Green Week

Well, there is an eWeek being hosted in college and a part of it covers Gtalk. A competition of minds to put up the best custom message in Gtalk is held. The theme for the event is 'Go Green!' Here are two of them, that I've made up:

1.When I fail to find the green circles beside your names, I realize that there is no one 'Available'(left) on my world.Trees are those green circles for mother Earth. GO GREEN! Every1.


2.The *Green* army of Ghosts has saved middle earth from the darkness of Sauron. It is now, our turn to save the world from ourselves. Go Green or Join the DEAD!

Check out this site to find out simple ways to protect your environment: Think Green
I'm Certainly doing the 10th step with this.
;D

Friendly Rural Neighbourhood

A clear cut difference between urban and rural people is visible in the levels of friendliness they show towards total strangers. Well, a fat man like me would be ignored/ stared/ joked about in an urban area. Things are totally different in a rural area. The people are very caring. They pop up with a friendly smile and gently advice about the disadvantages/ diseases that might result from being fat.


Kudos Rural India! ;)

Australian Open 2009 'Final' Review

One thing that is clearly visible after the match was that Rafael Nadal is still improving. I do not say that he is the best the world has ever seen but, he definitely is the best right now. He has finally silenced all his critics. He showed the world that he can win on any surface after the Wimbledon last year and the Australian Open today. If he continues to maintain the levels of fitness, stamina and will power he has right now, there is no wonder that one day he too may be playing to break the record for the most number of Grand Slams titles held by a player.

As for Federer, I want him to get the 14th title but not against Nadal. He was too shaky at the start of the match. He lost a lot of points due to unforced errors. I think the magnitude of the achievement has finally got through to him. Yet, he fought well by winning the 2nd and fourth sets quiet comfortably.


The match was aired in our auditorium. This was the first time I have ever seen a tennis match in our audi. I didn't expect a lot of people to turn up but, the response was amazing. Decent number of people have turned up to witness the moment when Federer wins his 14th Grand Slam Title. All those hearts were shattered with disappointment.

	Australian Open Finals: Rafael Nadal def Roger Federer
		Rafael Nadal (1) 7 3 7 3 6 Roger Federer (2) 5 6 6 6 2

There was aggression resulting from the passion for their their favorite player or hatred towards the other. At the end of the day it was 4 hours well spent.

Rod Laver Arena - Women's Singles - Finals
	Dinara Safina RUS (3)				0		3
	Serena Williams USA (2)				6		6

This year's Australian Open was very good for the Indian Players. The following are some results from the finals.

Rod Laver Arena - Men's Doubles - Finals
	Mahesh Bhupathi IND (3) Mark Knowles BAH (3)				6		5		0
	Bob Bryan USA (2) Mike Bryan USA (2)				2		7		6

Rod Laver Arena - Mixed Doubles - Finals
	Nathalie Dechy FRA Andy Ram ISR				3		1
	Sania Mirza IND Mahesh Bhupathi IND				6		6

Rod Laver Arena - Women's Doubles - Finals
	Daniela Hantuchova SVK (9) Ai Sugiyama JPN (9)				3		3
	Serena Williams USA (10) Venus Williams USA (10)				6		6

Rod Laver Arena - Junior Boys' Singles - Finals
	Yuki Bhambri IND (1)				6		6
	Alexandros-Ferdinandos Georgoudas GER				3		1

A quote from Rafael Nadals' Official Site:


"After this win, Rafa has now won titles on all three surfaces following his repeated success at the French Open and his triumph against Federer in their thrilling encounter at Wimbledon last year. In winning in Melbourne, Rafa also became the first man to enjoy success on clay, grass and hardcourt since Andre Agassi."

"It is truly unbelievable how much heart and determination Rafael Nadal has, as he once again ripped Roger Federer’s heart right out of his chest, stopping him from tying tennis’ all-time mark of 14 major championships."


Vamos Rafael!

Insomnia

Well today will be a holiday for our college. Its' an hour past mid night and i do not wish to sleep so soon. So, I've decided to start working on another title image for my blog. The new image will be uploaded soon.

Nvidia Drivers 181.xx

I clearly noticed a great deal of improvement from the last stable drivers. Download here.

I hope to see a day when Indian footballers play in BIG Leagues and Oscar nominations for Indian films is not a rare event.

