddenly is beyond the understanding of every expert, let alone a layman like me. There’s always some exotic reason put forward, like change in interest rates in Timbuktoo. However the fact is that no one knows. If the experts knew, wouldn’t they be making millions and then relaxing on a private island rather than giving tips on TV all day?