In search for Life

Hi all,
It seems as though with hectic schedules, in our continuous search for something we miss on most of the things, at-least I feel so. It was all fine until I got up this morning and started wondering what is the entire fuzz about weekends. I just realized how things had changed dramatically from my childhood times to now.
Like myself, people who were born in the late 80s till early 90s called as Generation Y or Millenials would be able to related to that very much.

Tribute

Hi all,
Its been quite sometime since I scribbled something here, for the past one month I wanted to do it, but just got the time to do it now.
I would like to express my gratitude to you who has shaped my career, my life. You may ask me why suddenly now ?

Weekend ramblings..

Hello all,
Well I have been busy completely, and weekends now have become entirely time to doze off. Now that we have moved to a new house, we dont have anything literally in the new house when compared to the previous one, as the previous one was a fully furnished house.

Comparison

Hello all,

All our life we have been living comparing our life with someone else's . Comparison is both good and bad. Comparison can lead one to improve , and can make one feel depressed too. One should ideally compare one with oneself, it will lead to improvement rather than complaining after comparing with some one else.
The problem with us is, we compare to someone else whom we know , mostly to the person whom we hate.

What's so funny about IT

Hello all,
Well again am back ! Hopefully this time again without a break..

Well, this week am completing my two years of employment, and I am really thankful to God for this !
On a note, as last weekend being father's day, I thank my Dad, for making me what I am today, thanks Dad !
With lot of stuffs going on, some crazy, some emotional, some unexpected, some unwanted, its been a i-dont-know-what-to-call LIFE, my thoughts were just rambling, without having any destination to arrive at, suddenly it struck me that am close to completion of two years of employment, and I just looked back my life before and after, what a change it has been !
Then I realized, there is nothing big in completing two years of employment, but completing in IT industry is definitely a big deal.
Well, for non-IT people I can see that you are not agreeing to it, well that's true too, the grass is always greener on the other side. !
For what people say for this, " Completing 2 years in sitting at a desk is not a big deal " , " 8 hours of internet a day ! Thats life man ! " , " 8 hours you sit, what is bothering about one more hour ! " , " Free Coffee, you can take a break whenever you want, what else you need ? " , " No uniform " These are just some, the list will add on , and that can be a separate blog post even.
Now, those things seem to give a picture that, IT people are the people who enjoy the most, as always appearance is always deceptive.
We are the people who have to attend calls late in the night, have to stay back for Americans to wake up, so that we dont disturb their sleep, but sacrificing ours. Ok I understand, every job is equally tough, the only thing matters is whether we like it or not, there is no point working without liking it.
But if not respecting it, at-least do not make it as if its a silly thing. Take a volvo bus, from ITPL to silkboard in the evening, ( For non-Bangalore folks, ITPL is the tech park in one corner of Bangalore, where you can find lots of companies) , you get to know what all IT people go through, some will be discussing about their clients, some about the issues they are facing, some doing the work even in bus, with their laptops, some doing their work over the phone. You can feel the amount of work which goes in IT, during the 20km journey. What people see on the other hand, is that IT pays more, that's why they use the Volvo service, which is costlier than the regular bus service.
And more than that, whenever I speak with some college grads, they ask, " Do you know Python ?, Do you know Java Swing, Do you know XYZ," , if we say no, their mind voice reads, " Come on, this guy knows nothing, and he has a job, so getting a job in IT is so easy ! ", well I agree partially on this, probably we are not updated with everything, but we have to get updated constantly with what we work on, when I was in college, Java was common, if some guy knows Servlets, its like king, if some guy knew Python, he was a geek, and now it would have changed , cos there are so many things coming up, which I can say, is unique in this field, there is no other field where dynamism is as random as here, probably, you can never quantize it.
And even more, we get calls from relatives and friends to book tickets in IRCTC or some bus or for a movie, and say like, " Come on , you work with computers all day, thats what you guys do rite ? " . We book tickets accepting your relationship, not because we work in computers, do we sit all day in IRCTC, Facebook, Mails etc. ( I agree, it will take atleast half a day to book a ticket in IRCTC, that's not part of this deal  :) )
And top of that, we get calls, " My system is not working, my pendrive is not working, my internet is not as speed as the service provider promised ", and if we don't have a solution to it, " What did you learn for four years, and you call yourself an Engineer ? ". I have really no answer to this, what I learn in my course, has helped me to get a job, to sustain in the job, but to call myself an Engineer, well, its half and half.
And more, people ask , " Dont you have Windows 7 installation disk, Dont you have Office setup, Dont you have Photoshop, blah blah , then at last, " You work in IT, and you dont have any of these ? ", come on we are not salespeople neither the ambassadors of these, why do you expect us to carry these or even have this !
So I have suffered this endurance for 2 years now, and I have to continue it too, as I have many bugs to fix before I sleep, and many calls to attend before I leave.

