A Change in Telly Technology

Heading into the 21st century, we're moving into an era dominated by technology. With rapid celerity in inventions and discoveries, the entire scenario of working things up has undergone a drastic change. Major changes are observed in all sectors and fields, with those seen in information and communication being the most prominent ones. Gone were the days when everyone had to rely on telegraph messaging and fax. It was with the innovators coming up with cathode ray tube and spending long hours in the lab to develop the first ever colour television, way back in 1928. However, telly took a long time to set its foot in India, when it was introduced in early '80s.

It was a historical moment when The Independence Day celebrations were relayed live for the first time ever, in 1982, marking the beginning of new generation of technology-related services This was followed by The Asian Games later in the same year. It was Doordarshan which then dished out famous soaps like Yeh Jo Hai Zindagi, Hum Log, Buniyaad etc. Later came the mega epics Ramayana and Mahabharatha, which were regularly relayed on weekends. And which Indian of the previous decade can forget song programs like Rangoli and Chitrahaar, with the former kickstarting a host of Sunday special programs. Doordarshan has got its own little charm of leaving us nostalgic, and possibly craving for a moment of the days of yore. That apart, media started spreading its wings into a device which was more sophisticated than a single little box called radio which comprised of a simple LCR circuit. New careers began and a brand fresh world of advertising and journalism took birth.....

In the last decade, things started changing colours, when P.V Narasimha Rao-led-government launched a series of social and economic reforms, opening up trade and facilitating market growth. This was the era of a new system of Cable Television. Star Network launched in 1991 took the nation by storm by offering programs of different hues, comprising of a bunch of channels including Star Plus, Star Sports, Star Movies and Star World. Music channels like Music Television MTV and Channel [V] were launched soon after, aimed primarily at the pop culture of Indian youth and adolescents. Likewise, channels like Discovery Channel, Animal Planet and National Geographic were specialized channels focussing on knowledge and information for people of any age group. Emerging as contenders to the Rupert Murdoch-led-Star Television Group were Zee Network and Sony Entertainment Television India, which offer a wide bracket of channels categorized into entertainment, news, sports and music. Zee TV is considered as the first private owned television network in India. To the teeny weeny tottering kids we have Cartoon Network followed by Nickelodeon and Pogo with Disney relaying fresh channels like Toon Disney and Disney Kids. Cricket, a religion in India, is being devoted an exclusive channel Star Cricket which relays nothing but cricket. On regional lines, we have the US $ 4 billion Sun Network based in South India which offers television services in 5 languages- Kannada, Telugu, Tamil, Malayalam and Bengali. Another prominent player in this sector is the Eenadu TV network, which rolls out channels for many as 12 languages. And coming up more on the roster of regional Kannada channels are independent channels like TV9, Suvarna TV, Kasturi TV etc.




However, as technology developed, Direct Broadcast Satellite (DBS) system gained importance which intended satellite channel reception for home receptions, reducing the size of the dish used earlier yo a great extent and making it more simple and portable. DBS facilitates both analog and digital television and radio reception, is extended to other digital television services provided including interactive and video-on-demand services. The first entrant in this newest era of television viewing is Dish TV DTH, a service offered by Essel Group. Apart from broadcasting high-quality programmes from satellites to your home, it also offers complete control of what you watch and pay for. One can extract the true potential of television set yoked with high quality DVD sound. Also included is a special feature Electronic Program Guide which gives us the entire list of upcoming programme schedule and movie timings. Parental Lock, Games, Interactive TV and Movie On Demand are other interesting features which serve as a complete set of options for viewer's delight....!



And yes, if you always loved to grouse about the quality of transmission and picture clarity, you would have a difficult time coping up with the excellent, see-true quality offered by Dish TV. With nothing else dependent on the connection, you can afford not to worry about power-cuts in other areas which usually deprive us of cable connection. So many offers being offered for much lower prices than cable connections pose a serious threat for cable operators around. Of late, we also have Tata Sky which is vying with Dish TV DTH and making rapid strides in its bid to challenge the latter. The market has already shown a positive response and increasingly demanding for more. It's getting more implausible for viewers to opt for the old incessant cable connection. The simple cross-row grid of television antenna and cables are being replaced with a tiny-yet-much-efficient dish. It's time we upgrade ourselves with technology and wish for more. Wish Karo, Dish Karo.....

