First Look at Windows 7

As reported earlier, the finer details of Windows 7 were revealed at the Professional Developers Conference(PDC) that is underway at Los Angeles.

We now have a fair idea of what Windows 7 really is all about.

The PDC coverage also answers the biggest question people had in their minds -- Is Windows 7 just a "spruced up" Vista? This is what it was considered to be, when we had a very restrictive initial look at the leaked screen shots that appeared few weeks ago. Well, that argument has been laid to rest now with Microsoft offering a "hands-on" to the journalists who attended the PDC. They had on offer a Dell Laptop loaded with a Windows 7 pre-beta Build 6801.

These are the initial impressions of what the Windows 7 is all about -- and what it is not.

To start with, it is not just a Vista rehash. Yes, it retains the "family look" but there are many underlying changes that makes it a far better OS than its predecessor. Although I still think they should have opted for a full design-change to alienate itself from Vista, Microsoft chose not to do so and I believe they have valid reasons for that decision. So, what's new? And what is not? Read on.

First off, the build that was showcased during the PDC (6801) is reportedly an older version. This meant that several of the new features that were seen in some screenshots were not present in this build. For the record, screen shots have revealed newer build versions; namely build 6926 and 6933, which seems to be a more complete package -- albeit an unstable one.

Networking -- the Windows 7 way

To start off, connecting to a wireless network is now far easier. In fact, it is just one click away from the task bar -- to digress a bit here, the taskbar is another Windows component that has more or less remained the same over the years. Not any longer! The good ol' taskbar "text" has given way to icons (which does impart a somewhat gaudy look to it). More on the taskbar improvement later. As for choosing a WiFi network to hop on to: click on the icon on the task bar and you get a list of all the networks available. Click on the one you wish to join to and you're done! Now that's nifty but leaves me wonderin why such an interface was not offered earlier, through Vista.

UAC remains; but subtler now

The dreaded UAC (User Access Control) pop-ups still loom large. Yes, you have the option to turn them off in Vista... However, Microsoft thinks there are folks who would still want their computers to be a bit more proactive and let you know what your background programs are up to. So what's on offer? A slider control through which you decide whether to turn UAC off completely or let it pop up only when a program (and not you) makes a change to the system settings. Nice!

Sidebar: Killed

I am not sure how many of you found the Vista sidebar irritating, as I did. When screen real-estate is at a premium, it was a pain if you wanted to use the gadgets without the accompanying sidebar to eat up your resolution. Windows 7 has shown the sidebar the door but the gadgets remain: you are now free to place them anywhere on your screen. Finally!

HomeGroups

The Homegroup is supposed to be a tool to share files and media over a small home network. Apart from sharing printers, it can also help setup a share for other hardware, and allows for seamless inter-machine connectivity along with added security: you decide what to share and what not to. This is one of those networking solutions that is wizard-driven. The problem is that wizards rarely work uner the Windows ecosystem -- how many times have you run a networking wizard which successfully does nothing? Let's hope this one actually works.

Device Stage

Device Stage is an enhanced "auto-play" pop up when you connect an external device to your computer. The only difference is that now you have different interfaces for various hardware. By supported hardware, I mean the devices which provides content for the Device Stage will show up with "extra features", when connected, instead of the plain auto-play window that is the current norm. It remains to be seen if device manufacturers pick this up.

Taskbar

Yes we're back where we started. As I mentioned earlier, the taskbar has undergone a complete transformation after having been left unchanged since eternity. The quick launch has been discarded and now we have icons replacing the text that displayed running programs (very Mac OSX). The right click offers greater access to features and flexibility -- offering options such as opening recent files and related goodies.

Multitouch

Finally we have multitouch on the PC and prima-facie, it seems to work pretty well. While you might need a slight learning curve to start off with it, it won t take an user significant time to master it. And yes, it supports all the gestures you have in mind -- pinching, stretching and the others. Happy?

