Picasa is a pretty amazing piece of software.
It's a little confusing (sometimes I have to dig around to figure out where my pictured ended up, both on my hard disk and online) but my impression is that its so feature rich, I'm just suffering from overload. For the most part it Just Works, which is the correct mantra for user experience. And frankly I am kind of a power user when it comes to software, so the bar is higher (and a little different, as I like to have complete control over my PC) for me than for your average user.
But the coolest feature is after you upload your photos, on the web if you mouse over a picture of someone it recognizes a face, frames it and prompts you to 'click to name.' You can then link each face to a contact, and it offers autom complete, remembering all previous contacts, deduping the same people, etc.
Google, I salute you. Another good mantra of user experience: innovate and exceed your users expectations. Maybe I have been under a rock too long just working on back end code but I never expected such a feature to work as well as it does. Probably this is the beginning of SkyNet and we are all screwed but I am embracing the horror.
Tuesday, February 3, 2009
On jet lag, flush toilets and Johhny Cash...
Jet lag is a weird thing. I've travelled across the US a handful of times and dealt with the 3 hour difference (from Seattle, its +3 hours on the East Coast and -2 hours in Hawaii) and frankly never had much issue with it. I took one trip to Norway (-9 hours) but it was purely vacation, so I was out at the pubs till 2am pretty much and never really noticed the jet lag.
On this trip I've had to both get used to the +12.5 hour difference (wtf with the .5 anywhoo?) but also these guys work on a very different schedule than I do. (Back home I tend to work from 7am-6pm; here they tend to work from 10am till 10 or 11pm.)
I've tried to follow all of the advice: don't nap during the day (except my first day off the plane when I was dead beat,) exposure to sunlight in the morning, the jet-lag diet (which involves several days of alternating feast-and-famine.) However what I've found is that no matter what, I am dead tired between 10am and 5pm here... and then restless and awake during the night. And when I do finally get to sleep... at 12, 1am, 2am... I wake up exactly at 3:30 am. Eigh!!! It's messed up. Thank god there is internet in the hotel.
One of my buddies back home asked me yesterday if I had flush toilets. Everywhere that I have been, at least, has had western standards of plumbing and amenities. Clearly there are people here living without that, but I think the past few years (especially here in Bangalore, from what I understand) there has been an incredible push of modernization and westernizaion, driven by the IT sector. I'm worried about the effect of the worldwide recession on these guys (companies have already been failing and cutting jobs here, so they are already feeling it.) It just makes me more determined to do my part as I feel that my company will really be able to contribute to the recovery, in the long run.
To prove that I have working plumbing, here is a pic of the Smallest. Bathroom. Evar.
Check out the weird sink that looks like a bowl on the table. Its actually attached. If you turn the water on too much it will totally shoot up out of the bowl, which I found out the first day I was getting ready for work.
I can barely fit my fat ass into that shower. and the sink has 2 mirrors in the corner, which means that when you shave or brush your teeth, you can see 3 of yourself. It was confusing, as I didn't know which guy to look at!
Which brings me to my final point. I finally got some real spicy food here in the past 24-36 hours, and it was wonderful. But thank god for that flush toilet... for I went down in a Burning Ring of Fire.
On this trip I've had to both get used to the +12.5 hour difference (wtf with the .5 anywhoo?) but also these guys work on a very different schedule than I do. (Back home I tend to work from 7am-6pm; here they tend to work from 10am till 10 or 11pm.)
I've tried to follow all of the advice: don't nap during the day (except my first day off the plane when I was dead beat,) exposure to sunlight in the morning, the jet-lag diet (which involves several days of alternating feast-and-famine.) However what I've found is that no matter what, I am dead tired between 10am and 5pm here... and then restless and awake during the night. And when I do finally get to sleep... at 12, 1am, 2am... I wake up exactly at 3:30 am. Eigh!!! It's messed up. Thank god there is internet in the hotel.
One of my buddies back home asked me yesterday if I had flush toilets. Everywhere that I have been, at least, has had western standards of plumbing and amenities. Clearly there are people here living without that, but I think the past few years (especially here in Bangalore, from what I understand) there has been an incredible push of modernization and westernizaion, driven by the IT sector. I'm worried about the effect of the worldwide recession on these guys (companies have already been failing and cutting jobs here, so they are already feeling it.) It just makes me more determined to do my part as I feel that my company will really be able to contribute to the recovery, in the long run.
