15 August 2016

Management Lessons by 7 Questions

Management is a subject which has to be dealt with  answering seven questions. Why , what, when , where, who, whom and how.  Because every individual, every event, every institution, everyone, every location………. vary. One solution may not be enough for even the same problem in different locations / individuals / companies / situations/…….

Thus we have to do research for each situation for solving each problem, which obviously is difficult.  Many a times it is impossible also. Then the simple question comes in front of us ! How to solve a problem ? The answer is  to evaluate    such incidents or events , if , occurred anywhere. Take the messages from that and  solve the problem. Major tools for  the extrapolation or intrapolation in order to solve the problems can be derived from others’ experiences / guidance /messages/  truth and facts about the situations, events,  and so on.

The easiest method is just to remember a story  which gives a similar situation and solution for the problem arising under similar situations. Do addition, deletion, modification and correction and then adopt it to our problems  which need solution.

The puraanas 18 + 18  from our heritage literature are not histories (they may have  a bit history but not fully histories) , in fact, gives such a fine examples connected with bad people which they call asuraas and  rakshasaas, good people the good  kings and Rushies, People having many types of negatives and many types of positives in the mind. Just analyse for a few second / minute how they faced the situation when similar incidents took place. We will get some idea, which is the need for any solution of  problem. Ideas for solving the problems ! or ideas for thinking about a solution !

People having ego, anger, jealousy and so on,  on the one side and on the other  people having love, affection, devotion, sincerity and so on. Now analyse what, when, why, where, who, whom and how  each event (part of it also) happened and what was the conclusion.

Adopt the same or modified methods in our life too. Here comes the pathway for the solution from the puraanas. These books add a bit devotion, dedication and sincerity also i each story  to increase seriousness in the reading and learning them.

So take each story, analyse all the aspects and take the message for solving our problems, in our home or organisations.

Source: www.iish.org

05 August 2016

Pokėmon Go for Oman - A review

Caught in trendy Pokémon Go craze? I too was. Suddenly I scored more for my routine 10K per steps per day walks. Me and my son spent more time together and that too in my fav. parks of Muscat.

But I got out of it when my monthly mobile net pack finished in just over a week. My neck and shoulders starting hurting as I spent more hours looking down at my mobile screen.

Youths, both Omani and expatriate are addicted and some even have multiple accounts to cross several levels and hence worthy of cash-sale when the game is formally launched in Oman.

Pokémon density is higher in campuses and landmark area like parks and malls.
Driven by this craze, players are becoming more of a traffic hazard. They continue to search for Pokémon while driving and suddenly slow-down to throw their Pokéballs to catch them in sort of a trance stage. What a road hazard this is.

Often I find it tough to find parking space in poke stop which are next to shopping or restaurants. They are occupied for long by Pokémon lure-casters and other catchers.

There have been privacy violation lawsuits where Pokés-Stops in private real-estate, caused nuisance to owners. A few road-accidents have been reported due to Pokémon addicts’ reckless walks across traffic.

Even renowned sportsmen have admitted that this game is clear mind-control stuff and quit early. 

Despite the fact that it promotes outdoor movement, this Pokémon is another means of mobile addiction which may result in public nuisance of various degrees. How does it even bring people together if all of them are only staring at their mobile, instead of face-to-face conversations and cause pedestrian congestion in public spots?

I guess the local authorities will evaluate wisely and take appropriate actions about this game being launched in Oman.

29 May 2016

Mobile Apps in Government Sector - Oman - A Full List

If you live in Oman and you use a smart phone, the following apps are quite useful. Do install and share your experience. This can help to improve these apps.






















Image Courtesy: http://hykano.com

The Full List

Click to download Apple / Android  / Windows / Blackberry Market by clicking on the relevant link. Kindly place the missing ones in the comment section. Thank you.