One State Many Worlds

India is blessed with a mixed landscape ranging from frigid mountains to rainforests, deserts, plains, flat terrain, hills and plateaus. With a coast stretch running for over 7000 km, India lies on the peninsula that protrudes into the Indian Ocean, making it a cynosure of all eyes, ones which travel high distance on top and some which globe-trot on a simple school-atlas. One can imagine, how pale a look the subcontinent would have worn, if it was without India. The 7th most largest country in the world has everything to offer, and it's not all that amusing to know why people from abroad cash in their money to have a look at what our nation offers, both in natural and cultural aspects. We have come across the exotic Alps of Switzerland, the sub-zero forests in Canada, the flat mountain ranges of Mexico, the Southern Alps of New Zealand, the Great Barrier Reef of Australia and the Atacama Desert of Chile. But when it comes to diversity, it's India all the way. To have such a varied pattern of land distribution in an area of just over 3 million sq.km is fantastic!

The northern half of India comprises to a large extent of arable land, courtesy the mega rivers Ganges and Yamuna and innumerable rivulets and streams. These are rivers which have a history of thousands of years, perenially flowing as the water from Himalayas melts down to gush forth. It was primarily for this reason that Aryans migrated here and flourished with agriculture. Coming South, we have an excellent mix of conditions which make the plateau, a complete showcase for visitors and travellers. Being encompassed with water bodies on all the three sides, the peninsula comprises of palatial Western Ghats stretching its grasp from north Maharashtra to down bottom Kerala, scenic Eastern Ghats bordering all the way from West Bengal to Tamil Nadu, and not to forget the Vindhya and Satpura ranges in the heart of the plateau. What more can a person eager with his mountain expedition paraphernalia can ask for?




Amidst all these, Karnataka has got a large share in its offerings. The three important geographical zones in the state are The Hilly Malnad region/Western Ghats, The coastal Karavali region and the Bayaluseeme region of plain plateau. Rivers Kaveri, Krishna, Tungabhadra and Sharavathi are the prominent ones, catering to the growing water and irrigation needs of people here. With about 20% of the land area covered with forests, most of it in the Western Ghats, the state has rich sources of natural resources, flora and fauna. The average rainfall is about 1100 mm, with the differences showing in Malnad region and Bayaluseeme range. Soil shows a significant distribution and variety, with almost 11 different types of soil being recorded. And to talk of temperature, the variation is well pronounced, from 2-3 deg.C to 45-46 deg.C. You just cannot afford to pack off your sweaters or T-shirts once and away.........

Come with your bags packed with all the travelling stuff, you would least like to sit forlorn when Karnataka offers you so many tourist destinations. No matter what kind of a person, he/she always finds a wide bracket of options which include ancient sculptures, temples of famous realms, modern-buzz-choc-a-bloc cities, serene forests, calm meadows, old ruins, dry plains and long stretch of coast-line.

Lots of dynasties ruled over the region in the past, with The Badami Chalukyas, The Hoysalas and The Vijayanagar Empire being the most notable ones. Many ancient monuments are situated at historic places like Pattadakal, Aihole, Badami and Bijapur. Virupaksha temple at Pattadakal (the other one's at Hampi) and the sylvan ancient caves at Badami are agreeably the major edifices of the era passed by, with inscriptions in Sanskrit scripted on them. Coming to Hampi, now recognized as the World Heritage Site by UNESCO, we get to see the impressive ruins of the past, along with the most memorable Ugra Narasimha temple and the Vittala temple. At Bijapur, the hub of Urdu and Persian literature, we have the world famous Gol Gumbaz sepulcher which is the world's second largest dome. Down south at Mysore, we have a place which defines Karnataka by its style. It was here that the formers vassals and chiefs of Vijayanagar empire chose to start an own dynasty. The famous Mysore Palace, which hosts the pompous Dasara (which is the official festival of the state) is a must-watch, showcasing the full glory of Karnataka in its true splendour. Other famous historic places include The Fort at Chitradurga, ancient sculptures at Belur and Halebeedu, artistic old ruins at Srirangapatna. Places of public interest also include Sringeri temple, Shravanabelagola Monolith, Sirsi, Dharmasthala, Kollur temple, Subramanya temple, Kudalasangama, Udupi Krishna temple, Murudeshwar temple, MM Hills, BR Hills, Kemmannugundi hills and Kudremukh Hill Station, near Chickmagalur.

Coming to the more scenic Western Ghats, one must not fail to catch a glimpse of Sharavathi river, which falls from a height of 829 feet to create a visual-treat for spectators gazing in awe. Sheer beauty. You would love to go on mountain-climbing if shown places like Mullayyangiri, which is the acme of a peak in Karnataka, standing tall at 1925 metres. For a person who hasn't been on a high, he must take a short trip to Yana, an elysian destination, a breath-taking one, very hard to describe, no words at all........! Perhaps He Himself created it, just nothing can explain how beautiful it can get. It is surrounded by two little falls, Magod and Satod, beautiful ones, which make a good trip for a couple of days.

