Dot PK blog

From the creator of PakPositive

2007-07-09T21:04:00.001+05:00

Check out www.Paktive.com

---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: PakPositive < pakpositive@gmail.com>
Date: Jul 8, 2007 5:06 PM
Subject: From the creator of PakPositive
To: paktive@gmail.com

Dear friend,

As you're considered a friend of once-upon-a-time blog called
PakPositive, I unashamedly take this liberty to send you an utterly
invitational email to sample www.paktive.com , a new little website
that could probably interest you as a Pakistani at heart.

Paktive.com - Putting Pakistan on the Map.
--------------------------------------------------

Iran-PK link via optical fiber

2007-06-12T00:11:00.001+05:00

"A team of experts has been dispatched to the Iran-Pakistan border to assess the possibility of connecting the optical fiber networks of the two countries, said a member of Board of Directors of Iran's Infrastructure Telecommunications Company."

P@SHA Career Expo

2007-06-10T02:01:00.001+05:00

Dates
Karachi, Expo Centre Hall 4 - June 16, 2007

Islamabad, Jinnah Convention Centre - June 23, 2007

Lahore, Pearl Continental Hotel - June 30, 2007

Details
PASHA Career Expo Website

List of Wi-Fi Hotspots in Pakistan

2007-02-27T11:59:00.000+05:00

http://hotspots.pk/

Windows Vista and Office 2007 Packaging & Pricing

2006-11-10T17:30:00.000+05:00

Windows Vista and Office 2007 Packaging & Pricing

How I blog

2006-07-21T08:53:00.000+05:00

For me, blogging began as a leisure and casual pursuit and now it has become part of my job, creative activity and part of my socialisation. We are still a less connected country of 165,803,560 people (according to the June 2006 estimates) with only a few bloggers, even though the users’ base is exponentially growing. Read how I blog here. The article originally appeared in Dawn Sci Tech World.

Baloch websites banned

2006-04-28T10:59:00.000+05:00

LAHORE: The PTA stopped access to four Baloch websites carrying material about Baloch nationalists, BBC reported on Thursday. The PTA cited “misinformation” as the reason for banning the websites, reported BBC. The banned sites are: www.balochvoice.com, www.baloch2000.org, www.sanabaloch.com and www. balochfront.com.

Yahoo accused of helping jail China Internet writer

2006-04-19T18:51:00.000+05:00

"BEIJING, April 19 (Reuters) Yahoo Inc may have helped Chinese police to identify an Internet writer who was subsequently jailed for four years for subversion in the third such case, an advocacy group for journalists said on Wednesday.
News implicating Yahoo in the imprisonment of Jiang Lijun in 2003 surfaced on the eve of a summit between Chinese President Hu Jintao and U.S. President George W. Bush in Washington. It was the third such case involving the U.S. Internet giant. Yahoo was accused of providing electronic records to Chinese authorities that led to an eight-year prison term for Li Zhi for subversion in 2003 and of helping to identify Shi Tao, who was accused of leaking state secrets abroad and jailed last year for 10 years. The Paris-based Reporters Without Borders said it had obtained a copy of the verdict showing that Yahoo! Holdings (Hong Kong) helped Chinese police to identify Jiang by confirming that the e-mail account ZYMZd2002 had been used jointly by Jiang and another pro-democracy activist Li Yibing. Yahoo could not immediately be reached for comment. The company has defended itself in the past, saying it had to abide
by local laws." How bad is that....

Herald Magazine's Overview on the Blog Ban issue

2006-04-14T01:59:00.000+05:00

Supreme Court ban silences Pakistani bloggers
by Salman Siddiqui (Appeared in Herald magazine April issue)

Here's the unedited version:
"On 27th February, Pakistan’s Telecommunication Authority (PTA) issued instructions to all Internet Service Providers (ISPs) in the country to block 12 websites that contained material that was termed blasphemous. Ten of the sites showed the Danish cartoons of the Prophet Muhammad (PBUH), while one had lampooned Jesus and the other satirized both religious figures. However, following this action millions of websites other than the original 12 were blocked in the process.
This was caused mainly due to the blocking of one particular site address in the PTA list that was hosted on a popular server owned by Google called BlogSpot on which millions of people from around the world including Pakistan maintain weblogs or blogs. Instead of banning just that one particular address hosted on BlogSpot, Pakistan’s Internet Exchange (PIE), a subsidiary of Pakistan Telecommunications Limited, which filters 90 percent of the country’s Internet traffic, blocked all sites that ended with ‘blogspot.com’ in the site address.
With ISPs not divulging any information to confused bloggers in the days following the ban, speculations on the timing of this action, which was taken just a week before President Bush’s visit to Pakistan, was rife especially as many blogs contained anti-Musharraf views with some covering sensitive issues such as the Balochistan insurgency. An example of one such site is http://freeBaloch.blogspot.com, which is openly critical of government policies.
On March 2, it became clear that the issue behind the ban was the row over the Danish cartoons. The Supreme Court, in response to two petitions filed against the accessibility of the blasphemous cartoons on the Internet by Dr Imran Uppal and seeking registration of cases under blasphemy law by Maulvi Iqbal Haider, directed the government to block websites that contained sacrilegious cartoons. The federal government, Ministry of Telecommunication, PTA, PEMRA, Yahoo Inc. USA, and the websites themselves were cited as respondents in the petition.
Chief Justice Iftikhar Chaudry is reported to have observed in the preliminary hearing, “We will not accept any excuse or any technical objection on this issue as it concerns sentiments of the entire Muslim Ummah”. In the next hearing on 13th March, PTA informed the court that the list of 12 sites provided by the petitioners had been blocked throughout Pakistan. On 20th March, Maulvi Haider’s counsel also asked the court to prosecute PTA for criminal negligence since the websites remained available in Pakistan for seven months and called for registration of cases under Section 295-C of the Pakistan Penal Code according to which the death sentence can be awarded to those using derogatory remarks against the holy Prophet (PBUH) by words, writing or any imputation.
Despite the ban, the 12 websites and any others ending in blogspot.com can still be viewed in Pakistan even now, since the technical nature of the Internet is such that one can use a number of tools such as proxy servers to circumvent the ban. Also, apart from those 12, there are millions of other websites that contain similar if not more offensive material that remain openly accessible; this makes the ban look ironic since sites such as the Church of Satan website which enlists devil worshippers online continues to be accessible to Pakistani netizens.
The truth is that one can’t ban all such sites because once one starts doing that, firstly the Internet speed of the entire country slows down since each website browsed by everyone at any part of the country at any time would first have to pass through a filtering process. Secondly one might ban a million website on one given day but the very next day the same or millions more new websites carrying similar offensive material might crop up and huge resources, not to forget huge funds, would have to be allocated to constantly monitor and update the blocked sites databases. Thirdly, millions of other harmless sites, such as in the current case of BlogSpot, get unnecessarily banned as a result in the process.
The fact is that moral policing, at least in the online world, doesn’t work. Ever since the Internet was launched in the country, the government tried its best to block pornographic material available online and still maintains a database running into thousands to block such sites at PIE’s end, but even now pictures from Amazing Hotties Club and the likes remain just a click away for anyone’s viewing. Unfortunately, as absurd as it may sound, the only way to ensure complete blockage of any such objectionable material online is to ban the Internet from the country altogether. But is that the right solution in the interest of the people of Pakistan? The court case continues and shall rule over that. "

How to access Blogger (.blogspot) sites

2006-03-23T15:32:00.000+05:00

You can access your blogger blog (or any other blogger site) via www.pkblogs.com or simply www.pkblogs.com/blogname

For example spider blog (www.spiderisat.blogspot.com) can be accessed at www.pkblogs.com/spiderisat

Happy Browsing :)

Blogspot ban continues - cyber activism on

2006-03-07T15:31:00.000+05:00

It is indeed a sorry state of affairs that the Pakistani blogosphere has to get into anonymous surfing and proxy servers simply to read something completely harmless on other blogs. And if you can believe it, a proxy server being used to read blogs has also joined the list of banned websites.

I feel we should actively try and do something about it. Join the following Google group if you haven't already:

Action Group Against Blogspot Ban in Pakistan

The group right now is discussing whom to contact and where to send press releases. So jump right in!

In the meantime, freedom of expression (with responsibility of course) and Anonymouse rules!

Update 8th March 2006 => The Alvie Team comprising of Dr Awab Alvi (aka Teeth Maestro) and Omar Alvie have launched the Don't Block the Blog Campaign! The campaign formally began on 3rd March. Join in, if you haven't already!

Did anyone catch the News yesterday? Ethan Casey wrote on the blogspot ban. Read the whole article: Freedom of Speech is a Global Issue

The News: "Ban on 'blasphemous' websites"

2006-03-06T11:43:00.000+05:00

The country's telecom authorities that imposed a ban last week on websites inviting people to draw blasphemous caricatures of Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) have also blocked several blogs that have no connection with the cartoon controversy. "In their efficiency, PTA axed the host instead of the URLs that could easily have been blocked without causing this problem," said an IT professional working for a Karachi-based ISP, who requested anonymity, writes Ammara Durrani in The News today.