1. TourOman (National Center for Statistics and Information) #Tourism #Maps #GPS
    Apple     Android

2. Young Consumer (Public Authority for Consumer Protection) #Awareness #ConsumerRights
    Apple     Android

3. ROP App (Royal Oman Police)  #TrafficFines #ePayment
    Apple      Android

4. Oman Statistics (National Center for Statistics and Information) #Indicators #Statistics
    Apple     Android     Blackberry     Windows

5.  Mara Oman (Ministry of Endowment Religious Affairs) #Ramadan #PrayerTiming #Hajj #
    Apple     Android Also available iPad Ver

6.  MSM (Muscat Securities Market)  #MarketIndex #LiveTradeValue #Alerts
    Apple     Android

7. Na'mal (Ministry of Manpower) #Employment #Statistics #Vacancies #Application #StatusCheck
    Apple     Android

8. Religious Books (Ministry of Endowment and Religious Affairs)  #Islam #Books #eRead
    Apple     Android

9.  Invest Easy (aka One Stop Shop - Ministry of Commerce and Industry) #Application #StatusCheck
   Apple      Android

10. Office of Public Prosecution  #Legal #Law #Legislation
   Apple     Android

11. Environment (Ministry of Environment and Climate Affairs) #Environment #Laws #Licenses #ProtectedAreas #Maps
  Android

12.  SAI App (State Audit Institution) #News #Laws #Complaints
  Apple     Android

13. Weather Oman (Public Authority for Civil Aviation) #Metrology #weather #maps
   Android

14. Electricity App (Oman Electricity Holding Company) #Bills #ePayment #Alerts #Rates #
    Apple     Android

15. Charity Donation (Oman Donations Portal) #CharityOrganisations #ePayment #CharitableCauses
    Apple     Android

16. Geospatial Statistics Oman (National Center for Statistics and Information) #Indicators #Maps #GeoSpatialData
    Apple      Android

17. Transport GeoPortal (Ministry of Transport and Communications) #Maps #Routes #Transport #ProjectData
   Android

18. Health App (Ministry of Health) #Alerts #Reports #Statistics #Appointments #Reminders #Events
  Apple      Android

19. Consumer Guide (Public Authority for Consumer Protection) #Laws #Legislation #ConsumerRights #Awarenss #Alerts #Recalls
   Apple     Android

20. Education App (Ministry of Education) #Connect #Resources #Attendance #Timetable
   Android

21. Taxi App (Ministry of Transport and Communication) #List #Booking #Rates #Discounts #Training #Insurance
   Apple      Android

22. Oman Airports (Oman Airports Management Company) #Flights #Airports #Schedules
   Apple      Android










 

Discussing the role the 'policy-first' with experts from the World Bank


 

Green Computing

Great moments of winning Green Habitat Award for the Information Technology of Oman in its handling of Carbon footprint management.

28 May 2016

Speaking on E-Waste Challenge and Management


 Spoke at the 2nd Waste Management and Recycling:














Covered Topics

Electronic Waste (eWaste) - Current Status in Statistics
ICT and the challenges
eWaste flow in a global context
Carbon Foot print
Green Computing
Complexity of disposing computing equipment
Laws and legislations concerning eWaste disposal in Oman
Stakeholders in eWaste Management
Best practices around the world
UN Initiatives
Future predictions

 

23 December 2015

Innovation 2015: Series

2015 the year that was!
 
Soon before 2016 is born, here is our stock-taking on innovations that changed / changing / going to change the way we live on this planet.
 
Each post shall focus on each different application of innovation.Do feel free to request for new areas that you to explore.
 

02 June 2015

GeoPortal from Ministryof Transport and Communications, Oman

The Geo Portal allows the visitors to get location, directions and measure distances over real-time overlay of e- maps and the officials can follow the workflow at seaports and airports.

 It was formally launched on 18th May 2015 by MoTC and can be accessed at URL - http://gis/motc.gov.om



The bi-lingual portal currently provides locational data and mapping tools for sea-ports only. It is based on ArcGIS platform ESRI to perform deep analysis based on data archives.

It provides the necessary tools to study data related to spacial dimension and its impact using e-maps (both layout and satellite views).

