My Top 10 Favorite Inventions!

We grew up reading about inventions that have changed the course of mankind. But to be very honest, I couldn’t relate to most of them and didn’t really bother finding out more about them. Blame it on my limited mental bandwidth or sheer lack of interest in anything hyped, very few inventions have left a lasting impression on my mind.

So here’s a list of my top ten favorite inventions of all times!

1. Camera Obscura
My all time favorite invention by human mind – you can trace this invention back to somewhere in the early 1800. I love the camera. The fact that you can actually freeze a moment in time as a memory which is not just an impression on your mind, fascinates me to bits. So clearly, this tops the list.

2. The Pencil
Imagine a world without pencil! And no, pens came way later! If I am not mistaken, Conte invented the pencil in late 1700. Absolutely spellbinding.

3. The Internet
TimBL’s gift to the human race has altered the way we think, function and even dream. The Internet is a revolutionary invention and only grows to surprise us by the day.

4. The Telephone
Graham Bell’s invention of the telephone has changed the way the world communicates. Telephone has to be considered a great work of man’s imagination. Wow. Can’t imagine a world without phones, can we?

5. Jeans!
OK, I think a pair of jeans is one of the best things ever! In 1880s, Strauss gave the world ‘serge de Nimes’ (denims) and I swear to God, this is one of the best gifts to us lesser mortals.

6. The T.V.
As much as I hate to admit, I think the Idiot Box was a miracle invention. Truly fascinating! I can’t recall who really invented the Television coz I remember there was some dispute about it. But nonetheless, it is definitely one of my favorite inventions.

7. The Braille System
Louis Braille, who refused to let circumstances get the better of him, formed a world of dots that has given a purpose of life to many of those who are visually impaired. Could anyone ever imagine that blind people could actually read? Take a bow!

8. The Bulb
Yes, Edison’s invention lit up our lives forever. Thank you for this absolutely fantastic invention!

9. The Zero
Thanks to Aryabhatta, the world will always remember our contribution to numbers. The Absolute. The Zero.

10. The Steam Engine & The Airplane

Fine! I give up. No matter how much I didn’t think I would, the damn Steam Engine is definitely one of the most useful contributions to mankind. But sharing the space with the Steam Engine is the Aeroplane. Thanks to the Wright brothers, the world became more believable and accessible. And also now, home’s only 2.5 hours away.

So what’s your favorite invention? Tell me!

7 Reasons Why You Will Fail

There is always a certain someone around you who either teaches you everything that will make you succeed or will go ahead and show you the perfect approach to ensured failure. I talk to my friends all the time and it appears that the latter certain someone permeates through all organizations and households. He/she comes in all shapes, sizes and situations! And mind you, this breed is avoided by most of the sincere, field workers.

The thing is, if you are a doer, then somewhere, you will stop thinking and actually get to work! Just maybe?!

Anyway, post a conversation with an equally frustrated friend, here are my seven reasons why some people will definitely fail. Maybe not today, or tomorrow… But in the bigger scheme of life, these people will definitely fail. So if you’re nodding your head at even five of these points, thinking of someone (hopefully not yourself!) then, well you will know!

1. You’re too busy working on whimsical excel sheets instead of working on the goal.

2. You effortlessly piss off the people who could potentially help you.

3. You have way too many complex ego issues.

4. You are the unanimously chosen “Mr All Talk No Action”.

5. Your instant recipe to feed your fragile ego is to put others down.

6. You lack tact.

7. Your discernment of success is different from the rest.

While there is no sure shot way to success, there are sure shot factors that will lead to your downfall – oh, which by the way, equals to failure of sorts.

Apple iBooks : My Two Cents

A for Apple.
B for Books.
C for Content.
D for Design.
E for eeehaw!

Apple does it again. And this time puts the entire publishing industry in a delirious uncertainty. I was on Twitter most of the day following this big announcement. Most people are not happy with this news, clearly because they are against Apple trying to monopolize the eBooks market. Apple with it’s strict policies, unfriendly software configuration and arrogance (that I love), has a strong segment in the market that revolts against anything it comes up with. All said and done, what they come up with is absolutely out of the world! Tell me, when touch phones were already a rage and the eBook market booming, why does it take only an Apple to come up with self-authoring tools that redefines publishing? Because it’s Apple! And they are like Gods of technology invention.

They say Apple’s intention is to increase its iPAD sales and guess what, give it some time and it will happen! They really might be the leaders in education technology.

Why am I writing about this on my otherwise very random blog? I happen to work with a publishing technology company that has been working with a lot of great publishers across the world. We have been building Apps for the iPad, iPhone, Android tablets and phones etc. And yesterday, as a company who has been only focused on the publishing industry for over a decade now, this announcement made us sit up and take notice. The revolution has already gone a notch higher. This announcement might create a lot of unsteadiness in the industry but publishers should keep in mind one thing – you can empower teachers to pick and choose content, but the skills set required to create interactive iBooks will have to be either built, or entrusted to experts. Author may allow you to create your own books, but from design point of view, keeping in mind how it will influence and help a child learn, will require expertise. And iBooks Author is not an easy-to-learn software, they say.

Well, I love Steve Jobs and I love everything that Apple does but for now, I am waiting to see how the real players – publishers – react to this news.

From our end, we are already geared
up to offer solutions and services that enable publishers to get their iBooks on iBookstore!

Where do I work? Impelsys
Our brand? iPublishCentral
If you want to hear from the experts, connect with us through info at ipublishcentral.com or,
Visit us! www.ipublishcentral.com