"We will not accept any excuse or technical objection on this issue because it relates to the sentiments of the entire Muslim world," Chief Justice Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry was reported to have said while hearing two constitutional petitions seeking the blocking of websites showing "blasphemous" material on the Internet."

Discussion continues under KO's posting below.

Blogspot (and other sites) blocked

2006-03-01T16:54:00.000+05:00

I received an email about blogspot sites being blocked:

can you please check blogspot sites? It seems like government of Pakistan has banned blogspot hosted blogs. I have asked many friends using different ISPs to try and connect my blogspot hosted blog and they are all unable to access it or any blog hosted on blogspot.

On checking, blogspot is currently blocked from Pakistan. Before now, the GOP was blocking a few blogspot sites, but now they've gone all out and have blocked every single blogspot site. Blogspot itself is running fine and dandy, as can be checked by accessing it through a proxy server based outside Pakistan. The block seems to be at the DNS level only - typing the IP address of blogger takes you there directly: http://66.102.15.100.

For workarounds, see:
HOWTO bypass Internet Censorship, Anonymouse and TOR.

Any knowledgable in the Pakistani telecoms/isp industry know how exactly the Pakistani govt. censors the internet? Such information would be really helpful in writing an article about it (for publication in local magazine/newspaper).

Ironically, this post is not readable by the intended audience as this website is currently blocked in Pakistan!

Correction: The block is not just at the DNS level, it's also blocking IP addresses.

Update: The block is at the ISP level. Not all internet traffic is routed through the Pakistan Internet Exchange, so the govt. must have ordered local ISP's to block certain websites. All the major ISP's in Pakistan are blocking weblogs hosted at blogspot.com.

Cartoon contest and counter-contest Online now

2006-02-14T16:54:00.000+05:00

Holocaust cartoon gets entries

TEHRAN, Iran (AP) - An Iranian newspaper's contest for cartoons about the Holocaust, launched Monday in response to a series of caricatures about the Prophet Mohammed, has already drawn at least two entries - one from Brazil and one from Australia, the paper said. Hamshahri, one of Iran's top five newspapers, said its contest was a test of the Western world's readiness to print cartoons about the Nazi slaughter of 6 million Jews in World War II. It called for cartoons under the title: ``What is the Limit of Western Freedom of Expression?''

Israel Launches SEO Contest Against Iran Holocaust Cartoons
In response to Iran's best-selling newspaper announcing a competition to find the best cartoons about the Holocaust, the Israel News Agency launched an SEO - Internet search engine optimization marketing contest to prevent Iran news Websites from reaching top positions in Google. "When I heard that a newspaper in Iran was now holding a cartoon contest on the Holocaust, I knew that SEO would be the most potent tool in combating it," said Joel Leyden, publisher of the Israel News Agency. "That 12 winners in Iran would have their Holocaust cartoons published and would receive two gold coins (worth about $140 each) as a prize, I donned my SEO Israel Defense Forces uniform, cocked and loaded my keyboard. There is no way that Iran will spit on the graves of over 6 million Jews who perished in the Holocaust."

Anti-cartoon protests go online

2006-02-14T12:16:00.000+05:00

The BBC reports that nearly 1,000 Danish websites and 1,600 additional "western" websites have been defaced by Islamic hackers protesting about the controversial cartoons. Roberto Preatoni, founder and administrator of Zone-H (a hack attack monitoring group) said, "We have never seen so many defacements that are politically targeted in such a short time".

An award for telecom

2006-02-13T18:10:00.000+05:00

Dawn's Editorial in today's edition: "WITH all the conspiracy theorists predicting gloom and doom for the country, the news that Pakistan has received an international award for progress and development made in its telecommunication sector proves that all is not that bad after all. It has been awarded the Government Leadership Award 2006 beating heavyweight India, a serious contender for the award. This is no small achievement in a highly competitive field. Recognized for its “remarkable work in the field” by the competitive board of Global System of Mobile Association, Pakistan was lauded for creating a booming mobile communication sector by reducing tariffs and expanding the mobile subscribers’ base to 20 million in just three years. Pakistan hopes to increase this base to 50 million in the next three to four years. This can be achieved provided that the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority’s planned investment of Rs 20 billion in the telecom sector during 2004-5 materializes and it receives two billion dollars over the next few years. There are many indicators to prove that the time is ripe for investment in this sector. In the last year or so, two major international mobile phone operators opened shop here and have performed well. Then there are wireless loop operators entering the market with various high-tech options once unimaginable.The mobile phone is no longer a rich man’s luxury as it was at one time but a necessity for everyone. Those in the service sector — like plumbers and electricians — are now always available on the phone and it has opened new vistas for lower-income entrepreneurs, who, through various micro-finance schemes, can use their mobile phones to attract business. This conducive environment will allow more players into the market and give consumers a wider choice of networks to choose from. Once the option of mobile number portability comes into play — allowing consumers to switch networks without changing their existing mobile numbers — service providers will have no option but to ensure their network’s reliability and coverage as on that front many companies have been deficient. For this the PTA will have to play a more effective role as a regulatory body, checking telecom companies’ poor services and ensuring that consumers’ complaints are taken seriously."

Google - The Art of Playing it Right!

2006-02-11T21:34:00.000+05:00

When Google was not as all-encompassing as it is today a few months (read years in Internet time), it played linux.google.com and scholar.google.com to win the hearts of niche communities (college researchers and linux geeks). Now, with features, products and services enough to cause M$ execs sleepless nights here and there, Google still plays it right.

From a purely outsider's perspective, the true strength of Google is its ability to stay focused in its goals. Every move that Google makes seems so obvious (and natural!), one wonders why it arrived late. Google's Death will be delayed till it exhaust its ability to process information - or others (MS,Yahoo, Amazon, Ebay) learns to do the same (limitlessly process information).

Official Google Blog: Big mail on campus
We're testing a new service with the school by hosting Gmail accounts with SJCC domain addresses (like student@jaguars.sjcc.edu), plus admin tools for efficient account management. Massive storage and features that tame the most unruly inboxes, like powerful mail search, conversation view for messages, and a fast interface, make Gmail very handy for students. Together, we're pleased to provide this channel for better communications and a stronger community for all 10,000 SJCC students.

Update: Gmail is now available for custom domains! Though still in beta (and request-approval based), we can safely expect the feature to be available as permanent for all and sundry soon.

Windows Live Custom Domains

2006-02-09T03:32:00.000+05:00

Windows Live Custom Domains is a service to sign up your own domain for Windows Live services (email, hosting etc). This means that instead of using alias@hotmail.com you can get the same service for alias@yourdomain.com and log in to Windows Live Mail (formerly Hotmail) to check your mail. If you have your own domain and want reliable email hosting, you can sign up now.

Currently the service is limited to email only but I have been testing out Domain Hosting as well (internal only for the time being) and it's better than any $30 web host out there (full backups, ample bandwidth and fast load times). I am not sure about the cost metrics around domain hosting but it could be a free, ad sponsored service.

Have a look at http://ideas.live.com/ for other beta products and keep a watchful eye around the Windows Live initiative--it looks promising.

IE 7 (beta 2) - Not Bad!

2006-02-04T15:24:00.000+05:00

Yes, you can hear that coming from a Firefox fanatic - IE 7 (beta 2) - Not bad. I specially like the following feature and cannot wait until matching extensions are produced by the FF community to keep the tilt in favor of FF:

View all Tabs button
A 'close' button at every tab - makes it so easy to close the tab. Current FF implementation asks me to move my mouse between the red cross button and the tab I need to close so often.
The ability to see the page in 100% or bigger or smaller as the need be
The way the top area of the browser has been restricted to a few lines really makes a lot of viewable space for the website that is being visited.
The ability to open a new tab by clicking a 'peaking' new tab right after the last tab! neat man!
The ability to read the raw RSS and XML feeds. This will surely let the average RSS clue-less joe make use of the feature.
The way the menus that have been shrinked to a side of the browser - really saves lots of wasted space.

Let's see when does this get out of beta (quite a permanent feature of Web 2.0 stuff).

365 Tomorrows

2006-02-02T18:08:00.000+05:00

Google finally jumped the shark last week, in a long anticipated move to diversify their portfolio, which had formerly consisted of too much wide-eyed idealism. The blogosphere jumped up and down and all around but some prompt tweaking of the page rank algorithim ensured that there was much ado about nothing.

While this move ensures that a whole future timeline will go straight to big brother without passing Venus, there are 365 other Tomorrows:

365 tomorrows is a collaborative project designed to present readers with one new piece of short speculative fiction each day for one year. Utilizing the broad palate of science fiction, our vision of the future creates a diverse pool of stories with something for everyone to enjoy.

IE7 Beta 2 Preview is Available!

2006-02-02T13:58:00.000+05:00

Enough said.

You can download it here. Let us know what you think!

