20 Questions – 5 mins of your time – A chance to win Rs 20,000 in cash for those who live in Gurgaon.
We are looking at starting a chain of hyperlocal, functional and value priced gyms, with a pilot gym in Gurgaon.
At this point of time, we are doing some market research to validate the concept and some assupmtions.
If you live in Gurgaon and could spare 5 mins of your time to provide us with your feedback, it will be much appreciated. Plus, it also gives you a chance to win a cash prize of Rs 20,000.
Just realised that a month has already gone by in 2011 and I hadn’t posted anything ‘new’ in the New Year.
A few weeks ago, had gone to Central Park after a snowstorm. Compared to what its like in spring and summer, the transformation was amazing…yet, there were quite a number of folks out and about…jogging, skiing, walking their dogs, sledging with their kids, and yes, there was this one guy who was taking a nap on one of the benches…i guess only in NYC would somebody take a nap in the freezing outdoors even though it was sunny(but still very very cold).
On a recent India trip, wanted to use my iPhone 3Gs handset with my local india number. Tried ‘googling’ the usual unlocking methods but somehow could not get the steps right(Later realised that i needed to download the ipsw file). Eventually, I found a kind and helpful soul on Craiglist/Bangalore who sent me a simple step-by-step process to get the job done.
Apparently, there are a lot of hacks out there who charge money to unlock your iPhone. Sumeet Gandhi is not one of them. Infact, his motive is pretty simple. He wants to create an iPhone users community in Bangalore and by helping more people unlock their phones, the reasoning is that the community will increase. Pretty neat.
Outlined below is the process you need to follow if you need to unlock the iPhone 3Gs (basedband 15.04.02). All credits due to Sumeet and the respective sites from where some of the screenshots are taken.
And ofcourse to the Dev Team. They are the original rockstars
Note: Whatever you may do, DONT ever pay any of the sites which come up first on google search for the unlocking software. They will charge you a bunch of money and send you software which has been developed by the Dev Team and is freely available on the net. If you do feel a need to spend money, send it to some charity along with a postcard to the Dev Team as they don’t accept donations.
Hack along.
1. iPhone2,1_4.2.1_8C148a_Restore.ipsw (Download Here). This is ipsw for ios 4.2.1. Size – 410951 KB
2. Itunes version 10.0 or greater.
3. Redsnow redsn0w_win_0.9.6b5 (Download Here). There might be a wait time of few seconds once done then the download link will appear. Size around 10.5 MB
4. Once all is downloaded turn off your iphone. (Push power button for few seconds and then slide the red slider).
5. Set the compatibility mode of Redsnow to windows xo sp3 by right click and properties.
6. Now connect your switched off iphone to your machine. Keep it switched off don’t turn it on.
7. Then click start program within the compatibility mode window.
8. The redsnow window will appear browse to ipsw file.
9.
10. After Redsn0w identifies the IPSW, click ” Next “.
11.
12. Now choose the ” Install Cydia ” and ” Install iPad baseband ” options and click ” Next “.
13.
14. Accept the warning by clicking ” Yes “.
15. Now go into recovery mode by pressing the power and buttons for 10 seconds and then release the power button, but keep holding the home button until the iOS 4.2.1 jailbreak process begins.
16.
17. Wait till Redsn0w finish the iOS 4.2.1 jailbreak process.
18. Once done follow the below process for unlocking
19. Launch Cydia.
20. Choose the ” Manage ” tab at the bottom.
21. Choose the ” Sources ” option.
22. Tap the ” Edit ” button and then on the ” Add ” button.
23. Then add the source ” http://repo666.ultrasn0w.com “.
24.
25. After the source is added, search for ” ultrasn0w 1.2 ” in Cydia.
26.
27. Install the Ultrasn0w 1.2 app to unlock iOS 4.2.1 firmware.
28. Restart your iPhone.
29. That’s it! Now you have an unlocked your iPhone 3G / 3GS running iOS 4.2.1.
Every time I come to india, it feels like coming to a different place. well almost.