To prove that I have working plumbing, here is a pic of the Smallest. Bathroom. Evar.
 |
| From Bangalore Day Three |
Check out the weird sink that looks like a bowl on the table. Its actually attached. If you turn the water on too much it will totally shoot up out of the bowl, which I found out the first day I was getting ready for work.
 |
| From Bangalore Day Three |
I can barely fit my fat ass into that shower. and the sink has 2 mirrors in the corner, which means that when you shave or brush your teeth, you can see 3 of yourself. It was confusing, as I didn't know which guy to look at!
Which brings me to my final point. I finally got some real spicy food here in the past 24-36 hours, and it was wonderful. But thank god for that flush toilet... for I went down in a Burning Ring of Fire.
Bangalore Day Three
On the way back to the hotel yesterday, I actually saw several Farsi walking their camels down the feeder road next to the highway. I need to always have my camera ready for this crazy shit!
The first thing I woke up to see this morning from my balcony was a woman sweeping the street with a bundle of reeds. I suppose I am such the gawking American business/tourist but I have never seen this before...
What I wonder... does she work for the hotel? the city? ( doubt it.) she worked her way up and down the street, maybe she just lives here and wanted to clean things up. I dunno!
Here is some crazy combination between an auto-rickshaw and a truck. The crazy vehicles here continue to amaze me... also, this is a small one. there are some trucks with the exact same front half, but a much larger cargo area, sometimes full of people in the back. I'd hate to be back there, I can easily imagine someone falling out.
the other thing I noticed today (but did not manage to snap a picture in time) is the instructions on the back of buses and trucks to "please honk horn" ha you would never see that in the states. It would be like wearing a note on your back that said 'kick me.'
Speaking of kicking, apparently at the company I am working with, they have a twisted tradition: on your birthday, first off the birthday boy/girl has to take their team out for lunch. (Kind of the opposite of how we do it in Seattle.) We had some really good Chinese food. Then, when they bring out the cake, first off they grabbed him and proceeded to kick him in the ass pretty brutally! then, they smeared cake all over his face.
Live action movie of the beating:
And the aftermath:
its all in good fun, but geez I am sure glad its not my birthday for many months!
My policy for today was: every team member that came into my office to ask a question, got their picture snapped. Secretly its my way of making sure I can put all of the names and faces together later, don't tell!! also I want everyone back in Seattle to start to get to feel like they know these guys, even if its just through me. So here's the unlucky ones from today:
Nagendra... rock out! This guy works late into the night, fueled only by youthful enthusiasm and Iron Maiden lol.
Shriram and Gurpreet
Me, with Elangovan and Chandru (Elangovan clearly trying to hide behind me ;^)
Shriram, Uma and Naveen
Rubin
The first thing I woke up to see this morning from my balcony was a woman sweeping the street with a bundle of reeds. I suppose I am such the gawking American business/tourist but I have never seen this before...
 |
| From Bangalore Day Three |
What I wonder... does she work for the hotel? the city? ( doubt it.) she worked her way up and down the street, maybe she just lives here and wanted to clean things up. I dunno!
Here is some crazy combination between an auto-rickshaw and a truck. The crazy vehicles here continue to amaze me... also, this is a small one. there are some trucks with the exact same front half, but a much larger cargo area, sometimes full of people in the back. I'd hate to be back there, I can easily imagine someone falling out.
 |
| From Bangalore Day Three |
the other thing I noticed today (but did not manage to snap a picture in time) is the instructions on the back of buses and trucks to "please honk horn" ha you would never see that in the states. It would be like wearing a note on your back that said 'kick me.'
Speaking of kicking, apparently at the company I am working with, they have a twisted tradition: on your birthday, first off the birthday boy/girl has to take their team out for lunch. (Kind of the opposite of how we do it in Seattle.) We had some really good Chinese food. Then, when they bring out the cake, first off they grabbed him and proceeded to kick him in the ass pretty brutally! then, they smeared cake all over his face.
 |
| From Bangalore Day Three |
Live action movie of the beating:
 |
| From Bangalore Day Three |
And the aftermath:
 |
| From Bangalore Day Three |
 |
| From Bangalore Day Three |
its all in good fun, but geez I am sure glad its not my birthday for many months!