Google on a Roll!

2006-02-02T13:27:00.000+05:00

There's been tons (literally!) of news about Google in the last ten days or so. First it was Google's refusal to give the US Department of Justice access to their user search records. Then it was Google doing censorship in China. Then it was Google missing their earnings target in their quarterly report, causing their stock to drop 10%.

Now, we know that Google really does have their own operating system -- a spinoff from Ubuntu Linux. The Register reported it in this article, with Google saying that it is for internal use only. Ars Technica also carried a similar story.

Then, we hear from eWeek in this article that Google might also be planning to go commercial on VOIP. Similar to what Skype is doing today with SkypeOut. Most likely they're doing this to generate another solid revenue stream -- since advertising is pretty much their only revenue model today.

Google's hat sure has more rabbits in it than we expect...

Why Gates hates Negroponte's $100 Laptop

2006-02-02T12:59:00.000+05:00

Kevin Maney, a columnist for USA Today met with Bill Gates and asked him about Nicholas Negroponte's $100 Laptop for the Third World -- which has recently been endorsed by the United Nations at the World Economic Forum.

In his column, Maney writes that Gates suggested to him that cell phones would be better in such a scenario. Why? Maney thinks aloud...

On the face of it, Gates seems to be taking his position only because that darn $100 laptop doesn't run on Microsoft's Windows operating system. Negroponte chose a free Linux-based operating system — and then gored Microsoft by saying he picked it not because it's free, but because it's better.

Worse for Microsoft, if tens of millions of Negroponte's Microsoft-free laptops spread through the Third World, that kind of product base would lure developers to create more software for the machines. Major manufacturers such as Sony or Dell might decide to make better, competing supercheap non-Windows laptops.

Could Maney be right? Would one of the TIME Persons of the Year (for his philanthropy) be this selfish?

GPS Navigation to launch in India

2006-02-02T12:45:00.000+05:00

The Hindustan Times reports in this article that GPS Navigation is to be launched in cars in India. Starting from Rs. 35,000 going up to Rs. 150,000 -- the "Navigator" will allow you to search for the closest petrol pump, food, and shopping while also give you the ability to get directions.

Can we first start by naming our roads and then putting up street name sign boards so we might also be able to implement GPS Navigation some day...?

PK CDMA Forum

2006-01-21T19:24:00.000+05:00

From Irfan Khan's SAIT-list:

"The main objective of the Pakistan CDMA Forum is to create awareness, encourage dialogue and promote CDMA technology and its use in Pakistan for telecom operators, broadcasters, manufacturers, software companies, government, academia and the general public. We aspire to provide, through Pakistan CDMA Forum, a platform to people to openly address their queries and provide a resource and database that will provide them accurate and reliable information about the latest news and developments in CDMA."

US DoJ sues Google to get access to its data

2006-01-20T05:46:00.000+05:00

This was inevitable. Google is being sued by the US Deparment of Justice, no less because Google refused to turn over 1 week's worth of queries and the million email addresses requested of them. The reason DoJ wants this is so they can monitor sexually explicit content and material on the Internet and possibly take preventative measures. The fact that they want to "monitor", alone is enough to raise an uproar among privacy advocates. Some time back I wrote an article for Spider on Google, in which this was posed as one of the biggest risk factors to Google's integrity. There have been mixed results with ISPs facing similar issues. Many turn over the user logs and IPs to the authorities while others refuse to do so and take shelter under the privacy umberella.

Google justifies business models like scanning your email and showing ads relevant to it by arguing that your email is being scanned by bots, not humans and as such there is no malevolence (a socio-philosphical debate can ensue here). This, however, becomes a problem when the database administrators and developers have access to the databases and user accounts which creates a vector for security breach. It also becomes a problem when a court-ordered subpeona is issued.

A centralized portal managing all your data is becoming a growing concern and runs counter to the decentralized philosophy of the web. Google for example has your search history, emails, pictures, videos, IM conversations, buddy lists, web surfing (if you use Google Proxy), credit card and/or bank account information (if you signed up for Google ads) and a bunch of other stuff. It's not only Google but MSN, Yahoo and other major internet players as well who offer single sign-on services that are susceptible to such subpeonas. If Google complies to the demands of DoJ or loses the case, it will be a big blow to them as well as the privacy rights of users all over.

It's a good thing Google is standing up but it's a multi-faceted issue. Under US laws, the DoJ very well might have the right to access the data in interest of national security (to investigate or disrupt a terrorist plot) or in interest of social welfare as it is doing right now (slamming down on sexually explicit content).

Further, by resisting the demands of DoJ, Google is in a way saying that they won't help the DoJ with is anti-porn efforts. At the same time it's trying to protect it's users. Whether or not the DoJ should have the authority to invade the privacy of users for whatever reason and get access to Google's data will set the precedent for future cases (if it happens today, it won't stop hereafter).

While on the issue of privacy, here's a funny/scary ad. It's closer to reality than you might think.

Windows Live - Expo

2006-01-14T21:48:00.000+05:00

MS returns with an answer for eBay as well as Google (recently announced) Base - Windows Live Expo. An online community intended for bying, selling and swapping. And of course, like the rest of the Web 2.0, its all Beta for now.

Windows Live Ideas – Product Page

What it is:
An online marketplace and social networking site

What it gives you:
• Free ads that are easy to post

• Browse through a wide range of categories ranging from merchandise,
events, personals and services

• Keep your dealings within a trusted network like your MSN Messenger Buddies , friends or co-workers; or open them up to anyone
• Find listings just in your area, nationwide or anywhere in between

• Add your listings to your MSN Space with one easy click

• Get detailed maps and directions for things like garage sales, homes for sale or concerts

• Communicate with people via MSN Messenger right from Expo’s site

Google Exposes Regional Biases!

2006-01-13T12:48:00.000+05:00

Interesting. Even Google is confirming what the imams in the local mosques blast on a dialy basis ;)

The Prejudice Map

The Prejudice Map According to Google, people in the world are known for...

2006-01-12T23:03:00.000+05:00

It takes a lot of smart people to keep launching products constantly that make consumers sit up and take notice. Apple is one such great example. They havent looked back after the iPod, and have made sure its now part of the fashion / lifestyle trends of this century, like Hafsa posted below. Apple have just released the new MacBook Pro. I was excited to read that its four times faster than G4s, but this analysis is the only thing that's stopping me from placing an order for the MacBook Pro right now. Anyone here who disagrees with the analysis?

Really, what next?

2006-01-11T18:48:00.000+05:00

Just came across this news item on BBC's Technology News

Levi makes iPod controlling jeans

Denim giant Levi Strauss has designed a pair of jeans able to control a wearer's Apple iPod music player. The RedWire DLX Jeans will have an iPod remote control and docking station fitted in its pockets, and comes complete with attached headphones.

Read the whole news story here

Looks like everyone is 'packing it' hein Zunaira?:)

Google Packs it

2006-01-10T16:40:00.000+05:00

Thumbs up to Aleem's post and the ensuing dialogue since we identify with most of it. Will keep this Google post for a few days only. Would you download a Google Pack too?

In a blog entry, Google advertised why they are packing software as one--to make computing simpler. What does it contain? Google goodies [Earth, Picasa, Screensaver to display ur pics, Desktop, Toolbar, Norton for 6 months, Adware, Acrobat 7, and Mozilla. No office, yet.] Nice for school kids.

A Technological and Global Pakistan

2006-01-08T04:19:00.000+05:00

If you haven't read "The World is Flat", I highly recommend you add it to your reading list. It's a great overview of the events that transpired and led to the global economy of today.

Reading a section about India's IT boom I couldn't help but relate Pakistan's current state.

Education: India began it all with a great infrastructure when Nehru established IIT in 1951 and whose graduates claim that its standards are higher than the Ivy Leagues of America. Currently there are 6 of these intellectual "factories" among other private institutions. As an academic institution they are highly competitive for admission (and there is no greater catalyst for innovation and hard work than competition).

Leadership: India has also had good role models and as such a sense of direction and ideals, Gandhi being the most prominent. The nation listened to him and he proved to be an excellent role model by way of example (As an example, the Aga Khani community is also very united because of a common role model and ideal).

Arts and Culture: India is also enriched by the Arts. The Bollywood industry provides them with a sense of self and a rich Indian culture that they can claim their own. It not only gives them an identity but it also gives them an escape--they go to the theatre and watch a movie on the weekends with friends and family but Pakistan has no such escape (in Karachi atleast, Clifton beach is probably the most popular venue for the masses on the weekend and Funland I believe has recently been shutdown). Bollywood caters to the masses and it binds them together the same way cricket brings us together seasonally (and provides us with an excellent past time and to some extent cultivates our competitive spirit).

Economy Policy: Then there is India's socioeconomic policies. Before Manmohan Singh opened up India's economy to foreign investors in 1991, India's economy was suffocating from lack of local competition and much of its intellectual work force went abroad (primarily America). This is currently proving to be a good mishap. These same people who migrated abroad in the 1950s are now well settled and have established jobs and businesses in America. They are able to bring business back home and being alumnis of institutes like IIT are also able to recruit people abroad. They have created a Silk Route between India and America and bound to their country by their sense of culture and unified leadership.