You can select any port through the list and the map zooms on to the exact location and shows detailed map in real-time. It also gives port related projects data, port data, achievements and documents feature but the data is not yet available.





22 May 2012

Get to know a little more about me: Interview via twitter

Posting the link to an Interview by a Twitter friend: get to know a little more about me.

My twiiter handlename is @sangitaSri. Follow me there for tech, news, trivia, science and conversations.

ROBOT fish help cleaning pollution in harbours

Thanks to Spanish researchers, the autonomous SHOAL Robot fish swims the open waves of the port of Gijon to sense marine pollution.

Currently the port relies on divers to monitor water quality, which is a lengthy process costing €100,000 per year. The divers take water samples from hundreds of points in the port, then send them off for analysis, with the results taking weeks to return.

By contrast, the SHOAL robots would continuously monitor the water, letting the port respond immediately to the causes of pollution, such as a leaking boat or industrial spillage, and work to mitigate its effects

"With these fish we can find exactly what is causing the pollution and put a stop to it right away," explains Luke Speller, a scientist at the British technology firm BMT and the leader of SHOAL, a European project involving universities, businesses and the port of Gijon, which have joined forces to create the fish.

Read more here.

Google does it again: Playable music synthesizer with records too

Google doodle on the 23rd May 2012, celebrates the 78th Birthday of Robert Arthur "Bob" Moog, founder of Moog Music, an American pioneer of electronic music, best known as the inventor synthesizer.

The doodle is fun to play with and also record your tunes. More about Bob Moog here. The "synth" has had a big role in creating a range of tones without which our music or background scores wouldn't have sounded so rich and almost magical in expressing emotions via music. Get to know more about this synthesizer.

Companies like Google raise-brows freaquently by harnessing human curiosity and innovation with freedom. Time we unleash this potential from our student as well as staff to see what magic they can create.

06 February 2012

Super Bowl and Social Media Statistics

A collection of useful statisitcs for analysis. Thanks to www.twitter.com/madversity for raising the question. Here is a compilation of links:



11 October 2011

60 Seconds - Information Overload

"TAKE CONTROL of your real LIFE"


(click for a larger image)



694,445 searched on Google
6,600+ pictures uploaded on Flickr
600 videos uploaded on YouTube videos
695,000 status updates on Facebook
70 New domains registrations
168,000,000+ emails sent
320 new accounts and 98,000 tweets on Twitter
13,000 iPhone app downloads
20,000 new posts on tumbler
1700 downloads of FireFox
50 downloads of Wordpress
100 accounts created on LinkedIn
40 new Questions on YahooAnswers
100+ questions on Answers
1 new definition is added on UrbanDictionary
1,200+ new ads are created on Craigslist
370,000+ minutes of voice calls on Skype
13,000+ hours of music streaming on Pandora
1,600+ reads are made on Scribd


Source: www.go-gulf.com

06 October 2011

Good bye Steve Jobs! Lives touched by You will rock on.

FINAL FUNERAL RITES: STEVE JOBS

His Mortal remains will be laid in state at His Residence in Palo Alto, California on the 8th Of October 2011

Burial Service: The iTrinity Chapel Ministries, Palo Alto; The body will be cremated in his residence.

After Church Service, there will be a reception at his residence.

Rest In Peace dear Steve Jobs! You lived very well.
Published with Blogger-droid v1.7.4

05 October 2011

RIP Steve Jobs

I promise to "Stay Hungry, Stay Foolish" Steve, I promise.

Watch his 2005 Stanford Speech - http://bit.ly/hCvPdG

Apple iPod iMac iTouch iPhone iTune iPad NeXT Pixar. . . . . . iMiss You Steve iGrieve!

Steve Job; the legend who dented this Universe in his own beautiful way!

Apple's statement says: "Apple has lost a visionary and creative genius, and the world has lost an amazing human being. Those of us who have been fortunate enough to know and work with Steve have lost a dear friend and an inspiring mentor. Steve leaves behind a company that only he could have built, and his spirit will forever be the foundation of Apple."