User Interface

Ok, nothing revolutionary here. It still looks like Vista (which most people might not like). But there have been minor changes. The Flip 3D remains along with the new taskbar (already previewed). Notable additions include a new windows resizing feature which has managed to turn some heads. And yes, the system tray has been upgraded as well. It now offers you more control over the (annoying) balloon pop ups -- letting you decide if you want to display an item on the tray permanently or not.

Mac Users Boo (as usual)

While many have welcomed the changes, Mac users claim most of the new features on the Windows 7 are simply Microsoft's version of existing OSX stuff. Yes, we have been hearing this ever since the Vista launch and now it has rather become a norm. Windows 7 is arguably the biggest change to the user interface that Windows have been through since XP and from what I see, it is a far cry from a rehashed Vista. With an expected 2009 launch it remains to be seen how it fares against the OSX SnowLeopard 10.6 due mid-2009.

A faster Windows?

Windows 7 will also aim to be leaner, faster and it won't crib for system resources -- a lesson well learnt from the Vista debacle. Remember the 'Vista capable' labels? To prove this, Windows SVP Steve Sinofsky showcased his personal laptop during the keynote which ran the OS smoothly. The netbook reportedly ran at 1Ghz with 1 GB of RAM. Now that's nice. An OS easier on the hardware is certainly welcome.

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Viswanathan Anand Biography

Viswanathan Anand (pronounced Vis'wah'nəh'thən Ah'nənd) (born December 11, 1969) is an Indian chess grandmaster. In the January 2006 FIDE Elo rating list, Anand has a rating of 2792, making him the number three in the world (after the retired Garry Kasparov and Veselin Topalov). Anand has been one of the strongest non-Soviet players since Bobby Fischer, along with the Hungarian Péter Lékó and the Bulgarian Topalov.

Biography

Anand's rise in the Indian chess world was meteoric. National level success came early for him when he won the National Sub-Junior Chess Championship with a score of 9/9 in 1983 at the age of fourteen. He became the youngest Indian to win the International Master's Title at the age of fifteen, in 1984. At the age of sixteen he became the National Champion and won that title two more times. He played games at blitz speed, earning him the nickname "Lightning Kid" ("Blitz chess" is known in India as "Lightning chess"). In 1987, he became the first Indian to win the World Junior Chess Championship. In 1988, at the age of eighteen, he became India's First Grandmaster.

"Vishy", as he is sometimes called, burst upon the upper echelons of the chess scene in the early 1990s, winning such tournaments as Reggio Emilia 1991 (ahead of Garry Kasparov and Anatoly Karpov). Playing at such a high level did not slow him down either, and he continued to play games at blitz speed. In 1991, he lost in a tie-breaker to Anatoly Karpov in the quarter finals of the FIDE Knockout World Chess Championship.

Viswanathan Anand qualified for the Professional Chess Association World Chess Championship final by winning the candidates matches against Michael Adams and Gata Kamsky. In 1995, he played a title match against Kasparov in New York City's World Trade Center. After an opening run of eight draws (a record for the opening of a world championship match), Anand won game nine using a splendid sacrifice on the queen side, but then lost four of the next five. He lost the match 10.5 - 7.5.

Anand won three consecutive Advanced Chess tournaments in Leon, Spain after Garry Kasparov introduced this form of chess in 1998, and is widely recognized as the world's best Advanced Chess player, where humans may consult a computer to aid in their calculation of variations.

Viswanathan Anand's recent tournament successes include the prestigious Corus chess tournament in years 2003 and 2004 and Dortmund in 2004. He has won the annually held Monaco Amber Blindfold and Rapid Chess Championships in years 1994, 1997, 2003 and 2005.

Anand has won the Chess Oscar in 1997, 1998, 2003, and 2004. His four Oscars ties him with Kasparov for the most ever, one better than Fischer's three. The Chess Oscar is awarded to the year's best player according to a world-wide poll of leading chess critics, writers, and journalists conducted by the Russian chess magazine 64.

Viswanathan Anand's game collection, My Best Games of Chess, was published in the year 1998 and was updated in 2001.

After several near misses, Anand finally won the FIDE World Chess Championship in 2000 after defeating Alexei Shirov 3.5 - 0.5 in the final match held at Teheran, thereby becoming the first Indian to win that title. He lost the title to Ruslan Ponomariov in 2002.