These factors together have put India on the atlas and provided an excellent mix for growth and prosperity. Pakistan in comparison is just beginning to gain some liberty. The Pop culture is mushrooming (having come a long way from the emergence of its first popular pop icons like Vital Signs). We are also opening ourselves up to foreign investment and privatization which is another healthy indicator and in line with the steps India took a decade ago. With a track record of self-serving leaders and the resulting corruption in the ranks, a dictatorship is not so bad after all.

One stifler, however, is PTCL's strong-arming and monopolistic practices. Telecommunications is the most critical industry for global and technological growth--it ingrains a technological mindset in the masses and connects the entire nation locally and globally. In a "flat world", a strong communication infrastucture is what will gain us opportunity in the global economy the same way India achieved it (data punching, call centers and then moving up the intellectual ladder by getting into media, graphics and so on, all of which piggybacked on its rich communications infrastructure for collaboration and management).

Without growth in the telecommunications sector we can't fully participate in the global economy. We need fast broadband, satellite uplinks, redundant connections and so on. A single failure of our Internet pipe (which lasted 10 days no less) shutdown all call center businesses and showed us just how frail our infrastructure is. Our prior leaders lacked any vision of economic growth and prosperity, atleast in the global sphere and the developments right now and the stock market growth are all positive indicators.

As we step into the new year, let's hope for political stability and continue to incubate this growth and prosperity irrespective of the political climate.

Google Offers a Bird's-Eye View, and Some Governments Tremble

2005-12-21T10:33:00.000+05:00

The New York Times carried this story about several governments becoming jittery at the thought of what Google Earth can freely provide. Excerpts from the article say:

India, whose laws sharply restrict satellite and aerial photography, has been particularly outspoken. "It could severely compromise a country's security," V. S. Ramamurthy, secretary in India's federal Department of Science and Technology, said of Google Earth. And India's surveyor general, Maj. Gen. M. Gopal Rao, said, "They ought to have asked us."

India may be particularly sensitive to security issues because of its long-running border disputes with Pakistan, its rival nuclear power, and recurring episodes of terrorism. Since 1967, it has forbidden aerial photographs of bridges, ports, refineries and military establishments, and outside companies and agencies are required to have those images evaluated by the government. High-resolution satellite photos face similar restrictions in India, which has its own sophisticated satellite imaging program.

----

P.S. I'm the only one posting to this blog. Is anyone reading...?

Earthquake Footage from CCTV Camera

2005-12-17T15:13:00.000+05:00

Google Video has a clip from the closed-circuit tv cameras that shows what happened inside the office of LMKR Islamabad when the earthquake happened.

Pakistan to have Root Name Server Mirror

2005-12-17T14:11:00.000+05:00

Business Recorder reports that CyberNet will host the first "root name server" in Pakistan. The Asia-Pacific Network Information Centre, alongwith the Internet Systems Consortium coordinated the deployment with CyberNet. The root name server will improve DNS resolution times, and thus improve Internet access.

For more information on Root Name Servers, please read "DNS Root Name Servers Explained For Non-Experts" written by the Internet Society.

Humain Bhi Koi Poochay Ga?

2005-12-11T02:18:00.000+05:00

Intel Plans $1 billion India Investment
BBC Story
CNN Story

And then one day later...

Microsoft invests $1.7 billion in India
BBC Story
CNN Story

2005-12-09T17:28:00.000+05:00

Bill Gates launches hunt for top Indian student geeks
BANGALORE, India, Dec 9 (AFP) Microsoft chairman Bill Gates launched Friday a talent hunt for India's top student technologists and urged developers to cash in on the digital age. Addressing more than 5,000 developers at the grounds of a historic palace here in India's high-tech capital, Gates said the search dubbed "Code 4 Bill" recognised India's role in nurturing technical talent.
"This is something we have never done before anywhere," Gates said. "It is aimed at pre-final and final year students. The best amongst the participants will get an opportunity to work with my Technical Assistants Team for a year. "I will get to know them. I am very excited about this," he said.
Registrations for the contest will start in January 2006 and students will be tested for their technical and analytical skills. They will also be interviewed by Microsoft technical teams. "Twenty selected students will also intern with Microsoft India before the final selection," Gates said.
India's software industry clocked revenues of more than 17 billion dollars in the last fiscal year to March 2005 and is driven by a large pool of skilled professionals working for almost one-seventh the salaries of their counterparts in the United States.

New cable link b/w UAE-PK

2005-12-06T23:18:00.000+05:00

[WAM News agency reports] Emirates Telecommunications & Marine Services FZE- e-marine- a subsidiary of Etisalat, has announced the completion of a new submarine cable connecting UAE and Pakistan, branching to Oman. The project to lay over 1200 kms of submarine cable, awarded to e-marine by Tyco and owned by Trans World Associates (TWA), Pakistan, was completed ahead of planned schedule. Read the news item here.

PK and Iran linking via fiber optic

2005-12-02T09:18:00.000+05:00

Pakistan and Iran have decided to establish a working group to address any operational problems ahead of building an optic fiber link between the two countries within the next one year. The decision was taken during a meeting between Minister for Information Technology Awais Ahmad Khan Leghari and Iran's deputy communication minister Kamal Mohamedpour here on Thursday.

The two countries have also decided exchange expertise and technical know-how in the area of telecom training for which officials from the both countries would visit each other to view the status of training facilities and find ways to further coordination and cooperation. Read more here: http://www.iranian.ws/iran_news/publish/article_11238.shtml

'Vignettes from Tunis': Bytesforall is at WSIS

2005-11-16T01:06:00.000+05:00

BytesforAll team Frederick Noronha, Partha Sarker and Shahzad Ahmad are reporting on the World Summit on the Information Society.

The APC blog is your front row seat to the event where our friends are blogging as well. Partha is podcasting here.

Whose Mind Do You Want to Read Today?

2005-11-15T09:04:00.000+05:00

Yes, the blogging world is now after 'attention'. And it is in this connection that the RSS hype is now being followed by the Reading Lists. From Dave Winer's Blog:

"Reading lists are OPML documents that point to RSS feeds, like most of the OPML documents you find, but instead of subscribing to each feed in the document, the reader or aggregator subscribes to the OPML document itself. When the author of the OPML document adds a feed, the aggregator automatically checks that feed in its next scan, and (key point) when a feed is removed, the aggregator no longer checks that feed. THe editor of the OPML file can update all the subscribers by updating the OPML file. Think of it as sort of a mutual fund for subscriptions."

Reading Lists is a great idea but it makes me think if we will ever be left with enough opinion/technology leaders whose mind we could read & follow through their published reading lists?

Etisalat CEO Resigns

2005-11-14T02:51:00.000+05:00

Information & Technology Publishing ran a story a few days ago about Obaid Saied Bin Mes’har (CEO of Etisalat International) handing in his resignation. He had been heading Etisalat International since it was established in March 2005.

ITP claims that while Etisalat is yet to release any official statement about Bin Mes'har's resignation, there is a suggestion that his departure might be linked to the failure of the Etisalat-PTCL deal.

The Daily Times, however, claims in this article that Etisalat has been given yet another two weeks to pay the remaining money -- and other news media have reported that Etisalat wants to raise some of the money from Pakistani banks, to lower their risk and investment.

WLL Companies vs. Cellular Companies

2005-11-14T02:40:00.000+05:00

The Daily Times reports that DVCOM and other WLL licensees have filed a case in the Lahore High Court, demanding that their WLL license fees be returned.

The tussle is between the new WLL providers and the new and existing cellular companies. PTA is trying to restrict WLL mobility because of pressure from cellular companies. (If a WLL phone can used just like a cellular phone, and is cheaper, then the cellular companies will lose market share.)

A similar situation arose in India a while back, and the Indian telecom authorities did restrict WLL mobility so that cellular companies don't get hurt. Our WLL providers should stop whining and realize that they are supposed to provide a service meant to replace (and compete with) landlines -- not a service meant to replace (or compete with) cell phones.

Google Desktop 2.0

2005-11-05T15:28:00.000+05:00

Google Desktop 2.0 is finally out of the beta. My favorite list which previously included the ‘To Do’ panel has now two more members: Quick Launch (which I call windows ‘start button’ on steroids and done just the right way) and Dictionary Panel. However, the find-of-the-day panel is DNKA which allows me to set up a machine in my workplace where all of my team members can dump the official documents and we can then use the GDS search to find files from that server off our respective PCs browsers. The freeware panel is just the right thing that is needed by busy teams to get them to the right documents and needed information quickly.

Flock is out!

2005-10-21T17:33:00.000+05:00

Flock is out! The promised social-phenomenon-to-be is still in its beta. But I hope it will impact the audience of this space. Some quick-and-dirty review is already here.