Published with Blogger-droid v1.7.4

09 June 2011

Music notes for Google Doodle - Play Guitar on your Keyboard - Les Paul's anniversary


Everyone can play guitar right from your keyboard at www.google.com today.

As @neerajsaxena tweeted: The whole world seems to be strumming today, thanks to the Doodle! Thank you Google for making my surroundings musical, no strings attached!

Here are a few songs for you to play:
- Go to www.google.com
- Click on small keyboard image till it shows in Red colour
- Now remember the tunes & adjust timings between the notes as given below

_____________________
Via @saffrontrail From @wwtang Happy Birthday with #googledoodle guitar version: Play this '5565 887 5565 998 5550 8876 4408 998' I tried, it worked. Have fun!

_____________________
Via @CruciFire From @vikas_m: DJDJDJDJDJDJ, GLGLGLGLGLGL, DJDJDJ KDK JDJ, GLG PGP LGL KFK and repeat. System of Down's Toxicity

_____________________
From @MusicAloud varaveena (carnatic) without the gamakas. :)
335 5 658 8 98665 65332 35686 65332 33653 55321
333323535 5 33656 658 8 609988 686665 356865
653321 123 3 32532 12132121 1

______________________
From @SangitaSri Play DoReMi: - asdsdsd - sdffdsf - dfgdgdg - fghhgfh - gasdfgh - hsdfghj - jdfghjk - kjhgfds...
______________________
From @complicateur #googledoodle The opening line of Pani vizhum alone is possible: qqqqqqqq qert rtre
______________________
Via @keshav61 From @complicateur #googledoodle O Butterfly: Q W E WEW QWQ U QWQ WEW WETY YUUY YUUY YTY TRT R EW(together) RW ER(together)
______________________
Via @NameFieldmt From @krishnahok ASDDDDDDDDDDDSDF for the first line of India's national anthem Jana Gana Mana.

_______________________
Via @mestrazulas From @rubbaan: Star Wars theme on #googledoodle - EEE Q T E Q T E UUU I YR T E

_______________________
Via @neokenji01 From @ratm: (123 *press together*)x3 (678)x3 (123)x3 (678)x3 (123)x3 (678)x3 (123)x3 878783 - Killing In The Name intro

06 June 2011

Apple - Annual WWDC 2011 Summary

Apple held its annual Worldwide Developer Conference WWDC 2011 on 6th June.
Steve Jobs presented 3major products: OS X (Lion) ---- iOS5 --- iCloud
Watch full video of the WWDC Keynote address via The Next Web.
A collection of highly relevant summary articles online from the best arouces is listed - they are better than me trying to sum up :-)


  1. Everything you need to know about the new iOS5

  2. OS X (Lion) for only $29 - Features

  3. Apple Moves The Digital Hub From The Mac To iCloud

  4. iOS 5: Tweet everywhere

  5. iCloud - mails, contacts, calendar, docs, iBooks, music, photographs

27 May 2011

eG8 Forum – The Internet: Accelerating Growth



For the very 1st time, eG8 Forum brought together movers and shakers from the Internet technolgy world, government, non-profit foundations and media organisations to discuss the current status of the Internet and its social and cultural impact. View video of Interview by Reuters on eG8 here.

When and where and agenda
eG8 Summit was held in Paris, France on the 24th & 25th May 2011. Check the full event schedule and speakers list here.

Aim of the Summit

eG8 Forum in Paris sought to bring together leaders from the political and Internet worlds to think about the future of the networked society. Main discussions involved around the importance of the role that the Internet now plays in our personal as well as our professional lives, and the opportunities but also the challenges that the network represents for our societies, our economies and our cultures.