One thing which has changed drastically is the Delhi airport.
To cut a long story short, it rocks.
Right from ample counters at immigration, to spacious baggage handling facilities, organized taxi and car lanes and clean restrooms, the whole place has a very ‘international’ feel with a very positive vibe.
And something else that caught my attention was the demeanor of the housekeeping staff. It was heartening to see smart young women go about doing their stuff and that too in supervisory roles.
While it’s def better planned and executed compared to the Bangalore and Hyderabad airports, there are a couple of shortcoming’s.
The entire gate area is covered in a gold/brown colored carpet with some random patterns. while it maybe easy to clean, its def an eyesore.
Auto rickshaws are not allowed at the airport. Not really sure why but it could have something to do with “security”.
And I guess there is a price to be paid for all the development which makes the food slightly expensive.
Yes, the tiny muffins that you see below cost Rs 100 each.
Even though I saw it very late at night and midday (and hence missed the peak morning hour chaos) I am pretty sure it works pretty well all day.
Overall, a pleasant surprise and kudos the the GMR group for doing a great job.
The pain seems to have lessened but the memories are still fresh…but this year’s 9/11 memorial wasn’t about 9/11.
It was more about the proposed ‘Ground zero mosque’ or the Islamic Center on 51 Park Place in New York.
Bigots and liberals were both present in almost equal numbers with their placards and megaphones. And while it was disheartening to see some of the messages, it was also great to see the level of tolerance among people.
Of course, the presence of a large police contingent of the NYPD helped prevail law and order.
Take a look at some of the pictures around the WTC site and Chruch street today. Am still not sure what to make of them
One of the reasons, NYC is NYC because the good folks there continue to do crazy (cool) stuff like the Sidewalk Catwalk project.
Created by the Fashion Center Business Improvement District, the project features 32 mannequins dressed by local designers in weather proof material. Loved the the theme by Kenneth Cole (pictured above)
It does add some extra zing to the walk from 34th st to Times Square on 6th Avenue.
More pictures in the slideshow below:
Incase you cannot see the slideshow above, here is the Flickr link.
Not too many great movies going around these days…The Japanese wife is one of them which manages to stand apart from the pack.
Its the story of two pen-pals, one a bengali living in rural west bengal and the other living in Japan. Yes, as the title suggests, the girl lives in Japan.
What starts off as a friendship via regular letters takes a strange turn as Miyage offers herself to Snehamoy as his wife. Though they never meet during their lifetime, they are pretty devoted and behave as much like husband-wife as any other couple… Gives, long distance relationships a whole new meaning.
The movie moves along almost poetically with a amazing background score and before you realise it, its the end. And it hits hard. Not something that you would expect.
Dont want to spoil the climax for you so go and watch it if you can. If you don’t understand Bengali, try and get a sub titled version as its interlaced with english and bengali (though you will really enjoy the nuances if you understand bengali, especially the bangladeshi accent).
One thing that did strike me at the end though is, we go through life waiting for something, and in the end when we finally get it, its almost always too little too late….Just goes to reinforce the fact that the journey is more important than the destination.
So whatever super urgent/important thing that you may seem to be doing, take some time out to watch this movie. Might help you see your life from a different perspective.
New York is an amazing city. By night, it gets even more interesting.
So instead of sitting all night in a bar on a friday night, we (Esther, Roma and I ) decided to do some ‘Night Photography’.
After dinner at Cowgirl (which had amazing pulled pork but horrible BBQ ribs) on Hudson st, we spent the next hour or so walking down Bleeker, 8 th Avenue, and ultimately finishing up at 6th and 14th.
Here are some of the pics below… and yes, I did take a picture of a man peeing into a telephone booth. Unbelievable, but i guess its a ‘new yorkish’ thing to do