And the moment of truth,  I dont know the answers for all the questions people ask, but nevertheless I call myself a Software Engineer !

Regards,

Where do I end

Hi all,
I have been busy all days, something or the other keeps me occupied, mind you being busy doesn't mean that all things which I do is fruitful or productive, I do things which I like, and of course some things which I am forced to like :) and somethings of course which I hate but have to do no other go.

On road to office

Hi all,
After a long time, i am coming up with somethin different..
I know its not funny, but this thought came up sometime in my mind, when I was stuck in Bangalore traffic, just then realized there is a lot similar to our work life and traffic ..


More true of the Indian road because of the delightful chaos which allow us complete expression of our creativity, manipulative-ness, aggression and so on.
I have seen people speaking in phone from the moment they get in, till they get out in buses, some even attend meetings in phone in bus, many read paper, hear music and the list goes on, its all different, and there are many things which we can correlate to this.


I have been meeting many fellow commuters in volvo , whom i have no contact with, but this post is dedicated to all of them, as this is just what I heard others say, and some of course I made it..

Here are some amazing parallels which I like the most -


1. At the red light, which must serve as the arbitrary starting point, it is often your positioning rather than the speed of your vehicle which determines whether you go ahead of others when signal changes to green. It doesn't matter whether you have the fastest car, or the biggest SUV or you're on a scooter. Seasoned commuters know that positioning yourself well is the real advantage and if that means that you sneak through the next signal just as it changes to red - your lead is insurmountable.


In our organisations too, once you get to a common starting point, the positioning is more important and will determine how far you will go or get ahead or will you be left honking the horn.


2. The average road speed is often determined by the slowest vehicle on the road. Especially, as it often is the case, when the road is narrow. Everybody - from the arrogant Merc to the humble Tvs- must drive behind the tractor/truck/bullock-cart as the case may be. You can attempt to bypass it, but at your own risk.


In our offices we know who the bottle-neck is and the trouble is that it is s/he who sets the pace. And it is often hazardous if you were to try and bypass this person. Best is to wait till a clear opportunity to overtake offers itself. And most likely its never easy to bypass that person,as the person who sets the pace will always be like Akthar, while we will be Munaf.

3. You must wait for the holy-cow to get out of the way or respectfully make your way around it. It won't do to honk your horn or otherwise threaten the animal. That's just waste of your time.


Each office has its own holy cow(s). They are there so they are there. Accept it and move on.


4. Often, because of the poor policing, rule breakers get the advantage. It is a fact. People who crowd the oncoming lane at the junction, or those who drive on the pavement or those who have no love lost for lane driving, often reach their destination faster. However, their risks of getting caught or being in an accident are also to that extent a bit higher. 


Break the rules to the extent you can get away with it and be prepared to pay the price (or bribe) when you get caught. Folks who play by the rules often come last but are sure to reach their destination. 


5. Traffic continues to move comfortably if a small vehicle has a break down or an accident. But if the mighty road transport corporation bus overturns, the traffic stops.


A little fellow falsifying his travel expense report wont have any effect, but  Rama Raju falsifying the company accounts has a lot of effect - no prizes for guessing which is more trouble some for Satyam.


6. In heavy traffic or when you can't make sense of the traffic - it is sensible to tag somebody else who does. S/he'll get you out of the jam. For example, an ambulance is always more likely to get you through. Even better - if you can tag a VIP motorcade for a smooth journey home. Or a bicycle can hook itself to the tail of the passing tempo. 


Catch hold of the star in your company. S/he'll see you through.


7. If you lose your way, swallow your pride and get someone to help you. Else you will get stuck sooner or later. It is always better to ask more than one person so that you can be absolutely sure of the road ahead.


Sometimes one can lose his way in organisations too. Don't assume that the traffic policeman (H R Manager) also knows the best route. S/he may be a lousy or a rookie driver herself. Best to ask someone who looks like a resident of the area or somebody with a shop/auto in the area.


8. Finally, if the road is crowded, makes sense to question yourself if you need to travel at this time and on this road. Save yourself the bother because end of the day, even if you do get ahead, you're still no better off then what you were at the beginning. Maybe worse off. 


9. Choose the road appropriate to your vehicle. If you're a IIM MBA or an geek from IIT, you will hate being in the government office.


10. Driving is best learnt by experience. Don't underestimate the expertise of someone who has driven down the road before. S/he will know pitfalls far better than your map can tell you.


And most important of all, in road you meet a lot of people, some you speak to, some you help, some help you, some wont even bother even if you are in a bad position, remember what you give is what you can expect from others, and thats the whole point !!.


And now its Green, so go and take the road ahead !!


