How to use Whatsapp

Whatsapp is a messaging app based on the phone numbers in your contact list. It does not use sms or mms but uses internet data, so that you don't need to spend on sms. It works on all smartphone platforms (except obscure ones) including Blackberry (it runs fine without BIS too sometimes), Android, iPhone, Window Phone, Nokia Symbian, and also Nokia s40 (that includes all asha phones, individual model no.s can be found on the Whatsapp website)

1. Install the app from http://www.whatsapp.com/download/ on your mobile phone.
2. Give it required permissions to access internet via cellular (EDGE, 3G) data, wifi and to contacts on your phone.
3. While installing, it will send a local sms to the phone number that you are registering with, to make sure that the number is being used in the handset that Whatsapp is being registered on. So you need to make sure you can send and receive sms on the phone that you are installing it in. It will automatically read the incoming message - that message has a code that Whatsapp will use to register.
4. Once registered, you will see the app interface in the top row which shows current 'chats' (which should be empty if you are using it for the first time), 'favourites' which is essentially all of your contacts who are using whatsapp too, 'all contacts' is the contacts in your phone's addressbook, "Status" where you can set you status message - you can have custom status messages too, and Settings where you can decide how the app behaves.
5. To start chatting, press the 'new chat' button, select the contact you want to say hi to, and type 'hi' and press send. Another way to start is to select your contact from the favourites menu and start chatting. If you do not find that contact in the favourite menu, try the search function (in the blackberry, simply start typing the name of the contact in the favourites menu). If you still don't find them it means that they do not use whatsapp, or they have registered a different number (which is not present in your addressbook). You have the option of searching them up in 'all contacts' and inviting them via normal/standard SMS.
6. You can also form groups in whatsapp, Simply start a 'new group chat', select the contacts you want to add to the group and you are good to go. You can also add new members to the group later on.

Using whatsapp with a different number:
Once installed and registered, You can change the sim card in the phone to keep using whatsapp with the old number, provided you don't need to re-register on whatsapp. You can use this while roaming internationally and use the local sim to make call while still being accessible on whatsapp using your old number.

If you are changing your number permanently, you can still continue the same conversations on your new number by going to 'settings' and then 'account' and then look for an option to 'change my number'. This will make sure that your group chats and other conversations continue. But for the contacts whom you have not initiated chats with, they will see your number as an unknown number unless they have it their phonebook. So best to send them a message saying that this is your new number.

Voice messaging:
You can send voice notes to your contacts too. It might be fun thing to do or you can use it if your hands are not free or you don't have time. In touchscreen phones, there will be a voice chat icon next to the chat box or if you are using a qwerty it can be activated by pressing and holding the spacebar, recording you message and releasing the spacebar to send the message.

I'll be posting a 'how to" for BBM once it releases on iOS and Android.

How to get a torch light on your blackberry for free?

Note: This will only work with blackberries which have a flash. I'm sure this one works on a 7.1 OS device but it should work on 6.x and 5.x device as well.

Well I had been searching for a flashlight/torch app that I could use with my blackberry 9320. Many of them were trial versions and some I was afraid were collecting too much information or needed permission to access the internet.

Finally I found an app that does a lot of things and a flashlight feature built in. Its called Advanced OS and LED. Its a nice app. But while using the app I found that you don't need one to use the torch. There is a setting by which I can not only use the flashlight but assign one of the side keys to launch it too.

Here's the secret that the flashlight app makers don't want u to know. Just open the "video camera" and go to "options". It will have the setting for "video light". Check the box. Now everytime you open the video camera you'll have the flash turn on. Close it to go off.

Now if you want to assign a side button just assign it for video camera and you'll get a handy torch light

Don't want to use the side button? You can always go to the media menu (in OS 7.x) or shift the video camera to the home menu (4.x and 5.x). OR in 6.x and 7.x you can use the universal search feature and just type "video" or "camera" to get to the app.

Let me know if it works for you.
Sent from my BlackBerry®

Voice Recorder for blackberry

When you are in a class sometimes you find a really good professor who opens up so many new horizons for you that you really enjoy his class. At other times your grades depend on being able to remember what was taught in class. Or when you are just too slow to take detailed notes or listen to the prof. I was trying to find a substitute for taking class notes because I couldn't pay attention to everything being taught if I was occupied with taking notes.

I decided to try record the audio of one class. I used the voice notes feature built into blackberry. The results were pretty bad in terms of sound quality but I could make out what was being spoken, which helped me elaborate my notes. I was happy with the result so I decided to experiment further. The main problem I faced with BB's recorder was it was limited to 60 mins in length my lecture were 75 mins long sometimes stretching to 90 mins. So started searching for a voice recorder app. In blackberry app world, I came across a few, most of them were useless or too expensive. I needed something simple. Then I found VR+ on app world.