Elite speakers

Some of the elite panelists and speakers in this event include:
Nicolas Sarkozy, Marc Zuckerberg (Facebook), Eric Schmidt of Google, Jimmy Wales (Wikipedia), Craig Mundie (Microsoft), Rupert Murdoch (News Corp), Andrew Mason (Groupon), Klaus Schwab (World Economic Forum), Sheryl Sandberg (Facebook), Yuri Milner (Digital Sky Technologies), John Donahoe (ebay), Sunil Bharti Mittal (Bharti Airtel), Mitchell Baker (Mozilla Foundation), etc.

They were joined by eminent academics Yochai Benkler, Jeff Jarvis (Hippocratic Oath for the Internet), and Larry Lessig (Harvard law school). Refer here for full list of speakers during the plenary sessions of eG8. Video of the eG8 Forum plenary sessions of both Day 1 and Day 2 are available on Youtube.

Opening note from Nicolas Sarkozy

The Internet's multilateral dynamic, and the driving role that the private sector and civil society play in its development, have led me to invite the major stake- holders of this ecosystem to Paris, so that the meeting of Heads of State can benefit from their vision. The content of your exchanges will be conveyed to the Heads of State and governments of the G8. A new phenomenon requires a new method of consultation, one that recognizes the legitimacy and the responsibility of the actors concerned: hence the idea of this e-G8 Forum”, said Nicolas Sarkozy, President of France. For more info watch this video of President Sarkozy at the eG8 Summit.

Event Partners

The eG8 was partnered by leading technology firms: Orange, Vivendi, Free, Google, Capgemini, Ebay, Microsoft, Huawei, Alcatel-Lucent, HP, Eutelsat Communications, Thomson Reuters, and Publicis Groupe.

Selected highlights

Keynote presentation by James Manyika and Matthieu Pé́lissié on 'Internet Matters'.
• Report from McKinsey Global Institute on 'Internet Matter: The Net’s sweeping impact on growth, jobs and prosperity (PDF)'.
• Many organizations concerned with human rights, liberties and civil society online have released a statement to the eG8 and G8 that advocates “expanding internet access for all, combating digital censorship and surveillance, limiting online intermediary liability, and upholding principles of net neutrality.
• When asked about government regulation, Eric Schmidt of Google said that technology moves so fast that governments really shouldn't try to regulate it because it will change too fast, and any problem will be solved by technology. "We'll move much faster than any government”.
• The eG8 shows online innovation and freedom of expression still need strong defenders according to Alex Howard of O’reilly. Read his detailed account on copyright, innovation and freedom of expression here.

09 May 2011

What is your online personality?

Users are getting the hang of being on social media platforms such as Facebook, Youtube, MySpace, Tumblr, LinkedIn, Twitter, Orkut, Friendstr, Hubbo, etc. It is time we mature from treating these as public chat forums to one more meaningful and worthy of belonging to by our valuable presence.

Here are certain roles that one can take for an online Avatar, to add value to the exploding online proliferation and populace. Each role highlights a specific focus of purpose and some of these can be combined in varying ratios to suit one’s preference.

Grooming one’s online personality also creates clear personal brand values and established you presence as a domain champion much sought after online. Over time period, these skills acquired may also lead to lucrative business prospects or even job offers.

A. Authentic news source
This personality is well read and keeps live track of events happening around in one specific domain or in an overall manner. Sources have to authentic and personal reflections and viewpoints may induce interactivity within your network.

B. Local expert
Almost anyone can be a local expert for if they have lived there for a while. Information shared by such experts may range from news about local events, useful contact leads, shopping venues and offers, food / restaurant recommendations, etc.

C. Role model
This character cannot be defined clearly but it is a personality which most readers or users look forward to emulate. Success of these role models may come from the mature opinions they share to the comfort they bring about through their discussions and the inspiration and support they give to others.

D. Motivator or mentor
Such people normally share lot of motivational quotations and inspirational news. They are instant source of positive energy and a must in everyone’s online networking contacts basket.



E. Technical or social help desk

Most often well-versed user of products or gadgets and professional in technical fields play this role well. They are often up-to-date about technology products and by experience they could also help I troubleshooting technical problems for others.