He became shared second in the FIDE World Chess Championship 2005 (together with Peter Svidler) with 8.5 points out of 14 games, lagging 1.5 points behind the winner, Veselin Topalov.

In October 2003, the governing body of chess, FIDE, organized a rapid time control tournament in Cap d'Agde and billed it as the World Rapid Chess Championship. Each player had 25 minutes at the start of the game, with an additional 10 seconds after each move. Anand won this event ahead of ten of the other top twelve players in the world with Kasparov being the only missing player. Anand is still deservedly considered to be the world's finest Rapid Chess player.He has consistently won almost all rapid events defeating many top players and his main achievements in this Category are at : Corsica , Leon , Amber events where he dominated almost all elite players .

If his talent as a rapid chess player is legendary, his records in classical chess have been superlative. In January 2006 he became the only player in the tournament's 70-year history to win the Corus Chess event five times (1989, 1998, 2003, 2004 and 2006).

Anand is one of the most clear-headed chess analysts in the world, and his explications are astonishingly accessible for club players.

More than 8 hours of rare insights into arguably the best brain in chess.


Chess titles

• 1983 National Sub-Junior Chess Champion - age 14
• 1984 International Master - age 15
• 1985 Indian National Champion - age 16
• 1987 World Junior Chess Champion, Grandmaster
• 2000 FIDE World Chess Champion
• 2003 FIDE World Rapid Chess Champion

Awards

• Anand has received many awards.
• Arjuna award for Outstanding Indian Sportsman in Chess in 1985
• Padma Shri, National Citizens Award and Soviet Land Nehru Award in 1987
• The inaugural Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna Award, India's highest sporting honour in the year 1991-1992.
• British Chess Federation 'Book of the Year' Award in 1998 for his book My Best Games of Chess
• Chess Oscar (1997, 1998, 2003 and 2004)

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Sachin's First Interview

Legend's First Interview:

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Sachin's Records and Remaks

Just have look at the records held by Sachin Tendulkar. No wonder why British Prime Minister is suggesting him for the honor of Sir .......

1. Highest Run scorer in the ODI
2. Most number of hundreds in the ODI
3. Most number of nineties in the ODI
4. Most number of man of the matches(56) in the ODI's
5. Most number of man of the series(14) in ODI's
6. Best average for man of the matches in ODI's
7. First Cricketer to pass 10000 run in the ODI
8. First Cricketer to pass 15000 run in the ODI
9. He is the highest run scorer in the world cup (1,796 at an average of 59.87 as on 20 March 2007)
10. Most number of the man of the matches in the world cup

11. Most number of runs 1996 world cup 523 runs in the 1996 Cricket World Cup at an average of 87.16
12. Most number of runs in the 2003 world cup 673 runs in 2003 Cricket World Cup, highest by any player in a single Cricket World Cup
13. He was Player of the World Cup Tournament in the 2003 Cricket World Cup.
14. Most number of Fifties in ODI's 87
15. Appeared in Most Number of ODI's 407
16. He is the only player to be in top 10 ICC ranking for 10 years.
17. Most number of 100's in test's 39.
18. He is one of the three batsmen to surpass 11,000 runs in Test cricket, and the first Indian to do so
19. He is thus far the only cricketer to receive the Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna, India's highest sporting honor
20. In 2003, Wisden rated Tendulkar as d No. 1 and Richards at No. 2 in all time Greatest ODI player

21. In 2002, Wisden rated him as the second greatest Test batsman after Sir Donald Bradman.
22. he was involved in unbroken 664-run partnership in a Harris Shield game in 1988 with friend and team mate Vinod Kambli,
23. Tendulkar is the only player to score a century in all three of his Ranji Trophy, Duleep Trophy and Irani Trophy debuts
24. In 1992, at the age of 19, Tendulkar became the first overseas born player to represent Yorkshire
25. Tendulkar has been granted the Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna, Arjuna Award and Padma Shri by Indian government. He is the only Indian cricketer to get all of them.
26. Tendulkar has scored over 1000 runs in a calendar year in ODI's 7 times
27. Tendulkar has scored 1894 runs in calendar year in ODI's most by any batsman
28. He is the highest earning cricketer in the world
29. He has the least percentage of the man of the matches awards won when team looses a match. Out of his 56 man of the match awards only 5 times India has lost.
30. Tendulkar most number man of match awards(10) against Australia