Its a paid app with a trial period of 30 days. Most of the premium features weren't something I needed. But once the trial was over, the app would work as a lite version which was free to use.
Over its a good app. It can record in the background. It can encode it in the AMR format which is lite, just 5mb for 60 mins. It can also email the recording and you can choose the default save location. Problems: It takes a lot of processing power which makes the phone slow and drains the battery almost at the same rate as calling (may be slightly better). The lite version also puts a small self-introduction in the file before the actual recording.

But it gets the job done. And I'm happy with it so far. It has features that I haven't used even once. And its free.
Sent on my BlackBerry® from Vodafone

Aliens Vs Predators

I have been reading some stuff off my alexa toolbar. Most of the news relates to politics, sports, movies or recently reddit pages. There is a lot being said about TSA. There was this particular post about a photographer having posted about not going to a US anymore, because of the harrasment he has faced during airport checks. Small town police and residents being overly cautious of him when he is photographing on the streets (he was street photographer). As you can image, it had a long list of comments (i spent 45mins reading and i wasn't even halfway through.) Surprisingly there was very little flaming. I have read comments to yahoo news articles, and it makes me want to shake my head in..... frustration? dispair? hopelessness.. yes that's appropriate. Everyone on the reddit page seemed to be pretty much on the same page (metaphorically) as far as what they felt about US.

I was thinking, 'When I go to US, I'll stay away from airports. I'll hire a car, drive for 18-20 hours, rather than endure the TSA"

Then I read this today - America's Worst Speed Traps

I was wondering if government in the US was taking capitalism to ITS heart. To an outsider like me, this was more like "gaming", as if the authorities were playing their version of 'angry birds' or some arcade game. "Ok, now this guy is going to come out from here at 70, so lets put a 55 limit on this section and a speed trap. That should take care of state department's electricity bills this year"

They are playing more aggressively than large Corporations. May be because they are the 'monopoly', there's only one government.

So there goes my option of driving cross country into the bin. Makes me think if I should even be going. I'm free in my country, REALLY.

Another point to notice, US is caving in under the weight of its own regulations. For so long China has been portrayed as a heavily policed and censored state. Seems like US is importing these things as well from China.

PS: A special note to my sisters in the US: Come back. Grass is greener on this side, for a change.

How to make it in Finance?

I have always wondered how to get into Finance in India. It is only now 6 years after I graduated, that I am beginning to know. My reference is the hundreds of Linkedin profiles I have gone through the past 7-8 months. Comments, questions and tips are welcome.

I’ll put these factors, in order of importance:

1.    Go to the top 4 IIMs – Yes this was obvious. Ahmedabad, Banglore, Calcutta and Lucknow to an extent are good bets to take if you want to be in Finance. Chances are that recruiter will even hire you if you are in marketing. It’s a different story on how to get into one of the schools.
2.    Have connections: by this I mean anyone who thinks you have enough savvy to do well and knows people in the industry. Closer the relationship, the better. Otherwise you’ll have to go on a networking spree; relatives, friends of the family and family of friends are the best bets. I have seen that older people find it easier to pass around resumes than people of your own age.
3.    Become a CA: this is also one of the tried and tested methods that can help you get into a good finance job. Aim to clear all exams in first attempt, your value will go up in the market.
4.    Go abroad for your Bachelors/masters: I’m not talking MBA here. Masters in Finance or economics degree from a good university is a good bet. Good part is that these courses can be done without work experience. You will be able to stand out from the crowd.
5.    Tied on 4th place, BCom (Hons) from one of the top Delhi University colleges/BTech from IITs: Good undergraduate degrees are very useful. Somehow Delhi University is what Mumbai University can never be; makes me jealous.
6.    Look good, talk well, be confident: Many a times this is a factor of upbringing, but can be acquired atleast partially. In front end, people look for these qualities, because in finance, people are everything. This quality will help you get good jobs out of college. If you are a girl with these qualities, progress will be quick.
7.    Work for a MNC i-Bank’s Back office: Try to specialize in a function, post MBA jobs are the best in terms of profile. You will be able to make the transition to front end by networking or specialization at work i.e. Equity research, investment banking, Real Estate

The Basic theme goes like this:
Start planning early, it will help you and your parents to understand which path to take.
Network: cultivate people (ask your siblings and parents to do it for you too) to pass on resumes to
Good Brands work!! Make sure you have them. Hard work early pays dividends throughout life.
Standout of the crowd, don’t go for the normal.

How to Use Palringo (mobile phone) for Facebook Chat?