The coast line, stretching off from Karwar all the way Mangalore has got some interesting places to visit. Temples at Gokarna, Murudeshwar are flocked by throngs of people, all round the year. Maravanthe, Malpe and Ullal are the more known beaches. A light house beach at NITK, Suratkal is a great place to be, with a tall light-house stationed here, adding colour to the college nearby which houses close to 2390 students.

There are several other less known picnic spots in the state which deserve attention. Dandeli, near Karwar, is a good place for forest buffs wildlife freaks. And more of little places near a lovely little town of Sakleshpur in Hassan district, more easily approachable from Bangalore and Mysore via road and rail, has got plenty to offer. Nearby places see lots of trekking and visitors who would like to take some time off the busy humdrum routine at the office.

And for those who would love to visit Karnataka, take a long leave, for it's not a place to be seen within a short period of time. It's got an entire gamut in store. One State, Many Worlds........

Sudoku Puzzler

Numbers are hypothetical values processed in our mind when we use to quantify things. The magnitude of a number is called as a numeral, which denotes the number in both its idea and quantity. Numbers are used to measure things, record count, indicate sizes and extents, compare values, store content, chart statistics, secure passwords, communicate information and encrypt data. They were found to be used as early as 30000 years ago and Egyptian and Mesopotomian civilizations have secure records in the form of writing tablets and clay slates. Man also used numbers to play games and amuse himself. We understand that he was more interested to whet his quantitative approach and replenish his skills, than gratifying himself by the useful little sense obtained by just using them to denote and save track. Haven't we come across infants playing abacus, a testimonial to the fact that man enjoyed being with numbers and took them game.

In perhaps what has been the most-creative-irrefutable-logic-yet-so simple-puzzle ever perceived, Sudoku stands handsomely tall and smart among myriad innumerable number-games. Its speciality and flair arises from the truth that it's pleasingly simple but tantalizingly draining nonetheless. Though it became an international only in the last few years, the concept was found long back.

To start off, Sudoku is a number placement based game accompanied with logic. Noted mathematician Leonard Euler invented a class of game called Latin Squares which required the player to complete every row and column of a NXN grid with numbers 1 through N, without repeating. In the daily newspaper Sudoku, one has to fill in a 9X9 matrix in such a way that every row, every column and every 3X3 matrix in the entire grid contains numbers 1 to 9 only once. This game was first seen in Dell Magazines in the year 1979, when American architect Howard Garns published them as a puzzle called "Number Place". However, the name Sudoku was given by Nikoli when it was introduced in Japan later. In Japanese, 'Su Doku' means 'Single Number'. A retired judge and computer programmer from Hong Kong, Wayne Gould developed a computer program which could generate and solve Sudoku puzzles. A few years ago, he requested to publish his sudokus in London Times, which went on to prove a big hit.

For someone who's keen to know about the statistics, here's an interesting piece of information. The number of possible 9X9 Sudoku combinations is 6,670,903,752,021,072,936,960. Now, can I imagine someone finishing on that count? He would do that entire lifetime and still fall short!

In India, the very first Sudoku was published in May 2005, in Hindustan Times and a month later, Times of India too started rolling out its version. Initially, it was seen as an enigma for people well nurtured with mathematics only, but later, many kids, students and even the elderly began growing hungry. Logic being the only thing involved, it has nothing to do with mathematics or operations. All it takes is a little enough brainwork to give a feeling of satisfaction when the puzzle is complete, taking less time and skill that required to solve a crossword, for instance. Perhaps this was the prominent reason which made people prefer sudoku over crossword, although these require two entirely different sets of skill and knowledge.

The exercise of solving Sudoku puzzles has got its own advantages. It stops memory decline, improves logic, enhances reasoning skills, allows us to think in multiple ways and even halt the progress of Alzheimer's disease. Now that is something that the doctor does not ask. In schools, kids are being taught to solve sudoku to energize their mental batteries and increase the flow of thoughts, which enables them to perform better at studies. The initial fluster notwithstanding, they come up with good reasoning and solve their way to happiness. And one can imagine the sense of a little victory over a tiny yet thinking puzzle.

Next time when you come across a Sudoku when you're free, try solving it. Your brains will thank you for your time and letting it sharpen. It still is a short-simple game, after all.....