Oscars 2009

Here are the nominations for various categories:

BEST PICTURE

• “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button” (Paramount and Warner Bros.), A Kennedy/Marshall Production, Kathleen Kennedy, Frank Marshall and Ceán Chaffin, Producers
• “Frost/Nixon” (Universal), A Universal Pictures, Imagine Entertainment and Working Title Production,Brian Grazer, Ron Howard and Eric Fellner, Producers
• “Milk” (Focus Features), A Groundswell and Jinks/Cohen Company Production, Dan Jinks and Bruce Cohen, Producers
• “The Reader” (The Weinstein Company), A Mirage Enterprises and Neunte Babelsberg Film GmbH Production, Nominees to be determined
• “Slumdog Millionaire” (Fox Searchlight), A Celador Films Production,Christian Colson, Producer

BEST ACTOR

• Richard Jenkins in “The Visitor” (Overture Films)
• Frank Langella in “Frost/Nixon” (Universal)
• Sean Penn in “Milk” (Focus Features)
• Brad Pitt in “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button” (Paramount and Warner Bros.)
• Mickey Rourke in “The Wrestler” (Fox Searchlight)

BEST ACTRESS

• Anne Hathaway in “Rachel Getting Married” (Sony Pictures Classics)
• Angelina Jolie in “Changeling” (Universal)
• Melissa Leo in “Frozen River” (Sony Pictures Classics)
• Meryl Streep in “Doubt” (Miramax)
• Kate Winslet in “The Reader” (The Weinstein Company)

BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR

• Josh Brolin in “Milk” (Focus Features)
• Robert Downey Jr. in “Tropic Thunder” (DreamWorks, Distributed by DreamWorks/Paramount)
• Philip Seymour Hoffman in “Doubt” (Miramax)
• Heath Ledger in “The Dark Knight” (Warner Bros.)
• Michael Shannon in “Revolutionary Road” (DreamWorks, Distributed by Paramount Vantage)

BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS

• Amy Adams in “Doubt” (Miramax)
• Penélope Cruz in “Vicky Cristina Barcelona” (The Weinstein Company)
• Viola Davis in “Doubt” (Miramax)
• Taraji P. Henson in “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button” (Paramount and Warner Bros.)
• Marisa Tomei in “The Wrestler” (Fox Searchlight)

BEST ANIMATED FILM

• “Bolt” (Walt Disney), Chris Williams and Byron Howard
• “Kung Fu Panda” (DreamWorks Animation, Distributed by Paramount), John Stevenson and Mark Osborne
• “WALL-E” (Walt Disney), Andrew Stanton

BEST DIRECTOR

• “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button” (Paramount and Warner Bros.), David Fincher
• “Frost/Nixon” (Universal), Ron Howard
• “Milk” (Focus Features), Gus Van Sant
• “The Reader” (The Weinstein Company), Stephen Daldry
• “Slumdog Millionaire” (Fox Searchlight), Danny Boyle

BEST ADAPTED SCREENPLAY

• “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button” (Paramount and Warner Bros.), Screenplay by Eric Roth, Screen story by Eric Roth and Robin Swicord
• “Doubt” (Miramax), Written by John Patrick Shanley
• “Frost/Nixon” (Universal), Screenplay by Peter Morgan
• “The Reader” (The Weinstein Company), Screenplay by David Hare
• “Slumdog Millionaire” (Fox Searchlight), Screenplay by Simon Beaufoy

BEST ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY

• “Frozen River” (Sony Pictures Classics), Written by Courtney Hunt
• “Happy-Go-Lucky” (Miramax), Written by Mike Leigh
• “In Bruges” (Focus Features), Written by Martin McDonagh
• “Milk” (Focus Features), Written by Dustin Lance Black
• “WALL-E” (Walt Disney), Screenplay by Andrew Stanton, Jim Reardon, Original story by Andrew Stanton, Pete Docter

BEST ART DIRECTION

• “Changeling” (Universal), Art Direction: James J. Murakami, Set Decoration: Gary Fettis
• “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button” (Paramount and Warner Bros.), Art Direction: Donald Graham Burt, Set Decoration: Victor J. Zolfo
• “The Dark Knight” (Warner Bros.), Art Direction: Nathan Crowley, Set Decoration: Peter Lando
• “The Duchess” (Paramount Vantage, Pathé and BBC Films), Art Direction: Michael Carlin, Set Decoration: Rebecca Alleway
• “Revolutionary Road” (DreamWorks, Distributed by Paramount Vantage), Art Direction: Kristi Zea, Set Decoration: Debra Schutt

BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY

• “Changeling” (Universal), Tom Stern
• “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button” (Paramount and Warner Bros.), Claudio Miranda
• “The Dark Knight” (Warner Bros.), Wally Pfister
• “The Reader” (The Weinstein Company), Chris Menges and Roger Deakins
• “Slumdog Millionaire” (Fox Searchlight), Anthony Dod Mantle

BEST COSTUME DESIGN

• “Australia” (20th Century Fox), Catherine Martin
• “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button” (Paramount and Warner Bros.), Jacqueline West
• “The Duchess” (Paramount Vantage, Pathé and BBC Films), Michael O’Connor
• “Milk” (Focus Features), Danny Glicker
• “Revolutionary Road” (DreamWorks, Distributed by Paramount Vantage), Albert Wolsky

BEST DOCUMENTARY FEATURE

• “The Betrayal (Nerakhoon)” (Cinema Guild), A Pandinlao Films Production, Ellen Kuras and Thavisouk Phrasavath
• “Encounters at the End of the World” (THINKFilm and Image Entertainment), A Creative Differences Production, Werner Herzog and Henry Kaiser
• “The Garden” A Black Valley Films Production, Scott Hamilton Kennedy
• “Man on Wire” (Magnolia Pictures), A Wall to Wall Production, James Marsh and Simon Chinn
• “Trouble the Water” (Zeitgeist Films), An Elsewhere Films Production, Tia Lessin and Carl Deal

BEST DOCUMENTARY SHORT

• “The Conscience of Nhem En” A Farallon Films Production, Steven Okazaki
• “The Final Inch” A Vermilion Films Production, Irene Taylor Brodsky and Tom Grant
• “Smile Pinki” A Principe Production, Megan Mylan
• “The Witness - From the Balcony of Room 306” A Rock Paper Scissors Production, Adam Pertofsky and Margaret Hyde

BEST EDITING

• “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button” (Paramount and Warner Bros.), Kirk Baxter and Angus Wall
• “The Dark Knight” (Warner Bros.), Lee Smith
• “Frost/Nixon” (Universal), Mike Hill and Dan Hanley
• “Milk” (Focus Features), Elliot Graham
• “Slumdog Millionaire” (Fox Searchlight), Chris Dickens

BEST FOREIGN LANGUAGE FILM

• “The Baader Meinhof Complex” A Constantin Film Production, Germany
• “The Class” (Sony Pictures Classics), A Haut et Court Production, France
• “Departures” (Regent Releasing), A Departures Film Partners Production, Japan
• “Revanche” (Janus Films), A Prisma Film/Fernseh Production, Austria
• “Waltz with Bashir” (Sony Pictures Classics), A Bridgit Folman Film Gang Production, Israel

BEST MAKEUP

• “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button” (Paramount and Warner Bros.), Greg Cannom
• “The Dark Knight” (Warner Bros.), John Caglione, Jr. and Conor O’Sullivan
• “Hellboy II: The Golden Army” (Universal), Mike Elizalde and Thom Floutz

BEST ORIGINAL SCORE

• “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button” (Paramount and Warner Bros.), Alexandre Desplat
• “Defiance” (Paramount Vantage), James Newton Howard
• “Milk” (Focus Features), Danny Elfman
• “Slumdog Millionaire” (Fox Searchlight), A.R. Rahman
• “WALL-E” (Walt Disney), Thomas Newman

BEST ORIGINAL SONG

• “Down to Earth” from “WALL-E” (Walt Disney), Music by Peter Gabriel and Thomas Newman, Lyric by Peter Gabriel
• “Jai Ho” from “Slumdog Millionaire” (Fox Searchlight), Music by A.R. Rahman, Lyric by Gulzar
• “O Saya” from “Slumdog Millionaire” (Fox Searchlight), Music and Lyric by A.R. Rahman andMaya Arulpragasam

BEST ANIMATED SHORT

• “La Maison en Petits Cubes” A Robot Communications Production, Kunio Kato
• “Lavatory - Lovestory” A Melnitsa Animation Studio and CTB Film Company Production, Konstantin Bronzit
• “Oktapodi” (Talantis Films) A Gobelins, L’école de l’image Production, Emud Mokhberi and Thierry Marchand
• “Presto” (Walt Disney) A Pixar Animation Studios Production, Doug Sweetland
• “This Way Up”, A Nexus Production, Alan Smith and Adam Foulkes