World Bank consortium launches Web Portal to update quake damages and relief operation

2005-10-20T19:27:00.000+05:00

The World Bank (WB) on Thursday launched an information-sharing web portal on Pakistan quake relief activities and related Information Systems for Earthquakes (RISE). The Web-Portal has been prepared in collaboration of academics, research and policy makers of US and Pakistan universities, multilateral organizations, non-governmental organizations and various government departments. It includes information about 727 villages of Muzaffarabad District and (387 of Tehsil) while 494 villages of Mansehra District(258 of Tehsil) in the largely rural North Frontier Province (NWFP) and Azad Jammu & Kashmir (AJK) in Pakistan. The portal will operate while using most recent portal technology to integrate demographic, geographical and satellite images searchable at village level and overlaid with distances from major roads and epicenter. It will continuously update information received via fax, phone, text-massaging and through www.risepak.com during 8 hours turn around.

Sue, Sue, Sue Google

2005-09-21T11:51:00.000+05:00

More people want a piece of the $$$$ pie.

Authors Guild sues Google over print program

http://www.boingboing.net/2005/09/20/authors_guild_sues_g.html

The Authors Guild on Tuesday filed a class action lawsuit against search engine Google, alleging that its scanning and digitizing of library books constitutes a "massive" copyright infringement.

The Future for Microsoft

2005-09-19T06:15:00.000+05:00

BusinessWeek's latest issue has a cover story on Microsoft.

The first story talks about how and why Microsoft is in trouble, given that numerous Microsoft employees (such as Kai-Fu Lee) have left for Google or other tech companies. It also mentions how employees are getting disgruntled and how two senior researchers have said that a "crisis is imminent" within the company.

The second story is a Q&A with Steve Ballmer, Microsoft's CEO. He shrugs off concerns about Microsoft being bureaucratic, and says that employee morale is pretty much at an all-time high.

The third story is a Q&A with "Mini-Microsoft" -- a Microsoft employee whose anonymous blog has become very popular within the company. "Mini" is trying to rally support to change things at Microsoft.

This cover story is definitely worth reading!

State of e-governance in Pk

2005-09-18T15:54:00.000+05:00

The Centre for Civic Education (CCE), with support from the European Initiative for Democracy and Human Rights (EIDHR), released a report on the state of e-governance in Pakistan after conducting a thorough web watch exercise of six official and six political party websites, during the August 15 to September 15 peak local body elections period. Their verdict? E-governance still in fluid state.

More Google News

2005-09-14T15:19:00.000+05:00

This past week, Google has been interconnecting a lot of its affiliates with Google - Orkut users now have to login via their Gmail address, and Google's just launched the Google Blog Search, a search box to it has also been provided on the main page - Yahoo for Google! ;)

What does Google have up its sleeve?

2005-09-14T13:00:00.000+05:00

Google has recently hired on two serious big-wigs in the tech industry.

The first is Kai-Fu Lee, former vice-president at Microsoft. Microsoft in turn sued him and Google for violation of a non-compete agreement that Lee had signed when he became a VP. But as CNN/Money reported yesterday in this piece, the ruling judge cleared the way for Lee to be hired at Google as long as he does not work on projects that might relate to confidential information that he acquired while at Microsoft. He probably still is a very useful catch for Google.

The other is Vint Cerf. As BBC reports in this article, Cerf has been called the "father of the internet" for his pioneering work that he did to create what was Arpatech. As the Chief Evangelist, Cerf will be working on new applications and worry about what direction to take the net in... He will still remain the Chairman of ICANN.

So the multi-billion dollar question is...what tricks does Google have up its sleeve? What rabbit will Google pull out of its magic hat?

PTCL charging ISPs 15% CED, violating CBR rules

2005-09-01T00:14:00.000+05:00

I nearly missed this new one from Imran Ayub at Daily Times: "In a recent move, the ISPs have approached the Central Board of Revenue, disclosing that the PTCL has been charging 15 percent CED on the broadband DSL service, violating the CBR rules and the government policy." Read the entire news item here: http://www.dailytimes.com.pk/default.asp?page=story_30-8-2005_pg5_1

Musharraf sees bright future for IT. Do you?

2005-08-28T10:16:00.000+05:00

DAWN, The News, and Business Recorder have stories in today's paper about how President Musharraf sees a bright future for IT and Telecom in Pakistan.

How bright do you think it is...?

15% GST on computer parts !!!

2005-08-25T16:20:00.000+05:00

Just as I have been waiting for the prices on my killer graphics card to go down, yippee, the government hikes the prices up.

The tax-free prices were a welcome and should have remained so. So far computer parts were not what exactly what I call cheap but some how affordable.

First the government announces tax-reliefs in the budget 05-06, public goes happy, government realizes loses in revenues in tax cut, government resorts back to old dirty tricks......... ;)

Where's ma piggy bank, oh shit, I am still Rs. 1557.75 short. If save Rs. 1 a day how long will it take me to.......

What's with Vista!

2005-08-24T10:23:00.000+05:00

It's been some time since "Longhorn" the successor to Windows XP has been officially named Windows Vista.

I ponder does 'Vista' sound catchy or has M$ got a blooper on their hands? Though, the logo turns out to be pretty flashy.

MSDN subscribers can download the Beta right away. I'll try to get my hands on it for a preview for our lovely mag and readers of Spider ;)

This is why you should never use AutoComplete...

2005-08-24T04:02:00.000+05:00

BBC has a story which reports a very serious ID theft scam that was uncovered very recently. Using a Trojan, all information from Internet Explorer's Web Form AutoComplete was extracted -- given the perpetrators access to usernames, passwords, credit cards, bank accounts, and potentially anything else that was accessed with IE using a form.

Don't ever use AutoComplete, and don't ever save any passwords locally on your machine!

Google to launch IM

2005-08-24T03:55:00.000+05:00

CNN reports in this article, that Google is going to launch their own Instant Messenger, called "Google Talk" very shortly. It will be a full-featured messenger, supporting voice as well as text. Using Jabber as their platform, Google Talk will interact with ICQ and iChat.

This should mean that it is compatible with AIM also (or so I think), but the article doesn't say that. For obvious reasons, it will not be compatible with MSN... :-)

Update: Google Talk has been released!

PTCL's Games.

2005-08-05T11:09:00.000+05:00

The Pakistan Telecommunication Company has agreed to pay damages for the losses during the 11-day Internet disruption due to a fault in a key submarine cable in June, but said it would compensate only the Internet service providers.

In a recent development, top PTCL officials held a meeting with the ISPs representatives, but said the compensation would not match the claims made by the operators.

Read the entire story here.

The statement that PTCL will not be paying the full amount of claims of losses made by ISPs is disturbing, to put it mildly. PTCL screws up, makes businesses suffer losses to the tune of millions of rupees, and boldly claims it will not compensate the companies. How very nice of them.

Top 10 web fads

2005-07-23T14:36:00.000+05:00

CNet has a listing of the top 10 fads ever. Bring back memories, don't they? Or you have any of your own craze?

Hampsterdance
Mahir All your base are belong to us
Dancing baby
Hot or not
Friendster
Ellen Feiss 3
Star Wars kid
Blogger
JibJab

Good find: Many-to-many

2005-07-06T12:54:00.000+05:00

MANY-TO-MANY: A useful group weblog on social software. See: http://www.corante.com/many/

Courtesy: SA-IT List and Fred@BytesForAll.

Dailytimes site hacked

2005-06-30T11:42:00.000+05:00

The dailytimes site was hacked today... the message on the site read "hacK3d bY ic3d r0s3
security is ~~ :) This is the end beautiful friend. This is the end my only friend".....

Pakistan cut off from world by under-sea cable fault

2005-06-28T17:13:00.000+05:00

Pakistan's Internet and cell phone links with the rest of the world were severed Tuesday by a fault in a key submarine cable that engineers said could take two weeks to repair. Millions of people were affected by the breakdown in the main fibre-optic link beneath the Arabian Sea 35 kilometers south of Karachi, which was detected late Monday, officials and Internet service providers said. The complex repair work may require a complete shut down, potentially causing disruption in India, the United Arab Emirates, Djibouti and Oman, which are also linked to the damaged cable, officials said. "This is a highly sophisticated operation and only specialised companies can undertake such a delicate task under the sea," Pakistan Telecommunication Company Limited (PTCL) chief engineer Shahid Ahmed said. "Pakistan has no such ability." The cable is owned by a consortium of 92 countries with Singtel of Singapore acting as its operating agents. "We are holding a multilateral conference to fix the problem and asked Singtel to arrange for the rectification of the fault," Ahmed said. He said Singtel has appointed E-Marine, a UAE-based company, to fix the fault. They had dispatched a ship which may take 18 to 24 hours to reach the site, he added.

'Open Source Adoption' conference

2005-06-23T12:10:00.000+05:00

Karachi June 25: PSEB is hosting a conference on Open Source Adoption where international and local experts from Government, Banks, Corporate Sector and Software Houses have been invited to discuss and share their experiences to help you achieve true leverage from Open Source.

