Motorola CLIQ – First Motorola Android Phone and High On Social Networking Phone!

Motorola CLIQ – An Android phone and A nice one!

Specification:

• GSM, 3G, WIFI
• 320x480 display, 3.1 inch
• sliding QWERTY keyboard
• 5 MP autofocus camera
• Battery: 1420 mAh lithium polymer
• Up to 325h standby and 6 hours continuous usage
• MicroUSB
• GPS
• MicroSD slot, up to 32GB
• WEIGHT 5.6 oz; 163 grams
• Accelerometer

Comes with MotoBlur feature – A one stop for Twitter, Facebook, MySpace updates and the first ever such service from Motorola. Time to Enjoy?

Official Pictures from Motorola… for more click here.

Side View!

Ubuntu 9.10 boots in 5 seconds on SSD storage!

Oh man, Ubuntu 9.10 is the fastest OS to boot now! Code named Karmic Koala is not yet released but in Alpha stage. It will soon get released in 2010 but, lots of improvements has gone in to the way it boots. Already, I’m on Ubuntu 9.04 – Jaunty Jackalope and it is lightning fast. I have not really clocked but it is than 40 seconds. Ubuntu is really a good Distro for anyone who is switching from Windows :)

Download Ubuntu 9.10 Alpha 6 here.

Addictive Open Source Games

Well, games are always fun and one of the most rewarding industries in Computer world! Remember? Doom from ID Software that created the revolution! Now, the new trend is Open Source games. Plenty of them around and some of them are listed here. Courtesy Open-Tube. All games here are free and open source.

• Flight Gear – A 3d flight simulator. Very good and free.
• Assault Cube – 3d game like Doom.
• Rigs of Rod – A vehicle simulator! Cool one. You can eve drive a 16 wheeler too. Check it out.
• Torcs-NG – A racing game.
• Cube 2 – Sequel of game Cube, a worthy 3d game, highly addictive game. I love it for the game play.

• Alien Arena – A combination of Quake and Unreal Tournament. Wonderful game.

There are plenty more here and you could check them out here, all of them for free :)

How to reach Shivaganga? – The Beautiful Hill with Temples and Breathtaking Views

Shivagange is a beautiful hill that is about 70 kms from Bangalore City. A short trip (or trek?) to Shivagange might be a nice way of spending your weekend.

How to reach?

Reaching Shivaganga (Actually Shivagange) is via Tumkur (NH4) Road. About 60 kms from Bangalore and an hour or so drive to reach the Shivagange hill. You can easily get Buses to Dabbasapete and from there you could catch an Auto too. But, Driving your own vehicle is recommended. You can visit Savanadurga, Manchina bele etc as they are all nearby If you have your own vehicle.

Google Map View

View Shivaganga Map in a larger map

Above map will be helpful for you to know where Shivaganga is and how to reach.

Just drive on NH4 (Tumkur Highway), cross the toll gate and drive towards Nelamagala. Dobbasapete is around 20 kms from Nelamangala. Dobbasapete is very easy to spot, there are good signboards for you to keep track of where you are going. However, the good landmark is that you will get a flyover. Do not take the flyover, but you will find a narrow service road on the left side, take that road. It will basically take you to Dobbasapete. Once you are in Dobbasapete, take a left (as shown in the map) and drive for about 6 kms. You will need to take a small right turn (Can ask localities) and you will reach Shivaganga Hill. It is huge and nearly 1400 meters tall, about 5 kms to the summit.

Words of Caution

• You need to be aware of wild monkeys at Shivagange. They are ferocious and unruly. They can just walk up to you and snatch anything that is hanging freely, hand bags, food items anything. So be careful, if you have a backpack, it should be fine. I had a small backpack, they didn’t notice it and was at peace :)

• Secondly, It is better to start early to avoid mid day sun light. Harsh sun light might bring down your energy considerably. While climbing the hill, you will go through lots of vendors who sell lots of food items and you can rejuvenate yourself. It is a long way up to the summit, about 5 kms and is not easy - at least for me :).

Beautiful Views will mesmerize you. Shiva temple is tranquilizing and Olakallu Theeertha ( a temple carved in the stone with sacred waters) are all nice. You need to see and enjoy. Here are some pictures for your viewing pleasure.

All said and Done

A nice place, a good endurance test for your body :), Wild Monkeys companionship and total fun. Make sure that you carry your own food. Hotels aren’t too good there.

Club Cabana, Bangalore – A beautiful timeout from Office and Traffic!

We had recently gone out to Club Cabana (Bangalore) for Official Team Outing. I must say that it was really fun and refreshing!

How to reach Club Cabana?

Very easy, just go towards Bangalore International Airport. Just be vigilant once you spot the big ITC Factory, you should take the second left (Unfortunately there is no sign board that says Club Cabana or something) and it is very easy to miss it. I was driving like crazy as the road was nice and relatively less traffic, I just moved ahead and crossed Airport. Then I realized man, Dang! I missed it. I had to take a U Turn and come back again. Luckily my pals helped me out to find the left turn. It’s a matter of minutes after that key left

turn :) and oh la, you will be at Club Cabana. It was a first time visit for me. All my friends had gone there a couple of time. anyway, time was to have some fun.

What have they got to offer you?

Well, plenty of stuff! Outdoor games like Tennis, Badminton, Table Tennis, Chess, Snooker, Cards, Bowling (they charge a 100 bucks for a 10 round game, pretty decent) and much more. It was really fun for a lazy bugger like me :) I hardly move my butt! After Aravind (my pal) and me played a singles game of Tennis, I was really puffing and panting for a breath of air. That’s our fitness level dudes!

What I really liked was, Water Games :) Man, Can you believe I’m no swimmer! Well yeah, Lazy Buggers aren’t swimmers, no prizes for guessing! Anywayz, Water isn’t deeper than 4 feet at any point of time and Boy, I drowned a couple of times. My another pal, Rajan was not far behind, he drowned in the 4 feet drop pool and was behaving as if he had a near death experience :) Just Kidding Rajan, no offence! There are 3 water rides and all of them are really good and exciting. There are others like Lazy River which is an artificial water loop with a mild current, that just gently pushes around :) Again, custom made for lazies like me!, Wave pool, another beauty! Jacuzzi for relaxing and so much else to enjoy!

Lazy River :)

Wave pool!

Amphitheatre, Satish trying to address a team meeting! But, where is the team?

Our beautiful cars :)

I couldn’t take pictures of Water Rides, I was paranoid to wear swimming trunks and things like that. In that commotion, I forgot my Camera and forgot to take pics. Sorry folks…next time. So watch out, they are very particular about swimming costume and no t-shirts for guys. What a pity. I didn't have a problem at Wonder-La but rules are rules here.

All Said and Done

Well, Club Cabana property is really good, for a price like 750Rs, You get Welcome Drink, Unlimited breakfast, Complete access to Outdoor games, Indoor games, Water games, Great Lunch Buffet in the afternoon, Hi Tea in the evening and of course, the enjoyment. Everything is good. There is a members only pool but that's ok, we don’t need that as everything else is ours :) and yeah, never think of becoming a member there as it costs a bomb. Club Cabana guys looked at me and appeared as if they said “Go away Jerk” it costs like over a crore, you need to buy a plot there. So, I said “Good For You and Thank You”

All Said and Done, Yeah, Club Cabana, Here I Come Again :)

So, I take a break and add something later. This blog has been idling for too long. Let me kick and move it…