When many people come across this term "Android" - Quite a few people associate it with human like robot/outer space character (wiki link : http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Android). Few people in the Computer Software know about it. There are lots of people ignorant of this term as well - This blog is my attempt to help them understand what is Android - in the field of technology.
To tell in a single line - "Android is an Operating System by Open Handset Alliance". It was initially meant for Mobile Phones but now has found acceptance across a wide range of devices.
For a non-techie: the whole line does not make any sense. So let me elaborate it with respect to something very generic. Let me take the example of a house and model it around the mobile phone.
When you look at owning or renting a house - there are many things one look at: The exterior design(external look), interior design(rooms, kitchen, en-suite etc) and the fittings/furnishings(TV point, telephone point, electrical points, taps, showers etc). A mobile phone is very similar - One looks at the stylish look of the phone (exterior design), features of the phone (GPS(location related), FM Receiver, 3G, Camera etc - interior design) and the actual fittings/furnishings (Maps s/w, FM Radio App, Browser, games, utility applications etc).
Broadly speaking - You can say the exterior design and interior design is purely hardware. The Fittings/Furnishings maybe considered as software layer.
In a kitchen, you would have a shelf rack's to store your plates, spoons etc. In similar breadth an Operating System may be considered as the shelf rack to hold all your applications. Applications are games, utility applications, music applications etc. The better the Shelf space and kind of racks, the more variety you can have. The Operating System provides this racks in the form of API's to developers so that they can develop cool applications for your mobile phone.
So "Android" is the operating system. Open Handset Alliance(OHA) as on the official website(http://www.openhandsetalliance.com/) is defined as "Open Handset Alliance™ - a group of 65 technology and mobile companies who have come together to accelerate innovation in mobile and offer consumers a richer, less expensive, and better mobile experience."
Currently in market there are many many mobile phones launched with Android - Motorola's - (CLIQ/DEXT, DROID/MILESTONE) HTC's - (G1, Sense) Google's - (Nexus One), Samsung's - Galaxy etc. The list is not exhaustive but to name a few.
Hope this was informative enough. Let me know your comments and criticism :)
Tuesday 17 November 2009
Thursday 2 July 2009
Scandnavia - Norway
Another time, Another Place - This time its off to Oslo, Norway. Reason for picking Oslo is to see 'Midnight Sun' plus the other constraint being get cheap flight tickets which I could get with Ryanair airlines.
Day1:
Started off early in the morning and took the train to From Basingstoke to Stanstead airport - The train fare was costlier than my flight tickets :(. The train from London Liverpool Street Station to Stanstead airport brokedown in between adding to additional journey time - but still made it in good time for the airport. Then the flight journey was good and landed before time at Oslo Torp airport. The worst part was the airport was almost 2hrs away from Oslo. Fortunately on the airport transfer bus I had a co-passenger who was an Oslo Localite and she helped planning my trip. She suggested against going to North Cape as the time was too short. She was a drug researcher and hence was quite a learned person and when she said that my thoughts of going to North Cape are like her planning to goto India and visit Kerala and Andaman Islands in 3 to 4 days - She rather suggested me visit some other places like Bergen. From Oslo centre, I reached my hostel which was a bit difficult to spot as many people were unaware of its exact location. The hostel was pleasant and good though. Later walked in the evening on the harbour and returned back to hit the bed.
Day2:
Started the day and headed to 'The Opera' then to Akershus Castle then to Vigelands Park followed by 'The Royal Palace'. Later headed back to the hostel as it was too hot to continue and was absolutely tired. I have decided to go on the fjords tour and booked it for sunday. Of all the places, I liked the Vigelands park - it had lots of sculptures and sport activities there. Evening decided to go out into town to check the night life but it rained - so no outing but definitely relieved by the rain as the temperatures were too hot to handle. However just after an hour the rain stopped and sky cleared up. Went out closeby and I end up meeting 2 scottish guys - I dont know what bond I have with them but whereever I go I seem to find them :). They were pretty good guys with very thick scottish accent. We instantly got acquainted very well and had a good time. Also made couple of good Norweigian friends.
Day3:
Didnt feel like doing much and hence went only to few places - Bygdoy and the Botanical gardens and returned back to the hotel after booking for a 'Norway in a nutshell' trip for sunday. Later in the evening - Stefan(Swedish) a friend I made in the Hostel promised to show me the best view of Oslo. He, another hostellite Turcotte(Canadian) and myself went to 34 a bar on 34th floor of Radisson hotel in the town centre of Oslo. Boy it was a great view of Oslo from there. Then we walked on the streets and headed back home.
