iPhone 6 among other things

After a lot of deliberation, discussions, depressions, planning and meticulous budgeting, Noni convinced me to just stfu and pick up that damn device. So we did just that. I am still a little unsure whether I like the feel of the device. I love my iPhone 5 because the form factor is just about perfect for me. This is my first 4.7″ device in the last 4-5 years that I have held a smartphone....

July 8, 2015 · 3 min · abishek

UX thirst

I sometimes wonder if I should just enroll and do a certificate course in UX. UX, not UI – my visual sensibilities are a tad retarded, but I am good at spotting failures. And I love research. I may not be the best guy to talk to people yet, but I haven’t tried that first hand as well. So maybe I can learn. I think UX is a very interesting topic....

July 3, 2015 · 1 min · abishek

The problem with being a software guy…

… is that you may end up having little to no understanding of domains where there are actual problems worth solving. For instance, Noni and I were discussing one of Noni’s ideas for payment processing. As software people, both of us can quickly locate the api and frameworks required and even build an MVP in little to no time. But neither of us are aware of what regulatory aspects control such finance apps....

July 2, 2015 · 2 min · abishek

Aggression

In general, aggression is not a good idea. But I think aggression is the fundamental reason I have come some far in my life. I believe you need to be aggressive in your work. This has nothing to do with the proverbial rat-race. Of course, you need to be very aggressive to actually achieve something in the race as well. But that aggression possibly only gives you bad health and nothing much else....

July 1, 2015 · 2 min · abishek

Should I go back to Android?

Two years of iPhone has served me very well. Now I need to renew my contract and I can get another device with the new contract. I could forgo a device, but I may not be able to get a device in the contract later on. So, it put me in a fix. Fix because the contract does not support picking a 5S device. Or even a 4S device. And I am not sure if I want to lug around a bigger handset than that....

June 22, 2015 · 3 min · abishek

Hesitation

If you have to hesitate to make a decision, then perhaps you are not yet ready to go ahead with it. You lack the clarity or confidence or the rigor needed to keep up with the decision. I hesitated again today to do something. A hesitation I would not have had 4 years back even if I was earning only half of what I do today. Growing up does not always make your life easy....

June 20, 2015 · 1 min · abishek

Mujhe Hindi maaloom hain

As I was rolling in the bed y’day night trying to sleep, I weirdly started thinking how Hindi as a language fared in my life. When I entered middle school, I had to make a choice for the second language. And my parents rightly made my choice for studying Hindi. They felt, I would anyway pickup Tamil and knowing the national language is very important. Yes. I totally agree today – besides, I am sure Hindi was simpler than Tamil....

June 18, 2015 · 3 min · abishek

Losing some wisdom

Last weekend I had a very bad tooth ache. Clove oil wouldn’t work. And it got so bad that I actually went to a dentist. Oh! And getting a dentist appointment in Singapore is next to impossible – I guess every one is fixing their teeth at all times. After quite a few failed attempts, the wife managed to land an appointment in one clinic. Dental treatments in Singapore are a luxury....

June 8, 2015 · 3 min · abishek

Cooking

Noni is at her parents’ for a couple of weeks. I don’t have the luxury of a work-from-home for that long, so I stayed back. There was only one thing both of us were worried about – my food. I could barely cook, forget preparing lunch and dinner amidst all the dish washing. But before Noni took the flight she prepped me up for a full week to be able to cook – more than curd rice and puliyodharai paste....

May 25, 2015 · 1 min · abishek

Excercise Timer

I have recently got on an exercise regimen to fight my back pain problems. It is sort of like Yoga but in a controlled manner. I don’t know if its fun, but it definitely helps to keep pain away. Typically, I’ll need to do 4-6 exercises twice a day. Each exercise is repeated three times and lasts 30 sec each time. Pretty simple, right? You need to keep aside about 30 minutes twice a day to take care of this....

May 19, 2015 · 4 min · abishek