Registration open to business professionals from the private and public sector. For invitations, please fax your Business Card to 051-9204075 or hosman@pseb.org.pk

www.osrc.org.pk

Pakistan Technology News

2005-06-13T23:22:00.000+05:00

Pakistan Technology News (XML feed) is a forum targetted exclusively toward news related to the Pakistan technology frontier.

It aims to keep its readers informed and up-to-date with current developments in the Pakistan technology landscape. Its fate depends on its user community so your participation is highly encouraged.

Macintosh: Intel Inside

2005-06-13T22:11:00.000+05:00

This year at the WWDC (World Wide Developers Conference), Steve Jobs had very interesting news to share:

“When we look at future roadmaps, mid-2006 and beyond, we see PowerPC gives us 15 units of performance per watt, but Intel’s roadmap gives us 70. And so this tells us what we have to do,”
Jobs explained.

“Starting next year, we will introduce Macs with Intel processors,” said Jobs. “This time next year, we plan to ship Macs with Intel processors. In two years, our plan is that the transition will be mostly complete, and will be complete by end of 2007.”

The new OS X versions for x86 will be dubbed "Marklar".

Apparently Apple did consider IBM, but IBM already has its hands full with a contract for making XBox console chips and revamping some of its assembly plants for the next 2 years for its future investment in cell processors.

More interestingly though, Jobs claimed they have been compiling Mac OS X on PowerPC and Intel for the past 5 years in the Apple labs.

Other surprises included Theo Gray, cofounder of Mathematica who claimed porting the application from OS X to Marklar took only 20 lines of code. Mathematica is an ideal example since it relies heavily on ALU (Arithmetic Logic Unit), the crux of any processor.

There is also an emulation layer called Rosetta which runs existing Power PC apps on Marklar making the initial transition quick and smooth. Emulation layers are inherintly slow, however, so time will prove if Rosetta can live up to it's name.

Some in the Mac community are prematurely enraged by this and this may even slow down sales of their existing Macs amongst the geeks. Further, this bizzare twist of events means that all the time Microsoft has been developing Microsoft Office for Macintosh, will now actually backfire on their strategy (to get Apple users familiar with the MS environment and lure them toward Windows) and prove to be a big plus for users to migrate over to Macintosh since they can still retain their Office environment (spreadsheets, word processor and email software). Microsoft's Roz Ho who took the stage after Jobs, affirmed they will continue to work together on Office. Whack! Maybe Microsoft feels their .NET platform will take them to the next level and that might be understandable as the OS and Office markets are already stagnated (Office 2005's biggest competitor for example is older versions of Office. Same for most the OS and other products which have already matured and aren't adding much value with subsequent releases).

This will also undermine efforts within the linux community to write a GUI for linux architectures as the OS X on Intel will now fill that void.

It will also mean that Apple won't be cashing in as much on it's proprietory hardware architecture and design but they have plans to disallow their OS to run on just any x86 hardware (this lock-in will likely be circumvented by hardware hackers within the first few weeks, if not months). Further, Apple has never faced much piracy of their OS because it came bundled with hardware; in contrast there are likely more pirated versions of Microsoft than there are legitimate ones which has plagued Microsoft for a few years as they have had to support illegitimate software (which is also the cause for a lot of security issues as unsupported, unpatched machines get infected first and plague the others). As Mac breaks out of the shell and hits the mainstream non-hippie, average Joe they will be in for a culture shock.

Other interesting reactions will be those from current PC Harware assemblers like Dell, if they can react at all--currently their fate relies heavily on the sale of MS Windows.

This might even be leeway for Apple to squeeze into the cellphone market (which might explain why they initially had talks with IBM who is investing in cell processor plants). The landscape will take a very interesting shape in the upcoming years.

I have never wanted to drop a couple grand just so I could experience a one-button Mac. The investment was too risky--if I didn't like the Mac what was I or any other user to do? Mac has never had the concept of a Demo version but that is about to change. How do you feel about this (as a PC or Apple user)? Got your own speculations or insights you would like to share?

Night vigil with 'gaali' music

2005-05-31T13:29:00.000+05:00

Just came across this interesting article at the times of india site: "HYDERABAD: Apart from the snazzy accent, confident diction and good communication skills, call centre executives can do with an ability to endure an earful of swear words every day at work.For customers can give free rein to their vocabulary from their secure distance. And Indophobia inching higher in the west over the loss of jobs, call centre conversations can turn nasty once the caller discerns from the accent that he is talking to an Indian. "Hearing gaalis (abuse) are part of our job. If you cannot handle them, you can't work here," says the HR manager of a call centre. Agents say four-letter words are casually flung by many US customers. Some of the abuses are not part of what they teach you in accent training classes. Not being familiar with the street language of Tacoma, Texas, call centre executive can be left baffled by some of their conversations, sometimes not even knowing whether one has been sworn at. " read full article here. Anyone here in pk got nasty stories to share with us from a call center?

Claim of 10.5m cellphone subscribers misleading

2005-05-26T11:28:00.000+05:00

DAWN reports today: "The number of mobile phone subscribers in Pakistan is much lesser than 10.5 million as being claimed by cell phone companies and relevant quarters. The figure, in fact, reflects the collective sale of SIMs (connections) and not the number of subscribers. Analysts in the cellphone industry, while talking to APP, also questioned the claim of phenomenal growth of 110 per cent over the past 10 months."

Really?

2005-05-20T15:04:00.000+05:00

Just came across this news item in a news agency: "KARACHI, May 20 (APP): International film, music and software producers on Friday commended the Pakistan government for taking urgently-needed actions to curb the mass-scale violation of copyright. "Pakistan is showing that it takes seriously the need to address its severe levels of copyright piracy," said a joint press statement issued here by the senior representatives of International Federation of Phonographic Industry (IFPI), Business Software Alliance (BSA) and Motion Picture Association (MPA). "We applaud the Pakistan government efforts for strongly protecting the intellectual property of the musicians, film makers and software developers and believe these will benefit the country," the three international groups unanimously said. The response follows administrative reforms and strict enforcement actions announced by the government in recent weeks. Pakistan Intellectual Property Rights Organization (PIPRO) has been created to oversee copyright, trademark and patent protection issues, while the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) arrested nine persons and confiscated more than 400,000 pirated CDs, DVDs and audio cassettes, besides 10,000 Master Discs (stampers) and closing down six illegal optical disc plants around Karachi."
How come I'm still able to buy the pirated goodies from the shops right across the streets in Karachi even now?

Let's talk telecom...or so they say

2005-05-19T00:16:00.000+05:00

Attended a 'dialogue' about Telecom in Islamabad today. True to tradition, the organizers had no clue about the need for AN agenda.

It was as bland as the title suggested: A Dialogue on Telecom Scenario. So much information, so much hype, so much money and so many talking heads yet there is no concept of orchestrating a public speaking forum. The panel consisted of our IT Minister, mighty IT secretary, a cell company CEO, MD PTV and the sponsor newspaper's editors. Each guest spoke for 10-20 minutes starting with "history of telecom"--the editors majorly mixed up their IT with their telecom [always a BIG blunder!] and moving on to issues cellular companies are facing today.

Telecom in Pakistan? I see lots: PTCL, poor customer service, lack of superb HR, regulatory issues, landlines, wirless, cellular [and not only cellular], VoIP, the Internet....so why was the discussion so narrow and cliched?

Questions from the audience? Miserable. Gentleman to Minister, "I have a specific question for the Minister....[breaks into 10 minute monologue about how soon we will push a button to transport from Pakistan to America since this is the 'e' age]....and the specific question is this, there is so much emphasis on 'e', so why isn't the goverment recognizing e newspapers?" The question met with stunned [numb, dumb] silence all around until the poor Minister said he would put this before the Minister of Information. Yee ha, I say!

Secretary IT quotes: Internet is universally accessible in OVER 2000 cities in the country.

Internet Cafes Told To Remove Covered Cabins

2005-05-17T11:04:00.000+05:00

From Dawn

Sindh Home Minister Rauf Siddiqui has warned the internet cafe owners that they are allowed cabin partitions in their cafes up to the height of 4.5 feet only. These should be open cabins and covered ones will not be allowed, the minister said. Rauf Siddiqui said that he had been continuously receiving complaints that the internet cafes were so designed that these had totally covered cabins wherein videos were taken of the people inside with the help of cameras which was totally an illegal and immoral act.

Such complaints were causing problems of serious nature leading to creation of moral declination in society, while the fact was that a constructive and positive use of internet did serve as a source for a lot of youth in building up their academic career.

The minister gave one week time to the owners of internet cafes to modify the cafe designs as per standard rules. He said that after one week from May 23, all DPOs and TPOs would check the internet cafes in their respective areas. In case of default, not only strict legal action would be taken against such owners but the punishment would include sealing of their cafes.

And the government realizes they must take this step now, almost a year after the infamous Rawalpindi cyber cafe incident?