BEST LIVE-ACTION SHORT

• “Auf der Strecke (On the Line)” (Hamburg Shortfilmagency), An Academy of Media Arts Cologne Production, Reto Caffi
• “Manon on the Asphalt” (La Luna Productions), A La Luna Production, Elizabeth Marre and Olivier Pont
• “New Boy” (Network Ireland Television), A Zanzibar Films Production, Steph Green and Tamara Anghie
• “The Pig” An M & M Production, Tivi Magnusson and Dorte Høgh
• “Spielzeugland (Toyland)” A Mephisto Film Production, Jochen Alexander Freydank

BEST SOUND EDITING

• “The Dark Knight” (Warner Bros.), Richard King
• “Iron Man” (Paramount and Marvel Entertainment), Frank Eulner and Christopher Boyes
• “Slumdog Millionaire” (Fox Searchlight), Tom Sayers
• “WALL-E” (Walt Disney), Ben Burtt and Matthew Wood
• “Wanted” (Universal),Wylie Stateman

BEST SOUND MIXING

• “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button” (Paramount and Warner Bros.), David Parker, Michael Semanick, Ren Klyce and Mark Weingarten
• “The Dark Knight” (Warner Bros.), Lora Hirschberg, Gary Rizzo and Ed Novick
• “Slumdog Millionaire” (Fox Searchlight), Ian Tapp, Richard Pryke and Resul Pookutty
• “WALL-E” (Walt Disney),Tom Myers, Michael Semanick and Ben Burtt
• “Wanted” (Universal), Chris Jenkins, Frank A. Montaño and Petr Forejt

BEST VISUAL EFFECTS

• “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button” (Paramount and Warner Bros.), Eric Barba, Steve Preeg, Burt Dalton and Craig Barron
• “The Dark Knight” (Warner Bros.), Nick Davis, Chris Corbould, Tim Webber and Paul Franklin
• “Iron Man” (Paramount and Marvel Entertainment), John Nelson, Ben Snow, Dan Sudick and Shane Mahan

Nominations brought to you by Oscar.com

Winter Break 2k8-2k9

Well I write this post to remind myself of what I did on New Year's eve 2009. I hope I will read this again when I'm 50. :P

1. Besides spending quality time with my brother, family and PS2 :P , I ventured into the world of Online shopping. Registered on Ebay and made my first purchase 'online'. The Item was Rockstars' Grand Theft Auto 4. (If I am 50 now, I would be playing GTA10 most probably) The pricing in India compelled me to order it immediately after reaching home. It was only 500 rupees or 10 dollars (approx).

2. It was time for a small trip. Pranav and Dharnish have planned out a trip to Hamsaladeevi. It is the place where river Krishna meets the Bay of Bengal. It was the closest beach to Vijayawada.(I say 'was' because Vijayawada itself might become a port town by 2050.) There weren't any people except the fishermen. We played football in the cool ocean breeze. Then we went on a boat ride onto the waves. Some of my friends chased down some crabs and caught them too. But the crabs finally won the game of 'Man VS Wild' by causing a minor accident.

3. New Year's eve was excellent. I've met some friends whom I haven't seen for 4 years. Madhav was back in town and he presided over a rocking new years' party.

Bring Reality Into Gaming™ Idea1

We talk a lot about this particular topic. Some people say Crysis has realistic graphics. Some do not get satisfied with what they see. As the computing power increases, the graphics keep getting better, all the time. What is realism then?

I personally feel that reality is not what we see but is that which we feel. We feel something is real! This is in contradiction to the statement "See it to Believe It". But, it is what I personally feel. I've started playing GTA4 a couple of weeks back, not rushing through the game though. Anyone who has played the game might have been using the cell phone feature quiet often. Rockstar Games did a great job in bringing out the game in a brilliant fashion. I'm absolutely loving it. They also have taken great care to get the maximum from sales. There are a lot of things to be checked before you set out to install your copy of GTA4. The process was a bit irritating as well.

I got an idea which would improve the satisfaction of the player and make money for R* at the same time. Instead of creating a virtual cell phone, I feel that it would be much more exciting and interesting if the players could actually use their own cell phones to receive calls/ ask for jobs. The outgoing calls from the players' cell can be used to generate money for Rockstar as well. I know that this would mean that R* should put some effort in designing an efficient call handling system/link up with telecom networks around the world. But, if done, it would have taken the world of gaming one step closer to reality.


;)

Adios

Happy Sankranti

It's been a week into the second semester. I'm slowly settling down into my daily routine. This semester is going to be a very busy period. Lots of projects and papers to submit., and a magazine is to be brought out along with my preparation for the graduate record examination. Will be writing about how I spent my holidays, shortly.

Well tomorrow is a holiday on the occasion of Makara Sankranti. So, Happy Pongal everyone!