It might sound simple but it isn't. Palringo 2.0 does provide a facebook chat option but it never works. You will try to login and it will say "invalid username or password". It might login a few times but it will stop suddenly. (In a hurry?? go to the end of the post)

I was facing the same problem for a long time and I had almost given up. But then I wanted to have facebook chat on my desktop. So I googled it and found that facebook help center has a solution for that. It seems that facebook uses XMPP or jabber protocol for chat (I didnt know what it was before this).It said that I can use Pidgin as a windows client for chatting so I downloaded pidgin (which was a bit painful., but thats another story). Facebook gave me the settings for it which work fine (and which are generic to all jabber chat clients).

Today for some reason I changed my gtalk password, and unfortunately (or fortunately in this case) I had to delete my gtalk id from palringo because it wont let me simply change the password. So I added it again. While adding it I noticed that it had the same settings that I had used in Pidgin, which made sense because even gtalk uses XMPP. Then I thot "Hmmmm" and tried to add an XMPP/ jabber account on palringo with the facebook settings and it worked. Its not even been a day so I have no way of know that it will last, but so far its working.

So here are the steps
1. Open palringo on your phone.
2. Go down the list and add a XMPP/Jabber Account
3. Put the setttings given for pidgin on this page even the resource.
4. save

I'll keep updating if I face problems. Let me know if it doesn't work

new Acer Aspire One Coming 11.6" my way $350

I bought 2 new Acer Aspire One AO751H's. One Black and one white. Specs as follows. I will receive them next week. May be I'll do a review then.

• Width 11.2 in
• Depth 7.8 in
• Height 1 in
• Weight 2.9 lbs
• 
  
• Color Sapphire blue
• Localization United States
• Notebook type Netbook,  Budget

• Screen type Widescreen
• Wireless capabilities IEEE 802.11b, IEEE 802.11g

• Processor

• Processor Intel Atom Z520
• Chipset type Intel US15W

• Cache Memory

• Type L2 cache

• RAM

• Installed Size 1 GB / 2 GB (max)
• Technology DDR2 SDRAM - 667 MHz
• RAM form factor SO DIMM 200-pin

• Storage

• Floppy Drive None
• Hard Drive 160 GB
• Storage Removable None
• Hard drive type Portable

• Optical Storage

• Type None

• Optical Storage (2nd)

• 2nd optical storage type None

• Card Reader

• Card reader type Card reader
• Supported flash memory cards RS-MMC, Memory Stick, MultiMediaCard, SD Memory Card, xD-Picture Card, Memory Stick Pro

• Display

• Display Type 11.6 in TFT active matrix
• Max Resolution 1366 x 768 ( WXGA )
• Widescreen Display Yes
• Features LED-backlit, CrystalBrite

• Video

• Graphics Processor / Vendor Intel GMA 500

• Audio

• Audio output type Sound card
• Audio output compliant standards DirectSound
• Audio Input Microphone

• Notebook Camera

• Camera Type Integrated

• Input Device(s)

• Input device type Keyboard, Touchpad

• Telecom

• Modem None

• Networking

• Networking Network adapter
• Networking / Wireless LAN Supported Yes
• Data link protocol Ethernet, IEEE 802.11b, IEEE 802.11g, Fast Ethernet
• Networking features Acer SignalUp
• Networking standards IEEE 802.11b, IEEE 802.11g, Wi-Fi CERTIFIED

• Expansion / Connectivity

• Expansion Bays None
• Expansion Slots Total (Free) Memory - SO DIMM 200-pin
• Interfaces 3 x Hi-Speed USB - 4 pin USB Type A, 1 x Display / video - VGA - 15 pin HD D-Sub (HD-15), 1 x Audio - Line-out/headphones - Mini-phone stereo 3.5 mm, 1 x Microphone - Input - Mini-phone 3.5 mm, 1 x Network - Ethernet 10Base-T/100Base-TX - RJ-45

• Power

• Power device form factor External
• Voltage Required AC 120/230 V

• Battery

• Technology 3-cell Lithium ion
• Installed Qty 1
• Mfr estimated battery life 4 hour(s)

• Operating System / Software

• OS Provided Microsoft Windows XP Home Edition
• Software eSobi, Google Setup, Acer GameZone, Google Desktop, Google Toolbar, Adobe Flash Player, Cyberlink PowerDVD, Adobe Acrobat Reader, Carbonite Online Backup, Windows Live Essentials, Acer Recovery Management, Microsoft .NET Framework, Acer Video Conference Manager, Microsoft Windows Media Player, Microsoft Internet Explorer 7.0, McAfee Internet Security Suite (Trial)