Day4:
Started early in the day for the 'Norway in a Nutshell' trip which gives a trip around the fjords of Norway in multiple forms of transport. I decided to go to Bergen and return back to Oslo overnight as I had to catch the flight back from Oslo. The first part of the trip was on a regular train till a place called Myrdal. Enroute just before Myrdal is the highest point of the terrain where a german couple - Stefan and bettina, both friends again from the hostel got off for a 10 day hiking! The best thing to do at that place. Hope and pray that they have a safe and enjoyable hike. From Myrday, We boarded another train to Flam. This was a great scenic journey passing through the fyords to a location called Flam. Flam was an absolutely stunning and exotic location! From Flam we boarded the Boat to a location called Gudvangen. Boy this was spectacular - I have no words to describe this journey! I couldnt have asked for more. Then from Gudvangen, boarded a bus to Voss passing through the traditional steep routes by the valley and from Voss headed to Bergen by train. At Bergen I just had 1 hr and to make the best of it, I approached the local people to find out the best restaurant for best Norweigian food - yes the foodie in me never dies ;). Went to a place Bryggen on the coast and had great fish/prawn combo food - Loved it! Then headed back to the train station for the trip back to Oslo.
Day5:
After reaching Oslo, headed back to hostel, checked out and then sat waiting for the time to go by as the weather outside was rainy and cloudy. Then while waiting, decided to write up this blog a good way to kill the time. Then head back to the airport and back to London.
Summary:
Visit Norway to experience great scenic beauty. I am short of words to describe and rewrite the experience I had on the Fjords. Dont ever miss it if you happen to be in Norway. Great People, Great Place but costly one though. Be sure to be surprised to check your credit card bill after you return! Good tour could be arrive at Oslo and depart Norway from Bergen or vice-versa.
Day1:
Started off early in the morning and took the train to From Basingstoke to Stanstead airport - The train fare was costlier than my flight tickets :(. The train from London Liverpool Street Station to Stanstead airport brokedown in between adding to additional journey time - but still made it in good time for the airport. Then the flight journey was good and landed before time at Oslo Torp airport. The worst part was the airport was almost 2hrs away from Oslo. Fortunately on the airport transfer bus I had a co-passenger who was an Oslo Localite and she helped planning my trip. She suggested against going to North Cape as the time was too short. She was a drug researcher and hence was quite a learned person and when she said that my thoughts of going to North Cape are like her planning to goto India and visit Kerala and Andaman Islands in 3 to 4 days - She rather suggested me visit some other places like Bergen. From Oslo centre, I reached my hostel which was a bit difficult to spot as many people were unaware of its exact location. The hostel was pleasant and good though. Later walked in the evening on the harbour and returned back to hit the bed.
Day2:
Started the day and headed to 'The Opera' then to Akershus Castle then to Vigelands Park followed by 'The Royal Palace'. Later headed back to the hostel as it was too hot to continue and was absolutely tired. I have decided to go on the fjords tour and booked it for sunday. Of all the places, I liked the Vigelands park - it had lots of sculptures and sport activities there. Evening decided to go out into town to check the night life but it rained - so no outing but definitely relieved by the rain as the temperatures were too hot to handle. However just after an hour the rain stopped and sky cleared up. Went out closeby and I end up meeting 2 scottish guys - I dont know what bond I have with them but whereever I go I seem to find them :). They were pretty good guys with very thick scottish accent. We instantly got acquainted very well and had a good time. Also made couple of good Norweigian friends.
Day3:
Didnt feel like doing much and hence went only to few places - Bygdoy and the Botanical gardens and returned back to the hotel after booking for a 'Norway in a nutshell' trip for sunday. Later in the evening - Stefan(Swedish) a friend I made in the Hostel promised to show me the best view of Oslo. He, another hostellite Turcotte(Canadian) and myself went to 34 a bar on 34th floor of Radisson hotel in the town centre of Oslo. Boy it was a great view of Oslo from there. Then we walked on the streets and headed back home.
