Windows Live SkyDrive

SkyDrive (previously Windows Live Folders) is one of the coolest services Microsoft offers for its Windows Live users. SkyDrive is a Password-protected (with Windows Live ID) online file storage that enables users to upload files & allows to keep the files private, share with contacts, or make the files public. Publicly-shared files do not require a Windows Live ID to access. Here are some of the cool features of SkyDrive as Microsoft describes....

• Easy access
  Access 5 GB of free storage from any online PC or Web-enabled mobile device. You can even drag and drop files directly from your PC to your SkyDrive with the optional upload tool (needs an ActiveX control installaation).
• Store files for yourself
  Using multiple computers? No problem. When you store your files online in Personal folders, only you can access them.
• Share with your friends
  Need to share stuff with classmates, co-workers or family? Store it in a Shared Folder and control who can see and add files.
• Link directly to your SkyDrive folders
  Each folder on SkyDrive has its own Web address that you can send in an e-mail, paste in a document, add as a favorite, save as a shortcut... you name it.

Among all the cool stuff, I found one restriction that needs more tolerance.Maximum upload file size for SkyDrive is 50MB at the moment and I hope Microsoft will increse this size when they are done with the beta testing stage...

A crowning success

As planned both Curtin & SLIIT convocations were held on 21st Feb & undoubtedly it was one of the memorable days of my life , if not the most. I had my SLIIT graduation in the morning & Curtin in the evening.. Gosh I had to wear the heavy cloaks for 12 & half hours at a stretch & next day I felt as if the world was on top of my shoulders. Photo shootings went on till 9.30 p.m & I was so exhausted that I told myself I would never do my Msc (lolz....). Whatever it is, being a dual graduate means a lot to me as it has made me a qualified IT professional & given me the licence to demand myself where ever I step into....

Things you probably never knew your mobile phone could do

I found a few hidden (but very handy) features of mobiles in one of the emails I received & thought it's worth adding a post here with what was in that mail.

• In case of an Emergency
  
  The Emergency Number worldwide for Mobile is 112. If you find yourself out of the coverage area of your mobile; network and there is an emergency, dial 112 and the mobile will search any existing network to establish the emergency number for you, and interestingly this number 112 can be dialed even if the keypad is locked. Try it out.
  
  
• In case you have locked your car with the keys inside
  
  Does your car have remote keyless entry? This may come in handy someday. Good reason to own a cell phone: If you lock your keys in the car and the spare keys are at home, call someone at home on their mobile phone from your cell phone. Hold your cell phone about a foot from your car door and have the person at your home press the unlock button, holding it near the mobile phone on their end. Your car will unlock.Saves someone from having to drive your keys to you. Distance is no object. You could be hundreds of miles away, and if you can reach someone who has the other 'remote' for your car, you can unlock the doors (or the trunk).
  
  
• In case your mobile battery is very low
  
  This is about making use of the Hidden Battery Power . To activate, press the keys *3370# Your mobile will restart with this reserve and the instrument will show a 50% increase in battery. This reserve will get charged when you charge your mobile next time. (This may not work in newer mobiles)

Say your prayers DVD, Blu-ray has hit the trumpet........

Blu-ray, also known as Blu-ray Disc (BD), is the name of the next-generation optical disc format jointly developed by the Blu-ray Disc Association (BDA), a group of the world's leading consumer electronics, personal computer and media manufacturers including Apple, DELL, HP, Sony, Samsung, LG, Pioneer,TDK & a few others.The format offers more than five times the storage capacity of traditional DVDs and can hold up to 25GB on a single-layer disc and 50GB on a dual-layer disc. This extra capacity combined with the use of advanced video and audio codecs will offer users an unprecedented HD (High-Definition) experience.

As the name itself suggests, BD makes use of a 405nm blue-violet laser rays to read & write data on the disc.The benefit of using a blue-violet laser is that it has a shorter wavelength than a red laser (650nm) used for DVD, which makes it possible to focus the laser spot with even greater precision. This allows data to be packed more tightly and stored in less space, so it's possible to fit more data on the disc even though it's the same size as a CD/DVD.

The Blu-ray has left no choice for movie & game lovers like me, but to go for a BD player, since most of the major movie studios including Fox, Warner, Paramount, Sony, Lionsgate etc. have already decided to release their movies exclusively in the Blu-ray format. PS3 Games are already in the market on BD and it won't be too long before XBox360 also joins the club.

Since BD players support DVD/CD playback also, one single player would do the job, but what I'm really worried about is the price of a BD writer once it arrives in SL market. GOD please don't make it sky high......................

Apple unveils world's thinnest notebook

Apple unvailed MacBook Air, the world's thinnest notebook last week on 15th. It measures only 0.16-inches at its thinnest point, while its maximum height of 0.76-inches is less than the thinnest point on competing notebooks. MacBook Air has a 13.3-inch LED-backlit widescreen display, a full-size and backlit keyboard, a built-in iSight video camera for video conferencing, and a spacious trackpad with multi-touch gesture support so users can pinch, rotate and swipe. MacBook Air is powered by a 1.6 GHz or 1.8 GHz Intel Core 2 Duo processor with 4MB L2 cache, and includes as standard features 2GB of memory, an 80GB 1.8-inch hard drive, and the latest 802.11n Wi-Fi technology and Bluetooth 2.1. MacBook Air delivers up to five hours of battery life for wireless productivity and includes AirPort Extreme 802.11n Wi-Fi networking, which delivers up to five times the performance and twice the range of 802.11g.