My policy for today was: every team member that came into my office to ask a question, got their picture snapped. Secretly its my way of making sure I can put all of the names and faces together later, don't tell!! also I want everyone back in Seattle to start to get to feel like they know these guys, even if its just through me. So here's the unlucky ones from today:
Nagendra... rock out! This guy works late into the night, fueled only by youthful enthusiasm and Iron Maiden lol.
 |
| From Bangalore Day Three |
Shriram and Gurpreet
 |
| From Bangalore Day Three |
Me, with Elangovan and Chandru (Elangovan clearly trying to hide behind me ;^)
 |
| From Bangalore Day Three |
Shriram, Uma and Naveen
 |
| From Bangalore Day Three |
Rubin
 |
| From Bangalore Day Three |
Monday, February 2, 2009
Soup for Breakfast
My new favorite breakfast food is Idli Sambar. It's basically a spicy vegetable soup (sambar) with fermented rice dumplings (Idli)
Thanks for the advice Mahi! I'm going to eat as many of these as I can while I'm here. Along with a bowl of fresh pineapple, is a great way to start the day!
Thanks for the advice Mahi! I'm going to eat as many of these as I can while I'm here. Along with a bowl of fresh pineapple, is a great way to start the day!
Indian English
A few translations (of English words into English words, strangely enough)
A motorcycle is a "bike."
A bike is a "cycle."
And while I was not able to snap a picture in time, last night on the way back to the hotel, was passed a horse-drawn cart in the middle of the highway. I guess we have this in the states too, I remember roadtrips in Pennsylvania as a kid seeing the Amish carriages. It's cool to see cultures intermingle like this!
A motorcycle is a "bike."
A bike is a "cycle."
And while I was not able to snap a picture in time, last night on the way back to the hotel, was passed a horse-drawn cart in the middle of the highway. I guess we have this in the states too, I remember roadtrips in Pennsylvania as a kid seeing the Amish carriages. It's cool to see cultures intermingle like this!
Bangalore Day Two: Meet the Team!
It was another whirlwind day here in Bangalore; today was my first day reporting to the office, and meeting the team that I have spent so much time corresponding with via email and phone.
The day started like this: my driver was supposed to arrive at 9:30. At 8:20 am I get a phone call from the front desk telling me that my vehicle was here... so it was a rush to get out the door, and I made him wait while I had some breakfast.
I made a photo/video journal of the commute. Monday morning traffic was even crazier than over the weekend! As one of my colleagues put it today: "we only recently introduced the lane system. Most people still do not really know how it works."
The first thing I noticed was that my driver had a strawberry shortcake towel draped across his lap. He must have been very proud or protective of it, every time he got out of the car it came with him, draped over his arm.
In the US this would be a 2-lane highway. We were driving 4 abreast, with motorcycles zooming by between the cars. I could have rached out and touched this car in the foreground!
Click for live action commute movie, showing off the multitude of Bollywood posters.
Getting into the office compound was interesting. Bangalore has some pretty serious anti-terrorism precautions in effect (which I am grateful for.) I had to check in with multiple security guards, they check under the car with mirrors (I assume for explosives) and I also had to check my laptop in and out.
The amazing Indian hospitality continued; the front office was prepared for my arrival, and they had reserved an office for me. I've never had my own office before; I've had some damn big cubes, but not an office. How swank!
Not to mention the regular coffee, tea and cookie service. Pretty sweet...
I made myself at home with some postcards of Washington mountains...
I was glad I got there early, as I had a few minutes to get my computer working and gather my thoughts before we got into it.
Meeting the entire team was overwhelming; there was probably 50 people in the room when I showed up. I was really glad that I brought a lot of gifts; I had 2 boxes of chocolates, a company swag (pens, office supplies, frisbees with the corporate logo) as well as lots of Washington/Seattle related souveniers (Thanks Paul!) Everyone really appreciated the stuff, and we all hit it off right away after that.
The team raiding the 'swag'!
I then spent the rest of the day meeting with each individual project group on the team. My jet lag is still kicking my ass, and I started dragging butt by noon or so but I powered through until about 6:30. Of course the team will be there working late into the night. Apparently that's how they roll here... my intention is to be there with them, but I need to get my internal clock synched a little better. By the time my driver picked me up, I was exhausted, hoarse from talking all day and ready to have a few quiet minutes to myself.... after of course another hair-raising commute. But it was all worth it. I feel like I made about 50 new friends, and spent all day in working whiteboard sessions answering every question posed to me about our business model, legacy techonolgy systems and architecture and coding issues with the new systems. (We had to cram about 8 chairs into my tiny office, and we still had folks sitting on the floor or standing.) I think I got everyone the answers that they needed, as they got to the point where they stopped asking questions and said "that's enough to keep us busy tonight!" But it was well worth it as several issues that have been dragging out for weeks via email were decided and put to rest. That's what I came here for.