Day4:
Started early in the day for the 'Norway in a Nutshell' trip which gives a trip around the fjords of Norway in multiple forms of transport. I decided to go to Bergen and return back to Oslo overnight as I had to catch the flight back from Oslo. The first part of the trip was on a regular train till a place called Myrdal. Enroute just before Myrdal is the highest point of the terrain where a german couple - Stefan and bettina, both friends again from the hostel got off for a 10 day hiking! The best thing to do at that place. Hope and pray that they have a safe and enjoyable hike. From Myrday, We boarded another train to Flam. This was a great scenic journey passing through the fyords to a location called Flam. Flam was an absolutely stunning and exotic location! From Flam we boarded the Boat to a location called Gudvangen. Boy this was spectacular - I have no words to describe this journey! I couldnt have asked for more. Then from Gudvangen, boarded a bus to Voss passing through the traditional steep routes by the valley and from Voss headed to Bergen by train. At Bergen I just had 1 hr and to make the best of it, I approached the local people to find out the best restaurant for best Norweigian food - yes the foodie in me never dies ;). Went to a place Bryggen on the coast and had great fish/prawn combo food - Loved it! Then headed back to the train station for the trip back to Oslo.
Day5:
After reaching Oslo, headed back to hostel, checked out and then sat waiting for the time to go by as the weather outside was rainy and cloudy. Then while waiting, decided to write up this blog a good way to kill the time. Then head back to the airport and back to London.
Summary:
Visit Norway to experience great scenic beauty. I am short of words to describe and rewrite the experience I had on the Fjords. Dont ever miss it if you happen to be in Norway. Great People, Great Place but costly one though. Be sure to be surprised to check your credit card bill after you return! Good tour could be arrive at Oslo and depart Norway from Bergen or vice-versa.
Monday 4 May 2009
My Lyon Trip
Starting off my blogging activity with my Lyon Trip. A completely non-technical blog!
My selection of Lyon was rather bizarre to say. I wanted a long term schengen visa and the best bet is to goto France embassy. So I had to goto some place in France. I was not too keen on going to Paris as it would be an expensive affair. I did a websearch of cheap flights to other destinations in france and thus I landed up with Lyon tickets. After getting the tickets did I look up on the net and found that it was a student city. Did some enquiries with friends and they did tell it was a good choice. I then booked hostel accommodation as well, went for visa stamping and they gave a 3month visa. All said and done was ready to travel for the trip on 1st May early morning from gatwick.
Day1:
On 1st early in the morning headed to gatwick, parked my car in the long stay car park. Was almost the last person to checkin. Landed on time at Lyon. The first sight of the Lyon airport was not very great to say. So my doubts about Lyon that it could go sour were raised. Then headed to the city by airport bus and it entered the city in the new part. Felt OK so far. Then checked into the hostel and asked the hostel receptionist suggestions to visit places and she gave a good travel plan on the map. Religiously followed the travel route and boy we were not surprised. Checked the Roman theatres, Fourvière Church. After checking out the church and the view from there, I must say all my doubts about choosing Lyon vanished. Then travelled through all the bylanes through old Lyon (Vieux Lyon) and then went to Place des Terreaux, Opera place and finally Bellecour Place before returning to the hostel. Place des Terreaux, Opera place and Bellecour Place were very pleasant to be in. Not overcroweded but the feel was really great.
After a break of couple of hours, headed to Place des Terreaux for dinner. Had "Salad Lyonnise" and boy that was awesome. Then headed for Opera place where there was a latino music concert. The concert was great and then after stroll on the riverside headed back to the hostel. The night view of Fourviere Church and Vieux Lyon was amazing.
Day2:
Wanted to goto a place outside Lyon to get a feel of surroundings and we were adviced to goto Perouges a medieval village 35 kms away from Lyon. This gave us the taste of train transportation in France. We went to Perouges and checked out the place in 1 hour and returned back to the station only to realize that due to engineering works the frequency of the trains is bad. So that was crucial 3 hours lost in the day. After returning to Lyon, we headed to Opera place again to see if something exciting was happening like th previous night - unfortunately No. Then went back to Vieux Lyon, went into an irish pub and watched the big Real Madrid vs Barcelona match. The pub had some english speaking people, met different nationality people out there and talked a lot about football and made lots of predictions about champions league final. Then headed back to the hostel for the night.