Console Wars

2005-05-17T10:05:00.000+05:00

Just last week, Microsoft announced the XBox 360 -- scheduled to go on sale this Christmas. Yesterday, Sony announced the PS3. Even though the PS3 won't go on sale until sometime early next year, Sony is trying to convince gamers to hold off on buying a console this Christmas (read: XBox) and buy the PS3 when it comes out next year.

Me thinks that both consoles look surprisingly similar. Coincidence?

TRG DC secretary works in Pakistan

2005-05-12T09:07:00.000+05:00

Too much info, too little novelty. Here's one that forced me to say hello to the few who stop by here:

"In a chic downtown lobby across the street from the Old Executive Office Building, Saadia Musa answers phones, orders sandwiches and lets in the FedEx guy. And she does it all from Karachi, Pakistan. As receptionist for the Resource Group, Musa greets employees and visitors via a flat screen hanging on the lobby's wall. Although they are nine hours behind and nearly 7,500 miles away, her U.S.-based bosses rely on her to keep order during the traffic of calls and meetings."

Full marks for thinking cool, Zia ;-) Thanks SQ, for the tip-off.

Spider's website

2005-05-03T14:47:00.000+05:00

Is it just my PC or is the website of Spider down at the moment? I manage to get to the homepage but then it gives me a 404 error for almost every link i click on...

9 Year Old Girl in Pakistan Is a Microsoft Certified Professional.

2005-05-02T20:24:00.000+05:00

At just 9 years old, Arfa Karim Randhawa , of Faisalabad, Pakistan, is one of the youngest MCPs in the world.

The Microsoft Certified Professional (MCP) credential is for technology professionals who have the skills to successfully implement a Microsoft product or technology as part of a business solution.

Arfa recently received her credentials from Emre Berkin, chairman of Microsoft's Europe, Middle East and Africa region, and Jawwad Rehman, Microsoft's country manager for Pakistan.

View: Arifa Karim Interview

Source: G3Technews via Microsoft.

Mobile number portability

2005-05-02T10:08:00.000+05:00

Just came across this editorial in today's DAWN issue: "Mobile number portability: MOBILE phone users will find some respite thanks to the proposed introduction of Mobile Number Portability (MNP) for which Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) has constituted a supervisory board that plans to implement the scheme by January 2006. A central database administration which will house a database of mobile subscriber number references is being developed to implement this portability facility. MNP, which allows mobile phone users to switch mobile phone operators but retain their existing number, is available in many countries of the world but its proposed arrival in Pakistan was being strongly resisted by two of the largest mobile operators, perhaps because they feared a loss of the market share. However, PTA was not convinced by their arguments and has gone ahead and decided that the facility will be made available next year which it believes will boost fair competition among all mobile phone operators.This decision is one that will benefit consumers who are already frustrated by the poor service current mobile phone operators are providing. Despite certain mobile phone companies being threatened with severe legal action, not to mention heavy fines, if their quality is not improved, consumers periodically face frequent problems in connectivity, poor network services and other customer-related issues. Many who complain of such problems are hesitant to switch over to another company because they do not want to switch their number, a concern that will no longer apply once MNP comes into force. This will also force mobile phone companies to ensure better service to their customers or face losing their subscribers to better companies. Either way, it seems the customer is in a win-win situation — provided PTA is able to ensure that the implementation of MNP goes through smoothly."

Why do you blog?

2005-04-30T23:51:00.000+05:00

I am asking bloggers this question: Why do you blog. Please answer here.

Adobe & Macromedia

2005-04-28T12:56:00.000+05:00

This news is specially interesting for the designers - graphic, web whatever! - as the two giants Adobe & Macromedia have merged together. Well, not merged. Adobe has bought Macromedia for over 3 billion US Dollars. That's right, that's a 'b'.

Adobe has also announced that the although the Macromedia products such as the famous Macromedia Flash etc will be maintained and built upon, the Macromedia brand itself will eventually be phased out. Now we be buying Adobe Flash!

Adobe website Macromedia website

Microsoft Mystery Web Site !!!!!

2005-04-16T22:44:00.000+05:00

A few days ago a mysterious site popped up that is owned and maintained by Microsoft. With it is a minute long video telling us:

something is coming
something fun
something with reward
something with recognition
something with style
something inspired

It promises to disclose the offering on April 25th.

View: Microsoft's Start Something PC
CrossPosted : G3TechNews

Network busy?

2005-04-06T12:20:00.000+05:00

Yesterday, Mobilink's network crashed (yes, again). Although Telenor has launched and Warid is due to offer its services this year, Mobilink is the largest cellular service provider, and one cannot expect all Mobilink users to switch over to other cellular service providers. However, PTA's just announced it plans to suspend Mobilink's license within 30 days and impose a Rs. 350 million fine on the company if they doesnt respond to a show-cause notice (source: Dawn). While Mobilink has added another dialing code (0301), it hasn't made much of a difference, and the crash yesterday is only proof of that. One can only hope (in vain methinks) that this threat makes Mobilink do something about their utterly horrendous service.

This is Pakistan

2005-03-28T16:02:00.000+05:00

In blog directories {(1), (2), (3), (4) }, services, rankings, we do not see tangible evidence of blogs by Pakistanis. However, during my hunt, I have seen Pakistan blogsphere growing exponentially. Blogging is also not an economic hobbyhorse here yet but one can see some business blogs, sponsored ads at some. Though, English is a predominant language at the Web but look for it and you may find blogs in all languages including Urdu.

Light Within intends compiling a list of blogs by resident and non-resident Pakistanis. This does not imply that these are the best or busiest blogs published by Pakistanis, although in some instances, they might be, nor is the list conclusive. The list is intended to showcase blogs by Pakistanis. Moreover, blog worth attention will be reviewed here.

Leave your blog URL in comments here. Also, add any other Pakistani blog that you might have noticed.

PTCL considering yet another relief package

2005-03-18T21:37:00.001+05:00

The PTCL in January this year announced cut in international calls by over 20 percent - a second major relief offered by the state-owned telecom after July 2004.

The PTCL in July 2004 announced a relief package for domestic and commercial consumers including free-of-cost local calls during late night hours, reduced international and domestic tariffs and telephone installation fee and cuts in Internet bandwidth rates and other related services.

Is PTCL running a business or a refugee camp? It's things like these which shows they still just don't get it. At first I thought it was this particular newsreport, but on the PTCL website the words major relief package is plastered all over the place.

For those wondering what the it is that they don't get, it is the fact that all PTCL seems to do is charge till it bleeds and introduce nothing at all till they absolutely have to, and that too only with kicks from the govt. Relief packages!! PTCL has much lower costs than the cellular companies yet they still charge more. Their internet bandwidth costs are criminally high, and they regularly shaft the companies who're using their exhanges for DSL. So now they're going around providing relief - will someone wake them up and tell them the 21st century has been around for a while now? While I'm bashing PTCL, here is a must read rant by Shakir Husain: The customer strikes back:

Today is a brilliant day for me as I get to deprive my (at the time of print ex) cellular service provider of my hard earned money. Ladies and gentlemen, I just voted with my wallet. Mistreated, overcharged, ripped off, treated without an ounce of respect, and utterly exasperated; we, the customers, get to hit back for the first time. I have personally waited for about two years to dump my existing cellular company. For two years I have fumed every month when I've had to pay my ten grand plus to my service provider though I don't know if I can even call it that, because service is hardly what I've got for the past two years.

Read the whole thing.

XP Starter Edition: Cheap and Poor

2005-03-17T19:17:00.000+05:00

Microsoft has launched the XP started edition in India with the Hindi language interface. The XPSE is slated to match the Windows XPPE (the pirated edition).

I wonder when the Pakistan launch will happen? WinXP is about 8000 Pakistani Rs. here, which is just too expensive, especially considering a complete pc with a pirated OS is available for Rs. 20,000.

XP Starter Edition will allow users to execute only three programs at any given time and will display lower resolution graphics. The OS will lack multiple user accounts and home networking options.
...The company is also expects that cheaper software will discourage piracy, where the ratio of unlicensed software is five times greater than that of licensed copies.

Crippled? No networking options? Good luck to MS on this. Cheaper is one thing, but crippled?

Blogathon

2005-03-17T09:24:00.000+05:00

An Irish blogger is organizing a Blog Maraton - registered bloggers will have to put up a post every 30 minutes for 26.2 hours. The date is 1st April 2005, which has caused many people to term it as an April Fool's joke. However, since the lady is looking to the Guinness Book of World Records, I have a feeling that this Blogathon is very genuine. Check out the latest at Blog Marathon.

E-mail scans

2005-03-12T10:46:00.000+05:00

Just when one thinks that the government can do nothing more to shock you or make you want to bang your head against the world, especially regarding their decisions for the IT sector, they go around and do something like this.

What does this mean in terms of internet security in Pakistan? Does the government really think that tracking e-mail accounts (and that too for a month) will help solve e-crimes? Dear God, is there no end to this madness?