Bye till next,

Year 1 Anniversary

Hi all,
There are somethings which everyone feels proud of. One such thing is getting a job, and this post is for such a reason.

Life's twists..Ena vazhka da ithu

Enna Vazhka da ithu ???!!
Its been more than a year since I started working, so earning.. Looking back , I find it full of twists, surprises, sad things, happy things, in short a eventful life..Of all things in life, we think once we start earning we will be free, we will enjoy, live our life the way we want, will be happier than before.. But unfortunately its not true.. Last weekend made me realize this..The events as follows...

Two jobs !! Story of my work life

Its the last day of the year , here I am sitting in my nice rotating chair , staring at all the meeting rooms and other cubicles for signs of life nearby.. Its 10 in the morning , and still the whole office is deserted , even lights are not switched on , no sound of the usual keystrokes in the keyboard , no regular chat messages sound , and it looks like its Sunday . . . Still , am sincere , here I am in office , don know what to do.  ( I don have leave's to take , I need them later !! ) . And whats more interesting than sitting in your desk  with a high speed internet, with no people  to stare at your monitors . So here I am , the sincere , in my place from 830 am !!
Even in regular days , people turn up late in the morning , and thats what is the symbol of a product based company,people tell .. Its good and bad too !!
Good thing ,there is no time line , just come and go whenever yo r comfortable , but defn shd be here when your team is in need of you...
Bad thing , when work is heavy , u cant leave at your ease , even after 7,8 u hav to stay in here..

So , here I am , its 10.15 now , still no signs of life.. So wat do I do , i am just explorin the contents in my hard disk , still nothing interesting, songs I thought , no its already deserted office , and sound ll be clearly audible outside , as I don have a earphone  ( though there are no people to hear my songs , or to stare at me for hearing songs, still its a part of my conscience ) . So I was staring , at the desktop, there is a shortcut titled " SAP Logon " , i thought ok its been 2 hours now , I didn even open my outlook to check the official mails , while I had facebook and gmail opened in my chrome , the moment my system booted.. So I opened my outlook , waited for it to update its folders, and then came a mail , stating , Manager on leave today.. Woah !!
Wat a feel it gives you , that too for a fresher , no words can tel yo tat ,  hav to feel tat!! So I minimized outlook too , and again I saw "SAP Logon"  , I thought no way !! , How many times do i do the same , create a bank structure , create a loan product , create a customer , no no no no  !! My CPU inside my head was telling me not to do the same today too..
So I waited for my frens to come , Oops , one of my close pal in company wen to Goa for new year celeb, other guy is coming late today !!
So its 10.30 now , I thought why don I post what I am doin here , so here I am drafting down my work here..

So , 2010 is going to end.. What a year it has been for me !!
I graduated with distinction , so now am Sivaram.S B.Tech .. ( Am Engineer Sivaram daddy , like Varanam Airam style ) .
I joined my first job " Systems Software Engineer " at Hewlett-Packard, June 21st 2010.  I was in networking wing of HP-UX , its all confidential , not to be told outside, I tell myself , " avlokula namba worth ila ,ena terium enaku, perusa confidentiality nu feel panra " , ( I don kno anything in it , so there is no breach of Confidentiality Clause,am not worthy of it  )  .. So it was a happy 115 days in HP , doing nothing other than the communicator chats , reading the same page of the document of the project, not even proceeding one page a day.  We were a batch of 31 , though count was decreasing week by week , stil I enjoyed being there, with all those people from various parts of the country, struggled a lot as I know only Tamil n English, and people wer alwas speakin in Hindi .. I got quite a no. of frens there, and one of them actually inspired me to write a blog !! I had a nice mentor , there , so down to earth , helping me out everywhere , adviced me for my   career , even told me to join SAP , guided me a lot , even told me how to quit , how to speak to the hr etc..
Its rare to get a mentor , to guide yo even to write a resig letter !!

So I quit , now joined SAP ,on Oct 18,2010, its been 78 days here !! Am enjoying SAP. I felt more comfortable , its going good, and again got a nice team , nice frens .. Going good !! Having a nice gang here too hang around with  , i feel like college again , chatting afer lunch ,jus strolling around , woah nice , and I get paid for it !!

These are the significant happenings in this year , a couple of important family functions too , my grandparent's sadabishekam and my sister's engagement also..

And other significant happenings , I saw , a test match live in Chinnaswamy stadium , first time I am experienced seein match in ground.

And most important of all , I started writing this blog this year ! ( Date , check out my first post's date )

Wats this , sudden sound of life , some guy ping'ed me in communicator, atlas my frnd came..going for my tea !!!
I thank God ,for a good year 2010  and hope for a good 2011 too  !! Wishing yo too the same..

Regards ,