The office... much like any office stateside. The culture also reminded me a lot of my own company... a good partnership fit!
Now... I think I've earned a beer. Cheers!
The day started like this: my driver was supposed to arrive at 9:30. At 8:20 am I get a phone call from the front desk telling me that my vehicle was here... so it was a rush to get out the door, and I made him wait while I had some breakfast.
I made a photo/video journal of the commute. Monday morning traffic was even crazier than over the weekend! As one of my colleagues put it today: "we only recently introduced the lane system. Most people still do not really know how it works."
The first thing I noticed was that my driver had a strawberry shortcake towel draped across his lap. He must have been very proud or protective of it, every time he got out of the car it came with him, draped over his arm.
 |
| From Day Two |
 |
| From Day Two |
 |
| From Day Two |
 |
| From Day Two |
 |
| From Day Two |
 |
| From Day Two |
In the US this would be a 2-lane highway. We were driving 4 abreast, with motorcycles zooming by between the cars. I could have rached out and touched this car in the foreground!
Click for live action commute movie, showing off the multitude of Bollywood posters.
Getting into the office compound was interesting. Bangalore has some pretty serious anti-terrorism precautions in effect (which I am grateful for.) I had to check in with multiple security guards, they check under the car with mirrors (I assume for explosives) and I also had to check my laptop in and out.
The amazing Indian hospitality continued; the front office was prepared for my arrival, and they had reserved an office for me. I've never had my own office before; I've had some damn big cubes, but not an office. How swank!
 |
| From Day Two |
 |
| From Day Two |
 |
| From Day Two |
Not to mention the regular coffee, tea and cookie service. Pretty sweet...
 |
| From Day Two |
 |
| From Day Two |
I made myself at home with some postcards of Washington mountains...
I was glad I got there early, as I had a few minutes to get my computer working and gather my thoughts before we got into it.
Meeting the entire team was overwhelming; there was probably 50 people in the room when I showed up. I was really glad that I brought a lot of gifts; I had 2 boxes of chocolates, a company swag (pens, office supplies, frisbees with the corporate logo) as well as lots of Washington/Seattle related souveniers (Thanks Paul!) Everyone really appreciated the stuff, and we all hit it off right away after that.
 |
| From Day Two |
 |
| From Day Two |
 |
| From Day Two |
 |
| From Day Two |
The team raiding the 'swag'!
I then spent the rest of the day meeting with each individual project group on the team. My jet lag is still kicking my ass, and I started dragging butt by noon or so but I powered through until about 6:30. Of course the team will be there working late into the night. Apparently that's how they roll here... my intention is to be there with them, but I need to get my internal clock synched a little better. By the time my driver picked me up, I was exhausted, hoarse from talking all day and ready to have a few quiet minutes to myself.... after of course another hair-raising commute. But it was all worth it. I feel like I made about 50 new friends, and spent all day in working whiteboard sessions answering every question posed to me about our business model, legacy techonolgy systems and architecture and coding issues with the new systems. (We had to cram about 8 chairs into my tiny office, and we still had folks sitting on the floor or standing.) I think I got everyone the answers that they needed, as they got to the point where they stopped asking questions and said "that's enough to keep us busy tonight!" But it was well worth it as several issues that have been dragging out for weeks via email were decided and put to rest. That's what I came here for.
 |
| From Day Two |
The office... much like any office stateside. The culture also reminded me a lot of my own company... a good partnership fit!
Now... I think I've earned a beer. Cheers!
Sunday, February 1, 2009
Hotels Suck.
Hotel rooms suck. I have not travelled too widely, but I have stayed in a fair share of hotels across the US, in Norway, and now in India. And no matter how nice the hotel or room or service is, they always have one thing in common: The air gets so stuffy! I always wake up feeling like I am going to suffocate.
Thank god I have a balcony here. The night breezes are very pleasant.
That is all.
Thank god I have a balcony here. The night breezes are very pleasant.
That is all.
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