31. In August of 2003, Sachin Tendulkar was voted as the "Greatest Sportsman" of the country in the sport personalities category in the Best of India poll conducted by Zee News.
32. In November 2006, Time magazine named Tendulkar as one of the Asian Heroes.
33. In December 2006, he was named "Sports person of the Year
34. The current India Poised campaign run by The Times of India has nominated him as the Face of New India next to the likes of Amartya Sen and Mahatma Gandhi among others.
35. Tendulkar was the first batsman in history to score over 50 centuries in international cricket
36. Tendulkar was the first batsman in history to score over 75 centuries in international cricket:79 centuries
37. Has the most overall runs in cricket, (ODIs+Tests+Twenty20s), as of 30 June 2007 he had accumulated almost 26,000 runs overall.
38. Is second on the most number of runs in test cricket just after Brian Lara
39. Sachin Tendulkar with Sourav Ganguly hold the world record for the maximum number of runs scored by the opening partnership. They have put together 6,271 runs in 128 matches
40. The 20 century partnerships for opening pair with Sourav Ganguly is a world record

41. Sachin Tendulkar and Rahul Dravid hold the world record for the highest partnership in ODI matches when they scored 331 runs against New Zealand in 1999
42. Sachin Tendulkar has been involved in six 200 run partnerships in ODI matches - a record that he shares with Sourav Ganguly and Rahul Dravid
43. Most Centuries in a calendar year: 9 ODI centuries in 1998
44. Only player to have over 100 innings of 50+ runs (41 Centuries and 87 Fifties)(as of 18th Nov, 2007)
45. the only player ever to cross the 13,000-14,000 and 15,000 run marks IN ODI.
46. Highest individual score among Indian batsmen (186* against New Zealand at Hyderabad in 1999).
47. The score of 186* is listed the fifth highest score recorded in ODI matches
48. Tendulkar has scored over 1000 ODI runs against all major Cricketing nations.
49. Sachin was the fastest to reach 10,000 runs taking 259 innings and has the highest batting average among batsmen with over 10,000 ODI runs
50. Most number of Stadium Appearances: 90 different Grounds

51. Consecutive ODI Appearances: 185
52. On his debut, Sachin Tendulkar was the second youngest debutant in the world
53. When Tendulkar scored his maiden century in 1990, he was the second youngest to score a century
54. Tendulkar's record of five test centuries before he turned 20 is a current world record
55. Tendulkar holds the current record (217 against NZ in 1999/00 Season) for the highest score in Test cricket by an Indian when captaining the side
56. Tendulkar has scored centuries against all test playing nations.[7] He was the third batman to achieve the distinction after Steve Waugh and Gary Kirsten
57. Tendulkar has 4 seasons in test cricket with 1000 or more runs - 2002 (1392 runs), 1999 (1088 runs), 2001 (1003 runs) and 1997 (1000 runs).[6] Gavaskar is the only other Indian with four seasons of 1000+ runs
58. He is second most number of seasons with over 1000 runs in world.
59. On 3 January 2007 Sachin Tendulkar (5751) edged past Brian Lara's (5736) world record of runs scored in Tests away from home
60. Tendulkar and Brian Lara are the fastest to score 10,000 runs in Test cricket history. Both of them achieved this in 195 innings