F. Community welfare
Social consciousness is a must in every human being but some are more inclined to be vociferous about such social initiatives and news. They are happy and caring souls who rope-in support for fund-raiser or awareness campaigns for social causes.

G. Social media coach
This character is an experienced user of the social media platform not just in a technical sense but also in the sense of understanding the dynamics of users and content and viral marketing that goes on here. Most often they are compassionate people to network with and learn to rope in your social media strategy.

H. Lifestyle Guru
Anyone indulging in the finesse of life with a taste can become a lifestyle guru online. With news about latest fashions, trends, promotions and teaser campaigns, they entice the user to become a compulsive shopper. Unlike marketing media, these people are genuine and can make personalized recommendation and so they are better received in public.

On the whole life is an experience and each one of us sees only a facet of it in prismatic vision. So being one’s true self in good etiquette is the secret mantra of successful online presence. Making oneself useful either in real world or online is by connecting with others and sharing your insights. So choose your online personality accordingly and create a valuable presence.

09 January 2011

Art and science of effective passwords

In our digital life style, most often our privacy and secrecy are protected with username and password (including PIN as in the case of card-based transactions).

On an average over ten different passwords have to memorized for purposes such as internet account, office and personal emails, online social media platforms, financial and utility accounts transactions online, membership logins, etc.


Life was easy until we considered that having a password was enough once and for all. Unfortunately this scene has changes. We are at the risk of financial or reputation loss and might also suffer losing our own identity if our private details are exposed to the wrong people.

Often we use simple password that include abbreviations of our name or initials along with details from our date of birth – a mere 5 to 6 characters long. Many times people find using the default password or ‘password’ as the password itself more convenient. Imagine how simple and how dangerous if this case applies to your online banking website of email account.


Now often we come across so many “Don’t Do” about secure password. Never user names or usernames or ‘123’ or ‘test’ or petname or child’s name being some of these. Seldom there is help in the form of how to coin safe passwords and manage them efficiently. Here is some useful information in this direction.
  • Make sure whatever you do, that you can remember the password without having to write it down. The best password is simple yet difficult to crack.

  • The length and range and the case of characters in your password determine how difficult it is to guess. So use symbols, numbers, a mix of upper and lower case letters. For example letter ‘a’ can be replaced with ‘@’, ‘s’ can be replaces with ‘$’ etc.

  • One method of coining a good password is to use a sentence that one can easily remember. For example “My Favourite Movie Is Casablanca” or “The Best Place I have Seen So far Is Bali”. Take the 1st letter of each word, insert your symbol say ‘#’ between each 3 letter and use your number say ‘3’ after every 5th letter. A password like ‘Tbp#ih3$#$fi#5B’ is almost impossible to guess.

  • Another easy technique could be to use two totally un-related words and connect both those words with symbols and numbers while mixing up lower and uppercase letters. Again passwords like ‘ nOvember!=dEcem ber’ or ‘funny<$nail>Flower’ are also very good passwords.

  • Use of words from foreign language can be very handy to make good password using English characters. This brings a new range of complexity into your password as the sentence delivered in your native language can’t be guess that easily. Example ‘Guruk@Aashirva@d’ is simple based on a Hindi phrase with symbols missed for the 1st and last occurrence of the letter ‘a’.

  • Whatever password you may create can be useless if you do not change is over a period of time. Good level of security suggests change after every 30 or 45 days. Systems can be automated to ‘expire a password’ after this number of days.

  • Re-use of old password must also be limited. It is safe to keep this limit as 10/12 minimum, for the list of passwords before they can be reused again.

  • Length of the password must certainly be longer than 8 characters but about 14 characters or more is recommended for sensitive applications.

As conclusion we can say that no password un-crackable and what we are trying our best is only to make it more difficult to crack in terms of effort and time. Simple and obvious errors like post-it notes with passwords stuck under keyboards must be avoided.

Sharing the password with someone is same as broadcasting your password publicly; this is no longer a secret. The worst password is the one you forgot while the best password is simple yet cannot be guessed easily.