Yahoo Launches Mobile RSS News Feed

2005-03-11T20:49:00.000+05:00

Yahoo Inc. on Thursday launched a service that allows mobile phone users to access news and other information either from the portal's personalized news and information service or from websites that offer RSS content syndication.

How to Access Yahoo RSS feeds on Mobiles :

First navigate to http://mobile.yahoo.com in your phone's WAP 2.0 minibrowser and navigate down to the News link. From there click on My Headlines, log in with your Yahoo! ID and all the RSS headlines that you've added to your My Yahoo! page are listed, ready to be read on the go. Clicking on the individual feed links will let you read a summary of the stories (about 1024 characters, which is actually more than appears on the My Yahoo! Web version) and if you've got a phone which has a browser that supports full HTML web pages, each of the headlines will be live links to the original article.

Source: Link

Behind the Scenes

2005-03-10T09:37:00.000+05:00

Online encyclopedia, Wikipedia has always come to the rescue whenever one needs information on any subject possible. This article pays a tribute to the people who have worked selflessly to create this encyclopedia which has 490,000 articles in its English version alone.

Google : Eye Tracking Consumer Response Study.

2005-03-09T20:53:00.000+05:00

Two search marketing companies and an eye-tracking firm called Eyetools have produced one of the most interesting studies of consumer response to a Google results page.

By tracking eye movements, a picture emerges of the hot spots on a results pasge, outside of which a listing or sponsored listing is not likely to be noticed.

See the eye-opening (so to speak) screen shot here.

The study indicates that any listing below 7th place stands a less-than-50-percent chance of being seen. Sponsored ads become invisble to more than half of viewers if they are not in the top spot of the AdWords column. Intriguingly, most people’s eyes are glued to the left-hand side of the page, not even completing a scan of entire listings.

Read Article: Did-it, Enquiro,and Eyetools uncover Search’s Golden Triangle
Cross Posted : Link

Those who don’t write the blogs, don’t read the blogs

2005-03-08T11:54:00.000+05:00

Blogs on any topic under the sun have created millions of online communities. Those who have blogs read other’s blogs for ideas or simply to reciprocate – that is how bloggy fraternity is proliferating. The problem is with the overwhelming majority of Web users that don’t have blogs yet. They don’t visit the blog sites at all, exceptions and chance apart. Which is why blogosphere is smaller than the entire users’ base, though it is thriving, nonetheless? Solution: Every user should have a blog, more so in Pakistan.

Google Web Search Features

2005-03-06T00:33:00.000+05:00

In addition to providing easy access to more than 8 billion web pages, Google has many special features to help you to find exactly what you're looking for. The "Google Web Search Features" page lists the features along with instructions how to use the features.

Apart from the latest Google Movies search feature, the (US only based) Google Weather is interesting to read and apply.

View: Google Web Search Features

Oh boy whose happy, it's Billy boy ;)

2005-03-05T12:19:00.000+05:00

Bill gates received an honorary knighthood from Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II on March 02 at Buckingham Palace, for his charity donations through Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and his contribution to high-tech industries in Britain.

You can read his official statement of glee :) here.

There you go Bill Gates KBE.

FCC Fines Company for Blocking Access to VoIP

2005-03-05T00:18:00.000+05:00

According to PCPro, the FCC has handed out a $15,000 fine to Madison River Communications Corp for blocking access to VoIP calls. The action is seen as a warning to other telcos not to prevent the growth of VoIP over their networks.

Nice to know that somewhere at least the govt. is looking out for the consumer. The Pakistan govt. in earlier times used to do the exact opposite of the above - now with the introduction off the broadband policy, does anyone know if things have changed for the better? When I got a DSL connection at home, I had to sign a paper saying I would not use VOIP. Now, I was planning to use VOIP so I asked someone at Cybernet, and they sorta jumped when I asked them about VOIP so I said fine fine I'm not going to use it and completed the paperwork. Needless to say, it works just fine, and with a good headset the voice quality is better than a mobile phone call, and sometimes as good as a landline.

At work, with our DSL connection they specifically said that VOIP is not allowed. It works, but it's illegal to use it.

Windows XP Pro x64 Edition coming soon

2005-03-02T20:01:00.000+05:00

Finally, for all those Athlon 64 owners. Microsoft will be releasing the highly anticipated 64-bit version of Win XP for the desktop by April.

The new OS will take full advantage of the 64-bit capabilities of the Athlon 64 (and the new 64-bit P4) and lead to a noticeable performance increase.

Check out the homepage for more information.

The Red Couch

2005-03-01T12:24:00.000+05:00

This I got vis Blogsphere News Box: Recently, recently, Robert Scoble and Shel Israel have published a draft of the first chapter – Village Blacksmiths of the Information Age of a book they have been writing about business blogging titled The Red Couch (Though they’re contemplating changing the title). Yes, they should change the title.

Excerpt: Every few years, something comes along to change the way everything is. In the middle 1990s, it was the Internet. Previously, email, computer networks, PCs, fax machines and copiers altered our lives. The continuum of change extends all the way back through TVs, phones, trains, the telegraph, electricity, the printing press perhaps to when the wheel was first rolled out. Draft chapter of the book is here and it is very interesting.
They’re looking for feedback including reviews, comments and revisions.

Cross posted at Light Within

Telecom, telecom

2005-03-01T01:00:00.000+05:00

Special features on telecom have appeared well before Intl Telecom Day this year. The News carried two reasonably interesting pages last Sunday while DAWN carried an advertising supplement today [not online yet]. The Nation ran three articles, two on WLL on its Business pages. PTCL has also been mass mailing an article titled 'Roti, Kapra aur Broadband' to all newspapers, with two appearances today [DAWN, Nation] and one last week [business recorder].

Read these from cover to cover in hopes of getting more than mere market indicators. A good time to ask: Are we getting dazzled by all the 'estimated' stats alone? Where's the hardcore analyses regarding what actual benefits one can obtain from a 'telecom revolution'. What does broadband boil down to in a country like Pakistan for instance?

GMail Offers HTML View.

2005-02-28T19:52:00.000+05:00

GMail has offered HTML view. (Not all users have it yet) You might ask ....

What's the difference between 'standard' view and 'plain HTML' view?

Standard view is what you'll see when you sign in to Gmail from a fully supported browser.In case you don't have access to a fully supported browser, you can now have access to Gmail using a basic HTML view, that is compatible with almost any browser. If you sign in to Gmail using a browser that isn't fully supported, you'll automatically be directed to the basic HTML view.

The basic HTML view is a little different than what you're used to because the following features aren't available are : Filter creation, Settings (Including Forwarding and POP), Spell checker, Keyboard shortcuts and Address auto-complete.

Here is how basic HTML views looks like : Preview.
Source : Here

Nokia may invest $300m in Pakistan

2005-02-27T13:06:00.000+05:00

Finland's Nokia cellular company has indicated to invest $300 million to set up its production plant in Pakistan during 2005.

However, informed sources said that Pakistan has been asked by Finland to early finalise a bilateral investment agreement to help Nokia phone company to invest $300 million within this year. Final round of talks between the two countries is expected to be held in Islamabad shortly to sign the agreement. Earlier, both side had met in Finland last year.

Read More : Here

Opera 8 Beta 2 Released

2005-02-25T22:30:00.000+05:00

What a week ... first Firefox and now upgrade to Opera.

What is important to note that Gmail and Google Maps works flawlessly in this version, and Hotmail supposedly works better. The security fixes include Fix for IDN spoofing

The Final version of Opera 8 is expected to be released very soon by the end of this month.

Change Log: Here
Download: Opera 8 Beta 2 (For Windows)
X-Posted at : Link

Mozilla Firefox 1.0.1 Officially Released.

2005-02-25T11:53:00.000+05:00

Mozilla Firefox 1.0.1 has just been released.

This version fixes a few security holes and some other bugs. Firefox 1.0.1 is a "branch build" serving as an interim update to Firefox 1.0. It addresses critical security and performance issues that resulted after the release of Firefox 1.0. This build is NOT to be confused with recent Mozilla 1.0+ nightly "trunk" builds.

Best Practice:

Do not install it over previous version. Export your favorites first, backup any other data.Uninstall the current version, and then install the new one.

View: Release Notes
Download: Mozilla Firefox 1.0.1 (4.7MB)

President dotcoms

2005-02-25T00:21:00.000+05:00

Its been a long time coming. The Prez of PK has a website and BBC reports he's thrown a little party to celebrate his dotcom day.

Designed by J Walter Thompson's web partner, its a cute PR excercise which offers an auto-bio, wallpapers [!], and the chance to see what emails he will respond to. Make the most of it, Prez! Think they've left something out? Hotline numbers anyone? ;-)

Firefox Post 1.0 Updates Start Rolling.

2005-02-24T20:20:00.000+05:00

The next beta of Firefox 1.0.1 (candidate builds) are done, probably will be released Tomorrow. The beta will include (much needed) large number of security patches plus about 900 bugfixes. Details and Download link for nightlies : Here

While you are at it you might want to read some IE7 related facts and speculation.