61. Second Indian after Sunil Gavaskar to make over 10,000 runs in Test matches
62. Became the first Indian to surpass the 11,000 Test run mark and the third International player behind Allan Border and Brian Lara.
63. Tendulkar is fourth on the list of players with most Test caps. Steve Waugh (168 Tests), Allan Border (158 Tests), Shane Warne (145 Tests) have appeared in more games than Tendulkar
64. Tendulkar has played the most number of Test Matches(144) for India (Kapil Dev is second with 131 Test appearances).
65. First to 25,000 international runs
66. Tendulkar's 25,016 runs in international cricket include 14,537 runs in ODI's, 10,469 Tests runs and 10 runs in the lone Twenty20 that India has played.
67. On December 10, 2005, Tendulkar made his 35th century in Tests at Delhi against Sri Lanka. He surpassed Sunil Gavaskar's record of 34 centuries to become the man with the most number of hundreds in Test cricket.
68. Tendulkar is the only player who has 150 wkts and more than 15000 runs in ODI
69. Tendulkar is the only player who has 40 wkts and more than 11000 runs in Tests
70. Only batsman to have 100 hundreds in the first class cricket


Sachin Breaks World Record 11.953 Test Runs.

Video of Record:



Remarks on Sachin By Great Cricketers,Sachin is GOD

"Destined to be a great" -Barry Richards.

"He is 99.5 percent perfect. I'd pay to see him" - Viv Richards.

"Don't bowl him bad balls, he hits the good ones for fours" - Michael Kasprowicz.

"It's scary, where the hell do we bowl to him" -Allan Border.

"There is no shame being beaten by such a great player. We didn't lose to Team India. We Lost to Sachin Tendulkar" -Steve Waugh.

"If I've to bowl to Sachin, I'll bowl with my helmet on. He hits the ball so hard" - Dennis Lillee.

"I'd like to see him go out and bat one day with a stump. I tell you he'd do okay" -Greg Chappell.

"Cricketers like Sachin come once in a lifetime and I am privileged he played in my time" - Wasim Akram.

"The pressure on me is nothing as compared to Sachin Tendulkar. Sachin, like God, must never fail. The crowd always expects him to succeed and it
is too much pressure on him" -Mark Waugh.

"Everybody gets 15 minutes of fame. But if there's one person I've admired
over a 15-year of period, it's definitely Sachin." - Brain Lara

"I'll be going to bed having nightmares of Sachin just running down the
wicket and belting me back over the head for six. He was unstoppable. I
don't think anyone, apart from Don Bradman, is in the same class as Sachin
Tendulkar. He is just an amazing player" -Shane Warne.

"I saw him playing on television and was struck by his technique, so I
asked my wife to come look at him. Now I never saw myself play, but I feel
that this player is playing much the same as I used to play, and she
looked at him on Television and said yes, there is a similarity between
the two... his compactness, technique, stroke production... it all seemed
to gel" -Sir Donald Bradman.

"In an over I can bowl six different balls. But then Sachin looks at me
with a sort of gentle arrogance down the pitch as if to say 'Can you bowl
me another one?'" - Adam Hollioke

Sachin is cricket's God? Barry Richards.

You might pitch a ball on the off stump and think you have bowled a good
ball and he walks across and hits it for two behind midwicket. His bat
looks so heavy but he just waves it arounad like it's a toothpick? -Brett Lee

You have to decide for yourself whether you're bowling well or not. He's
going to hit you for fours and sixes anyway? -Micheal Kasprowicz

Technically, you can't fault Sachin. Seam or spin, fast or slow ? nothing
is a problem? -Geoffrey Boycott.

His life seems to be a stillness in a frantic world... [When he goes out
to bat], it is beyond chaos - it is a frantic appeal by a nation to one
man. The people see him as a God... ? Mathew Hayden, on Sachin Tendulkar.

I (Embarrassed laugh) am a normal person who plays cricket. I am nothing
more than that? Sachin Tendulkar, on being told of above quote.

"The fact of the matter is that India still need Sachin in a big way. All
this talk of the youngsters taking over is very foolish. The reason why
Tendulkar is so important for the team is because of his ability to
inspire others and make them perform under pressure" - Some day on "Times of India".

Cricket is the religion and sachin is the God
Team India without Sachin is like Temple without God.

And, this is the best!!! (A True fan of Sachin carried this Banner in a match..)
"Commit all your crimes when Sachin is batting. They will go unnoticed because
even the Lord will be gone to watch his batting!!!."