Day3:
Headed off to the park in Lyon which also doubles up as a zoo. It was a great place to go. Underestimated its value in our plans and hence allocated far too less time for it. But its a must visit which I did not miss anyways. Next walked through all the bylanes and stairs to get different views of Lyon from heights and finally ended up at Bellecour place. Then headed back to hostel to pack the bags and goto part-dieu, the city centre to catch the bus back to airport. The city centre is lively but most of the shops were closed due to it being Sunday evening. Then caught the bus back to airport bringing my trip to an end. Things I missed - travelling on bicycle. Everyone in Lyon uses a bicycle.
In conclusion, It was a great trip worth every penny. It gives you a young feeling end of the day :). Some comparisions: All people in Lyon are very fit - I could just count 6 people who were fat (besides me ;))- on the contrary you can count the numbers on your fingers - the number of non-fat people here in UK :D. The weather was sunny and pleasant there in Lyon unlike the cloudy, dull weather out here in UK.
The pictures of the trip can be found at:
http://picasaweb.google.com/gkarandeep/Lyon?feat=directlink
My selection of Lyon was rather bizarre to say. I wanted a long term schengen visa and the best bet is to goto France embassy. So I had to goto some place in France. I was not too keen on going to Paris as it would be an expensive affair. I did a websearch of cheap flights to other destinations in france and thus I landed up with Lyon tickets. After getting the tickets did I look up on the net and found that it was a student city. Did some enquiries with friends and they did tell it was a good choice. I then booked hostel accommodation as well, went for visa stamping and they gave a 3month visa. All said and done was ready to travel for the trip on 1st May early morning from gatwick.
Day1:
On 1st early in the morning headed to gatwick, parked my car in the long stay car park. Was almost the last person to checkin. Landed on time at Lyon. The first sight of the Lyon airport was not very great to say. So my doubts about Lyon that it could go sour were raised. Then headed to the city by airport bus and it entered the city in the new part. Felt OK so far. Then checked into the hostel and asked the hostel receptionist suggestions to visit places and she gave a good travel plan on the map. Religiously followed the travel route and boy we were not surprised. Checked the Roman theatres, Fourvière Church. After checking out the church and the view from there, I must say all my doubts about choosing Lyon vanished. Then travelled through all the bylanes through old Lyon (Vieux Lyon) and then went to Place des Terreaux, Opera place and finally Bellecour Place before returning to the hostel. Place des Terreaux, Opera place and Bellecour Place were very pleasant to be in. Not overcroweded but the feel was really great.
After a break of couple of hours, headed to Place des Terreaux for dinner. Had "Salad Lyonnise" and boy that was awesome. Then headed for Opera place where there was a latino music concert. The concert was great and then after stroll on the riverside headed back to the hostel. The night view of Fourviere Church and Vieux Lyon was amazing.
Day2:
Wanted to goto a place outside Lyon to get a feel of surroundings and we were adviced to goto Perouges a medieval village 35 kms away from Lyon. This gave us the taste of train transportation in France. We went to Perouges and checked out the place in 1 hour and returned back to the station only to realize that due to engineering works the frequency of the trains is bad. So that was crucial 3 hours lost in the day. After returning to Lyon, we headed to Opera place again to see if something exciting was happening like th previous night - unfortunately No. Then went back to Vieux Lyon, went into an irish pub and watched the big Real Madrid vs Barcelona match. The pub had some english speaking people, met different nationality people out there and talked a lot about football and made lots of predictions about champions league final. Then headed back to the hostel for the night.
Day3:
Headed off to the park in Lyon which also doubles up as a zoo. It was a great place to go. Underestimated its value in our plans and hence allocated far too less time for it. But its a must visit which I did not miss anyways. Next walked through all the bylanes and stairs to get different views of Lyon from heights and finally ended up at Bellecour place. Then headed back to hostel to pack the bags and goto part-dieu, the city centre to catch the bus back to airport. The city centre is lively but most of the shops were closed due to it being Sunday evening. Then caught the bus back to airport bringing my trip to an end. Things I missed - travelling on bicycle. Everyone in Lyon uses a bicycle.
In conclusion, It was a great trip worth every penny. It gives you a young feeling end of the day :). Some comparisions: All people in Lyon are very fit - I could just count 6 people who were fat (besides me ;))- on the contrary you can count the numbers on your fingers - the number of non-fat people here in UK :D. The weather was sunny and pleasant there in Lyon unlike the cloudy, dull weather out here in UK.
The pictures of the trip can be found at:
http://picasaweb.google.com/gkarandeep/Lyon?feat=directlink
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