Yes, Sachin is not only the Cricket's God, the Cricketers' God... No one can be atheist here!!!

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Suzuki to Launch GSR 150

The much awaited bike GSR 150, also known as Lanza, from Suzuki will be launched in India on October 23rd. This will mark Suzuki’s foray in the 150cc segment to counter the recent launches from Yamaha. Yamaha launched its 150cc bikes YZF R15 and FZ16 that created a storm in its segment. Both bikes from Yamaha have been very successful and now Suzuki plans to encash the success of 150cc bikes in India.

Sports bike designs do not take ergonomics into consideration. However, the new Suzuki GSR 150 will have best of both the worlds. Clearly defining the muscular looks and style, the new bike from Suzuki will have a great body and maximum comfort for the rider. The longer and wider seats have been designed to give maximum seating comfort.

The engine is not as strong as Yamaha R15 but gives a maximum power of 15bhp along with superb mileage and fuel economy. The overall design boasts proudly about the masculine cues and robust design.

It is pitted against Bajaj Pulsar, TVS Apache RTR, Honda Unicorn, Hero Honda Hunk and Yamaha FZ16 in its segment. The expected price of Suzuki GSR 150 is Rs. 70000 as all Suzuki bikes are priced at a premium in their segments.

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Little Master Tendulkar walks tall -"SACHIN RECORD"

India's Sachin Tendulkar moved past Brian Lara's world batting record for most Test runs on Friday, accumulating another record in a long career that has been earmarked for greatness since he made his debut at 16.

The 35-year-old, who has already secured his place among the pantheon of all-time great batsmen, achieved the landmark on the first day of the second Test against Australia.

Tendulkar needed 15 runs to surpass the retired West Indian's mark of 11,953 runs after narrowly missing the record while helping salvage a draw in the first Test. He reached 16 shortly after tea to break the record.

The veteran batsman fell for a magnificent 88 during which he also scaled the 12,000-run mark in Test cricket.

He already holds the records for most Test hundreds (39), one-day runs (16,361) and centuries (42) and is the third-most capped Test player (152) behind Australia's Steve Waugh (168) and Allan Border (156).

Once described by Australia's Don Bradman as having a similar batting style as his own, Tendulkar has lived up to that expectation since his international debut in 1989.

Emulating compatriot Sunil Gavaskar as Test cricket's highest run scorer, however, should also help send a gentle reminder to fickle Indian fans he still has plenty to offer the team.

Frenzied speculation in the cricket-mad country has surrounded Tendulkar as to whether he, along with other veterans, should keep their places or retire and allow a new generation in.












Tendulkar made his debut in Karachi in November 1989, and batting at number six made just 15 before he was bowled by Waqar Younis.

Since then, he has been the mainstay of the Indian batting lineup and had to carry the weight of expectations alone in the 1990s until Rahul Dravid, VVS Laxman and Virender Sehwag established themselves.

Tendulkar's fearless assault on bowlers won him a legion of admirers, with his personal duels against major bowling rivals, the best coming against Australian leg spinner Shane Warne, enlivening the action.

The diminutive player has been more than just runs, bowling clever spin, running hard between wickets for partners and being a good advertisement for the game in its global commercial hub.

The Mumbai batsman has suffered a series of injuries since a major back problem flared up in 1999, largely attributed to the wear and tear of constant play since he was a teenager.

Some critics have also recently questioned the disappearance of his natural flair and compared it unfavourably to Lara's sustained batting throughout his career until his retirement in 2007, a criticism Tendulkar has not taken too kindly.

He had two unsuccessful stints as captain, sacked after the first term in 1996, before giving it up four years later saying it affected his batting.

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Download Silambattam MP3 Songs

Download Silambattam MP3 Songs

Actors: Simbu, Senega, Sana Khan
Composer: Yuvan Sangar Raja
Director: Saravanan
Producer: Lakshmi Movie Makers
Year: 2008


Click here:

Nalamdhana.mp3 2342KB

Tamil Endra Nan Oru Tamilan.mp3 1693KB

Where Is the Party.mp3 1688KB

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